Unfortunately, I wasn't able from work to be in Bologna on the 14th itself, but I managed to take some days off from the 16th to the 21st.
The flight I had booked on the 16th was so early that I first had to take a nap when I arrived in Bologna. I couldn't hold my eyes open anymore. Marco was anyway at work.
For Saturday we had big plans:
In the morning Marco and I went by car to visit a friend and his wife in Padova which is some 120 km north of Bologna. Upon arrival we just had a quick lunch - pasta of course (what else?) - because we still had to take a train to Venice. There was the America's Cup sailing race taking place which we wanted to see.
Loving that pic!
The big "Spledour of the Seas" cruise ship totally destroys the atmosphere, it doesn't fit the fine and precious picture of Venice!
Even with climbing wall on board!!!
Yet another huge yacht that just arrived to flank the river banks.
What a job: spraying off the seaweed! LOL! If there's nothing else these people are concerned about...
Back at Dario's place we cooked some dinner and went to bed, not expecting to be woken up again in the middle of the night - because of that huge earthquake that hit the area in that period!
I have never experienced an earthquake, though I had been already in places where there had been really really small ones. But I had always been sleeping and thus never in my live felt one. I risked to "miss" also that one if Marco didn't wake me up. It was 04:04 a.m. when Marco shook my arm to wake me up. It was very strong! We were sitting awake in the bed in the guest room under the roof and everything around us was shaking tremendously! It's incredible, because you realise how helpless you are against nature. It felt like heavy turbulences in a plane - only that you're in a house that is supposed to be stable and NOT to move. And there's not much you can do in such a situation. Well, we could have run out of the room and house or hide under some table (or whatever are the usual measures to take in case of an earthquake). But there was no table in that room and we had been in a totally foreign, unknown house.
The earth was shaking for maybe 20 seconds when we got up to check with Marco's friend if they were awake as well. Together we went down to the kitchen to have some tea and to check the news on the smartphones and on TV. However it had just happened and thus it was still too early to get anything broadcasted. But apparently the earthquake was felt - even stronger - also in Bologna, because Marco had called his brother who confirmed the strength of the earthquake.
After an hour we went to bed. And only one minute later we experienced a pretty strong aftershock, but then we continued sleeping.
It was in the morning, during breakfast, that the news showed the devastating effects of the night's happening which had its epicentre actually right between Padova and Bologna (in Finale Emilia). So we weren't too far away!
Luckily noone we know got hurt or had something damaged!
After breakfast we prepared for a little stroll through the town of Padova and got some shopping done.
Then we unfortunately had to leave already. Back in Bologna Marco prepared some pizza and the day was already over. So despite the earthquake(s) we had a great weekend :-)
Unfortunately with that weekend, also my stay in Italy was over :-( Very very early in the morning Marco accompanied my to the airport and I took my flight at 6:15 a.m. via Frankfurt back to Oslo - and went straight back to the office...
Grazie, ragazzi, per questi bei giorni insieme!!!
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