Blogs from Milan, Lombardy, Italy, Europe - page 10

Geo: 45.4637, 9.18813It was probably the perfect morning to be leaving Rome - pouring rain, and getting colder...still, it was very hard to realise that, to all intents and purposes, our holiday was ending.We packed - bloody hell, how did we accumulate so much stuff? I blame Steven! - and then shipped the kids downstairs to wait with Cathy whilst we met the landlord and checked out of the apartment. Then, into taxis and off to the Termini train station. We were all a little freaked out by the fact that we think someone tried to pickpocket Steven's backpack the day before, and by the number of dodgy people hanging around the train station - the kids picked up on our nerves and Georgia in particular was very concerned. We had the only bad food we ... read more

We left Liechtenstein yesterday (Saturday 5th) and on our way to Milan, we made a pitstop at Lake Como. Wow, even in the overcast weather I can see why this is the playground of the rich and famous (Including Mr Clooney). It is beautiful. The streets are mad, we went for a drive up the side of the mountain and they are so very narrow, in some places only one car can go through at a time. So glad that Andrew was driving. We needed to grab some lunch and some groceries, so we went to a shopping centre in Como. Wow, Andrew and I have been born in the wrong country. The supermarket here was at least half of a bunnings store in size. It had groceries and clothes and stuff. But Andrew and I ... read more

The balloon video didn't work, but if you want to see it and other videos Anita took, let her know and she'll email them to you. Now, about today. It was cool and damp from an overnight rain storm, and we thought we'd' catch the metro to the Port Garibaldi train station, but got outside and decided to walk. We wandered through an entirely new area with great shops, an outdoor market where we bought Sicilian pepper cheese, bread, and fruit. Just before we got to the market we stumbled on an old, unused section of one of the canals with parts oh the old gates still intact. After the market, heading to the train station, we found ourselves on a beautiful "pedonale," a street closed off from traffic for people to walk Down. Usually, areas ... read more

We took the Metro underground three times today in order to save our feet and our energy for the specific sights. First, we walked up and down the Grand Canal.Then, we sat and snacked before taking the metro to the Science Museum, where there was an incredible Leornardo DaVinci. They had used his drawings and actually constructed what he had drawn. I wanted to photograph all of them, but there were too many. The museum was immense! Trains, planes, boats, bikes, early intentions. One could spend days there. Anita found some photos of workers from back in the 40s. We went there for the DaVinci, but discovered way more!Found a great bar/restaurant that had salads, something we'd been missing.Took the metro, heading back to the hostel for a late afternoon nap but waylaid by a festival ... read more

What a day! It was chilly today so we did inside stuff - the duomo and an art museum nearby with famous artists and not-so famous ones that we want to know more about. I'd seen a lot of the paintings on my previous trip with Sally, but there was a lot I missed. We caught a tram back to the hostel, took a nap, and then went window shopping as we wove our way to the Brera district, a center for arts and restaurants. We ate outside under a heater. Our waiter is saving his money to start a restaurant of his own in Jacksonville, FL, where he has relatives. America is still the land of opportunity. Tomorrow, we're hoping for a bit warmer weather so we can walk along the old canals that were ... read more