I'm not here to give you travel advice and tell you where to go and what to do. I am here to share my story of how I ended up in Parma.
Somewhere within sharing my experience, I hope for you to be inspired to visit Parma or be confident in your traveling adventures.
Sometimes when your travel plans don't pan out, your last-minute plan ends up being the best time of your life!
It’s about how and what you make of the situation that creates a new opportunity for a new adventure. You learn more about what you’re capable of handling a situation and what you’re capable of doing.
Most travel guides give you recommendations of where and how to travel - so that you can make plans and itineraries.
Well, this story is a little different. This was the result of starting off with a plan, but not thoroughly.
THE BACKSTORY OF WHERE EVERYTHING WENT WRONG
I was never supposed to go to Parma. It wasn't even on my list of places to visit in Italy.
In 2019, I had purchased tickets to one of the biggest concerts I was ever going to attend in Italy. It was called ‘UNA. NESSUNA. CENTOMILA’.
It was being held in the very small town of Reggio Emilia at the RCF Arena, the largest outdoor music venue in Europe. This venue is large enough to host over 100,000 people. For those of you who have never been to concerts, or live events in Italy - please put this down on your list of ‘Things to do in Italy’. It is so much fun. I can't even begin to describe it! Also, I wrote another blog about: 'Things you should know before traveling to Italy', read up on that if you plan on traveling to Italy!
Growing up Italian and always traveling to Italy I loved and appreciated Italian music and artists. And guess what? Imagine all your favorite singers were hosting a concert, would you go?
You better believe it baby!
I purchased a 1-VIP GOLD Package ticket for 250 Euros. This price was to include: a separate back entrance with parking, a designated area in front of the stage, private washrooms and guess what else? an Aperitivo station behind the stage that included food, beverages, wine stations and Prosecco stations. Ummm… hellooo! 1 Ticket please. LET’S GOOO!!
No one was going to stop me from watching all my favorite Italian singers : Emma Marrone, Elisa, Gianna Nannini, Laura Pausini, Alessandra Amoroso, Fiorella Mannoia, Georgia, and Special guests... Except Covid happened.
And all that had to get rescheduled from 2020 to 2022.
So there I was re-planning a whole trip around this concert in June 2022. That year I left from Toronto to Portugal for a week. Then I flew from Portugal to Italy and stayed with my lovely friends in Sirmione, Lago Di Garda ( I wrote a Blog about this place - so good - read it). At this point, I was calm, cool and collected. What I hadn't done yet was book a place in Reggio Emilia, the place where the concert was being held. It wasn't until I was in Italy where I found out that cities all over Italy organized buses bringing people to this concert. I didn't know that was a thing. I was amazed by this! Sure enough in the very small town of Reggio Emilia there was no room availability for that weekend. What a shocker! I don't know why I thought everyone was just going to drive to this concert and then go home afterwards, but nope. The whole town of Reggio Emilia got booked up.
I was traveling by train. Which means I needed to be in a place that was close to a train station that would bring me to Reggio Emilia. The RCF Arena was within walking distance from the train station. So this brought me to Parma! The next town over!
And I thought Parma? - What the heck am I'm going to do in Parma?
Well, that was a rude awakening!
Parma caught me by surprise!
Parma is a town known for its ham and cheese. But what I didn't expect, was that no matter how many meals I've had in Italy, nothing could have ever prepared me for the food I was about to eat here, for the social life I was going to see here and for the people I was going to meet here. Parma is a town I would love to revisit, especially with a foodie!
WHY VISIT PARMA
Parma is a great town for couples - mature couples, and older adults. If you don't like doing wine tours but like to do food tours, then you need to put Parma on that list. This is a great town to drop in and have dinner. I would say this is more of a weekend stopover rather than a long stay. If you're staying in Bologna, I would recommend visiting Parma or if you are a big foodie person, I would recommend staying in Parma for a few days because there are many good restaurants here.
Here’s the deal with me, one of the things I will do when I finally eat at a restaurant worth eating at with the food tasting so good, is I have a natural tendency to bang the table and moan while I eat. Yes, you ready that correctly. I have family and friends who can vouch for me and i also have videos as proof. I don't think I have ever violated food in my mouth the way I did in Parma. Here is a line i used a lot in Parma, and if you’re Italian you will know… “Mamma Miaaaaaa”!!!!!
WHAT TO DO IN PARMA
Parma is not a big town. It's very small. You don't need a map to go around, you can just walk anywhere and you will get somewhere. This is the number one travel advice that I would give to anyone. No matter what city you go to in Italy, there is a good chance you are coming from a bigger one. Especially if you are coming from Canada or the US. Any city center in Italy will probably take a few hours to walk around. So in a very small town like Parma, you can leisurely walk and take your time throughout the day. There are always signs guiding you to tourist monuments or places in the town.
