Via del Pratello
Description
A gem of Bologna: a single street which recalls the dynamics and habits of an entire neighbourhood. In the early Middle Ages, it was an area of open fields and countryside, outside the city walls; the name actually comes from Peradello, meaning “a tree-lined place with pear trees” (just as via Nosadella was the path of walnuts, and via Frassinago, the path of ash trees); though, it soon became populated with families, students and… impostors, too. At the beginning of the Twentieth century it was considered as a degraded area, inhabited by the underclass, while in the post-war period it was bustling with craftsmen activities, from the ice seller to the coal and stove wood seller. Today, many of these shops have disappeared, except for the cobbler of via Pietralata. In the 1960s, the Pratello was the cradle of cultural initiatives, as well as the seat of political and aggregative movements that promoted values such as respect and the subversion of masters’ models. In 1976, a flat in via del Pratello witnessed to the first signals of Radio Alice, one of the first Italian free radios that hosted all those who wanted to express their opinions. In 1991, two abandoned buildings at numbers 76 and 78 were used as homes and social spaces: from here, important musical realities and cultural initiatives came to life, such as Prate TV, one of the first street televisions. Today this area is mainly composed by inns, restaurants and bars.
