Our first destination in Italy was to be Milan, known for its shopping, nightlife and fashion. We left Karlsruhe after a leisurely buffet breakfast at the Renaissance Hotel, and headed south towards Switzerland.
After living in relatively “flat” Belgium for the last year and a half, it was truly breathtaking to see the grandeur of the Swiss Alps. More spectacular in person, we were in awe as we drove through Switzerland on our way to Italy. It was well worth the $35 cost of the vignette (road tax sticker) necessary to drive in Switzerland. At least the vignette is good for the whole year…
We arrived at our hotel in Milan around 4:30pm, quickly checked in and headed out to start seeing the town. A nice thing about Italy was the excellent public transportation system available in the larger metropolitan areas and Milan was no exception. We quickly were able to figure out what subway to take and where to get off, without very much trouble. Plus, seeing some of the local Italian drivers at work, we were happy to leave the car behind!
We stopped to see the Castle Sforzesco, which was beautiful to see in the early twilight. The girls then started to get hungry, so we stopped off at Bar Castello, a small café across the street and had a light dinner. (“light” because they really didn’t have too much to offer!). So much for our first Italian meal! However, the view of the castle and fountains from our outdoor table more than made up for it... Following our dinner, we took the metro back to the hotel to call it a night.
The next day was our outing to Lake Como, just north of Milan. A short subway ride and train connection brought us to Como Lago. A word to the wise – leave the car behind and take the train: you’ll arrive more relaxed and won’t burn up time looking for parking once you arrive!
We quickly disembarked, took some lakeside pictures and boarded a boat to the lake town of Bellagio, the inspiration for the famous Las Vegas hotel. Everything you would expect in a quaint Italian lakeside town is found here, including the beautiful scenery.
The girls enjoyed the boat ride and had fun seeing the village. We stopped and had a nice lunch and gelato in this gorgeous locale. And met some nice people here as well...
After living in relatively “flat” Belgium for the last year and a half, it was truly breathtaking to see the grandeur of the Swiss Alps. More spectacular in person, we were in awe as we drove through Switzerland on our way to Italy. It was well worth the $35 cost of the vignette (road tax sticker) necessary to drive in Switzerland. At least the vignette is good for the whole year…
We arrived at our hotel in Milan around 4:30pm, quickly checked in and headed out to start seeing the town. A nice thing about Italy was the excellent public transportation system available in the larger metropolitan areas and Milan was no exception. We quickly were able to figure out what subway to take and where to get off, without very much trouble. Plus, seeing some of the local Italian drivers at work, we were happy to leave the car behind!
We stopped to see the Castle Sforzesco, which was beautiful to see in the early twilight. The girls then started to get hungry, so we stopped off at Bar Castello, a small café across the street and had a light dinner. (“light” because they really didn’t have too much to offer!). So much for our first Italian meal! However, the view of the castle and fountains from our outdoor table more than made up for it... Following our dinner, we took the metro back to the hotel to call it a night.
The next day was our outing to Lake Como, just north of Milan. A short subway ride and train connection brought us to Como Lago. A word to the wise – leave the car behind and take the train: you’ll arrive more relaxed and won’t burn up time looking for parking once you arrive!
We quickly disembarked, took some lakeside pictures and boarded a boat to the lake town of Bellagio, the inspiration for the famous Las Vegas hotel. Everything you would expect in a quaint Italian lakeside town is found here, including the beautiful scenery.
The girls enjoyed the boat ride and had fun seeing the village. We stopped and had a nice lunch and gelato in this gorgeous locale. And met some nice people here as well...
It was a full day exploring Bellagio and riding the open air boat back to the train station. We finally made it back to our hotel in Milan after 7 and just brought a “take-away” pizza with us to the room for dinner. The girls were out like a light soon after…
Our last day (Easter Sunday) in Milan was one that Jo Ann had been anticipating for a long time. She made reservations for us (a few months in advance -- which is necessary in order to view it!) to see “The Last Supper”, Leonardo da Vinci’s 15th century mural located at the Santa Maria delle Grazie (Our Lady of Grace) Church.
The mural had undergone a 21 year restoration and visitors are only allowed 15 minutes to view the mural. It was quite amazing to see one of the most famous paintings in the world and I hope the girls remember the experience. I know Jo Ann always will.
A quick stop at the Milan Cathedral (Duomo) was next to see the third largest cathedral in the world. A few obligatory shots of the girls in front and it was back to the hotel to check out and head off to our next location – Lucca, in the Tuscan area of Northern Italy. Lucca will serve as our home base for the next 6 nights while we explore all that Tuscany has to offer.
We are really starting to enjoy Italy…
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