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David Du Buron

Joined March 2022 Message
  • Europe 2022
    Day50

    Bolzano? Bozen? And South Tyrol

     Yesterday in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C
    1113

    Bolzano is considered a bridge between Northern Europe and Southern Europe due to the three spoken languages in South Tyrol (Italian, German, and Ladin) and the confluence of Italian and German-Austrian culture. When we first arrived we were expecting a small mountain city, and in that regard Bolzano/Bozen did not disappoint. We were surprised that the city was split with half speaking German the other italian and some English as well.

    We first noticed this when exiting the train station. We had gotten comfortable following signs showing us the exit ("uscita") in Italian. However we noticed these signs were now accompanied by "Usicta / Ausgang." The city was formerly part of Austria until Mouselini took it over. Today the architecture looks mostly Austrian and Dave and I definitely had our first "we aren't in Kansas" anymore moments. The area of South Tyrol is breathtaking full of small mountain towns and quaint villages. Outside of local busses the most common form of public transportation is cable cars and gondalas between mountain towns.    Read more

    John Emerson

    As usual. incredible pictures. cant get over how clean and tidy all the cities r. Be safe. love ya both.

    1dReply
    EDuBu

    yes this is one of the only regions in Italy that collects its own tax and keeps it for this region only. They use it for local festivals and enhanced quality of life for the people. in 2020 both Bolzano and Bologna tied for best quality of life in Italy

    1dReply
    Fred Duburon

    what the hell?? it's a Richard Petty vintage NASCAR RACING CAR????!!!

    1dReply
    David Du Buron

    Yeah, I took that just for you. Forgot about it last night. It was a Plymouth Roadrunner.

    1dReply
    Fred Duburon

    not a roadrunner... a 1966 Belvedere

    1dReply
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  • Europe 2022
    Day49

    Dolomites Hike - the Italian Alps

     June 26 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C
    1111

    Wow, what an amazing hike. With our homebase in Bolzano/Bozen, Dave and I went up to Ortisei today and took the cable car up to Secada mountain and proceeded to hike from there to Santa Christina. We combined a couple routes to make a day of it and we were so glad we did. The dolomites were one of the to-dos we were most excited for in Italy. This tormented landscape did not disappoint.

    Our hike started with a cable car ride up to Seceda Mountain. From there, it was mostly a downward walk back to town. The trail was dotted with the occasional hut where we stopped for some local beer (carb loading?) and to rest briefly. Every single view was amazing, and it was so hard to narrow it down to only a few photos.    Read more

    John Emerson

    All said and done how many kilometers today? the pictures r awesome and lunch looked great.

    2dReply
    EDuBu

    Not too many we cheated a bit with the cable car up most of the mountains, but that Gondala ride was amazing. All said and done the hike itself was maybe only 10km or so.

    1dReply
    Fred Duburon

    breathtaking scenery guys... breathtaking

    1dReply
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  • Europe 2022
    Day47

    Verona Italy

     June 24 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C
    2

    On our way up to Bolzano we stopped off at Verona for lunch and a walk around old town. It was a beautiful city with tons of charm. There was a band playing in the piazza as we walked through. From there we walked along the water that runs around downtown.

    Verona was the setting of two of Shakespeare's plays, Romeo and Juliet and The Two Gentlemen of Verona. Verona is also famous for it's Roman amphitheater, built in 30 AD. It is still in use today and is known for the large-scale opera performances that is hosts. That theater will also be used for the closing ceremony for the 2026 Winter Olympics.    Read more

    Debbie Du Buron

    this guy in the white clothes and sneakers has huge feet. haha

    6hReply
    David Du Buron

    haha

    6hReply
     
  • Europe 2022
    Day46

    Venice and the Grand Canal

     June 23 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C
    41

    Founded in the 5th century and composed of over 118 small islands, Venice became a major maritime power in the 10th century. The whole city is an extraordinary architectural masterpiece. It is also known as the birthplace of composers Tomaso Albinoni and Antonio Vivaldi. Venice and its lagoon are a UNESCO World Heritage site. It used to be an independent republic, and remains one of Italy's most important cities, with a quarter million inhabitants. Dave and I took a ride through the Grand Canal as well as a trip over to Lido an island not far from Venice known for its beach. After we came back to Venice and explored Saint Marcos Cathedral and piazza. Venice has decayed since its heyday and suffers from overtourism, but the romantic charm remains.Read more

    Fred Duburon

    love these pictures of you two

    4dReply
    Fred Duburon

    Hi this is mom. You two look so cute together. I love you so much. No more work. What a party they gave me. It was very nice. Today we picked up hydranger they gave me. We'll plant it this week.

