Northern Italy

I loved Ravenna, both for the plethora of spectacular mosaics and as a charming small town - good for cycling. Verona is my favorite - many different things to see and also lovely in the evenings when the locals stroll. Venice????

No plan to visit Venice this time but thanks ! Ravenna sounds really nice. If it's good for cycling, it's good for walking which is what I like to do. I love small towns. Trying to decide between Verona and Bologna as a base from which to see one or two smaller towns. Have heard Bologna has actually more charm and less car and bus traffic than Verona.

Hi - I stayed a couple of days in Bologna and it was great. It does not get much coverage in Rick Steves Book, but I bought the "Lonely Planet" and found lots of good info. I really enjoyed it - the food was fabulous. Then took the train to Padua (Padova) for a few days.
There are some wonderful things to see in Padua also.

Good to hear that about Bologna, thanks.
I like the Padova/Padua suggestion too.

Seven of us spent a week at Villa San Pietro (B&B) in Montichiari (Anna & Jacques are the owners). It was a great base - we visited Bologna, Verona, Venice, Modena (Ferrari factory), Sirmione, etc. Montichiari even has it's own castle - Bonoris Castle. We were given a tour by a local, who was teaching English classes. Needless to say, she invited us to come meet her class (we had been taking Italian classes at Emory in Atlanta). Wonderful market day. Sat and talked with the locals in the piazza, in the evenings.

Just finished organising our third holiday in Bologna in three years. Apart from being a very friendly city where we feel comfortable, it is well placed for day trips to other places worth visiting eg Ferrara, Parma, Modena, Ravenna and even Florence (about half an hour on the fast trains) Here is a city guide with some interesting itineraries. http://www.emiliaromagnaturismo.it/en/publications/donwloads/GuidaBologna.pdf/view?searchterm=guides As you will see it is from the main Emilia Romagna tourist site which has info about other towns. Also the Bologna tourist site has some good ideas. http://informa.comune.bologna.it/iperbole/turismo PS - also love Verona (where we have stayed three times)and IMO it is prettier than Bologna. Seems to us to be a bit more staid. Actually trying to avoid the words middle class!