Mantova< Ferrara< Urbino

Emily and I spent this weekend chaperoning an art history field trip about the various historical courts of northern Italy. We spent three days and two nights traveling from Mantova to Ferrara to Urbino. The great thing was that each town got better and better as we went. Urbino, in fact, has jumped high on my list of adorably quaint and charming Italian countryside towns (I should try to sell this official list to Rick Steves, I'm thinking).

I don't even have any worthwhile pictures of Mantova, as we were there for just a quick afternoon. We visited Palazzo Te' and the Palazzo Ducale before moving right on to Ferrara, a town overflowing with people on bikes; the Davis of Italy one might say. One of the best things about Ferrara is that it's famous for pumpkin-stuffed pasta. Oh, how I constantly miss my (dare I say, native) Emilia-Romagna! Also, one day I got to meet up with an American friend from Siena (who used to do this job with Georgetown, actually) who was visiting her boyfriend in Ferrara.

Here I am returning to the castle in Ferrara. You might get a kick out of the next picture, which is me on another pile of cannonballs here at the castle from more than 3 years ago! I look so young (and skinny!)...but come to think of it isn't that what I'll be saying about all pictures of me for the rest of my life?

Emily and I finally took a picture together. I can't decide if she's squinting from the sun or because she doesn't want to take the picture, hmm...


Immediately after arriving in Urbino, Emily and I wanted to explore the town before losing daylight. We stumbled upon a great local foods market selling honey, pumpkins, apples, and truffle oil. This guy was my favorite because he was wearing an Oakland Raiders windbreaker. When I asked him about it, he said he had no idea who the Raiders were but that when he couldn't find his coat that morning he stole this random one from his brother!

When faced with a steep incline of a street at one point during our explorations in town, I insisted to Emily that there must be some payoff for climbing that doozy of a hill. Boy, was I right! We made it up to Piazzolo Roma just in time for sunset:

(optical illusion: white rock, not snow!!)

We followed a sign offering panoramic views to find this incredible gem of a park:

While up there, we saw newlyweds coming to take advantage of the blissful backdrop of Urbino. There were young boys playing soccer in the park that started chanting the wedding march for the couple. I felt like I was in an amazingly cheesy Italian movie.

Pasta dish called Strozzapreti, which means "strangle priests"--please don't ask me why. Intriguing though, eh?

Incredible frescoes inside a church dedicated to St. John the Baptist

Just a small part of Urbino's Palazzo Ducale

Our quaint lunch restaurant Sunday.
We again ordered Strozzapreti, this time with truffle oil!

Everywhere I turned was an awe-inspiring photo opt that reminded me of the simple beauties of this incredible country. I felt content, even merry in Urbino. How could I not? Every image in the town was joyful. So, enjoy.