Jeff & Serena 2021 - Italy, Croatia, Morocco

  We had a fantastic tour which turned out to be a private tour. All day including breakfast, snacks, a massive lunch (we did not need dinner and had leftovers for the next day), and lots of wine along the way. But it was not a wine tour. We watched Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese being made, tasted and learned about Balsamic vinegar, and visited a Prosciutto factory.  Alessandro (driver), Alessandro (tour company owner and our guide), Jeff, and Giorgio (bartender at the Prosciutto factory event space and tasting room). Everyone is vaccinated.  Serena and Alessandro in our hygienic outfits at the cheese factory.  We had outfits like these at the prosciutto factory also. Copper vats for making Parmigiano-Reggiano. There is a double wall which allows steam for cooking the cheese. 18 farms are part of this cooperative. Each farmer delivers milk every day in the morning and afternoon. The cheese is made of skimmed milk (the previous day’s afternoon delivery) and whole milk (t...

Main streets run like spokes on a wheel to the center from where gates were when Bologna was a walled city. These major streets all have tall covered arcade sidewalks. One person told us that the areas above these arcades are additions to increase housing availability. The sidewalks in the arcade areas are beautiful terrazzo. Bologna is a place to come to eat and drink. Gelato, bakeries, pizza, sandwiches, restaurants, bars, candy shops, and more. Certainly lots of Bolognese cuisine but also Halal, Greek, Kebab, Japanese, and even more than one Poke place. Most places have both inside and outside dining and often more of the latter.  Fun aside - We hadn’t figured it out yet when Serena took this photo but there was a movie filming in Piazza San Stefano today/tonight. The woman in the green dress and the man next to her are extras. Most of the time the extras were standing around waiting. https://youtu.be/zpPVs7N2CAI   There are trees but not really much else in terms of greene...