Our Final Weekend

This past weekend was our last weekend in Bologna till the Fall and we felt like sitting in the house was not a great way to spend it. The Italian team had already been bounced from the World Cup and the U.S. was not playing till Saturday night. So....we decided to take a short roadtrip! We have some friends who had visited two towns just northwest of Bologna a few weeks before and thought our kids would like it. So, we piled in the car Saturday morning and headed out.

Fidenza is a smal town about an hour and a half from Bologna along the old Roman road called Via Emilia. This road runs the entire length of the region of Emilia-Romagna. Yet for all the historical-ness of this region, Fidenza is known for the brand new Outlet Mall that just opened. While shopping is not my cup of tea (Cody here), they had a really nice playground for the kids to play on. After running around for a hour or so and then a quick lunch, we headed to our primary destination of Castell'Arquato. It's believed that this small town began as a Roman military settlement and developed into a rural farming center during the Imperial Era of the Roman Empire. As you can see from the pictures, the castle itself was built into the hillside to take advantage of the surrounding area.

The picture above was taken about 10km outside the town as we drove in. It was a beautiful drive through pastures and vineyards and one of the few times we've not been on the Autostrada as we've travelled. The kids had a great time climbing all over the castle grounds and surrounding hills.

At one point, Gavin stumbled onto a smal cave that had been cut out from the hillside directly below the castle. Needless to say, he was in Heaven exploring the town.

It was a great way to spend our last weekend as a family before the mad rush of our final week. We're currenty in the throes of packing, cleaning, organizing, and prepping for our time in the States. As you think of us this week (especially on Thursday as we fly), please pray for us! The blog will take a short break, but we hope to be back with you in a couple of weeks! Ci vediamo dopo!