While you give yourself a little walking tour of the city, pay attention to the routes you are walking through, especially the alleyways. There are restaurants everywhere and in between anything here, which is very typical in Italy. Parma at night is one of the most social towns I have ever seen. I'm not talking about the nightlife of young people, I'm talking about 40 and above! Wow! Never mind the young people. The mature older crowd sure do know how to have a good time here! This is what I love about Italian dining in Italy - for those that are not aware, dining in Italy happens a little later than Canada and US times. Dining in Italy takes place after 7:30 pm, even 8 pm or later. This is part of the nightlife culture scene anywhere in Italy. Dining and socializing is one of the best things to do in Italy, it's actually THE thing to do in Italy!
An evening in Parma should be as simple as this:
Start heading for an Aperitivo Bar somewhere around 7 pm.
Then go for a nice light walk - a ‘passeggiata’, before heading to the restaurant for the evening.
After the restaurant, head to another local bar for an evening nightcap.
Before you know it, you will be in bed by midnight... Or 3 am.
Doesn't matter. Italy time hits differently when you’re there.
But don't forget to have that Cafe in the morning and the evening!
While walking through the streets of Parma, I found it to be architecturally beautiful. Nothing was significantly big. Everything fits nicely in your peripheral vision if that makes sense. All the structures were at a much smaller scale as opposed to other major cities.
There are fewer tourists, which is also nice. It feels more intimate when you walk into a town and there are more locals than tourists. This makes it seem like you're walking into someone else's home.
Walking through Parma feels like walking through a University town. Which makes sense given that the University of Parma is one of the oldest universities in the world. This is also why I felt like a scholar while walking through the streets and I loved it! I went during the month of June, which means this town must be even more lively during the fall and winter months given that more students are attending the University. The town is less full here during the summer months because students and professors leave for their long summer break or vacation. Most of them leave town and head back to see their families.
One of the things I love to do in Italy is go to any market. I went to the market in Piazza Ghiaia, which was surprisingly a very long and never-ending market!
I would revisit Parma but with a group of people next time. I went solo and as much as I love solo traveling, I also want to go on trips where I am dining and socializing at night.
SO WHAT ENDED UP HAPPENING AT THE CONCERT?
Well my friends, the concert was one of the best concerts I have ever been to in my life!
First off, on the day of the concert I left for the train station in Parma in the afternoon to get to Reggio Emilia, I couldn't believe how many people were doing the same. Turns out I wasn't the only one staying in Parma for this concert. The entire train was full of Italians heading in the same direction. You know how when you are in your own city and you take the subway/metro to get to a concert? okay imagine that, but this is on a train from one city to another. I loved it. And of course, in full Italian tradition, that entire train was singing songs - the entire time! That was a lot of fun. The energy was so high. I loved it.
Arriving at the Reggio Emilia train station, everyone from every direction was walking towards the concert. Here I am thinking, okay now I have to walk to the event alone. Nope. What a site!
I was blown away by the amount of people I saw and met that night. Again, I went alone, and sometimes when you go alone to events or concerts you have to put a guard up for security reasons. But I was surrounded by people who knew I was there alone and I felt like I was being protected by everyone. You can feel the difference when you feel safe as opposed to feeling threatened. That vibe is real! We were all there for the same reason and we all wanted to have a great time.
Funny story, I met a group of ladies that were standing next to me and they ended up leaving a little bit early before the concert had ended. The concert started at 7 pm AND IT ENDED AT 1:30 am. This concert was 6 hours long guys!! It was full-blown. But because the concert ended so late, by the time I got to the train station to head back on a train to Parma, the night trains stopped running, so me and 1000 other people had to spend the night outside the train station to wait for the first train at 6 am. (not the first time I slept outside of a train station) That was not fun. It was safe. But not fun. That was a long day!
When I got to Parma that morning, I went straight to my hotel, refreshed and headed down for breakfast, only to see that the ladies that I had met the night before also came down to have their breakfast. We were standing next to each other having an awesome time at the concert and we didn't know we were staying at the same hotel back in the other town in Parma. We ended up sitting and all having breakfast together. What a great moment.
This was one of the most perfect weekends I ever had. My face is glowing as I am writing this story because of how high the energy was here, being in Parma and going to this huge concert. It was epic. And I am so lucky to have chosen Parma. I couldn't have imagined a better place, honestly!
Well, that concludes the story of how Parma made this entire experience one of my: top favorite memories and places in Italy. I am certain that you will have an amazing time in Parma when you go. But honestly, the food here. I can't stop thinking about it!
If you want to go to Italy, but not during the summer months, then go to Parma. I guarantee you will have so much fun!
Don't forget to check out my blog about 'Things you should know before traveling to Italy', read up on that I talk about the ‘Do’s and Don'ts’, to what is considered normal ‘Italian Etiquette’, from travel tips to restaurant service, and some things in between.
Safe Travels and Ciao for now!!
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