After our stop in Carrara, we moved on to the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. This area is home to parmesan cheese, the best aged balsamic vinegar, fast cars, and the oldest university in the Western World. While we did take time to experience all of these things first-hand, our real reason for visiting was to spend time with Angie’s friend Stefy. Angie has become friends with Stefy through Art In Motion, their art publisher. We arrived around dinnertime and were greeted by Stefy, Graziano (her husband), and their son Lorenzo. They prepared a huge feast of local specialties and as Mia wrote in her journal, “they just kept bringing out more and more food.” They also invited another family over to join us and the husband was a native Bostonian, so English was never a problem. Both Stefy and Graziano spoke great English even though they sometimes felt they struggled. In any case, it’s 100 times better than us trying to speak Italian. Graziano was never afraid to try, and in his broken English he would have the kids in stitches with his crazy stories.
The next morning we took time to head into nearby Bologna. We spent all afternoon just wandering around before returning to Stefy’s for another amazing dinner. I must say, if you know any Italians take the time to visit. Everyone we have met has been so amazing. They love to bring you into their home and make you feel welcome. Add to that the amazing Italian food and you have the recipe for an unforgettable time.
