White on White - Change of View

I've never been a big fan of the whitewash decor I'd see in trendy magazines. It seemed so sterile, and if you've been to my house, you know I LOVE color.

But, while in Milan we had brunch at this lovely little cafe called Bianco Latte (click to see pictures) and I fell in love with the charming white decor. I bought a little white tin house and started contemplating how hard it would be to change my dining room into a white-washed haven. I'm nearly there, as most of the large furniture in that wood is already white.

Isn't that one of the best part of traveling?! To experience things that change your outlook -- and possibly the color of your dining room walls?!

Milan Day 6 - Where We Search for Toys

With my guidebook gone, and having no success finding a new one, I was a bit lost this morning. I have one guide book for Northern Italy that spends all of six pages on Milan. Of those 6 pages, however, a majority of attractions are closed on Monday -- including the science museum I had planned on going to.

Note to European travelers: most everything is closed on Sundays and half of Mondays. Which is terribly annoying.

Regardless of the closures, I walked the girls down to the location of the Imaginarium -- this very cool toystore we found a small version of in the train station yesterday. Though, not surprising when we got there, the store was closed and wouldn't open until 3pm. So, we sadly returned to the hotel. All in all, it was about a two hour excursion of disappointment. Sad.

Though, happy ending -- we returned there in the afternoon with David, who is finally finished with his conference and wanted to see a little of Milan. And since the toy store happened to be by the Duomo, well.... Anyway, it was a fun afternoon. And our last in Milan.

Overall, Milan grew on me. I was very happy with our hotel (The Westin Palace) and their outstanding service and our large room. The Italians loved the kids and I wasn't made to feel embarrassed by their ... er... behavior. The trams were incredibly fun to use and got us around quickly. Milan didn't feel like a very big city. And with all the charming little renaissance churches and buildings here and there, you didn't need a guide book to tell you where to go. You just needed to look around to realize you were in a fantastically old and historic town. Though, it's completely filthy. And they drive like maniacs.

Tomorrow morning, another early wake up and back "home" to Berlin!

Milan Day 5 - 10/10/10 Day and Lake Como

Very excited about celebrating 10/10/10 day with everyone in Italy. You realize, this is the only day in your lifetime that will see a 101010 day ... so hope you celebrate. How about an 11/11/11 party next year? Anyone have 11 as their lucky number?

Lake Como from the boat

In honor of this glorious day, I took the kids to Lake Como. Luckily, our hotel is a short walk to Central Station, which -- similar to Central Station in NYC -- is a big, beautiful neo-classical building with thousands of people rushing through. Unlike Central Station, people are going to different countries! We quickly purchased our tickets (the train's destination was Zurich -- how cool is that?!) and headed toward the platform -- which was mass chaos.

The ride to Lake Como was about 30 minutes. I had thought I'd see some of the idyllic Italian countryside I'd always read about on the way -- but no, just industrial parks and scrubby buildings. This would turn into the theme of the day.

Alice and Leah chasing birds

Because, I had thought Lake Como would be similarly idyllic Italian town with cobblestone streets and views of a tranquil lake. Not so. The town is larger than you would guess, though it has that Italian feel with narrow streets and cobblestones. And there were several very old churches that we saw scattered about. However, it's sprawls out, has loads of noisy traffic and there are houses in every possible nook and cranny in the hills surrounding the lake. It was probably a very peaceful resort town at one time, now it's just very touristy.

After grabbing lunch -- ham and cheese, as usual, I don't think Italians eat anything else. We boarded a small tourist boat for a 30 minute tour of the lake. There was a boat that was a 1-hour excursion, but with two fussy kids, that seemed like a very bad idea. This turned out to be the right decision, as they both had minor meltdowns on board.

Clooney's Villa

Otherwise, the tour was very nice. There are many large villas on the lake, as you can imagine, including George Clooney's mini-palace -- which, surprising to me, is not very well secluded. It's actually incredibly non-secluded and nearly juts out into the lake. Tour boats pass his home regularly and so close you can practically see into his bedroom. Note to Hollywood: Clooney's lake house is NOT the place for a clandestine rendezvous or secret wedding.

