A DAY IN BOLOGNA

Well....maybe a half a day. After 3 weeks I finally arrived at a workable routine. The day usually starts around 6 or 6:30 with a glass of juice and one small cup of espresso, and then on to the computer to record in my daily journal. After that I prepare the blog post for the day and maybe something for Facebook, and spend some time organizing the dozens of photos I’ve accumulated, editing, filing, and if needed, trashing.

By 9 or 9:30 I’m ready to take on the streets of the city. After several days of experimenting with what I should take and how to carry it I’ve settled on the backpack containing sketchbooks, several pens, pencils, and markers, as well as the camera, stool, and umbrella. Lately I’ve learned that I don’t need the stool.

I will select a general area that I want to explore and set out at a slow and casual pace...At first I was brisk and snappy and soon learned that this saps up too much energy too fast...so now it’s slow and easy. My goal is to find an interesting scene that I can see and sketch from a comfortable shady cafe seat. The first stop is for espresso, and one, maybe 2 sketches. Continuing my trek, the next stop is usually for a glass of juice and another sketch. (In Italy no one really cares how long you sit at the tables,)
Then it’s off to another destination and by now it may be anywhere between 10 and 11AM, so it is time for a cappuccino. Today I managed 3 cafe stops, plus one for lunch. All of this gets me back to my apartment around 1 or 2 o’clock, so I avoid the hot afternoon sun. Here I can download the photos I took, work on the sketches and/or do new ones, as well as read and last but not least , nap!



"juice stop"





lunch

OK, might as well complete the day here. After hanging around the apartment the rest of the afternoon I decided to treat myself to dinner out...an easy decision since there was nothing here to eat. At 6:30 I was seated outside at La Bella Napoli, a neighborhood trattoria that specializes in seafood. At 6:30 I was alone, but when I left an hour later the crowds were gathering. Evening dining here doesn’t get started until well after 7:30....too late for me.

I had the antipasto pesce and seafood risotto. (a confession is in order here...for lunch I had homemade tagliatteli alla bolognese, so I broke with my routine of one meal in and one meal out,) Both were delicious. I have learned to enjoy octopus...it doesn’t taste anything like it looks.





Now it is almost time for bed.