ROME : Parma over nine other Italian cities, Culture Minister Dario Franceschini announced on Friday, beating Agrigento, Bitonto, Casale Monferrato, Macerata, Merano, Nuoro, Piacenza, Reggio Emilia and Treviso. Parma takes over the title from Italy’s 2018 Capital of Culture, Palermo, and the 2019 European Capital of Culture, Matera. It’s second time lucky for the city, which bid unsuccessfully for the 2017 honour.
Here are just five of the reasons why Parma deserved it this time round.Parma ham and Parmesan cheese have made the city a household name all over the world. But they’re far from its only exports: Emilia-Romagna, where Parma lies, produces more origin-protected food and drink than any other region in Italy. In the plains around Parma you’ll find some of Italy’s finest artisans making some of its tastiest prosciutto, salami, cheese and porcini mushrooms Parma’s abundant museums are anything but stuffy.
As well as art collections and historical artefacts, you’ll also find entire displays dedicated to food, sound recording and the local football team. Just outside Parma, and gracing the logo for its Capital of Culture bid, is the Labirinto della Masone, the world’s largest maze, built by editor Franco Maria Ricci as a promise to writer Jorge Luis Borges. What’s more, as part of its candidacy Parma has pledged to further broaden its cultural attractions, commissioning installations outside the city centre and inviting artists from elsewhere in Italy and the world to give their own creative view of the city. all of which can be sampled in abundance in the city itself.
