Italian Treasures

A bit about Parma, a city of elegance

Parma’s elegance can be felt in every corner of the city. Both due to the history that emanates from all its buildings and because of its prosperity. Parma is one of the most successful cities in the entire Emilia Romagna region. Much of this is due to the production of all its traditional items, whether we’re talking about Parmigiano Reggiano (the classic, unmistakable Parmesan), prosciutto, or even the famous perfume brand: Acqua di Parma.

Just walk around Piazza Garibaldi to see various designer clothing, perfume, and jewelry stores. In this sense, the city is more geared towards tourist attention than cultural preservation, but that doesn’t mean you won’t have access to its historical side. Just head to Piazza Duomo and you’ll find one of the largest domes in a cathedral in northern Italy.

With beautiful paintings, hyper-intricate arabesques, and a simply divine ambiance, the Cathedral is a stunning place for photography, meditation, divine connection, or simply for relaxation after strolling through the city’s shops and windows.

Stepping a bit away from the city center, there are some really fun experiences you can have in Parma. A few of them are:

Visit to Piazza della Pace

Going to this square involves a tour of several tourist spots. This is where the university area of the city is located, so you can find everything from libraries, used-book stores, theaters, museums, to cafés. The place is spectacular, and the green area invites us to take a photo;

Galleria Nazionale:

This art museum is one of the most important in the region. With works ranging from the 13th to the 19th centuries, the Galleria Nazionale has collections from various artists, schools, and masters, making it a vast and extremely rich exhibition;

Teatro Regio

We couldn’t miss mentioning the Teatro Regio, which currently stages around four operas each season from mid-January to April. Every year, great opera stars appear here and put on a true spectacle of music and sound capacity. The theater itself is a show in its own right, with private boxes, emblematic architecture, and a majestic dome painted with impeccable detail.

Parmigiano-Reggiano and the Monks

Known as “The King of Cheeses,” Parmigiano-Reggiano is one of the oldest cheeses in the world; there are records of its use in recipes dating back to 1254, and it was created by monks seeking a cheese that would perish less quickly. I think it’s important to share with you some details I learned on the tours and the reasons these specialties are so famous worldwide. The answer? Quality control. Just as in the Champagne region you find the famous French drink and nowhere else. Likewise, in the Parma and Reggio-Emilia region (two different places) you have Parmigiano-Reggiano, a compound name because the cheese can only be produced by manufacturers from these two regions and is protected by the Consorzio Parmigiano Reggiano and recognized in the PDO list. And what is PDO? The acronym stands for “Protected Designation of Origin,” a seal with a type of geographical indication from the European Union and the United Kingdom aimed at preserving the denominations of food products. Now let me explain something that will blow your mind. When you arrive at a restaurant in the United States, for example, and they offer you “Parmesan,” it is not the authentic Italian-made cheese, and this is causing a huge dispute between the two countries. The FDA (U.S. Federal Food and Drug Administration) says that Parmesan is cheese made using the same process as the Italian one, but the types of milk used and what goes into the mix is a real mess. It can be skimmed milk, cream, whole milk, and even water, yes water. Also, anyone can produce it, from any region, so there is no real quality control. Do I eat this cheese? I do, but only in grated form for pasta, for example, and not as a piece of cheese to eat as an appetizer or to cook with, because it would be a real waste to change the temperature of the genuine cheese made in Italy.

There are only 330 producers who supply the cheese to the whole world, can you believe it? The regions considered official for production are exclusively: Parma, Reggio-Emilia, Modena, Bologna (only to the left of the Reno River), and Mantua (only to the right of the Po River).

It takes 150 liters of milk to make one wheel of cheese, and the cows are specially cared for with massages throughout the day and fed with a special organic grass. The cheese is 100% natural, with no chemical processes. And the most interesting thing is that, like wine, the cheese also has an aging period, some for one year, up to 24 months. Its texture changes, and the cheese master, a sort of quality control inspector belonging to the regional consortium, evaluates each wheel and each producer. He uses a little hammer to tap each one, and depending on the sound emitted, he can attest whether there is air or bad formations, and then the cheese is classified as “Parmigiano-Reggiano (first class), Parmigiano-Reggiano Mezzano (with some small holes, second class), and the third is generically called Sbiancato, but it’s not an official name,” comments Mattia Brianti, our guide on this experience.

