To Milan

We arrived in Milan by train, arriving at Central Station, a massive structure built in the Fascist style by Mussolini in 1931. Like something out of a ‘30s Nazi propaganda film, the building looms over one end of a modern boulevard, home to dozens of banks. However, walk one block away from the station or boulevard, and you are in
picturesque urban neighborhoods built in the 18^th and 19^th centuries.

Milan is a big city (4 million people, Italy’s 2^nd largest), and it’s the business capital of the country. It’s also the fashion capital and everyone dresses the part. Stylishly attired folk of every age sit in sidewalk cafés, pass you on the street, shop in the stores.  Tourists stand out in their casual dress, appearing a bit shabby by comparison.

Keeping up with the Milanese would be an expensive task. Home to the 400-euro knee-high boots and the 1200-euro Marilyn Monroe handbag, Milan stores demand a serious investment to look like a local. With Armani skinny jeans for men selling for 130 euros, no wonder Italians stock up on denim when they visit the US. (Conversion tip: multiply euros by 1.38 for the dollar value.)

Exploring the Duomo, 4^th largest cathedral in Europe, we were treated to a 10-minute organ performance resounding through that massive space.








 Afterward we enjoyed lunch at the rooftop café across the street, atop the swanky downtown department store, La Rinascente. Our table looked out on the hundreds of spires decorating the roof of the Duomo.

While many of our meals were quick pizzas and local “fast food,” there were some unusual dishes as well. Steamed octopus served with cannellini beans; a ravioli-style pasta filled with spinach and ricotta, then tossed with a sauce of sautéed chicken and rabbit livers (a lot better than it sounds); and a platter of six Lombardy cheeses served with chestnut honey and fig preserves. Cheese lover that I am, they were almost too strong for me.

We left for Atlanta on Wednesday, and though we hated to leave, we were looking forward to being home. There’s nothing like your own bed and your own shower, and people who speak a language you understand!

More Parma and Milan

Well, Parma and E-R seem to be impenetrable for non-Italians. And we think they like it that way. Probably tired of so many tourists at the end of a long summer, and don't need two more. We tried hard to find our agritourismo but couldn't. We tried to find charm
in the small towns, but only found corporate food packaging plants. We walked into amazing butcher shops and cheese stores, with no language to connect us. We stayed one night at a business hotel outside town and had a wonderful meal of melon and prosciutto with chunks of great Parmesan cheese, followed by a steak on arugula with balsamic reduction and shaved Parmesan. One of the best meals of the trip. But with no way to connect with the heart of the city, we finally gave up and left for Milan.

Milan is another story.

From Venice to Parma to Milan

What a treat Venice was. More a collection of tiny neighborhoods than an actual city, interlaced with narrow canals and even narrower walkways, Venice is charming at every turn. It's surprising how fast everyone walks. Sanda says it's because they can't have scooters to race around on, so they express their speed obsession on foot. Our hotel was a former palace, we were told, and we had a beautifully decorated room with a marble floor from the 14th Century. Just wish we had stayed longer.

Parma on the other hand did not live up to expectations. Mostly our fault (ok, my fault) for believing the Internet video with a woman speaking perfect English as she showed you around the old city. We were lost from the moment we arrived. Car rental place had nothing reserved for us and didn't speak Inglese. Then they found an old VW we could have, so we drove off without a map into a city for which we had no guide book. Actually, we couldn't find a guide book for the city or region, and were about to find out why. With a reputation as being Italy's gastronomic hub, Parma and Emilia-Romagna are