So it has been a bit of time since my last blog post, and I would probably be writing a novel if I filled you in on everything I have done in the last few weeks…so with that said I will focus on the most recent events—and only write a short story. Last weekend Case and I had the opportunity to enjoy Milan with his parents, as well as some of his coworkers. I must admit I had no idea what to expect. In the past when I go to anything work related with Case, it is always an event that words cannot even explain. Last weekend I was not disappointed…I just hope I can put it into words to illustrate how truly wonderful last weekend was. I will start from Thursday night.

Thursday I finished my class for the day and joined a friend of Case’s for apertivo. I think apertivo time has become one of my absolute favorite things, a glass of prosecco and some snacks before dinner (almost the equivalent of American happy hour–but better), seems simple however re-energizes me for the evening…because I have learned quickly…dinner in Italy is no small event. After apertivo we all wandered over to our favorite restuarant in Rome (well at least mine and Case’s) and enjoyed a wonderful dinner at the early hour of 930pm. We shared amazing food and wine, and before we knew it it was almost midnight—and we were the only people in the restaurant. Until a group of men (5 or 6) wandered in and wanted a table. The atmosphere in the restaurant changed quickly, and everyone seemed to be bending over backward to accommodate these men. We all watched curiously, of course everyone knew what I was thinking (mafia), and finally Case asked one of the waiters who it was. We then discovered the Vice President of Italy was actually at the table next to us – he has good taste in food. Finally at 1230, we decided we should wander back to the apartment, we felt a few hours of sleep would be helpful before catching our train at 645.

Friday started out rough due to the fact that I’m not a morning person (thank you night shift), but once we made it onto the train I was more focused on how excited I was to see Milan (finally)! Case and I traveled in style in first class, where the chairs were roomy and I got free snacks. Three and half hours later we had arrived in Milan! When we got to the train station, Case decided it was a perfect time to use the restroom on the train since it was free (he likes free as much as me). Me being me, I told him I was worried the train would close and we wouldn’t be able to get off, so I waited for him outside of the train with our luggage. Of course, 1 minute after getting off the train, the doors closed and locked. Soon after, Case’s head appears in the window, motioning he is unable to get out. At this point I am trying my best to hide my “I told you so” face, and tried to find someone to open the doors for him. After wandering up and down the platform, I realized there was not a single person who could help me and left it up to Case. Finally, he had found someone, and was able to get off the train, where I was awaiting patiently (silently laughing at him). Now we could really enjoy Milan. Soon after arriving we were warmly welcomed by Case’s parents, Giovanna (Case’s Boss), and another friend Elena. From the train station we jumped into our private tour van, and found itinerary for the weekend, along with an information packet about the sites we would see (all  thoughtfully put together by Ross and Giovanna). Instantly we knew the weekend would be a good one.

Our first stop in Milan was Sforza Castle where we walked around the grounds and enjoyed the scenery.

From there we walked down the clean streets of Milan to end up outside of the Duomo. I personally was not sure what to expect, but wow, the Duomo was incredible— it gave me the same feeling as when I saw the La Sagrada Di Familia in Barcelona…completely amazed. Naturally we purchased tickets and wandered to the top of the duomo first, where we walked around the roof, the architecture was incredible… see the pictures below, the only way for me to explain it is for you to see it.

 

After touring the top of the Duomo, we took a break and had lunch on the top floor of the building next to us overlooking the Duomo. Once we had finished a wonderful meal, we headed back over to the Duomo and toured the inside of it. The inside was just as mesmerizing as the outside and again cannot be explained, just seen. This building is one of those where you walk in and get instant goosebumps, because it truly is that beautiful.

After the Duomo we walked through the incredible Galleria of Milan. The Galleria is a mall, but is so beautiful I just spend my time staring at the ceiling or the architecture.

After making it through the galleria we heading back to the van. A quick shout out to the man driving our Van—he was incredible. There were hundreds of people and cars, and this guy was an impressively poised driver. Normally in Italy I prefer to be in the back seat with my eyes closed, when traveling by car, but this guy was the king of the road, maneuvering through the busy streets of Milan without batting an eyelash. After the galleria, we were dropped off at the top of the famous fashion street of Milan. The window shopping was incredible, and way out of my price range, but beautiful (Case was being stingy and refused to buy me a pair of Prada shoes). After coming to terms the items in the shop windows could only be obtained if I sold my leg, we decided to wander to our next destination. The next stop was a very old church, but very beautiful.

