2 Milan, Italy

We quickly learned two things upon our arrival by train in Milan. First, Milan is hot. Not a cloud in the sky, no breeze, sweltering hot. Second, shopping is the absolute favorite past time. Immediately we spotted multiple Armani and Prada stores, among other high class designers, and all were buzzing with shoppers. To not look like tourists, Katrina suggested we get some shopping bags as accessories, and stuff them with newspapers to make them look full. We also came to realize that it's no coincidence the shops are all well air conditioned, luring pedestrians off the streets with Milan's only refuge from the blistering summer sun.

Milan's geographical centerpoint is the Duomo. The outside is gorgeously ornate and detailed, with hundreds of spires rising from the roof. Katrina was "inappropriately dressed" in shorts above the knees so was not able to go inside, but Patrick took lots of pictures for her of the soaring ceilings and stained glass windows. The highlight of a visit to the Duomo is visiting the roof for panaromic views of Milan, but on our one day in the city the roof was unfortunately closed.Of course Milan is also home to many first-rate museums as well (though not all have AC, and are accordingly not very crowded). An exception is Cenacolo Vinciano, which houses The Last Supper. Unfortunately we were turned away since we did not book tickets ahead of time. So between that, the Duomo roof, and our reader Paola's panzerotto of Liuni recommendation we already have a pretty good to do list for a return visit.

Though we were unable to grace the last supper with our presence, we had a great time exploring the nearby Archeology Museum, full of ancient artifacts and built on rare intact sections of the old Roman city walls that have survived through the centuries. The highlight was a well preserved tower adjacent to which the museum was constructed. The tower first served as a corner of Milan's circus which housed events such as chariot racing and later became the chapel for the monastery built in its place. We stepped inside and were surrounded by a huge fresco painting that decorates the entire circle of its walls. It was amazing to be there undisturbed, so close to this original artwork, with not another visitor or museum attendant in sight! There aren't too many 13th century frescoes one can stumble upon in Boston. The entrance fee for this well-maintained museum is a steal at 2 Euros full price or 1 Euro for students.

An even better deal is the free Modern Art Museum, where they even stored our bags in lockers for us at no charge. "Modern", however, is a relative term. We were expecting to see 20th Century paintings and avante-garde sculptures, but were instead met with works dating from the 1700s. We leisurely strolled through the museum admiring the art as well as the setting, a beautiful old mansion at the foot of the Milan Public Gardens.

The Public Gardens and Sempione Park are Milan's two large green areas at the north end of city center. We'd grown accustomed to beautiful city parks in Europe, and were rather disappointed with Milan's. Both are green, but could use some flowers, creative manicuring, or sculptures. Most importantly--they need more shade! Somehow the trees in these parks manage to provide little shade for dripping sweat denizens looking for a quiet break. On the southeast end of Sempione we found the Castello Sforzesco, a huge old fort that is free to explore from the outside. We were also able to visit the inner courtyard, but to go in the actual building you need to buy a ticket for the host of museums housed inside.
We stayed at two different lodging establishments during our time in Milan. For the first night, we had booked ahead with Camilla Lozza at Milan BnB. We essentially rented a room in her large apartment just a five minute walk from the Duomo. Our room was a bit surprising with its pink and purple decor, but very comfortable. Camilla was mysteriously absent during our stay, but her daughter Manuela saw to our every need with an in-room fridge stocked with complimentary snacks and a huge quantity of breakfast supplies to choose from in the morning. For our second night, we needed a place only for a few hours since we had to leave for the bus station at 3:30 the next morning, and had debated not booking a hotel altogether. However, desire for a shower and a bed won out and we chose Hotel 2000 near the station. It was pretty much what we expected for the cheap price we were paying, with not much more than the desired bed and shower. We had no trouble getting up in the morning--the lack of AC or any effective ventilation made getting more than two hours sleep an impossibility anyway.

