I will be in Parma only about 24 hours but really want to buy some great ham and cheese to bring/ship home. Any suggestions? Any noteworthy sights, especially gardens?
Gwen Spivey
Tallahassee, FL
8/5/10
Posted by
Hartford, CT, United States
92 posts
We did a day trip to Parma from Bologna and loved it. The town was very pretty to just wander around. While I can't remember much about it now, I remember the duomo being one of the prettiest I've seen in Italy. There's a restaurant just to the left of the Duomo entrance (probably 50 meters away) that had some great food at very reasonable prices. I think the name was "angel"-related, if that helps. There's a main street going through the town with a few great cheese, etc. shops. They were all similar and equally interesting. The TI on that street was very helpful with their recommendations. Enjoy!
Posted by
Los Angeles, CA, USA
1003 posts
You can't bring ham into the US, even if it's vacuum-packed. Cheese is pretty much the same anywhere because it has to be made to the same standards. I think cheese aged between about 24-28 months is the best, but that's more of a personal choice/taste. i bought mine at the dairy itself after taking a tour organized through the consozio, which I would HIGHLY recommend doing if you are staying overnight (they start early and you have to take a cab out to the dairy)
As for sights, the duomo and baptistery are pretty neat, and the Teatro Farnese is gorgeous. The only garden-like thing I am aware of is the big Park across the river. It's expansive and makes a lovely pre-dinner stroll.
Have a great time, Parma is awesome and 24 hours is actually enough to get a good feel for the city and have a couple fantastic meals. Try torta fritta if you can, with prosciutto, it's out of this world!