    4dReply
    EDuBu

    Enjoy retirement Deb!!!

    4dReply
    David Du Buron

    Thanks, I think we're cute too. Congratulations on retirement. I'm proud of you and what you've accomplished throughout the career. Enjoy! You've earned it.

    4dReply
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  • Europe 2022
    Day45

    Foodie heaven; The city of Bologna

     June 22 in Italy ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C
    42

    Bologna’s Italian nickname “La Dotta, la Grassa e la Rossa” ("The Educated, the Fat, and the Red") may seem odd but it sums up the very best of what this central Italian city has to offer. The educated as it has the oldest continuously operated university in the world. The fat not because of the people but the city itself is known as the foodie capital of italy. And the red because of the terracotta red roofs that adorn the homes and buildings. Known as an underated city in Italy it was easy to tell why. It for me (Emily) is almost my favorite large city. The metropolitan was clean, lined with restaurants and shops and the city itself had many historical attractions. There also were very few tourists which made Bologna a true winner. This city is truly foodie heaven, we got to sample a few local dishes like lasagna, mortadella sandwhiches, and we had our best gellato of the trip a melon (Cantaloupe) gellato scenza latte (without milk). We even watched part of the "Warriors" movie in the main piazza at night. This city does not disappoint.Read more

    See translation
    Fred Duburon

    What are we eating here?, Looks very tasty!

    4dReply
    David Du Buron

    Emily had Lasagna and Dave had Pigs ear pasta, because of the shape, with a red sauce and an anchovy crumble. Both were great!

    4dReply
    Fred Duburon

    ummm... a real pigs ear???

    4dReply
    David Du Buron

    Haha no, we actually see them in restaurants fairly often. https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/pasta-recip…

    4dReply
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  • Europe 2022
    Day44

    The Porticoes of San Luca

     June 21 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    The Porticoes of Bologna are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Among them, the Porticoes of San Luca are the longest uninterrupted series of Porticoes in the world. These Porticoes start near Porta Saragozza (an arch way) and continues for almost 4 km to the Sanctuary of the Madonna of San Luca.

    I (Dave) have to confess I didn't research this landmark very well, but Emily really wanted to walk the Porticoes. We waited to the start of the landmark on foot from the center of town. The walk starts off benign enough. It's very level and repetitive with shops besides you. Once you hit Arco Del Meloncello, everything changes. The rest of the walk is straight up. San Luca is on top of a very large hill, and we had no idea.

    Along the walk are 15 "chapels" retelling serves from the life of Jesus and Mary. Good places to catch your breath. The view from San Luca was beautiful and with the walk. I don't recommend doing it on a 95° day like we did. 😆

    Between the trip up, and down and walking assertions bologna that day, we must have walked 18 km total that day.    Read more

    John Emerson

    You 2 r awesome. Emily you would have had to leave your father at about 4 portico and catch u on the return.

    6dReply
    EDuBu

    well the good news is the porticos were all numbered. we didn't realize until half way down around portico 445 😀

    6dReply
    John Emerson

    Beautiful pictures. thank you for sharing. stay cool. love ya both

    6dReply
     
  • Europe 2022
    Day44

    Biblioteca comunale dell'Archiginnasio

     June 21 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 33 °C
    1
    4

    Emily as Dave didn't quite know what we were walking into with this landmark. A library and a courtyard said to once be one of the most important buildings of Bologna. It was also the main building of the University of Bologna, the oldest university in continuous operation in the world.

    Inside the library, the walls and ceilings are lined with small family crests of students who attended the University (as well as other art). Also on display were old books from the 15th and 16th century. Trying to understand what we were looking at was a little overwhelming, because there was SO MUCH history on the walls and ceiling. Many of the plaques were in Latin or Italian.

