If there ever was a city made for people like me, it’s Bologna, Italy. Not just because of the food (although, oh man….), or the history or the plethora of bookstores. No, the reason I immediately knew Bologna was my kind of place was the porticos.
Much to my dismay I’ve become notorious for constantly being rained on during my travels. Australia, Thailand, Fiji, Colombia, the rain just follows me where ever I go (wow, just writing that out made me realize how much it really DOES rain on me- I should get that checked out somehow…). Of course Bologna was no exception, and our introductory tour of the city took place in the pouring rain. This time though, it wasn’t so bad, because of these babies:
Covered sidewalks, all over the city! You could explore the whole town this way, only occasionally darting from covered area to covered area.
Believe it or not the walkways, called porticos, weren’t put up for rainy day losers like me, they have an interesting history themselves and are actually a potential UNESCO World Heritage site.
You see, back in the middle ages Bologna was getting a bit crowded due to the flourishing university and trade businesses. They were running out of room to build within the city walls. They needed bigger buildings but didn’t want to encroach on their public outdoor spaces, so the officials came up with the rather ingenious idea of requiring buildings to add extra space by extending outward towards the street- but only on their second story or higher. These new floors were held up with wooden beams (most have been replaces with marble or brick now) resulting in covered arcades for walking.
Thanks to those long dead city planners there are over 40km of covered porticos in the city center: some grand and sweeping, others small and utilitarian. Many have architectural or artistic significance (sadly lost on me), and some date back to the 13th century. They are an essential part of city life now; public places to walk and socialize, outdoor seating for restaurants and places for busking.
Or for people like me, who just can’t escape that trailing black rain cloud. No umbrella needed here!
We visited Bologna as guests of the Emilia-Romagna Tourism Board. All rain-soaked opinions are my own.
