Historical vessels in the Porto Canale Leonardesco.
Our trip to Cesenatico was, in many respects, a trip down memory lane. As a seventeen-year-old my better half had spent a vacation with the girls there and she was curious how much of the town she would still recognise. Unfortunately the drive from Ravenna – where we had our B&B – to Cesenatico proved to be far from comfortable. Now I obviously know that in Italy a speed limit is just a friendly (if slightly naive) advice, but the behaviour of the many truck drivers that we encountered while enroute was simply atrocious. Fortunately we survived the trip unscathed and arrived at the car park near the historical centre of the town. This Parcheggio Piazzale della Rocca had ample parking space, even for electrical cars, and parking was free.
The car park is very close to the canal that splits Cesenatico in two and runs all the way to the harbour on the Adriatic Sea. The canal was dug at the start of the fourteenth century on the orders of the city council of Cesena, which is further inland. The canal is often attributed to Leonardo da Vinci and named the Porto Canale Leonardesco after him. The attribution is somewhat understandable, as the great scholar and artist made drawings of the waterway for his lord Cesare Borgia (the son of Pope Alexander VI). However, there is not a shred of evidence that Leonardo had any influence on the canal itself. Bobbing in the water are several colourful historical sailing vessels, most of them of the bragozzo and trabaccolo types. The symbols on the sails indicate which family owned the ship. The ships make clear what have for centuries been the most important sources of income for Cesenatico: shipping, trade and fishing.
The Porto Canale Leonardesco, with a trabaccolo in the foreground.
More information about the history of Cesenatico and the relationship between the town and the sea can be found in the interesting Museo della Marineria. In the centre of the museum a bragozzo named Vigo and a trabaccolo named Cidia have been put on display. Both were built in 1921. The museum provides visitors with information about how ships were built and about life on board. Many ships were equipped with artificial eyes on their bows, which made the vessels look like they could see and find their way across the water. Ships have been provided with eyes like these ever since Antiquity, as we know from the Phoenician partners who have misread their contracts in the Asterix series. In the museum we also find objects that have been caught in fishing nets, ranging from a moonfish to sea mines.
The Vigo and Cidia in the Museo della Marineria.
Opposite the museum is the church of San Giacomo Apostolo. The church was built in 1324, but dates from 1763 in its current form. Do not expect any artistic highlights in the building, or in any of the other churches of Cesenatico for that matter. On the other hand, the churches all demonstrate the close ties of the town with the sea. The apostle Saint James the Great is considered the patron saint of fishermen who catch the scallops that are named Shells of Saint James after him. Other churches in Cesenatico are dedicated to the apostle Saint Peter – a fisherman from Bethsaida on Lake Galilee – and to Saint Nicholas, patron saint of sailors.
Church of San Giacomo.
Dinner at Il Pirata.
One interesting fact about the church of San Giacomo is that the funeral of road racing cyclist Marco Pantani (1970-2004) was held here. Pantani had died of a cocaine overdose in Rimini, aged 34. Although he had been born in Cesena, he was truly a child of Cesenatico, where he used to live and where his parents sold piadine. In Cesenatico there are multiple locations that remind us of Marco Pantani. There is for instance a small museum named Spazio Pantani near the railway station. From the museum it is a 15-minute walk to the grave of the cyclist. All the way on the other side of town, near the beach, a monument for Pantani has been erected. Unfortunately this was a bit too far for us. We decided to ask for a table at a restaurant on the Piazza Fiorentini named Il Pirata (“the Pirate). This happened to be Pantani’s nickname: he was often compared to a pirate because of his bald head, bandana and earrings. Il Pirata obviously specialises in seafood. I mean, what else should you order in Cesenatico?
We visited Cesenatico when it was 37 degrees Centigrade outside. The centre of town was almost completely deserted and everyone was at the beach. We were not so interested in sunbathing, but could not altogether skip the beach either. Therefore we decided to walk down the breakwater and enjoy the view of Cesenatico from there. We saw hordes of parasols, hotels, a Ferris wheel and the famous skyscraper of Cesenatico. This skyscraper was built in 1957-1958 and reaches a height of 118 metres. As all the other buildings in the town are much, much lower, the skyscraper immediately catches the eye. The building can hardly be called beautiful, but it is on the other hand fascinating that we find such a skyscraper in Cesenatico of all places.
View of Cesenatico.