Hello friends, last weekend I was lucky enough to take part in a trip organised by a very good friend of mine who practically owns a bus company and has returned to organise these fantastic trips to discover Italy.

I was no longer used to taking part in these trips, but the first outing was to the castle of Tabiano, which is practically located in Salsomaggiore Terme in the province of Parma on the hills overlooking the Po Valley.

We were a nice group of almost 20 people, but the castle is one of the most important defence points of upper Emilia Romagna. It was founded in the year 1000 on an ancient Roman settlement and was one of the most important control points of the famous Via Francigena.

In the 1800s the castle was transformed into a private home after it had been fought over for a long time by various noble families of the time, but when it underwent this transformation it also became an important farm that contributed until the early 1990s to the production of the prestigious Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

When the production of Parmesan cheese virtually ended in 2005, a private individual began a gradual recovery of this modest castle, transforming it into a charming Relais with rooms, suites and flats, as well as meeting rooms and two restaurants to offer a hotel experience and more.

I was really fascinated by this place because in addition to being a beautiful hotel with beautiful rooms I must say it also offers products to eat practically at km 0 in fact we did a small tasting of typical products.

The owner is also a keen collector of classic cars and at this moment he had a 500 in his garage as well as classic motorbikes.

I loved the interiors of this castle because they retained the furnishings from the 1800s and something of the medieval era when the castle was not a private residence.

Not to mention the ceilings that were practically stuccoed in gold and the kitchen that was still the same as it used to be.

But the part that fascinated the people who were with me the most was the cellar, where practically all the tools that were once used to make wine remain, because there were important vine cultivations nearby.

I hope you enjoyed this experience I had last weekend and found it very interesting. I will definitely be doing more in the future so I will definitely share them here.