One of Italy's top gastronomic cities, Parma is famous for its mouthwatering Prosciutto di Parma, its delicious Parmigiano Reggiano and handmade pastas, including tortellini, cappelletti and anolini. A genteel northern Italian city known for its art, music as well as gastronomy, Parma's charming cobblestone streets and rain kissed Piazzas are also part of Parma's soul.
A wet cobblestone Parma street leading to Basilica San Giovanni Evangelista
The late Mannerist façade of Basilica San Giovanni Evangelista
The interior with frescoes by Correggio and Parmigianino
Piazza del Duomo with Parma's with a majestic Domo, belltower and baptistery
Two stone lions stand besides the main door of the Duomo guarding it
The Romanesque Duomo on Piazza del Duomo, among the greatest in northern Italy, is famous for the exuberant frescoe that fills its main cupola, the Assumption by Correggio, one of the world's leading maters of mannerist painting. The fresco wasn't well received by the Duomo's bishop when it was unveiled in 1530. "A mess of frog's legs" is what he is said to have called it!
The beautifully detailed interior of the Duomo
The nave and transcepts are adorned with frescoes by Correggio's pupils
Detail of the nave
Correggio's cupola frescoes
A mess of frog's legs? That's what Parma's bishop called it in 1530
A pile of olive branches in the Duomo await the Easter services,
when they're given out to parishoners
Ceiling detail
An ornate chapel in the Duomo
The impressive Baptistry, to the south of the Duomo, has a simple pink stone Romanesque exterior with richly decorated main doors and carved reliefs. The carvings inside the soaring interior, which depict the months and seasons, were carved by Benedetto Antelami and are among the most important of their age in Italy.
The Baptistry dates from 1196
The main doors to the Baptistry are richly decorated with figures, animals and flowers
A detail of one of the carved reliefs beside the baptistry entrrance
The spectacular dome Parma's Baptistry
The font sits in the very centre of the Baptistry
The carvings by Benedetto Antelami, a sculptor and architect,
whose work is depicted in the months and seasons of the year,
are among the most important of their age in Italy
We wander from Piazza del Duomo up to Piazza Garibaldi, Parma's main square
The Palazzo del Govenatore, and statue of Gariibaldi, in Piazza Garibaldi dates from 1760
Parma's la Prosciutteria, our culinary goldmine of prosciutto,
parmigiano cheese and Lambrusco
The interior is positively stocked floor to ceiling with tempting local produce
Salami, Mortadella, cooked hams, fresh sausages and even Canadian smoked salmon!
Parmigiano-Reggiano from Parma - the real McCoy
We couldn't resist buying some local Prosciutto,
which is carved free of the outer layer of fat
We then headed back into rainy Parma in search of our restaurant we'd chosen for lunch
Parma's Gallo d'Oro
The quaint but quirky interior
The menu featured a great selection of typical Parma dishes
A glass of Lambrusco to start our lunch
Three slicers are busy carving all of Gallo d'Oro's fine cured meats
And of course an Antipasti of Prosciutto Crudo
Warm, light and squishy Torta Fritti, a Parma specialty, and perfect with prosciutto
The cool prosciutto and warm torta fritti are a wonderfully delicious
Tortellini in Brodo
Tortelli di Erbetta (spinach and ricotta), di Zucca (pumpkin) and di Patate e Pesto
Chinghiale alla Cacciatore con Polenta
A hot Macchiato...yum
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