Kate and I have been in Italy for five days now and our time here keeps getting better and better. Our first stop was Milan, and it was as mediocre as numerous people told us it would be prior to our departure from Vancouver. We essentially went to Milan for Da Vinci's The Last Supper, but we thought we might as well stay a few days since neither of us had been there before. While our time in Milan was by no means horrible, the city just cannot stand up to Venice, Florence, or Rome. We found it difficult to find affordable food, the tourist office was unable to provide much advice with regard to sights and self-guided walking tours, and the architecture\geography of the city is fairly humdrum when considering other European cities. We should mention, however, that Milan has one of the best bike rental deals, through the city transportation department, and we took advantage of this $2.50\day bargain.
Some quick observations on Italian culture thus far:
- Everyone actually does use the stereotypical "finger cone" gesture...even old ladies.
- Italy produces some of the worst beer in the world. Warm Peroni literally tastes like it is made with barley, hops, yeast, water, and vom.
- There seems to be fewer women out on the streets here, compared with the Netherlands, France, and Belgium. This may be due to population discrepencies, Catholicism, gender roles...or because the guys here are lechy and slimy. Lots of old guys too. Gross.
- They have the market on coffee bars, coffee-bar-based pastries, and ice cream...hands down.
ABCD in Milan's Galleria
Chillin' - Venezia Style
We are getting really frustrated over not being able to watch any of the Canucks games. If things keep going this way, we may just have to stay up till 3am and watch some games via streaming video.
Here is a video we took right after we arrived in Venice. Kate would like you to ignore the weird strand of hair that remains plastered to the middle of her forehead for most of the clip...it was a long train ride:
Next stops: Verona, Padua, Vicenza...and Gardaland Theme Park!
What a beautiful sunset! After talking to you on the phone I am wondering if I can detect red lips on both of you caused by a) sunburn b) recently-consumed red-colored food c) you have both been using Kate's new lipgloss which you have described as not overly expensive and purchased mainly by clowns and circus performers d)the sunset is reflecting onto your faces. Just bugging- you both look adorable! Mom
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