Street Scenes

Milano

 

Sirmione

Verona

Venezia

Ravenna

Roma

 

So I think these pictures are worth many thousands of my words, but I thought I'd mention my favorite things about the architecture of Italy: the bright, varied colors of the buildings, the balconies and flowerboxes, the narrow cobblestone streets, the roof tiling, the history and age of everything. Often confusing to navigate, but so much fun to wander. It's very conducive to just giving up on directions (when the road name has changed five times) and just finding your way as you go, letting you get lost in looking and discovering.

Milano

Not these.

 

 This.

Not having slept at all on the flight over, Milan is a somewhat overwhelming city through my tired, grumpy eyes. There are lots of shops (this is one of the fashion capitals of the world), which are not appealing in my jet-lagged state but located in the very nice Galleria. We do take in the Duomo, where we climb 250 steps to the roof for a beautiful view of the city and Alps beyond – sky blue sky and hazy mountains, a sfumato effect that could have been painted by Leonardo. Speaking of which, we get to see his Last Supper before we leave. It’s an incredible experience to just stare at the larger-than-life fresco that has survived retouchings, restorations, vandalism, and even bombing.

 Definitely worth going Up On The Roof.

 Tired but happy to be here!