Anne Rocichaud http:/annesitaly.com/blog/, an expat in Assisi, gave me permission to post her recent blog on Piacenza .....
I shall be sure to add this stop on my next adventure Home To Italy.....
Pleasures of Piacenza
MARCH 7, 2014 / FOOD & WINE
PIACENZA, EMILIA-ROMAGNA
Founded by the Romans, devastated by the Goths and resurrected by medieval noble families, this elegant Emilia Romagna city flourished due to its location on a natural commercial artery, the Po River. The 16th century Pope, Paul III, gave the town another boost to glory, declaring his son Duke of Parma and Piacenza. In front of the porticos of the 13th century Gothic marvel, Palazzo del Pubblico, bronze statues of Farnese dukes on horseback inspired the piazza’s name Piazza dei Cavalli.
The presence of a Papal court is a guarantee of wealth: by the 18th-century, three hundred patrician families had settled into their luxurious palazzi piacentini. As you stroll through Piacenza – passing one elegant palace courtyard entryway after another – you can almost hear the clatter of carriage wheels on cobblestones as elegant coaches returned home…
