Heaven. I’m in heaven. And my heart beats so that I can hardly eat any more pasta…
Yes! I’m back in Emilia-Romagna, my favorite eatin’ region in all of Italy!
But this trip has an extra spin: fine cars for us to drive! The great Po Valley, home to Parmigiano-Reggiano, and Prosciutto di Parma, is also known as Motor Valley…home to Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, Ducati, etc. The ancient Romans built the great road Via Emilia in this region, so Roman soldiers could easily march through…and the modern Italians have seconded the motion, building great machines here for other kinds of roamin’ travelers!
The Romans also began the tradition here of monumental fortresses, and castles…many of which, from many ages, dot the countryside today, offering irresistible overnight opportunities to travelers.
Throughout the glorious living buffet that is Emilia, we feasted on all the greatest hits:
SALUMI
This is the best area in Italy for salumi!
PASTA
And of course…
After we had our fill of the northern/western part of the region (Emilia), we moved on to the southern/eastern part of the region, on the Adriatic coast (Romagna). There is a decidedly more southern, more Mediterranean type of feel in Romagna…well expressed by the artisans of Faenza, who can deviate from tradition in fabulously creative ways:
I’d call it all Fellini-esque, if that were not too easy. Our last stop, the seaside town of Rimini, just a few minutes from Faenza…is the birthplace of…guess who?…Fellini! And the setting of Amarcord! Settle into the sumptuous Grand Hotel…and enjoy La Dolce Vita!