Milan

I was very excited to visit my first ever Italian city, and Milan did not disappoint, lot’s of old tenement style buildings, children everywhere and outdoor eating:

This is the building that my friends, Matthew and Patricio live, its tiny but adorable!

The city is full of beautiful churches, some completely over the top, and others quiet serene:

Some amazing architecture:

But the most surprising was how well they do burial plots in Italy:

But the highlight of Milan was the bicycle ride myself, Matthew and Patrizia took, about 8 miles outside of Milan, along the canals, into the countryside, about 25 miles in total

Here’s the route we took:

And here’s some photos along the route:

We stumbled upon a little restaurant, barely refurbished, and still being set up, being run by a chef, a musician and a doctor. The food they made us was incredible, but it was their friendliness that really blew us away. With all the talking, we ended up taking over two hours for lunch, for what was planned to be a quick pit stop.

It felt like we’d stumbled upon an Italian version of “Brigadoon”

The Italians do have to be friendliest people I’ve ever encountered, it was a short trip, but definitely glad I was finally able to go, and can’t wait for myself and Cynthia to take a longer trip soon!