On the way back to the train station (which is very walkable from the lake, btw) I had a nice conversation with a 70-year-old "granny" (as she introduced herself) who was waiting for a friend coming in from Milano. She revealed to me why Alice is getting so much attention. It's because she's blonde. Italians don't see many blonde children. It's fun to talk to strangers, no?

On the way back from the train station, I nearly wept when I saw a burger place that was open. I'm not a huge burger fan, but there was something about American cuisine that brought a tear to my eye. Of course I ordered a cheese burger and fries to go. Alice and Leah ate gourmet gelato from next store. It was a win-win.

Anyway, we spent the rest of the night partying like rock stars in our hotel room to celebrate 101010 day, charging up a huge hotel bill and nearly getting thrown out of the place. Or, depending on who you ask, we fell asleep at 10, after an exhausting day.

Milan Day 4 - Date With a Castle

And yes, this is a CASTLE -- not a neo-classical or fancy-schmancy marble confection meant to strike envy in the hearts of visiting royalty. Oh no, this is a CASTLE, a fortress, started in the 1300s and meant to look scary and imposing and keep people safe from warring neighbors. How fabulous!!

Castello Sforzesco from the tram stop

Castello Sforzesco is a 15-minute walk from the Duomo. But instead of taking the Metro again, we decided to ride one of the many streetcars or Trams. This short ride made Leah's day. She could have ridden on that tram all day and night. It may be the only thing she remembers about her trip to Italy -- other than the carousel. Sadly, we arrived at our destination.

And actual drawbridge!

The Castello has a long history, of course, and has been demolished, rebuilt and demolished several times in its 700 year existence. Da Vinci was even brought in as part a remodeling job. It's incredibly large, all brick, with towers on the corners. The area where the moat was is easily imagined flooded with water and populated with blood-thirsty alligators. In fact, it took very little imagination to dream up what the courtyard would have looked like hundreds of years ago -- I have been to a Renaissance festival.

Alice, in the courtyard, being 2-years-old

The other side of the Castello looks out over a very pretty park area. Leah, Alice and I stopped there for a snack consisting of a panini sandwich with prosciutto and potato chips.

The rest of the day went by as imagine; nap, park, etc.

Ode to Ice Cream

For the last few days, we've been going to the park after our afternoon naps, riding the carousel and getting gelato ice cream cones ("cono"). We then find a park bench to devour the cones -- and Mom "cleans up" any drips ... or potential drips. Yum!

Just before I took this video, Alice sighed and said "I love ice cream."

Happy 10/10/10 Day Eve!

With 10 being my lucky number since birth -- I was born on April 10th! -- I've been looking forward to 10/10/10 for decades! In high school, I started thinking about ways to celebrate. In college, it was clear a big party would be needed. When Dave and I were talking about a second kid, I knew she/he had to be born before 10/10/10 so I could properly celebrate this day. And at last, it's here ....

And instead of a big party, with ten cakes and a countdown to 10:10pm, I'm in Milan, Italy. Didn't see that one coming!

So, to all those I gave out verbal invitations to: Sorry! You're still welcome to fly to Italy and join me. I'm planning to spend the day on Lake Como! But, unsure as of yet where I'll be at 10:10pm.

Perhaps you're going ahead with some big plans of your own to celebrate -- in this event, do send me pictures!

Happy 10/10/10!!! 

Milan Day 3 - Self Indulgence

So, not much to report on on this day. We ARE on vacation, after all.

We had a very messy breakfast at a little cafe. The owner just wanted us out, though he was being very kind about. Croissants and kids = crumbs. Do Italian kids find the same equation to be true? I'd like to know.

Afterwards, we wondered through a grocery store -- just to see what kind of food they had. Lots of bread, cheese and ham. I'm convinced they eat no other food product here. Not that I'm complaining.

We also found a fantastic little toy store that was well-priced and full of adorable little things. Leah and Alice both got little dolls and other goodies to play with. I also found some holiday gifts for my nieces. Oddly, I have yet to final a similar toy store in Berlin.

Leah riding the airplane

Then, we spent the afternoon in the park, following the familiar pattern of events I talked about in Day 2. Routine is good, right?

Italians love kids, as no other city we've been to does. Strangers often come up and talk to the kids. Alice gets a kind smile and a head pat several times a day. If, for no other reason, this would be a great country to return to. Though, it would be nice to think our next trip will be sans kids.