Then we move on to the classification of the purest cheese:

12-18 months: Aromas of yogurt and fresh fruits. Crumbly, delicate.

22-24 months: Grainy texture, with balanced flavors of dried fruit.

30-36 months: Very crumbly, grainy. Notes of toasted nuts and meat broth.

Over 40 months: Layered texture, complex and very firm.

Prosciutto di Parma

We moved on to another delight and another tour I took: Prosciutto di Parma. After a few minutes of climbing up the region, I came across a beautiful valley; the factory is located on top of a mountain. And that is one of the most striking characteristics of this ham: its location. The product’s specific flavor comes from the creation of the ideal climatic environment formed by hills around Parma shaped by the sea breeze from the Adriatic Sea and the Apennine mountains. In spring, after being properly trimmed and inspected, the Prosciutto legs go to a specific room where windows are opened so that the breeze from the mountains and the sea create the perfect blend that gives the flavor only Prosciutto di Parma can offer. The piece must weigh between 15 to 18 kilograms, and it also receives no chemicals, undergoing a totally artisanal production and a two-year maturation with regular and meticulous inspections of each piece.

These are some of the many experiences you can have in Parma. Many more can arise from those we’ve mentioned; you just need to let yourself be carried away by Parma’s creative winds to seize the opportunity. How about now learning some more details about what to do in Modena, but first, a brief introduction to the city and region.

Craftsmanship in the Form of Vinegar

In addition to this wonderful experience, we’ve gathered other great tours and tips for things to do around there:

Ferrari Experiences:

With so much buzz around Ferrari and the factories surrounding Modena, it’s certain the factory would provide some type of immersive experience, right? The brand offers visits to the Ferrari Museum, day tours of the factory, as well as visits to the Lamborghini museums. In these spaces, you can see some car prototypes, old models that have gone out of circulation, as well as explanations about what makes the brand’s cars so well-known and adored by speed enthusiasts;

Walk Starting from Piazza Roma:

A walk through Modena that starts at Piazza Roma opens doors to several magical encounters, beginning with the Palazzo Ducale Modena, continuing to the Teatro Comunale Luciano Pavarotti, Via Emilia (a super chic street full of shops, cafés, and souvenir stands), passing Piazza Grande and Piazza Mazzini. All these destinations are iconic and very special, ideal for experiencing the Modena that Italians live;

Europa’92:

If you want to have lunch in a special place, Europa’92 is your pick. This restaurant is located in the house where Pavarotti lived, and whenever arranged, the waiters put on singing shows. If you want to know more about the schedule, just search for Ristorante Europa 92 on Google to find the official site;

Osteria Francescana:

To complete our essential tips, we couldn’t fail to mention Osteria Francescana, Massimo Bottura’s restaurant, considered one of the best restaurants in the world, and an icon for many other Italian restaurants around the globe. Remember that the restaurant is just one block away from Sala Truffaut, an underground-style cinema where you can enjoy some of the local alternative production and dive even deeper into Modena’s cultural scene.

Another tip I usually give and always keep in mind on every trip is: allow yourself to improvise. Some unforeseen events may happen: restaurants can be full, a museum may be closed, and an experience can be canceled. At that moment, there is no room to get down – how about visiting a local bookstore, library, or park? Many of them have amazing city views, and you might find an angle few allow themselves to experience.

Create moments just for you, seek out the events and monuments that please you. Not all trips need a checklist. Take a look at our listing, get inspired by it, and find your direction. I’m sure you will reach the end of your trip with a sense of relief, having exercised your creativity in a unique way, that your trip was truly yours, and that only you could have lived the experiences the way you did.

General information about places we recommend:

Claudia stayed in Parma at the Hotel de La Ville, but there are also the NH among others. For the tour, we made reservations through the Viator app; you can select and purchase the tour we took in thislink here.