This summer holiday destination fulfilled the need for familiarity after an out-of-comfort zone period. The trip by train through Swiss green pastures and white mountain picks was a delightful invitation to slow down. Emilia Romagna has welcomed and continuously surprised us.
Our holidays are child-centered. Hence the choice of destination. I love the beaches close to Rimini as the water is not too deep for fun splish-splash; and the flow and ebb make it a fantastic research ground for exploring the small sea creatures. It also reminds adults of flow in life. All beaches have good and safe playgrounds for kids to play and interact.
Acquario de Catolica is advertised as the biggest aquarium on the Adriatic side. It has four itineraries: blue – for sharks, penguins, turtles and jellyfish in about 100 display tanks and pools with some presentations of the history of our planet; yellow – for rivers and streams and a cute otters natural habitat; green – chameleons, frogs, insects and snakes; purple – for sounds of the sea in an interactive itinerary thanks to the various display tanks you can discover how fishes, marine mammals and invertebrates communicate.
Italia in Miniatura is a thematic park which invites children to feel as giants. You’ll enjoy a walk of beautiful reproductions of famous Italian monuments and landscapes and some 30 European monuments. Kids and adults alike enjoy climbing the Mont Blanc, taking the mini cars for a short visit into Pinocchio’s story and the gondola ride in Venice.
Ravenna was no doubt the highlight of the trip. It is home to eight UNESCO monuments. I wished I could turn off the sound of the city to emerge into the atmosphere of middle ages. Our visit started with San Giovanni Evangelista, which is one of oldest churches in Europe dated from year 500. In San Dominico you can watch a documentary about a range of sites to visit in Ravenna, along with a precious art and books exhibition. We stopped at Cupido for a traditional piadina. It has also the vegan version made of kamut flour, which I enjoyed very much.
We visited then Basilica San Vitale, which is considered one of the most important monuments of Early Christian art in Italy, especially for the splendour of its mosaics. It astonishes with the blend of oriental and western art and architecture. The light and shadows play is fascinating. Next to it, The Mausoleum of Galla Placidia is a Roman building in Ravenna, Italy. It was listed with seven other structures in Ravenna in the World Heritage List in 1996. The UNESCO experts describe it as “the earliest and best preserved of all mosaic monuments, and at the same time one of the most artistically perfect”. We had the Chapel of Sant’Andrea or Archiepiscopal Chapel, which is the only existing archiepiscopal chapel of the early Christian era that has been preserved intact to the present day, followed on our itinerary. Very close to it, you’ll find the the Baptistry of Neon also called Orthodox Baptistry, the most ancient monument remaining in the city, partly erected on the site of a Roman bath.
Summers in Italy remind me to take holidays habits into daily routine. Make time for a walk, make time for play, go with the flow, stay in the present and enjoy it all.