After the church, it was time for my favorite activity—Apertivo! We all met up with Ross (not my dad, but another part of the AeroSekur family), and  Marco (also another colleague). We found ourselves on a Canal lined with restaurants, and evetually found our destination on a floating bar for apertivo. Once we had finished our much needed drinks, it was time to head to dinner. Dinner was truly an event in itself. We arrived at the restaurant, which Ross had been going to for over 40 years…so obviously he was known. We walked into a beautiful restaurant where a huge table was set up. One of the many things I learned about Ross last weekend was, If I think I am sitting down in a seat I am wrong…he will be choosing where everyone sits. Naturally he stuck me across the table from Case, Debs (Case’s mom) was on another side of the table, and Gene (Case’s dad) on another side. At first I was a bit nervous, but then after sitting next to Marco–an incredibly friendly and funny man, and Gian Paolo—equally as pleasant as Marco, I was at ease. Both were also very helpful with my Italian language education, and made sure my glass of wine was never empty. The waiters brought out the menus—but another thing about Ross I learned, there was no point to even look at the menu, because he would be choosing the courses (I have never been disappointed by his choices). With that said we all shared a wonderful meal of Milan’s delicacy, fried risotto with the second course of perfectly cooked veal. Finally it was time for dessert and a much needed coffee—purely so I would not fall asleep at the table from being so full. After we all had finished our coffee it was midnight, everyone was exhausted, so we decided it would be best to head to our hotel.
If you hadn’t noticed, there was no point in the day where we went to our hotel when arriving into Milan. So it was approximately 1230, and we finally checked into our hotel. It is an understatement to say we were exhausted…I am pretty sure our heads hit the (incredibly comfortable) pillows and we were out for the count.

Saturday brought a new day, and new things to see. We woke up and had a relaxing breakfast with Debs and Gene, and soon after all four of us were placed into cars for the short drive to Lake Como. Lake Como was absolutely breathtaking…it actually reminded me of Lakes outside of Seattle. The lake was lined with trees and beautiful villas.

We were able to tour a few of the Villas, and get ideas for my future house of course. I have decided it’s a requirement to be able to drive my boat directly into my boat garage (both of which I will never have), and have an expansive garden. After touring around for a bit, Ross had made us reservations at a restaurant overlooking the lake, where he had some of the best white wine (I bought a bottle of it later in the day), and fresh water fish. After our four course meal (and coffee) we ventured out again to see one more villa and then take a water taxi over to the town of Bellagio (the town named after the hotel in Vegas obviously). We wandered around the shops, bought a view things, and then were loaded back into the car to head to dinner (yes it felt like we had just finished lunch). The drive back towards Milan was not one for a sensitive stomach. If any of you have ever been on the bus ride down the Amalfi Coast—I would say this is far more intense. The roads are VERY narrow and continuously turning…and to one side of the road you have a drop off into the lake. When we stopped at a gas station, I am pretty sure my heart was beating 200 times per minute and my respirations were 30, thankfully we got some fresh air and I was able to relax a bit. When we had finally reached our destination for dinner, I was almost hungry. Debs and I were seated at one end of the table with Ross and Marco, and Case and Gene on the other side with Giovanna and Elena. This dinner, however, was different than any dinner I have ever had in Italy. During this time of year, there is a special tortelli (basically a large tortellini) the trattoria makes and serves.  We had the tortelli for our primi—but I will explain it in a bit. Of course there was wine, and antipasti. What Debs and I learned quickly, is if you are sitting next to Ross, you have three helpings of everything. For example when the other side of the table didn’t want to finish their small fried fish, Ross placed half of them on my plate, and handed the other to Debs. And when our glasses were half full with wine, they were topped off. After the antipasti, and a few glasses of wine, the tortelli were delivered to the table. These Tortelli had the most interesting stuffing I have ever tasted, they were filled with an array of sweet items such as—amaretto cookie, candied lemon rind….and finally parmesan. I found it both interesting and delicious… I also made the mistake of saying it aloud. AGAIN Case’s side of the table was not holding up their end of the bargain, and the rest of their tortelli was again placed on my plate (thanks Case). After the tortelli, the meat was brought out (yes still more food), and also just as wonderful as the tortelli. After dessert and another coffee, it was time to head back to the hotel. The night was done, I was stuffed ( I think I gained 10 pounds during the day), and I was ready for my bed. Case however, decided to brag before falling asleep, by saying “I am not even that full tonight…” I could have bopped him—but I was too full and moving at that point would have been impossible.