    From wikipedia:
    The library was founded in 1801 at the convent of San Domenico to collect the book heritage of the religious orders suppressed by Napoleon.
    [...]
    The library has about 850,000 volumes and pamphlets, about 2,500 incunabula , about 15,000 sixteenth -century books and about 120,000 old books (up to 1830). The periodicals section includes 7,500 publications, of which over 1,300 are in progress.    Read more

    Fred Duburon

    What are we seeing here Emily? David looks so serious

    4dReply
    David Du Buron

    As we kind of said in the post, this place was beautiful, but it went right over our heads. Not much English to read, we were often not sure what we were looking at.

    4dReply
    Fred Duburon

    I meant the plaque you are standing under

    4dReply
    David Du Buron

    It was an organic picture, we don't know what was behind me.

    4dReply
    Fred Duburon

    This place takes a student graffiti issue to the next level.

    4dReply
     
  • Europe 2022
    Day43

    Italian Hospitality & Proscutto -Bologna

     June 20 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 34 °C

    We had an amazing tour of a local prosciutto factory: Prosciuttificio Montevecchio S.r.l. in Bologna. We learned about the process of making high quality Procutto. They start in January provide two seven day salt cures and massages followed by a 70 day pre dry room and a 9 month aging process thereafter. To be considered a DOP prosciutto it must be aged for 14 months rhen inspected. Ricardo our tour guide had an amazing story he was the victim of a car accident and was in a coma for 20 days and pulled out of it. Now he gives tours as well as works in Agriculture nearby.

    Allessandro our host was certainly an entertainer and he and his girlfriend were fun getting to know. He spoiled us with extras like homemade mozzarella and tomatoes, strawberries with a 25 year old balsamic (consistency of syrup) poured on top, as well as pasta, sauce, and wine to take home. It was Italian hospitality at its finest. The prosciutto we sampled was some of the best we ever had. When we were done for the day Ricardo gave us a ride back to the train station. What a great find (Dave)!    Read more

    Fred Duburon

    ahhh you made a friend!!

    6dReply
     
  • Europe 2022
    Day42

    Modena; Emilia-Romagna

     June 19 in Italy ⋅ 🌙 25 °C
    2

    Modena is world renowned for two things. First, as it is more commonly used, Balsamic Vinegar (any fancy vinegar you have at home may even say "Balsamic Vinegar Di Modena"). Secondly, it is known as the upper class sports car capital of the world. Sports car manufacturers: Ferrari, De Tomaso, Lamborghini, Pagani and Maserati were all based here at one point or another.

    Modena was much less touristy than its neighbor Parma and had less of a metropolitan vibe. Restaurants were busy yet it didn't feel crowded. The piazzas and cute city center was littered with colorful buildings and there was a surprise church that awaited us every few blocks that was always prettier than anticipated. We were pleasantly surprised with this smaller city.

    While scholars do not know the exact founding of the city, one important note about Modena's history is that Hannibal, the Carthaginian general, laid siege to Modena with his elephants, on his way to conquer Rome.    Read more

    Fred Duburon

    VW?

    1wReply
    EDuBu

    it certainly looks it maybe a newer model.

    6dReply
     
  • Europe 2022
    Day41

    Parma, Emilia-Romagna

     June 18 in Italy ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Parma is one of the larger cities in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and is particularly famous for its Prosciutto ham aka Parma Ham and Parmigiano Reggiano. With a population of roughly 190,000 the city has seen some form of inhabitation since the Bronze Age and throughout the ages has played an important role in the development of Italy.

    During the Middle Ages, Parma was ruled by the Franks and was part of the Holy Roman Empire, but during the 1200’s it became engulfed in the conflict between the Guelphs and Ghibellines. During the 1800’s, the city was annexed by France under the rule of Napoleon, and then finally became a part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1860. Overall Parma was a very picturesque city, aka cute for a metropolitan vibe it gave off. It also had a number of shops and restaurants. It was somewhat busy given its also a university city. We spent a few days here enjoying the parks and main piazzas as well as most notable the parma ham and cheese.    Read more

     

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