Parma
District Guide

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The city of Parma

Parma is a city with almost 200,000 inhabitants with just as many again in the surrounding provinces. Split from west to east by via Emilia – it is located between Piacenza and Reggio Emilia – and the river Parma runs from the south to the north. The river is nicknamed “la voladora” because when it floods, it takes everything with it down towards the valley. Parma's title of ducal city or "petite capitale" comes from its two centuries of Farnesian domination and especially from the influence that Maria Luigia and her reign had on general traditions and customs. Locals from Parma like to remember their roots and like to be seen as descendents of the sensitive Duchess. It is probably due to this illustrious past that the locals are well-known for their elegance. You will find it hard to see anyone in the central streets and boutiques who is not well dressed with clothes being just as good as the “prêt-a-porter” an high fashions of the capital.

Parma is also of course, the capital of good food. The many restaurants, to suit all tastes and pockets, are testimony to this. Capital of Parmesan cheese and Parma ham this is a real "food valley" thanks also to the presence of companies famous the world over, such as Barilla – which exports spaghetti, pasta, biscuits and thousands of types of bread and bread-sticks to America, Russia, Europe, Asia – and Parmalat, which specializes in milk and dairy products.

Parma was recently voted as the city with the best standard of living.

The Centre

The heart of the city is Piazza Garibaldi, which stands on the site of the former Roman court. From here the historical centre develops, the ‘noble’ area with its beautiful palaces shops and elegant bars.

On the other side of the river is the Oltretorrente, the city’s most characteristic area which still has an old feel about it even though recent town council works have re-modernised even the smallest areas and piazzas.

In the Provinces

There are some wonderful places close to Parma that are easily reached by bus or by car: Fontanellato, with its Sanvitale fortress, perfectly conserved at the centre of the village is inundated with tourists every year. As well as being an enchanting area, inside the castle you can visit the Diana and Atteone room, decorated with frescoes by Parmigianino. Every fourth Sunday of the month there is a massive antiques market where you will find everything, from necklaces to furniture, from decorative items to old clothes. Every month thousands of tourists fill the streets of the old town.

The Santuario della Vergine Maria is a mecca for many pilgrims, a temple visited by followers from all over Italy.

A few kilometers away is Soragna, another village in the Po valley, characterised by the presence of a beautiful castle that is still inhabited by the prince of Soragna, Diofebo Meli Lupi. A few kilometres farther away is San Secondo where another ‘marvel’ welcomes tourists with a particular appreciation of castles and frescoes - the Russian residence with its lounge, decorated with frescoes from floor to ceiling, it is a unique example of its genre, although the whole building which has only been partly conserved, offers many other beautifully frescoed rooms.

For those who want to travel farther than San Secondo, then the village of Fontanelle is worth a look, it contains a handful of houses in the heart of the valley and is where the writer Giovannino Guareschi was born, as well as being homeland to Pietrino Bianchi, a famous journalist and cinema critic. Further on, still heading toward the Po, but approx forty kilometers or so outside Parma, you will reach Zibello, another famous centre in the Parma basin and home to Culatello, the king of salami.

Busseto may be a little out of the way in comparison with the other villages mentioned, but it is the birthplace of Giuseppe Verdi, the great musician and composer who conquered the world with his operatic works. From here, you can head for the mountains and will reach Langhirano, kingdom of prosciutto ham, Felino, where cured meats are prepared, and Traversetolo where every Sunday they hold an enormous market full of local foods and people.