More Italy

Next stop was Cremona. Hubby had biz here. Cremona is best known for its rich musical history. It would become the center for the creation of musical instruments...in particular the violin, viola, and cello. Amati, Stradivari, and Guarneri, all had their workshops in Cremona. Stradivari created 1200 instruments of which 600 still exist. There is an exhibit in the Civic Museum that houses some of them and others of his era.

 

Cremona does not have the charm of some of the more well known Italian cities. It is mostly a working class town although there are some very expensive shops in town. Like most normal Italian cities, most places close down for several hours in the afternoon except for cafe's and restaurants. The center of the city is closed to cars and most people get around on foot or bicycles. I would not want to drive here.

 

The weather has been glorious and I have been walking off all the pasta I have been eating!

 

Next stop is Ravenna. This is another non tourist city and it has left me slightly disappointed. Sigh, it really has no charm to it and while it has a few UNESCO sites, it just doesn't make the cut of its sister cities. If Ned didn't have to be here, it would not be on my radar. But it is spring and there are fresh flowers and fresh fruits and vegetables!

 

 

Places that sell Gelato are as ubiquitous here as Starbucks are in the U.S. Thankfully, there are very few places that sell dairy free Gelato or I would be gaining lots of weight. We only found one in Florence. I don't care for the fruit ones. I have not seen even one Starbucks.

We drive back to Udine tonight and will spend the next several days there. I will do some day trips while Ned works. We will probably spend one day in Venice doing some of the Islands we haven't done in the past and then I will fly home.

The weather is starting to deteriorate so I am not sure what I will be doing. We have had a nice run so far and we are returning to places I have been several times so I won't be too terribly disappointed.