Sunday arrived and it was the main event of the weekend: we were to see the Expo and be able to hear Gene speak! In the morning when we all awoke I think we had made a silent agreement to have a slow and relaxing morning. This hotel was wonderful and served breakfast until noon on Sunday.  We had plenty of time, in the morning to relax eat a leisurely breakfast and gain back some energy. Before heading to the expo, Gene, Debs, Case, and I, decided to do some walking and shopping around Milan. After taking a few wrong terms (nobody listened to my suggestion on directions), we made it to the train station and were heading to EXPO! Of course when we arrived at the EXPO grounds, I was reminded quickly nothing in Italy is as easy as it seems. The conference where Gene was speaking at in the evening had given us free entrance, but we had to find the place to pick them up. We had been told there was a booth right next to the entrance gate, and it would be quick and easy (we should have known). After looking around, and realizing there was not a single booth outside of the EXPO, we decided to ask someone who looked official…the response we received was “Oh, they had a booth set up earlier, I guess it is gone now.” At this point Case called Ross, and we were told there were two people in a corner giving out the tickets—somehow we found the corner he was speaking of, and found the guys he was speaking of—see I am fluent in a Italian now. We got our tickets, and from there it was smooth sailing! Since Gene and Debs had already seen the EXPO they wandered off to get a true Italian pizza (obviously at the Neopolitan booth) while Case and I did some touring.

The EXPO was incredible, there were countries for as far as the eye could see. Sadly some of the waits to get into pavilions were over 3 hours, so Case and I toured around some of the smaller countries, and took it upon ourselves to eat food we never get in Italy (I have no idea how we were still eating). He had some amazing curry and rice from the Laos Pavilion, Injura from the Ethiopian pavilion, and some very tasty juice from the Afghanistan Pavilion. Along the way we tested beers from several other countries.

After eating our way through the world, we headed over to the Italian Pavillion where Gene would be speaking. The talk was focused on Agrospace and ways to help improve our ways of growing food for Earth and future generations. Gene spoke primarily about his project the Mars/Lunar Greenhouse. It was wonderful to be able to hear him talk about his job, and he was a very impressive speaker. The greenhouse that University of Arizona has been researching and testing, grows food, recycles water, and creates oxygen for an astronaut, or maybe one day, a person living on the Moon or Mars. If any of you have seen the Martian, it’s the same idea (minus the saving someone from another planet), but this plan is realistic and backed up with impressive research! I recommend you look it up; Gene has a really interesting interview online, where you can learn all about it. After a few other speakers, some speaking English, others speaking Italian, it was time for dinner!
Dinner consisted of foods primarily from the Lazio region of Italy (where Case lives) and was incredible. It felt like we ate 7 courses (we may have) and all was wonderful and elegantly presented, along with the wine that paired with each course. At a quarter to midnight, it was time to say our goodbyes and hustle back to the train to head back to the hotel. Another weekend in Italy cram packed with fun events and tasty food…was coming to an end. However this time we had to say bye to Gene and Debs along with the weekend. It was nice to have them here, I have only been here for two months, but I still miss home (sometimes) so it was nice to have a little piece of home come to us!
The next morning we had another early train (we don’t seem to learn), where I did my homework for school while Case slept. When arriving in Rome I headed off to school, and Case to work. It’s safe to say, that evening we went ate very light, and went to bed early.
On another note, it’s been two months I have been here! Yesterday I survived my last day of Italian class (sad), and it made me feel like I was leaving Italy. Thankfully I have one month left! In the next month, Case and I will be traveling to Paris (for an early birthday celebration for me), I will be heading to Munich, and after heading to a Cabin in the Alps with friends. I still have a lot to do, and a lot to see (yay). I do have to admit I am starting to miss everyone at home—but Italy continues to treat me very well!
For now that is all, too bad writing papers wasn’t this fun in nursing school, I am off to enjoy my weekend in Italy. Hope all is well! Until next time CIAO CIAO CIAO!

P.S. One more thing, here is the Link to Gene’s clip he showed in his presentation! Very interesting!