Monday 20th

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Venice:

We had half a day in Venice before catching the train to Milan, so we got in line for San Marco basilica and Peggy’s favorite horses, the ones that Napoleon stole from Venice for the Louvre Museum (and which were finally restored to Venice many years later). San Marco is a miracle of gold mosaics: every inch of the dome and upper walls covered with exquisite religious decoration. The famous horses have been replaced in the public upper loggia but the originals are just inside and are quite spectacular. Peggy was very happy … and we took many pictures from the loggia of Piazza San Marco and the lagoon.

Afterwards we walked back to the Danieli and had a cup of tea and sat in their ornate lobby. What an era it must have been when this was an active palazzo. We even found a picture of one of the Danieli doges. Wandering back to the Londra we gave our last few days of the Venice vaporetto pass to a visiting couple from Spain (they were contemplating going to Murano but didn’t have a ticket) and then ran across a group of American Rotarians. We exchanged talk about the clubs and determined to keep in touch about the activities of their district (LA area and a focus on “peace” for the next year) and the planned September zone conference on young clubs and membership.

Caught a water taxi to the station and our train to Milano Centrale.

Milan:

After settling in at our “4-star” hotel (with the feel of a well-oiled, machine-like business orientation) we went out for a walk. Passed the Cathedral with its crenellations and statuary, into the Galleria Emmanuel, the oldest shopping center in the world, and into a café for a spritzer and a search for Milan runway models, both men and women. We sadly fell short in both categories but enjoyed the time and the movie. Moving on we ended in a restaurant for some artichokes and risotto. The food, the service, and the people watching were poor … but the price was Milan high.

We went back to our hotel to rest up for museums and the Duomo tomorrow.

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