Two very young guests under the Porticoes

On 5 June, Giulia Matilde C. and Rachele B. visited the World Heritage Porticoes Office.

The girls, students at the Liceo Victor Hugo in Florence, are spending two weeks in internship at the Department of International Relations and Cooperation, where Annalisa Boni is also in charge of the UNESCO Porticoes.

The Porticoes Office took the two students around the city to tell them what UNESCO is and the history of the Porticoes.

Giulia Matilde and Rachele were favourably impressed by the evolution of the portico, from simple overhang to more elaborate structures. In particular, Rachele, who lives in Florence, noticed the contrast with her own city in the sheer amount of porticoes in Bologna, aided by the rain that came with the first part of the tour. On her visit to the Archiginnasio, Giulia Matilde noted the different backgrounds of the many university students across time, and the thing that struck her most was that, if in the past travel was more difficult, however, the importance of the University of Bologna provided an incentive to overcome those distances. The Palazzo dell’Archiginnasio seen from Piazza Galvani seems to really - the girls argued - block construction of the transept of San Petronio.

The visit continued along Via Farini, with its nineteenth-century squares and the opulent bank buildings. A door left ajar allowed them to catch a glimpse of the austere entrance to the Palazzina di Santa Tecla.

Piazza Santo Stefano, the next stop, was thoroughly enjoyed, as were the terracotta faces of Palazzo Bolognini Amorini. A dive into Bologna’s narrow streets with overhangs and proto-porticoes, and the visit ended in the covered square of Salaborsa.

To refresh themselves, Giulia Matilde and Rachele ended their tour by enjoying a typical slice of pizza!