The Streets of Bologna

in #photography7 years ago (edited)

I went to Italy to see Florence, the cradle of the Renaissance. I ended up craving to go back to Bologna, the city of spaghetti bolognese and happy tummies. I must add that my opinion must be taken with a grain of salt because I am not a museum-type of person. I disliked the huge waves of tourists and the overpriced restaurants, and so I found Florence to be hectic, expensive and not that friendly . However, if you don't mind that and if you like spending your time in museums, then the city of Leonardo Da Vinci has a lot to offer!

Aren't such tall doors inviting?
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Let's get back to Bologna. There's so much more to La Grassa (the Fat One) than its nickname suggests. It's cozy and relaxed, and yet lively at the same time. It's full of young people some of which are students in the world's oldest university. It has some fabulous coffee shops and restaurants, with prices that are way lower compared to those of its more famous neighbor to the South. Oh, and one more thing - it's not overcrowded with tourists. I thoroughly enjoyed traversing Bologna's endless network of porticoes and mingling with the locals.

I am not a street photographer by any means, but I managed to capture some decent shots while walking around the city...

Rolling the pasta dough like a boss.
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The city is colorful all over
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"No stopping"
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Bikes are popular, though not by Scandinavian standards.
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Cartoleria - Paper Shop in English.
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*Exploring the porticoes."
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Have you been to Florence and Bologna? Which city did you like more?

Cheers,
Dan

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Bologna is one of my favourite cities in Italy, it has this unexplainable atmosphere that makes you at ease right away. People are so friendly and nice there, everyone is a true unique perosnality, food is fantastic and architetcure is just glorious. It has it all. If I could choose a city to live in it is Bologna. Nice shots, you captured it very well! :)

Thank you @lostinhappiness! Your words capture the vibe of Bologna wonderfully :)

Beautiful collection of images Daniel. They really show the character and diversity of the city.

The rich red wall in 'The city is colorful all over' is a fantastic backdrop to the 'conversations.' 🦋

Thank you kindly, Ally! 😊

Says not a street photographer, but all the photos you've taken are more better than some called themselves street photographer. LOL

Love the last shot, the light ,the timing and the compose are very precise :)

Haha, thank you for the kind words man! 🙌 the last shot is my favorite of the bunch too :)

Lovely shots for sure @irreverent-dan. I have been to Florence long time ago and really enjoyed it. there was this cool youth hostel in an old Villa where you could get beer and wine at night.

Thanks a lot, my friend! Maybe I should give Florence another chance, preferably out of the tourist season :) I must say that the main cathedral is quite the sight at night.

Yes, good idea to give Florence another chance. I really enjoyed Milan too!

I have been there too, and the only thing I liked (besides the massive building of the train station) was the fabulous pizza that I ate for 2.5 Euros :) Haha

"Bikes are popular, though not by Scandinavian standards." What does it mean by Scandinavian standards, Dan? I've always wanted to live where Bike lanes are available. I love biking around so much. :) And Bologna sounds fantastic! I like places where there is not much tourists, too. My dream school is in Florence.

Nice photographs! I especially like the no stopping. :)

I lived in Copenhagen for a few years, and it means that half of the people (literally) commute work by bike. It's insane but in a good way - the car traffic is non-existent compared to the bike traffic. What's the name of your dream school?

Glad that you liked the photos :)

Sounds like Copenhagen is somewhere I wanna live in the future. Car traffic is worst in our country. And it is Florence Academy of Arts, and they are hella expensive. D:

One of the great things about Denmark is that education is free. At least for those that come from another EU country...

I just checked that school in Florence and the tuition fee was the whopping $ 17,250.00. That's a lot right now, but maybe not so much if the price of Steem skyrockets in the coming years :)

Beautiful shots, especially the lady rolling pasta dough! That must be a beautiful city.

About a decade or so ago, I managed to see Florence and Siena. I didn't get to see Bologna, but especially enjoyed Siena. I was still shooting with a 35mm slr, then...

A big thank you, my friend! We were actually wondering whether we should visit Siena for a day but ended up spending 3 days in Florence. What are you shooting with right now?

If you've not yet been to Siena, I would highly recommend it, and for at least a couple days. There are many day-tourists, so you get more of a local feel in the evening. The old part of the city was conquered by Florence and they were forbidden any modification to the battlements, so the skyline has hardly changed in centuries. The twisting, narrow streets and medieval architecture make for some breathtaking images, especially in the early morning light.

When I went digital, I changed to Canon. I'm back in grad school, with no budget, so I'm shooting on the original EOS 7D, now. It's over ten years old, technology-wise, but still produces some great images :-)

I will follow your advice next time I visit the region, although I have no idea when that would be :) As for the 7D, it's a fine camera. After I changing 3 bodies during the past 4-5 years, I have come to the conclusion that the camera doesn't matter that much :) How many lenses do you have?

I have some decent glass. Five lenses in total, two are L's. The problem with the 7D is that its low-light performance and dynamic range aren't great. Other than that, It's a fine body, and built like a tank.

I have only 1 lens, haha! I used to have more before but I found myself constantly changing them, which only led to frustration. So my philosophy right now is 1 camera - 1 lens :)

Lol nice. If I ever went that route, I'd probably pick up a Fujifilm x100F.

I like the creative potential swapping lenses provided. When I go on a hike, though, I usually just being the 24-70.

How come the Bar sign is backwards? That's a strange one!!

Nice photo blog Dan. I enjoyed your stories and like you, I don't like huge crowded towns either. Beautiful street photography regardless of your self pronouncements.

Huh? Something that I haven't noticed :D Maybe it's supposed to be looked at from the other side? :)

Thank you, Deb! You have no idea how much I appreciate your comments and support.

aw...that's nice to say Dan.

I went to Florence last summer and I loved this city sooooo much ! I have a really great memory of my trip there and I'm quit disappointed that you don't have the same. As you said maybe you should try to go back in Florence when tourism isn't too important.
During my trip I passed by Bologna but I didn't stopped (bc I was travelling with bus) but I wish I did 'cause it seems to be a wonderful city :)
Thanks for sharing your memories :)

I was wondering, are you from Italy orginally? :) Thank you for stopping by, Mery!

Not at all, I'm from France :)

France would have been my second guess :P

The photos are amazing! So saturated and full of color. And I love how there are retro, medieval and modern vibes in one place.

Yes, pretty much all of Italy is a wonderful mixture of medieval and modern :) Architecture-wise, I think this is my favorite country :) Thank you, Linda! I am glad that you liked the photos.

I have been to Italy, but only minimally. I would love to go through the whole country and see the views, it seems so magical!

Oh yeah, going on a road trip in Italy would be such an adventure! :)

Hello! Sorry for spamming on your post but I'd like to know why did you downvote my recent post. I'm still new here and I'm trying to get in touch with this intriguing platform. If you could please return it.

What did I do wrong?

Thank you for your comment @scores-wta. I should have left you an explanation. Anyway, I downvoted the post because the photo is not yours, and it doesn't matter whether you give the photographer credit or not. I am a photographer myself and I know how much time and effort go into taking and editing my photos. What I want to say is that I wouldn't be happy to see my pictures reposted by someone without my consent. Consider this a lesson.

P.S. I upvoted your comment with 4 cents, so that should compensate the downvote :)

Okay, thank you I will have that in mind. Must be annoying really, sorry. Anyway, I'm Bulgarian too x

Здрасти тогава :) Имаме си бг канал в discord, където можеш да питаш за всичко, което те интересува относно Steem: https://discordapp.com/channels/327220602312327168/327220602312327168