Ciao, prejudices! Rimini with a difference

The first tourists in history were young noblemen from Britain who set off for Italy in the 18th century to study the cultural monuments of the Renaissance and antiquity. They are considered to be the first to undertake a journey not for religious or economic reasons, but solely to broaden their horizons. The term tourism is derived from this so-called Grand Tour, as these educational trips were called.

After the Second World War, tourism became a mass phenomenon. These were the years of the economic miracle. From then on, people were drawn to the coasts and beaches of the Mediterranean in summer: to swim, to soak up the sun - and to enjoy the dolce vita of the south.

Take Rimini, for example. The city became a vacation icon in the 1960s; it was the time when the term Teutonic grill became established - an affectionate and apt description for the Adriatic beaches where sun-hungry Germans lay close together, braving the UV rays and listening to hits such as Carbonara by Spliff or Azzurro by Adriano Celentano on the transistor radio. People drank aranciata or cappuccino (often after dinner - much to the horror of the locals) and ordered spaghetti bolognese, a dish that doesn't exist in Italy, but somehow still belongs here.

Movie dreams and fishing nets

But Rimini is much more than the tourist symbol of the post-war period. The city can also boast of being the birthplace of Federico Fellini, one of the most influential directors of the 20th century, who captured dreaming on celluloid and created a cinematic monument to his homeland and the Grand Hotel that still exists today with Amarcord - as exaggerated as it is loving. The hotel, a sensitively restored Art Nouveau jewel dating back to 1908, is now a sight in its own right and stands out pleasantly from the numerous, often architecturally insignificant bed castles along the waterfront promenade.

When you enter the atrium, you can't help but think of the young Fellini, who once observed the world of the rich and beautiful here; characters who later appeared in his films. In later years, the maestro returned here again and again - and always resided in the same suite. A few years ago, Rimini dedicated a museum to its famous son, spread over several buildings. It's a tribute to his life and work - and a wonderful opportunity to explore the well-preserved old town, which is well worth seeing.

This is just under two kilometers from the beach - which is obviously beyond the comfort zone for many bathers. All the better for those who make the journey: they discover a Rimini far removed from sun loungers and ice cream parlors - with quiet squares, baroque splendor and the quiet echo of times gone by.

You can stroll through lively piazzas and admire palazzi from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. The elegant theater inaugurated by Giuseppe Verdi in 1857, the impressively staged Sismondo Castle with its light and water features and the excavations from Roman times are also worth a visit. It's hard to believe that just a few years ago cars were still driving over the Tiberius stone bridge from the first century AD.

Beyond the bridge begins the Borgo San Giuliano - a former working-class district with low, single-storey houses that today looks like a painting come to life. The brightly painted façades are covered in oleander, bougainvillea - and the charm of times gone by.

This is where the fishermen of Rimini once lived and where Federico Fellini grew up. The alleyways breathe history, nostalgia and fantasy at the same time - as if the great director himself had designed them. As you stroll around, you keep coming across murals showing scenes from his films: Anthony Quinn as the great Zampanò alongside Fellini's wife Giulietta Masina in La Strada; or Anita Ekberg and Marcello Mastroianni taking a night-time dip in the Trevi Fountain from La Dolce Vita.

Adriatic gourmet cuisine

What surprises many people is that Rimini is not only a traditional seaside resort, but also one of the most important fishing ports on the entire Adriatic coast. In the lively market hall not far from the center, freshly caught fish, vongole and squid are piled up in ice-cold displays. The scent of the sea is in the air, accompanied by the babble of voices from the traders.

So it's no wonder that the city has several excellent fish restaurants - first and foremost the trendy Da Lucio restaurant, which celebrates a contemporary, purist approach to fish: For reasons of sustainability (and because it has always been common practice here), the whole animal is processed at Da Lucio. A very sensible principle, not just for waste avoidance, known as scale to tail. Certain fish are also served dry-cured here.

So if you've never had the pleasure of raw tuna that has been matured for several days or even weeks at the ideal temperature and humidity (developing a denser consistency and more complex flavors), you'll leave Da Lucio with a new culinary experience. Just last September, the young chef Jacopo Ticchi moved his restaurant to an impressive location: on a pier, far out at sea, so that you are surrounded by the Adriatic while eating fish.

In the other direction, inland, in a lively district of the pretty old town and right next to the Tiberius Bridge is the long-established restaurant La Marianna. Here, the focus is increasingly on so-called pesce povero (literally translated to poor fish); usually small and cheaper fish such as mackerel, sardines or anchovies as well as clams and mussels. They are served raw, cooked or au gratin as an antipasto, with cherry tomatoes, spinach, squid and passatelli pasta as a primo and as fish or seafood skewers from the charcoal grill as a secondo.

Three-star chef Mauro Uliassi is much less povero. The restaurant named after him is located 30 minutes from Rimini, directly on the beach and with a view of the sea. The setting is fantastic - and Uliassi's cuisine is one of the best and most creative in Italy.

Naturally, fish and seafood play the main role, although there is also room for sensational meat dishes, some of which are based on game from the forests of the hinterland, such as the spectacular tagliatelle with partridge ragout and black truffle. The combinations of fish and meat are also wonderful - such as the ossobuco alla marinara, in which the chef combines veal shank with cod innards, clam juice and fish stock in a surprisingly harmonious way.