It's Very Milan, Dahhhling

Originally uploaded by MattL.

As the train pulled out of Rome yesterday afternoon, I reflected on how busy Termini train station was. Departures were scheduled regularly, but arrivals were coming in just about every 2 minutes, which would have been such a nightmare. From the comfort of my first class Eurostar seat, I felt pretty satisfied that our time in the busy Eternal City had passed so drama-free.

We are now ultra proficient at public transportation travel, having mastered the Metro and bus systems. And train travel? A snap.

And so it is that we have travelled north, to the beautiful City of Milan. This place is attractive, and very quiet. Is it true that everyone in the world is travelling to Rome? Are the only people here in Milan actually tourists? Could be. But I digress.

We had dinner last night at a restaurant near our Hotel, and the lovely old waiter (is there any other kind on this trip?!) gave Andrea and I a free glass each of pure alcohol as a digestif. Andrea tried grappa for the first time, and I got to stomach a glass of limoncello. I think I will have to try that again while I'm here - I was quite taken with it by the end. As you can probably imagine, given that it is 30% alcohol. Hic.

Today we woke up in our 4-star hotel (a reputation that I suspect was bought, rather than awarded impartially) to a particularly overcast day. In Rome we had been walking around in jeans and tshirts, so I suppose it makes a nice, albeit irritating, change to don a cardigan and dodge some raindrops again. This is about as close as my clothes are getting to a laundromat, which is a bit sad - but the state of our clothes keeps even the nutters away from us, which is a good thing.

In one hour this morning, we had showered, dressed, breakfasted, and made our way to the Milano Centrale train station. Not a bad effort in any country really. We bought a train ticket to Como for tomorrow (so that we can take a cruise on the lake) and also a bus ticket to Bergamo airport for our flight to Paris in a few days time. Then we set off to explore our temporary home.

The weather held out for most of the day and we got to see the Duomo Cathedral. Or at least we saw where it is SUPPOSED to be, under the mountain of scaffolding that met us as we emerged from the metro station. But we went inside and it truly is a beautiful church.

We walked through the Galleria shopping centre, where this photo comes to you - courtesy of a much better photographer than me. In the Galleria, you find McDonalds (naturally) alongside Prada and Louis Vuitton. Quite an eclectic mix really, and way out of our price range. "Where do the normal people shop?" has become my catch-cry as today has worn on. I am yet to find the answer.

After the window shopping trip in the Galleria, we got lost. Not surprising really, given that I had the map for most of the time. After a restorative bottle of Italian Pinot Grigio and calzone for lunch, we did a tour of La Scala and even took a bootleg paparazzi-style photo of each other in there. "No Photo" signs mean nothing to other tourists, and so we figured we'd follow suit.

So tomorrow we take the train for an hour, arriving at Como late in the morning, cruise the Lake up to Bellagio, and then back again to get the train in the early evening back to Milan. Should make a nice day, if only the rain holds off for us. But still, if George Clooney spots a water-logged little me from the comfort of his palatial balcony, maybe he will invite me in for a warming and restorative Limoncello? Andrea can come too I guess.

Sigh.