What to see in Cesena in one day, tips on where to eat in the city or inland, how to get around on foot or by bicycle and what not to miss in the historic center of the city of Emilia Romagna.
It's one of those cities that make you fall in love, Cesena. In its liveable dimension and on a human scale and passions, you can breathe history and the sun, Sangiovese and piadina. A head dive into the marvelous Romagna, with open stomachs and hearts. Halfway between the sea and the hills, cut in two by the Via Emilia, wet from Savio river, Cesena makes you happy and carefree.
After six years of pure love it is certainly difficult to choose what to visit in one day, certainly too short a period to fully enjoy the beauty of the Romagna town. I will therefore try to give some useful ideas to taste the sap and decide to return.
The first suggestion is to leave the car aside (there are two parking lots from which to take the shuttles at a cost of € 0,10) and indulge in the pleasure of walking or cycling (free bike sharing is active). The city is in fact small and easy to visit, equipped with cycle paths almost everywhere and scattered with trees and green areas that certainly make the tour more enjoyable.
A typical day itinerary could (and should) include a visit to the Malatesta Library (inserted by UNESCO in the register of the Memory of the world), a few hours of relaxation at the Malatesta Fortress, a peek at the Bonci Theater, a coffee in Piazza del Popolo, lots of photos among the characteristic streets of the center and a nice walk to the Abbey of Santa Maria del Monte. The latter is a timeless place, also home to a monastery that houses the Ancient Book Restoration Laboratory, something wonderful and surprising. Another destination to be included in the route is the Ponte Vecchio, so majestic on the Savio river. For fans of outdoor sports, the Lungo Savio Park it is huge and equipped with everything you need.
From the Malatesta Fortress you can see the sea on clear days. From the Abbey of Monte they dominate the city, the sea, the hills. Abandon yourself to the wind and the sun among the history of the ancient walls still intact.
For a lunch (or dinner) in the center, I recommend you try Royal jelly, Broth, Osteria Michiletta, Alive. They serve tasty and healthy dishes, in cute places recently opened right in the streets of the historic center. To take refuge in the hills, Osteria dell'Eremo e Osteria degli Usignoli they are a security. If you are lucky enough to take some time for breakfast, Pasticceria Fagioli is one of those places where peace of mind is inevitable.
For a appetizer or cocktail after dinner, absolutely go to La Cantera, in Piazza Guidazzi: a well furnished place, with an interesting menu, which in the summer sets up the square with taste and also offers numerous musical evenings. The center of Cesena, however, does not lack small clubs for all budgets where you can spend a few pleasant hours, perhaps with the notes of the Conservatory in the background.
"And the one where the Savio wets the side,
just as she is between the plain and the mountain,
between tyranny and a free state. "
(Dante Alighieri, Inferno, Canto XXVII)
