Blogging about Bologna

Chaotic, disorganised and late - the perfect opening post for a blog contrived in Italy (which, in case you were wondering, is three months overdue). 
First things first, a couple of things you should know about me:

I, like this blog, was born in Italy and, like this blog, am chaotic, disorganised and consistently late for just about everything. I am Japanese and English, and apart from my early toddler years, have spent the majority of my childhood growing up in Japan. 
In addition to a Japanese mother and an English father, I have a sister (who is a much better writer than me and has her own blog in which she writes about life in Zurich amongst various other interesting things; you can find her here)
I am a UCL student and am on my year abroad at the University of Bologna. My blog serves as a way to ensure that I observe and absorb as much of the experience as possible, while hopefully putting forth some interesting points for you in the process.
 
Since my arrival in Italy, I have had copious amounts of pondering-time and while I have a few general things to share eventually, I think as an opening post I will focus on general first impressions of Bologna and some advice to prospective visitors.

Image from the annual Mortadella Festival held in Bologna

Bologna is a mid-small sized city, south of Milan in the Emiglia-Romagna region. It is a quick train ride away from Florence and Parma and is known for its food, its relatively secular society and left-wing politics, and it's University which was founded in 1088 (and has been given the names "La Grassa; the fat one, La Rossa; the red one, La Dotta; the learned one" for those reasons).

So let's get straight to it (as I am late for a date with my revision notes!)

The Pros: 
-Fresh veg, cheese, hams and a range of other foods available from various markets dotted around the city.
-Lower (than London) rent with a large, non-damp, fully functioning house in the city centre. 
-A generally slower pace of life, laid-back attitude towards everything (including things regarding university, worryingly enough).
-Lots of bars and boutiques to visit and an abundance of events on offer at various venues.

The Cons: 
-Poo. And wee. There is lots of it. Forget texting and walking at the same time, keep your eyes on the road! 
-A rather disorganised university system that is difficult to navigate through.
-The costliness of playing a sport or joining a gym, at least from a student perspective.

Bologna's population is student-heavy, while also having a fair amount of tourists. It therefore takes a bit of time to figure out where to eat and drink without paying the extra tourist-price but also avoiding falling to the other end of the spectrum of low standards aimed at students. In following posts I will share some recommended spots to visit and further along in the blog will indulge in sharing some of my own recent thoughts as a student and these, much to your dismay, may well be off the topic of "Bologna" and be a rambling of recent encounters, articles, talks, experiences that I have had that have left an impression on me. Hopefully these will still be of interest to you too.

A quiet afternoon in Piazza Santo Stefano

    I hereby conclude my opening post. Cin cin! 

Have you ever visited Bologna before?

Share your thoughts on the city as well!