We're Eating Where??

Ciao, Lido!!  I always said that when I came back to Italy whilst NOT on a tour, it'd be to Lago di Como (Lake Como) because it was so beautiful, but now I'm TORN.  Lido is so chill and quiet and serene... perhaps I could start in Lake Como and then finish up in Lido to relax before the flight home. Ta-da!  Problem solved.

Today's morning was spent in transit, but the thing about transit in Venice is that it happens by water taxi.  So essentially, we had a lovely breakfast (forewarned is forearmed against the potted meat) and then had a lovely boat tour of the islands between Lido and the mainland to catch our next bus to Milano.  Sigh. Life is hard.  :-)

The bus ride was about three hours, but we took a couple breaks in the middle to break up the long journey.  The first stop was at a rest stop with restrooms, which is a good thing, because some of us needed to rest pretty urgently.  The second stop was at an Autogrille, which is a strange European gas stop/trinket shop/grocery store/luncheonette with fresh food served to travelers, and very often these stops are suspended right across the interstate--which means you have to remember the right exit, or you'll find yourself walking out the door that leads to the parking lot on the wrong side of the interstate.  :-)  The kids quickly figured out how to take advantage of the huge array of offerings at an Autogrille and we all boarded the bus happy and full.  We are always getting on buses full of food, and yet we are ALWAYS hungry and there's ALWAYS room for gelato.  Must be all the walking.  [Don't tell our tour guide, but we're on to her.  "A few steps" = a mile or more, "A European block" = thirteen dozen blocks.  We see you, Annemieke, and our feet are howling.  She also differentiates our pace--either "Parisian pace" or "American stroll"...  It's better, I can tell you, to walk like a Yankee.  ;-) ]  Sometimes a gas station will unexpectedly hit the spot.

Then we arrived in our last hotel, an Ibis Hotel (with none of the sadness of our freshman lit short story; the only scarlet here is in the Ikea light fixtures).  The hotel is all modern Italian; very sleek and spare.  The brochure on my bed promises the best sleep of my life--TBA.  We quickly shed our luggage for a little bus tour with a Milanese guide in VERY fabulous shoes (I will have these.  Camel wedges with a colorful stacked wedge) and a VERY thick-a accent-a.  We actually got to go into the La Scala Opera House after we looked around the city from the bus--such opulence!!  Now my house will need some velvet and gold leaf viewing boxes with  crests.  Perhaps in my throne room?  Hm.  Anyway, we got to look at the paintings of the patrons and performers and peek  into the actual stage and audience area--never have I seen such grandeur.  Golden lion crests, city crests, Italian family  crests all in a sea of red velvet. With a huge chandelier.  I would love to show you pics, but only pics of the vestibule were allowed--but even that was beyond  incredible.  Such beauty!!

On to the Milano Duomo--the cathedral in the town square; it's called the porcupine cathedral because of the lattice spires all on top.  We walked from the La Scala to the church through the Victor Emmanuel Mall to get there, parading our kids through the line of Prada, Gucci, Mercedes (yes, Mercedes) shops without even having to fight their desire to go in; we could hardly afford to even look in the windows.  Pricey, pricey, but beautiful--and taking pictures there was allowed.  --For free. Which was the right price.  All the kids took a spin on the good luck bull in the middle--a good spin will bring good scores on exams, so everyone took a turn.  We'll see how that goes when their post-tests come around....   When the duomo came into sight for the kids as we walked to the end of the mall, I was in the back, but I knew the moment they saw it, because they all got their cameras and phones out and simultaneously oooooh'ed and aaaaaaah'ed and snapped pics; the duomo is one of the five biggest cathedrals in the world, and arguably, the most beautiful.  The spires look like a cross between lace and rock candy soaring out of the top, and the stained glass inside is just as awe-inspiring.  Lots of pics here, but the info I have is limited; the guides accent was super-thick, and listening through a walkie-talkie thing was near impossible.  Alas.  I'll google it to fill in the gaps when I get my pics developed.  Stay tuned....

Then a "quick walk" of a "few steps" to the Castello in the town.  Again, I missed much of the history, but something something king of the region, something something fortification, something something moat.  Details later.  Gelato now!!  Hazelnut today.  :-)

We shopped a little in the area, and then headed back home to eat dinner at our hotel:  Past, followed by what looked like Salisbury steak and croquettes,  then a most divine chocolate cake that looked like tiramisu but which was not tiramisu; there was mousse in it, and a creamy topping with caramel drizzled on it.  I'm a fan of the drizzled caramel.  If I were Doge, I would decide in my Decision Room that caramel should be drizzled over more things.

Now I sleep, mes amis, and tomorrow we meet up with our mother city connections!  Look for our kids to add more Italian students on facebook!  I hope we forge some lasting friendships tomorrow (feels like a playdate between our kids and their kids  :-) ).