More Adventures in Milan 12.1.11 ; 12.3.11

Despite all of our traveling, we did stick around Milan occasionally to enjoy what the city had to offer.  In the month of December, this included some of our favorite things: basketball and tequila.

When the opportunity arose to go to an Italian basketball game with some of Luke's coworkers, you better believe we were all for it.  Not only would we get to somewhat assuage the void that left by the inability to watch the Pistons and MSU basketball, but the Milan team was owned and sponsored by Giorgio Armani - which meant EVERYTHING was Armani - jerseys, fan gear, etc.  For some reason, I could not get over this; it just seemed so... Milan.

The game itself, of which we have approximately two pictures, was good.  It wasn't exactly what we were used to watching back home, but it was fun to watch a live game and cheer on the 'home team' with the crowd.

Armani made his appearance sometime after halftime, of which we have approximately 22 pictures.  He's the silver fox in the front row, next to the bearded man checking out the perimeter.

Luke denied my repeated requests for some Armani fan gear (because let's be honest, that's what it was), but we still had a great time at the game.

A few days later, we ventured to the outskirts of Milan to visit the yearly International Craft Fair, L'Artigiano in Fiera.  We've been loving all the Italian food, wine, and experiences, but here and there, we were starting to yearn for something a little... not Italian.

After finding a few treasures in the myriad Italian sections (which coincidentally made up about 90% of this international fair), we headed out to find some of the flavors we had been missing.  Some Thai noodles that rivaled Panda Express (nothing had ever tasted so good) and a Cuban sandwich later, we saw what we had been hoping for all along: that green, white, and red flag of Mexico.

As we were missing the beautiful Mexican wedding of our dear friends Gabe and Rubey that weekend, we decided to have some tequila in their honor.  Possibly twice.  When in Mexico, right?

Before calling it a day, we had to at least check out our homeland: America... a.k.a. Cowboyland!?

I'm not sure what we expected to see, but evidently America consists of miscellaneous cowboy gear and old license plates.  And guns.  Shotguns.  That's it.  Huh.

The trip was deemed a success.  After taking one last quick picture with one of the beautiful Christmas trees decorating Milano Centrale station, we headed back home to Novara, renewed and ready for the next Italian adventure!

Venezia 11.26.2011-11.27.2011

The allure of Venice is one that needs no explanation.  It is city that is so unique, there is nothing else in this world remotely similar.  Unlike many of our other destinations that come with a long list of specific buildings, museums, or monuments to see, we simply had to walk any street in Venice to feel its magic.

Right out of the train station, we walked to Venice's newest addition, Calatrava's Bridge.  Its futuristic style definitely stood out against the ancient backdrop of the rest of Venice.  We couldn't help but muse how much a certain Dippy would appreciate its design.

Ready to take in the more traditional sights, we headed to our hotel.  Though it was hardly in the thick of things, it was so wonderful to walk along the side streets and canals, cross to the opposite side via small stone bridges, and see residents' main means of transportation bobbing up and down outside their doors.  What an incredibly different way of life!

We set off for lunch at a pizzeria that had been recommended by one of Luke's coworkers.  Imagine our surprise when we found these murals as a part of the decor:

we weren't a fan of this one...

It was a lot of fun to see our home represented in a pizza place in Venice!  We just ignored the stares we got from the other patrons and staff during our excited photo-shoot.  We're getting very used to ignoring stares in Italy.

From lunch, we headed out to navigate the streets of Venice and make our way towards some of the more popular sights.  Armed with a couple of maps, Luke's amazing sense of direction, and my willingness to ignore my own broken inner compass, we were off.

Unfortunately, we discovered that navigating Venezia isn't so easy.  I've never felt more like a mouse in a maze in my entire life!  Streets that appear to move in one's desired direction curve around and turn into different ones, being surrounded by old buildings (beautiful as they are) on every side becomes fairly disorienting, and many streets in Venice simply dead-end into the canals (as shown below).  Needless to say, we did a lot of back-tracking.

If you've got to be lost somewhere, Venice isn't a bad choice, right?  

Without Luke, I'm pretty sure I'd still be wandering those streets.

Amidst the chaos of our journey, we had an especially funny experience when we crossed a bridge and ran into a group of Italian girls we had shared breakfast with at our Bed and Breakfast in Verona the morning before.  

And then, at last!  We found our way to Rialto just in time for a little market-browsing before sunset.

Watching the sky turn as the sun went down from the view on the Rialto bridge has got to be one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen.  The random gondolier who paddled by into the sunset was, each time, an added bonus.

After enjoying an espresso at a cafe alongside the canal, we set off to find a place to eat dinner.

We landed in a small little restaurant and, as usual, at 7:30 p.m. were the first patrons in for the evening meal.  Feeling as though Venice had not disappointed thus far, I decided to go out on a culinary limb and try one of the city's specialties: cuttlefish cooked in its own ink.  When it came out, I must admit, I was veeeerrrrry nervous.

Summoning up all of my courage, I took my first bite aaaaannndd....

it was AMAZING.  Despite my numerous and vehement proposals to entreat Luke to try it, he refused (more and more angrily with each request, might I add).  I guess I can't blame him; it wasn't the most visually appealing dish, more resembling tire scraps in tar than anything edible.  Still, it was wonderful.

We started fresh the next morning, finding that Venice does not disappoint: it is just as enthralling on Day Two.  It seemed as though around each corner, a more picturesque view awaited.

We found our way to San Giorgio dei Greci to enjoy a highly recommended breakfast of cappuccinos and pastries from Rosa Salva.  It was one of those moments in which you look around at where you are and what you're doing, and just sit in wonder for a bit.

