Milan, Italy!!

September 24, 2021

We had a 9:30 flight out of Cologne, so we took a 5:30 bus and a 6:15 train (we had to change trains at a sketchy train stop, but thankfully it didn't take too long) to get to the airport. Then we went through security and waited for our Ryanair flight to board. They did not start boarding until 15 minutes before we were supposed to depart, but we somehow landed on time. 

September 25, 2021

Then when we landed we took a bus at 12:10 to the Milan Central Station. Music was playing on the bus...not loud but at a level where everyone can hear. My Heart Will Go On by Celine Dion starts playing and we lose it. The rest of the ride consisted of heartfelt love ballads. From Milan Central, we caught a tram to the hostel. But once again, google maps led us astray and we did a whole 15 minute loop away from the hostel and then back down to get there when it would have only been a 2 minute walk. Oops. 

We CRASHED after quickly showering, but didn't get to bed until after 2. Then, at 5:50 am the fire alarm goes off. The worst noise I've ever heard, and it's deafening. I stayed in bed for a couple minutes hoping it would just turn off. But it continued. So I got out of bed and went downstairs with Lauren and then Lauren's friend who I met at that moment. It went on for a total of 15 minutes, then we went back to bed and slept until 10, which is highly unusual for me. Then we got ready for the day and started crossing things off the list we had on google maps. 

but of course, coffee first

Then we casually came across the Duomo in our adventures!

the Galleria

paninis for lunch

We continued to walk around, making our way up to Chinatown.

quick cannoli break

the Monumental Cemetery

After walking around the Monumental Cemetery for over an hour, we made our way to Chinatown for dinner at Ravioleria Sarpi.

San Siro Stadium 

We purchased tickets to watch an Inter Milan game (they played Atalanta) and I actually had SO much fun! It helped compensate for all that gator football I'm missing out on...I never would have thought I would say this: soccer games are pretty epic to attend in person. Thank you @dan for making me promise I would attend a game while abroad! HOWEVER!!! The game did end in a tie, which I find highly unfulfilling. Then we took the metro to the Duomo and walked around before heading back to the hostel. 

September 26, 2021

Since you have to pay to enter the Duomo and we attend mass every week anyway, we decided to brave the rain and attend mass. We got up at 7:30 to make it on time, exited the metro stop and there was not a single person around. Perfect photo op.

Then we tried to enter and the security guard told me that I had to cover my legs...didn't know that was a thing. Luckily our hostel was only 3 metro stops away. So Lauren and I hurried back and I changed into jeans and put on my converse since sandals are also not allowed in the Duomo.

Since it was raining and Lauren's friend needed to leave by noon, we decided to stop in the Starbucks Reserve. 

Tiramisu is a must in Italy.

Then we got lunch before leaving the area. Pizza is another must in Italy, obviously.

We walked to the Church of St. Maurice in Major Monastery. They had a reservation system so we had to come back in 30 minutes. Meanwhile, we got gelato.

The monastery was breathtaking. And FREE. We did not pay for a single attraction in the city.

Next on the list were the Columns of St. Lawrence, which were once the entrance to the Basilica San Lorenzo Maggiore.

Basilica San Lorenzo Maggiore

The church didn't open for another couple hours, so we went to the Casa Museo Boschi di Stefano.

Then we went back to the Basilica and attended a second mass of the day, which was in 3 languages! They were reading scripture and reciting things in an unknown language and the homily was in Italian and sometimes English. My favorite part was during the passing of the peace when a 70 year old lady did a peace sign at Lauren and me and waved it. Then we went to another district in the city called Navigli for aperitivos at a Mayan restaurant.

When we got back to the hostel we may or may not have booked a train ticket to Verona for the next morning.

September 27, 2021

Alarms were set for 6:30 to take the metro to Milan Central Station, where we took the train to Verona. From the train station, we planned everything we wanted to do and then walked 15 minutes to the center of the city.

Arco dei Gavi

Castelvecchio Bridge

As we walked around we went partly based on our google maps list, but coined the term vibe detour™ where we kinda walk wherever looks most appealing. 

Juliet's house is obviously a must in Verona, but it was closed!! Luckily we could see past the wall where the letters to Juliet were to see the infamous balcony and statue. But right after Lauren got the picture, some security guards pushed people away. Later when we came back they had a sign up saying they were filming a movie called Love in the Villa, a Netflix original. 

Did we check if there was a way to watch Letters to Juliet before leaving Italy? Yes. Did we then listen to Love Story by Taylor Swift? Also yes. Next up was the amphitheater. We saw it from the outside and that is where we got our souvenir rock from Italy. 

Then we got an un-notable lunch and stopped in an Aldi for Italian snacks for dinner. We walked back up around the eastern side of the city and saw some beautiful churches and buildings. 

Chisea di San Fermo Maggiore

Scaliger Tombs

We crossed another bridge to go to another church, which happened to be closed but the walk was very beautiful and the sun had finally come out!

Then we made our way up to Castel San Pietro to have a picnic while we watched the sunset.

pan di stelle cookies WOW

While we ate and watched the sunset, a group of 4 sat next to us. We had been eavesdropping on their ~loud~ conversation so we knew that they were from Spain and Germany. Then an English guy joins and asks if we are American. We started talking to them and had a lovely conversation!

We walked back to the train station for our 8:45 train and made it back to the hostel by 11. 

September 28, 2021

I had to attend my class on zoom from 8-11:15 and on the 15 minute break we had, I finished packing and went downstairs to checkout. We met Lauren's friend for lunch and walked around Bocconi, the business school she was attending in Milan.

Then we headed to Sforzesco Castle and walked around. From there, we went to Sempione Park.

Arco della Pace

From the arch, we went back to the hostel to get our stuff and took the metro to Milan Central Station one last time, where we took a bus to the airport. One thing we learned from our trip to Greece is that google reviews get tons of views; google will continually give you notifications that thousands of people have read it, which obviously creates this obsession of leaving reviews at every restaurant. "The camera eats first" started out as a joke, but Lauren and I are officially basically travel influencers.