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8:10pm - sitting at dinner at nerino dieci trattoria, where I tried to eat last night. It has been a long day! I did not take many pictures today because I mostly just wandered, but I feel like I saw most of the damn city!
Woke up early yet again, got breakfast down the street from the apartment at bastianello, which I had read about. Very fancy pastry shop. One thing I've noticed about Italy is that no matter how expensive the place, breakfast is always reasonable. So 3€ later and I had a cappuccino and fresh chocolate cream pastry.
Took the metro up to the sforza castle, which is home to about a dozen miseums. All for only 3€! I went to the musical instrument, ancient art, and furniture museums. The highlight is an unfinished Michelangelo pieta - he died before finishing it. It's rare you get to be almost all alone with a Michelangelo.
Went from there to wander through the Brera district which is trendy I guess. Went in a couple churches. Might come back tomorrow night for dinner I think and explore a bit more. There is an eataly there, which is calling my name.
Took the metro down to the duomo area and had a delicious focaccia lunch at princi, a sleek bakery that was packed with locals. There was a huge and awesome wood oven at the back where everything was baked. Delicious and cheap! Walked through the duomo square, a tent was set up I think for something basketball related and people were talking about a European championship/final four type thing in English. There were lots of fans around and their shirts all had Hebrew on it??? Weird. Wonder what it was!
Got yet another gelato at cioccolati - Madagascar dark chocolate and hazelnut.
Then started wandering the shopping area. Store after store after store. I had high hopes for the alessi store, who makes designer kitchen stuff. But the store was small and not very exciting. Wandered around a while at all the pretty stuff. The scary guards at the entrances are enough to keep you from wandering in and out and that, combined with the prices of stuff in the windows, keeps temptation mostly at bay.
Came back to the apartment for a quick rest and then got a couple things at the market, necessities such as water, strawberries, and a big bottle of Lemon Soda of course.
Set out for the navigli district, which has a canal. Lots of bars and restaurants there. Bought a little chocolate tart for breakfast tomorrow because it looked too good to pass up. Wandered and found the mercato communale, the covered market, which was small and strange. It's rare for such a big city in Europe to have a small market scene.
Wandered a shopping street in navigli that was supposed to have up and coming stuff but it was kind of lame. Took the tram over to find Spazio Rosanna Orlandi, which is a neat furniture store, for lack of a better description. Took the metro back, on the way to the metro there was a huge parade of the people wearing the blue and yellow shirts with Hebrew on it. They were carrying flags with the Jewish star and everything. Still wondering what it was!!
Took the metro back to the apartment and did some laundry. My next stop has a shared bathroom so I want to make sure I have enough clean stuff until I get to Torino.
9:50pm - Back from dinner. To contiune where I was before, I set out for dinner around 7:30pm. Took the metro one stop to the Duomo then walked. I should have taken the tram a couple stops too, to save my feet.
So my meal was delicious at the restaurant, but they gave me an English menu without even asking and spoke to me only in English. In fact most of the people there had English menus. I had a high table right across from the kitchen, so that was fun to watch. I will say that the service was great. The moment a cook hit the bell that something was ready, a waiter or waitress zoomed over to bring it out piping hot. And this one waiter/host in particular kept addressing me by name the whole time, which I thought was nice. Anyway, I had garganelli pasta with asparagus and Toma cheese (from Piedmonte), and it was like a grown up authentic mac and cheese, I guess. And I had a steak because I was craving meat.
One thing I've forgotten to mention that I find interesting is that in Lombardia, where Mantova and Milano are, they do not bring you the check. When you are done you go up to the front. It was not like that in Veneto, where you asked for the check, but that's how it was when I was in Puglia. Interesting how different regions have their own traditions!
Walked back to the Duomo metro and took it one stop again back and here I am for an early night.
Tomorrow I think I will head to Bergamo for a day trip!
Today was my biggest walking day so far according to the fitbit. I did take the metro a bunch of times, not sure how that affects things: 34,670 steps, 36 flights of stairs, and 13.79 miles. YIKES.
Pictures tomorrow, they're uploading very slowly for some reason.
And just like that, my vacation is half over :(
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