After a picturesque start to the day, we decided to explore a bit more.  There is so much to see in Venice, though I'm fairly certain you could go and see not one of the 'main attractions' and not even care.  We were set on doing a little of both: we would wander, but with purpose.

It's hard to tell what yielded better results, wandering, or the purposes.  All the exploration worked up our appetites again, and what better way to eat our last meal in Venice than on the canal?

Can you tell we're getting a little spoiled with all this? Seafood risotto over the canals in Venice is going to be a little hard to top. 

From lunch we marveled at the Santa Maria della Salute for a bit...

and then found our way to our intended destination: the Peggy Guggenheim Collection.

Evidently, Peggy Guggenheim made it a goal to buy a piece of art every single day, and was very good at it.  Though the museum itself was filled with some very amazing pieces, we found most of our favorites in the outside gardens. 

Before we left, I made sure to write out a wish to put on the Yoko Ono olive tree.

I ignored Luke's suggestion to write "I wish you never broke up The Beatles" and went with my own wish for our very own olive tree instead.

We wandered down to San Marco Square one more time to say "see you later" (not "goodbye") to the Basilica San Marco, the clock tower, and all of the beauty of Venice.

Verona

Being an English teacher, the idea of visiting Verona was pretty high on my list.  When else would I have the opportunity to wander the town of Romeo and Juliet?!?  As our time went on in Italy, however, we learned more and more about the amazing things that the city of Verona had to offer.  Given that Luke got the Friday after Thanksgiving off, we decided to take advantage of the extra day and make our trip out east to visit Verona, and follow it up with Venice.

The first draw of Verona was that it boasts the most intact colosseum in Italy, to the extent that operas are still held in it in warmer months.  We were blessed with an absolutely beautiful first day in Verona, which made our first glimpse of the immense structure an unforgettable one.

Wandering around the interior of the colosseum, we happened upon the cages where animals used to be kept before they entered the arena to battle with the gladiators or warriors.  Across the way was a little tunnel that lead into the center of the colosseum.  While we know that such things used to be the most prominent forms of entertainment, it's still really strange and a little eerie to see the spots where it actually occurred.

From the outer hall, we entered the arena itself.  Despite some construction and restoration going on, it was incredible to be surrounded by such an ancient structure.

We set off up the steps, and made our way towards the only remaining section of the top archways.

Making our way back down, however, was a different story.  We ran into a lot of locked gates and dead ends.

But many of those dead ends did provide great views of the main piazza.

When we finally made our way out, we grabbed some lunch at la Osteria "Le Vecete," which was awesome (as usual).

Our need for food and a little vino fulfilled, we wandered over to the Dante fountain, where we also found a little Christmas market...

alongside a beautiful Christmas tree.

Getting into the spirit of the season, we got a little vin brule (hot spiced wine), an event that was even more exciting when we found that our treat came in a mug shaped like a little boot!

Once we were all market-ed out, we set out towards the river to visit Verona's Archeological Museum and Roman Theater.  

Throughout Verona, stone plaques were embedded in the walls quoting Romeo and Juliet both in English and Italian.  They were really neat, and served as a constant reminder of how special the city is.

Along our walk, we also got another treat: finding this tree in a little park that showed off some of the brightest fall colors we had ever seen.

The Roman Theater was on the other side of the Adige River, which runs around Verona.

After our nice river-side walk, we finally arrived at the Museo Archeologico del Teatro Romano.

The Roman Theater was absolutely incredible.  We sat (and laid on the steps) for a while admiring the scenery, which was a welcome and quite beautiful bit of relaxation after a day of hiking around the city.

Note the handsome shadow photographer towards the bottom of this one.

Sunset was beginning, so we started our climb to the top of the hills for a better view.

Wandering through the museum, we saw a number of ancient Roman artifacts and old buildings, including these that still had a water well intact in the center of the courtyard.

We made it to the top just in time to catch a breathtaking sunset over the city of Verona.

During the sunset, we noticed these arches and couldn't help but take advantage of the photographic opportunities they provided.  The following is the resulting sequence:

... at this point one of the museum staff members came outside to see what all the noise was (we were the only ones left in the whole place).  We figured we'd better end things sweetly and move on.

Looking down on the theater from up in the hills.

Sunset almost done...

Oh, hey, cool guy.

On the Roman Theater "stage", a little bit of the original mosaic flooring remained.  It was incredible to think of what this place was like in its prime, with a tiled stage, surrounding cyprus trees, and the river rushing by in the background.

A view of the museum and theater from the bridge.

Heading back through the Christmas market area, we couldn't help but admire the Christmas tree, now all lit up.  We gazed for a while, then moved on to get a snack and try some Amarone wine (amazing).

Because I didn't feel like I could leave without seeing it, we walked over to Juliet's balcony.  Though the courtyard and surrounding houses did belong to the Capulet family, the balcony itself was built solely for tourism purposes a few decades ago.  Despite the fact that it was fake, it was still cool to see it and stand below.

The walls leading into the Capulet courtyard were covered with names in hearts, "_____+_____4ever"s and general proclamations of couples' love.  At first I was disappointed that such an iconic location had been defaced with so much graffiti simply to satisfy people's need to leave their mark somewhere.  After a little more thinking, however, it struck me that all of this truly showed the great impact Shakespeare's love story has had on people all over the world.  Despite language and cultural differences, coming from completely different countries or continents, everyone understands being in love.  Then the graffiti became a little bit cooler.

The next morning, sad to leave Verona but excited to see Venice, we said goodbye to the infamous Verona walls, and continued on our journey.