Day One: Rimini

To begin our beautiful trip we woke up and hopped on a bus around 9am to drive our way to Rimini. The bus ride was amazing as we drove through the Italian countryside. Some of us got some much needed sleep and the rest of us took in the beauty of the trip. We arrived in Rimini after a short four hour bus ride and dropped our bags off at the hotel. Once we set our bags down we had a minute to grab some lunch and head on our tour to learn about the historical city of Rimini.

Rimini is a small city in the region of Emilia Romagna known for being the home of the famous Italian director Federico Fellini who we briefly studied in our course. Rimini is mainly known for being a junction between central Italy and rests near the Adriatic Sea. Rimini is a popular destination for its seaside property and the cheaper prices compared to some of the other regions in the area.

After lunch we parted on our group tour and walked around Rimini learning about the historical sights. The first historical sight that we passed on our trip was a gorgeous olive tree in the middle of the street. Our tour guide that the tree was imported from Spain and cost over 50,000 euros! I laughed a little myself at the outrageous amount of money that a town would spend on a single tree, and our guide informed us that the Italians also had this question. It was decided that the tree was placed in the city because it would stay beautiful and green all year long.  Looking back on the history of this tree was beautiful to me, but now it stands in the middle of the street and I wonder how many people know about the origin of the tree. A beautiful and costly expense to the town of Rimini.

As we continued on our guide showed us a newer excavation site called the House of the Surgeon. It was found in approximately 1998 and fully uncovered about 10 years later. The name of the house comes from the many bodies and tools found in the site. They say that the house was home to an ancient Roman doctor in the 2^nd century AD. The house was very interesting to look into and to see the many bones and beautiful mosaics. It amazes me that a part of history can thrive in today’s modern society. The house of the surgeon is a part of the town and has become part of today’s modern society.

After we visited the Surgeon’s House our guide walked us to a part of Rimini known as the Fisherman’s District. The district used to lie just outside of Rimini’s city limits and was abandoned when the families of the many fishermen left the neighborhood and left it in ruins.  Years later an architect had an idea to buy the apartments for cheap and renovate them to sell to the wealthy. The apartments were sold and the fisherman’s district became one of the most expensive districts in Rimini. I personally loved the way that the Italian history and culture has been blended in with the modern society, taking a beautiful historic district and painting them for festivals and bringing life to what was once dead. 

Once we finished learning about the district we stopped at a famous bridge called the Tiberius Bridge. It first began construction in 14 AD and was completed in 21 AD! The bridge is a whopping 62.6 meters long and has five large arches and is made of Istria stone. It has a current nickname of the “devil bridge” because it has survived from the Roman ages through WW11. It was so beautiful to hear that it was the only bridge left by the German army after retreating from Rimini. The history stands amongst the modern and has withstood the test of time.

Once we crossed the bridge we entered a rushing city center full of busy people. The weather was beautiful and the town of Rimini was enjoying the weather just as much as we were. We made our way through the city center and to the Malatesta Temple which was the subject of one of our last readings that we focused on in class. Completed in 1468 it was originally a 13^th century Gothic church belonging to the Franciscans. Sigismondo ruled during the time that the temple was created and wanted to house his own tomb as well as his wife, Isotta’s and the rest of the Malatesta family. As we looked at the temple while learning about its history you could see the Malatesta crest and the apparent history behind it. However, the temple was never completed and the dome remains unfinished after Sigismondo was excommunicated from the church. Personally I loved learning about the art in the temple and the fresco’s that it held. I think that art is such a beautiful part of Italian culture and a perfect way to combine Italian history with modern day society. There were two imparticular works held in the temple that I enjoyed the crucifix by Giotto and the fresco by Piero della Francesca. After reading and extensively discussing the decorations of the Malatesta Temple it was a huge experience for me to see the works in person and appreciate the history in front of me.

Once we finished our stop at the temple we walked to the Arch of Augustus. The arch was built by the Roman Senate in 27 BC and dedicated to Emperor Augustus and signaled a to the Via Flaminia. In the past the arch held an enormous statue of Augustus on a chariot and is no longer there today. It is the oldest Roman arch that is still intact today and was breathtaking to look at. It made me think about the history that is all around us and how we got to this point in our lives and in society, it’s remarkable to think about.

Before our dinner we had some free time so I decided to grab some gelato and head back to the hotel to freshen up for our first group dinner. Our dinner was located in the Fisherman’s district at a beautiful little restaurant called the Osteria de Borg. We enjoyed a four course meal and were able to put in practice the many Italian eating rules that we had learned in class. Our antipasta consisted of bruschetta of many types and some paninos, while our primi was a delicious lasagna. Because the restaurant is slow food certified the food was prepared from local and organic materials and the meal lasted 2 hours or so. I was feeling a little sick that night but even then I enjoyed the company of my friends and the amazing opportunities we had ahead of us. A wonderful end to a wonderful day.