Romantic heart and true soul, greens and culatello: for all, the petite capital.
Visiting it is a pleasure for curious spirits.

DAY 1

9 a.m. – Bar Cocconi
An old-fashioned place with a wooden interior and marble tables for a classic breakfast: coffee from the arabica and robusta blend of the local Ramenzoni roastery, chocolate cream puffs and cream cannoncini.
Those who like savory, order a fresh croissant with prosciutto and tonnata sauce.

10 a.m. – Piazza Duomo
This is the city’s medieval square, with the Cathedral and Baptistery, and this is where the first steps of a city exploration begin.
Romanesque art in purity, the Cathedral holds masterpieces, from Antelami’s bas-reliefs to the vault of the dome frescoed by Correggio, precision of chiaroscuro and perspective.
On the way out, the pink Verona marble Baptistery carved by Antelami in the early 13th century is another icon.
Legend has it that the devil, jealous of its beauty, kicked it to knock it down, leaving an imprint on the facade (look for it on the southeast side, it really looks like his).

11 a.m. – San Giovanni Evangelista
Immediately behind the Duomo, the church of San Giovanni Evangelista, a Benedictine monastic complex with a Baroque facade, is another postcard of the city.
It has a Latin cross plan with three naves over which chapels open and still a dome frescoed by Correggio.
Visiting the cloisters and the ancient library of illuminated manuscripts feels like entering a scene from “The Name of the Rose.”
The apothecary shop that prepared healing concoctions is still there, with flasks, stills and mortars.

12 noon – Parma Color violet
It is in this small store crammed with small bottles that you can buy the mauve-colored flower perfume that has become a legend.
The first bottles of Parma Violet, produced through the alchemical skill of friars, were created for Duchess Maria Luigia until Ludovico Borsari was able to obtain the formula in 1800 and recreate the perfume.

1 p.m. – Don Antonio
Arriving fresh from the sea of Sicily is the fish that Antonio Gianquinto cooks at his restaurant in the heart of Oltretorrente, following traditional recipes recovered even from the island’s historical archives.
Menus are seasonal(ristorantedonantonio.it)

3 p.m. – Ducal Park
A short walk from the restaurant, Ducal Park still retains the formal features of the 18th-century garden.
Centuries-old trees create an elaborate green architecture around the Boudard sculptural groups, and at the end of the avenues, a lake houses the Trianon Fountain, while hidden by the woods remain the remains of the 1769 Arcadia temple.
In front of the Ducal Palace, a long building, which Ottavio Farnese had built in the 16th century, is a large circular clearing known as l’étoile, from which tree-lined avenues radiate out.
Some stroll, some read on a bench or dance capoeira on the lawn.
The little ones run with the cricket, that elongated, colorful tricycle that has been in childhood memories since the 1950s.
One exits the gate onto the Verdi Bridge to look out onto the Lungoparma, an overture to the water with colorful houses with tall windows and narrow balconies.