A Walk Around Cesena, Italy

In last week’s post, Finding Peace in Bertinoro, I mentioned a recent trip to the Province of Forli/Cesena in the region of Emilia Romagna, Italy.

Next, let’s head to Cesena, a city between the Apennines and the Adriatic Sea. My first glimpse of Cesena confirmed what I had read – it is a prosperous city full of art and culture and is proud of its heritage.

Cesena is a treasure of architectural and historical interest, and the monuments and buildings are well preserved. You will not see peeling paint or graffiti decorating the doorways and walls.

Perhaps the most important thing to know about Cesena is the name  Malatesta. Why? Because the history of Cesena is the history of the Malatesta family. They developed the city (1400 – 1500s) and built two of the most important monuments there today, the Biblioteca Malatestiana and La Rocca.

Let’s Take A Walk Around Cesena,  the perfect way to absorb this absolute jewel in Emilia Romagna.

Piazza del Popolo, the People’s Piazza

Begin in Piazza del Popolo where you will find the Palazzo Vecchio, which adjoins the walls of La Rocca, the old Malatestiana fortress. Every other Saturday there is a large outdoor market–as with most markets in Italy, it is quite crowded and lively. Market days are a great way to discover the local culture and meet new people. You will also find the tourist information office under the loggia of the Palazzo Vecchio. You can’t miss it as it’s painted a wonderful ocher color with a huge clock face in the center.

Fontana Masini

Directly in front of Palazzo Vecchio, you will see an intricately carved fountain, Fontana Masini, built of white marble imported from Istria. It is a popular meeting spot for both the locals and the local pigeons!

Enjoy a bit of window shopping as you walk from Piazza del Popolo along Via del Zefffrion to Via Mazzini, then turn right to go to Teatro Alessandro Bonci in Piazza Giudazzi.

Teatro Alessandro Bonci

The theater facade is a neoclassical design in the style of La Scala in Milan. The people of Cesena take their arts and culture seriously. They were such enthusiastic theatergoers that the original theater was replaced by Teatro Bonci, as it was too small for the size of the audience.

Be sure to check the website for hours of operation, so you can get a glimpse of the stunning interior. It has undergone a recent renovation and it’s really quite grand.

Palazzo Ridotto

Walk back towards Piazza Almerici and stop to admire the facade of Palazzo Ridotto. Once the meeting place of the aristocracy of Cesena, the facade, renovated in the late 1700s by Cosimo Morelli, is said to be one of the best examples of Italian architecture of the 1800s. That’s Pope Pius VII in the center waving at everyone. He is one of three popes born in Cesena.

Biblioteca Malaestiana

Behind Piazza Almerici, you will find the Biblioteca Malatestiana. If you don’t do anything else in Cesena be sure to visit this library! Biblioteca Malatesiana was the first public library in Europe and it remains perfectly intact as it was when it was built in the fifteenth century despite wars, fires, and the occupation of Napoleon!

It is a living monument to the period before printing presses and the craftsmanship of the era.
You will want to be sure and arrange this in advance as only a limited number of people are allowed in the library at once. This is to control the humidity and protect the precious contents. It is worth the effort!

 

It looks more like a small church, with a central nave outlined by tall white columns on each side flanked by stained glass windows. The windows were carefully placed to provide good reading light.

The reading benches are the original wood and have the Malatesta crest on the side. They look like church pews but notice the chains that bind the books to the benches. This was not a lending library, but a place where anyone could come to read and study.

I found this description on the  UNESCO World Heritage Memory of the World Register:

“Besides amassing the great works of medieval culture, Malatesta Novello collected the fruits of the classical Latin, Greek, Hebrew, and Arab traditions so that he could realize his project of a universal culture along humanist lines. The precious 343 codices are still in the place where they have lain for the past five centuries.”

Now walk back to Piazza del Popolo and up a rather steep hill to visit La Rocca Malatestiana.

La Rocca Malatestiana

Built around the 11th century near the remains of previous fortresses – it was the perfect place to see out over the valley and protect the town from invaders – or at least see them coming for miles.

Today the two interior towers house the Museum of Agriculture and a ceramics museum.
Agriculture is the most important business in Emilia Romagna–the region is often referred to as the breadbasket of Italy.

La Rocca is surrounded by a lovely park and is a great place to spend several hours enjoying a picnic with views of the Adriatic Sea. You can also walk around the exterior walls, much like the walls in Lucca, Italy.

 Have you been to Emilia Romagna?

“This post was a part of the Buonvivere Blog Tour, organized by Settimana del Buonvivere in collaboration with 21grammy.