On the banks of the Po River stands Ferrara with a rich history in music & art. In the 13th century the Este family transformed the city into one of the most culturally important & vibrant cities of the Renaissance.

Ferrara is often skipped on the tourists must-see list - not enough time with Venice, Cinque Terra...La Tavola Marche! But this stately & regal town is with worth a stop! With a fairy tale castle - it's got a moat!, the cathedral, palaces around every corner of this Renaissance village it's picture perfect! The cherry on top - the villagers cycle about town making it even more quaint. You wander about & question why there aren't more tourists -yet happy to be the only one!

The town is surrounded by more than 9 kilometers of ancient walls, built in the 15th and 16th centuries.- they are thought to be the best preserved Renaissance walls in Italy.

The Palio of St. George is a typical medieval festival held every last Sunday of May. The Buskers Festival is a parade of the best street musicians in the world. Additionally, Ferrara is becoming the Italian capital of hot air balloons, thanks to the ten-day-long Ferrara Balloons Festival, the biggest celebration of balloons in Italy and one of the largest in Europe.

I would recommend a stop for gelato at Gelateria Venchi (Corso Martiri Della Liberta', 12 Ferrara) they had cinnamon gelato! I had that flavor once before in Rome & have been eating my way through every gelateria looking for it again! Seriously it's delicious.

Ferrara is a 2 hour drive from our farmhouse, inn & cooking school in Le Marche. It is worth the drive for a long day trip for sure! We went up for lunch a few weeks ago on a lazy Sunday & are planning our return for sure!

Ashley Bartner is the Living in Italy Editor for Wandering Educators.

La Tavola Marche Agriturismo & Cooking Holiday

http://www.latavolamarche.com