Not many would put up with a campground like this – at least Germans, that is. And maybe I might have been upset, too, would we have been asked for some extortionist rate. But at 16.20€ this was the cheapest camp so far, by 10 euros. All we wanted was 50 m² to park and some electricity plus a hole in the ground. One could argue, we got even a bit more than that. No stink, no terrible noise. Ok, the mozzies, but that is not really the campground’s fault. I had recharged 70km of range – by that point we basically slept for free :D. Plus, we were very motivated to leave, so we were on the road by a record breaking 8:55 am!

On our way to Bologna we hit our first traffic jam, but nothing to get upset about. A bit more annoying was the amount of research I had to do to find a way to get to a charge point close to the center without going into the Z.T.L. and risking a 87€ fine again. I had two good charge points marked, but by the time we arrived at the first one, both were marked as blocked. At least the provider’s app let me know before having to drive around in circles. We settled on a pair of chargers 5 minutes further out and for once, the app worked fine, at least. It even has PayPal support. Go ENEL X. I still can’t wait until the EU gets their act together and will legislate mandatory EU roaming for all charge point operators.

Bologna enchanted us right from the first couple of streets in. Very different in feel from Parma, the most noticeable change is the enormously wide arcades along many of the otherwise narrow streets of the old city center. It had a bit of an oriental or moorish vibe to it and reminded us of southern Iberia. The mood was different, too. Much younger, edgier. No doubt this was the result of the significant student population in the city of the western world’s oldest University (feel free insert your own “but actually … “ about this pop quiz level info bite at the next public toilet of your convenience. I am not Tom Scott :D).

Since we were so early, we had time for some sightseeing before lunch. Northern Italy, especially Renaissance era stuff throws out our sense for historical time and place a bit. Everything is bigger than it “should be” or looks too modern for its context. Us northern Europeans really were the primitive barbarians at the gates for so long. The Palazzo d’Accursio for example has an internal stairwell built flat and wide enough that horse drawn carriages could go directly up to the 1^st floor to deliver the papal legate to their chamber added in 1587.  

After a brief round through the next Duomo (photo ticket 2€ 😊 ), we strolled through even narrower lanes towards our lunch spot, window shopping at the many hole-in-the-wall shops offering fresh produce, handmade pasta or other delicacies. Bolonga is such a food town, we could probably spend a week here without ever boring our taste buds.

The lunch place was called Bottega Portici, located right beneath the landmark of the two leaning towers. The Bottega was a stark contrast to yesterday, and probably quite edgy for Italy. The idea is to provide top quality food but in a hyper affordable way. The result was absolutely perfect – at least for us. Via fast food-style self-service ordering at large touch screens, you get your pick between a few pasta options, sides and desserts. Then, you get your ticket and collect everything when ready. That way they can provide handmade tagliatelle with Ragu alla Bolognese for 7€.

Water is free, filtered tap by a large margin our favorite idea. There is no reason to cart water around anywhere in Europe in our book. The food was ready super quickly and the whole place had a real cool vibe – and clean restrooms :D. We decided it was time to call it. The days are getting warmer and we were looking forward to a quiet day at the only other camp along our route listed on Rustiek Kamperen (a Dutch site we used extensively on our last trip).

Of course, we could not leave before one brief detour via another Gelateria. From the Lonely Planet again, this one was another excellent recommendation, although I went for decidedly too much chocolate in my pick of flavours. The stroll back to the car, maybe with the exception of the last two blocks, was a similarly enjoyable experience. The shade and cool mood provided by the arcades was just our thing.

Fully charged once more, the last hour to Agriturismo Alba went by quickly. Once again, the wee ones fell asleep peacefully rather quickly. The camp itself looked like exactly the thing we were looking for in a site for a day off: A grassy patch with lots of trees around for shade and a lovely view across some wheat (well, some sort of grain) fields.

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