Lastly, I left my tour book at a neighboring hotel while inviting the new friends we met at the park to join us on our Lake Como adventure. I returned today to pick it up and they didn't have it. How annoying! I had notes in the margins and destinations circled. So, will need to find a bookstore selling English tourbooks STAT.

Milan Day 1 - Such a Different City

It occurred to me while wandering around today that I have seen three such vastly different cities -- something I really didn't expect. Sure, I knew they'd each have their own signature theme -- like Paris's feminine architecture, Berlin's buttoned-up feel and Milan would be rustic. But a city is just a city, right? I work in NYC every day, how different can they all be?

Sheesh. What a difference! They all feel like they exist on different planets -- not a 2-hour plane ride.

And it's not just the language, though that certainly sets them apart. There's a completely different feel here in Milan than anywhere I've been. Milan is like walking into a neglected attic. Where Parisians are stewards to their buildings, lovingly restoring them, Milanese rough them up. They show their age. They even smell their age. Even the newer buildings look dirty and old.

The city I've seen so far is a complete 180 from the order of Berlin. It's total chaos. Even the park had seen better days. The people are not formal, they nap on park benches, pee in public corners and smile openly at my kids.

I feel like I have to start completely over here. Nothing from Paris or Berlin has prepared me for this rough city.

Speaking of the language, I thought I'd get a leg-up here with Italian since I know so much Spanish. Nope. Not helping me a bit. I actually think it helped me more with French. But maybe that opinion will change after a few days. (Though, I can't stop danke-ing people -- where I am again?!)

Milan Day 1 - The Greatest Park Ever

We had a 4:30am wake up time this morning to catch our 6:30am flight out of Tegel for Milan. Ugh! The flight was half empty so Dave and I took up two rows. The girls choose to bless Dave's row with their company, so I half-slept. I got a great view of the Alps, as well. Amazing!

It took nearly 2 hours for our cab to navigate morning rush hour and arrive at our hotel in the Northeast section of town. We got to our fairly standard room and I was ready to make do with it, but Dave didn't think the logistic of two twin beds would work, so we moved to a gigantic room with a king bed and a small twin. Okay, maybe it's not gigantic to some standards, but after the shoebox in Paris, I'm pretty pleased. There's plenty of space to run around in.

Once we settled in, I was off with the kiddos to explore the neighborhood and get my barings -- and hopefully stumble upon a playground. Dave was off to his all-consuming conference that will keep him busy for pretty much our entire stay.

A supermarket, some delis, a pharmacy -- so far this neighborhood was proving to be full of what we needed. And crowded and lots of traffic. I crossed a few streets toward some greenery and ended up in a park. I followed a woman pushing a stroller and ended up at a playground. The fates were with me.

But it didn't end there, oh no. The woman was from San Francisco and she had also flown in that morning with her adorable 2-year-old. She's also attending Dave's conference and brought her mother along to babysit. We talked quite a bit, actually and I might try to meet up with them later this week. After ample time to run around and get to know our new friend, we continues to explore the park. It not only contained three play areas, a lake with fish and ducks, and several busy cafes -- it had ice cream. And a carousel. Making it Leah's favorite park in all of Europe!!

No pictures today as I was too exhausted to bother digging out the camera, but we'll no doubt be returning to this park soon.

Change Of Venue - Hello Milan!

We're off to Milan tomorrow morning, so I've been studying the travel guides -- something I neglected to do before, as I was studying Paris and Berlin.

Seems that much like Berlin, many of Milan's buildings were bombed in WWII and have gone through extensive remodeling. And I keep hearing it's the least-charming city in Italy -- not a very kind description. But the guide is filled with Renaissance architecture, quaint museums and a lot about shopping, so I'm not at all worried about being disappointed.

I'm also very excited to read about the slew of FREE museums listed. That means I can wander through and make a hasty exist when the kids get bored without spending a single euro. I'm happy about that.

This is my first trip to Italy, a place I've wanted to see forever. Again, I'll reference a book (and its movie), which is on my Top 10 list: "A Room With a View" by EM Forster as one reason for my desire to visit.  I highly recommend both the book and movie. And Lucy visits Florence with Charlotte. It's where she meets George. And no, Milan isn't Florence, and I won't have a view of the Arno from my pension window. I'll still be in Italy.

Wish you were here!