2011 trip itinerary:
2 nights in Milano – Hotel Canada
2 nights in Coccaglio – staying with friends
6 nights in Venezia – B&B Fujiyama
10 nights in Bologna – staying in an apt/Italian lessons for a week
1 night near Malpensa – Hotel Villa delle Rose

*I am now in Venice but will start from from the beginning…

A week before my trip, I started gathering all of the things I planned to pack using the same packing list I have used for the past few trips. I knew it was going to be a challenge this year to fit my new camera, lenses, and MacBook Air, as well as everything else into the same bags I took with me on my last trip. I was hoping to not have to take a larger bag.

On the day of my flight, everything was going so smoothly until a couple of hours before I planned to leave for the airport when I tried to fit one last thing into my bag. That is when my mini-meltdown occurred. I tried over and over to fit everything inside my bags but nothing worked. It was getting later and later. At one point, I even dragged out my larger bag. I finally ended up unzipping the expander zipper of the original bag I planned to take, something I hate to do until the last leg of my trip, and managed to make everything fit.

Tuesday, May 31st:
I arrived at the airport just in time to check my bag, go through security, and arrive at my gate as the last call was being announced for my flight. Phew! I really cut things close this time! A big thank you to my dear friend who stood calmly by as I had my mini-meltdown and drove me to the airport.

When I reached my seat and began to lift my carry-on roller up into the overhead bin, the man sitting behind me offered to help. I thanked him and told him that I could manage. I have been working very hard the past few months trying to build up my strength in my arms and shoulders. My goal was to be able to lift my bag up into the overhead bin without any problems. My workouts paid off as I easily hoisted it up and even got a bravo from the man who offered to help me. I smiled and told him that my trainers would be proud! As I was settling into my seat, I realized that I had met this man years ago while studying Italian in Hawaii. He is the owner of La Gelateria in Honolulu and was also traveling to Italy. As I introduced myself, he told me that the man sitting behind him was the owner of an Italian restaurant in Honolulu and was also traveling to Italy.  Small world! I was able to get some sleep on the plane. Nice flight.

Wednesday, June 1st:
The wait in Newark between flights was long as usual. This whole Continental and United merger thing seemed to be a bit confusing. I was worried that the plane with the name United on it would not be like the Continental flights I have taken but it did  have the little movie screens in front of every seat and they even served food on the plane (both dinner and breakfast). I heard a few passengers complain in Newark about the upgrade procedures. I think they were loyal United customers.

The flight itself was uneventful. I was able to sleep on the plane and was excited to arrive in Italy!

Thursday, June 2nd:
When we arrived at Malpensa, one of those stairway things was driven up to the door of the plane. I don’t recall having to walk down stairs when arriving at Malpensa in the past but I am always in a jetlag haze so I may have and just didn’t remember. Shuttle buses zipped us all over to the arrivi door. Passport clearance was quick. My bag also arrived very quickly which was a first.

There was a huge crowd waiting for four small elevators to go down one flight to get to the train station area. I figured it would take at least 30 minutes to get on one of those elevators, so I searched for another way to the train station below. I followed these green arrows and found both an escalator and stairs heading down to the train station. My plane arrived on time, exactly at 8:50. I just missed the 9:33 train. I took the 10:03 train and arrived in Milan 30 minutes later, finding a row of taxis right outside the train station. The train ticket cost 11 euros and the taxi cost 8 something.

My room was not ready when I arrived. I started switching some stuff around in my bags so that I could gather up a few things to take with me while I checked out the area around my hotel. Just when I finished getting out my camera and a few other things, I was told that my room was ready. The bed in my room was very inviting. I was so tempted to take a nap but knew if I did that, I would sleep the rest of the day. Instead, I unpacked my stuff, took a quick shower, and headed out to explore Milan.

It was gray and cloudy and a bit chilly outside. I headed straight for the Duomo. I visited Milan for a few hours with my friend Katia many years ago before the Duomo restoration work was done. I have been looking forward to returning to the Duomo now that it was all nice a clean.

After taking a few photos, I walked around a bit looking for the Obika mozzarella bar that I had read about. This restaurant is located on the roof of the La Rinascente store. I was seated in the bar area and had a wonderful lunch. After lunch, I spent a few minutes checking out some of the other levels of the store while it was sprinkling outside.

Once the rain stopped, I went inside of the Duomo. The entrance into the Duomo is free. Here are a few photos from inside the Duomo.

The climb to the roof was the top thing on my to do list in Milan. There are two ways to get to the roof – by foot (5 euros) for by elevator (8 euros). As a fan of climbing towers, I of course went by foot. I followed the signs and went to what I thought was the entrance to climb to the top. I was told that I needed to purchase a ticket at the office located in a building nearby. After purchasing my ticket, I returned. After scanning my ticket, the man told me that I was in the wrong place. That entrance was to take the lift to the top. I walked around the corner to another door. This time when the man saw that my ticket was scanned, he tried to send me back to the lift entrance. I had to explain to him that I bought a ticket to climb to the top! Finally, I was let in. I have been working out regularly and thought I was in good shape, but the climb was pretty tough, tougher than I thought it would be. When you reach the top, you traverse along the roof and then reach a second staircase where you get to the very top.

I took tons of photos. Here are some of my favorites.

One of the things I noticed while on the roof was this mound with a bunch of horses sticking out in different poses. I think it is some sort of an art exhibit.

After climbing back down from the roof, I took more photos of the Duomo from the bottom

…and then went to check out the horse display.

As I got closer, I also discovered this interesting or perhaps different art display.

I would have liked to check out the museum but I was too tired to stand in the long line so I took a taxi back to my wonderful hotel.

Here is a view of the La Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II di Milano, also located in Piazza Duomo.

For dinner, I walked to a nearby restaurant/pizzeria recommended by the hotel and ordered a pizza to go. The pizza was just ok but at that point, anything would have been fine. I was in bed by 10 and manged to sleep until 4 the next morning. One of the best first days dealing with jet lag and a great first day in Italy!

I forgot to add that June 2nd was a holiday in Italy. Most stores were closed and I believe all banks were closed. Although the Duomo area was packed (and I am guessing other tourist sites were pretty crowded) the walk to the Duomo was peaceful and the area around my hotel was very mellow.

Next up – Friday in Milano