We did have a lot of luck getting dining recommendations from our Milan hosts. One of these suggestions was the Naviglio Canal which we were surprised to find lined with bar after bar serving "Happy Hour" buffets. For a minimum drink order, normally 7 or 8 Euros, customers can help themselves to an all you can eat buffet. And these places were packed! We snagged a table by the water at Slice Cafe, ordered two of their fruit-laced long island iced tea concoctions, and proceeded to stuff ourselves with pasta, gnocchi and pizza. All was going well until some lightning flashed, a huge raindrop fell, and suddenly the skies opened up and dumped a torrential thunderstorm. Everyone ran for cover and Slice staff hurried to put out umbrellas. We waited out the worst of it before heading home. We guess Evan was right: all our talk about sunny skies jinxed us with a crazy storm.

View more Milan pictures here.

4 Vernazza, Italy

Our most recent stop, Vernazza, is a small village on the Mediterranean coast of Italy. So small in fact that upon arrival we were told to check in at a local wine shop so they could telephone the owners of our inn, Giuliano and Michele, to show us the way to their place. Thus began our Cinque Terre adventure, waiting amidst limoncino (a local specialty) and wine bottles to meet our new hosts, and then to be led along a winding pathway up the hillside to reach Camere Giuliano. This home base became so much more than just a place to sleep at night during our stay. We ate, drank, sunbathed, and watched the sun set from the terrace overlooking Vernazza below.
Giuliano was born in Vernazza and literally built the beautiful Camere Giuliano from the ground up. Every stone that makes up the terrace, he carried down from the hills on his back. He continues his work as a stonelayer in addition to running this lodging establishment and also working at one of Vernazza's waterfront restaurants. Rumor has it he was once a professional football (soccer) player, too. He and his wife Michele have created a warm and welcoming home for visitors to Vernazza--the couple staying next door to us was there for their third summer holiday in a row, and planned to return next year on their honeymoon.

Vernazza is one of five charming towns nestled in the hillside along the coast--the Cinque Terre. Each one looks like it belongs in a fairy tale, with colorful houses piled atop one another, stone paths and stairways acting as city streets, and dramatic cliffs dropping off to the sparkling blue sea. There are no cars, and people have to take the train or ferry to get from town to town. Or better yet--hike! Cinque Terre is home to a huge network of hiking trails that on a practical level, connect these five towns, and for the outdoor enthusiast offer a huge variety of ways to explore the coast. On our first day walking from Vernazza to Corniglia, we were surprised to see so many fellow hikers in just their bathing suits and sneakers. But we soon learned why--the sun is hot and trails can be steep, and there are many opportunities to take a refreshing dip along the way.

Each town has its own character, but all are equipped with the basics: a focacceria, a gelato stand, some restaurants, and rooms for rent. We ate some great pasta, of course (trofie al pesto is the local specialty, a fresh gemelli-like pasta), but a real star for us was the focaccia. This delicious fresh bread was sold at pizzerias as well as focaccerias specifically designated for its baking. There are a large variety of toppings on offer--olives, tomatoes, cheese, onions--but our favorite quickly became the focaccia ligure, named for the region. With just a hint of olive oil and salt, we would pick up a slice for lunch, a mid-day snack, picnic makings...whenever! In our tribute to food we also cannot neglect the mussels. The mussels in Cinque Terre are so fresh (these are traditionally fishing villages, after all) that it didn't matter what a restaurant did with them, they were delicious.

It was sad to say goodbye to Vernazza and our new friends there, but we definitely look forward to returning in the future--maybe bringing family along as well.

View more Cinque Terre pictures here.

6 Lucca, Italy

To Patrick it seemed that every other word out of Katrina's mouth was 'charming' during our 24 hour stay in Lucca. But it is--so charming, with its ancient city wall encircling a labryinth of winding little streets. Even the garbage and pizza delivery trucks are miniature to fit and the postman uses a mail bike. It's a town where travellers come to see nothing in particular, rather to simply experience Lucca.
Our home for the night, La Magnolia B&B, was no exception to the culture of charm. Buzzing in from the street, we expected to open the front door to find a lobby of some sort. But instead we encountered an airy, open courtyard with flints of light sneaking in through the trees from the sun above. Our room on the second floor peered out over the courtyard and a restaurant next door, and the room's decor seemed to not only share but accentuate the atmosphere of the town and surroundings below. Our hosts at the B&B, Laura and her brother, Andrea, were very helpful in getting us oriented to Lucca and on our way to some delectable dining.

Per Laura's recommendation, we had our first meal at Gigi in the Piazza del Carmine. The pasta was so good that it made even Patrick stop to savor every bite, and the 4 Euro half liter carafe of house wine (straight from the barrel we suspect) was the best we've had so far. Afterwards, we allowed our stomaches a brief respite while wandering the streets and pedestrian path atop the city wall. Before long we stopped for gelato that was so good Patrick voted to break our three to five "M" scale to give it a "Mmmmmm".

We spent the rest of the afternoon strolling the city wall, taking a nap, and working up an appetite for dinner at Andrea's recommendation, Vasco. Though not quite as delicious as Gigi, we happily stuffed ourselves and were about to call it a night when we heard ampliphied voices descending from atop the city wall. Looking up we could make out a large group of people sitting at tables and our path of deduction was as follows: guests sitting for dinner, toasts on a microphone...must be a wedding! Our curiosity piqued, we went up to check it out and found a scene far from a nuptual reception. Over 200 Luccans were intently participating in a tournament of Burraco, which appeared to be some sort of variation of Canasta. Patrick's competitive streak reared its ugly head, but before he could drag Katrina to a table she dragged him back to La Magnolia. We fell asleep to the sound of joyful dining from the restaurant next door and a soothing Tuscan breeze blowing in our window.
More photos from Lucca here.

18 Pisa, Italy

Ever since we first booked our flight to Italy, we had been dreaming about the food. On our trip to Rome in 2007, we had set records in terms of how much delicious pasta we ate in a day, and we planned to continue that tradition this trip. Unfortunately our first Italian meal was the breakfast included with our stay at Pisa's Hotel Milano. The prepackaged croissants were inedible and the other "goodies" on offer might have well as been styrofoam.

Hotel Milano, with its muggy lobby, sparse rooms, and crusty old owner, was exactly what you might expect from a small town with a reknowned tourist attraction that singly drives the local economy. Our morning march with the other Tower seeking tourists seemed almost ritual and through the eyes of the locals we surely must have looked like map-toting zombies. The well-beaten route was lined with restaurants advertising "typical Tuscan food", and the hotels we passed along the way looked strikingly similar to the dilapidated Milano. The side streets, however, looked asleep. Undoubtedly there are parts of Pisa that are lovely, but in our 13 hour whirlwind tour (including seven hours of sleeping) we certainly did not see them.

But we did have just enough time to sleep, visit the Tower, and get out of town. And seeing the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person is pretty darn cool. It really is...leaning. In a very precarious way. We expected that at any minute, it might topple over on all the people pretending to hold it up for their photos.

The good news is that Pisa is an easy stop on a Tuscan tour. After the Tower, we hopped the next train to Lucca and were there within a half hour, eating that delicious pasta we had dreamed about for so long. But more on that to come...

Since our time in Pisa was so short and accordingly the post, we figured we'd throw in some tidbits from the road:

• We weighed in our packs at the airport in Barcelona...Patrick's came in at 7.3 kilos while Katrina's was 6.7
• Patrick for the first time ever enjoyed coffee this morning
• Shower safety is a big concern in Italy as both showers we have used had S.O.S. pull strings
• The first new word we learn in any country we arrive in is "sale" as it is plastered on every storefront window
• We have yet to see a drop of rain in our first 8 days
• Patrick is becoming a tap water connoisseur...he claims that Spain and France's tasted too "cloudy" and "thick" while Italy's is much more agreeable to his gentle palate
• We can't believe we get to do this for another 178 days!