Italy Photos

Some 715 photos have been uploaded into Snapfish with no captions in case you're interested. If you kept up with the blog, the important photos were already posted.

Arrivederci Italia!

Today, we sadly departed Italy. We had breakfast at the hotel and then went over to Milano Centrale for the fifth time! We took the Malpensa Express which takes us to the airport in under an hour. Overall, Milan was an excellent host city that has done a lot to prepare for the World Expo. So glad that we got to enjoy it all refurbished!

Our plane ride was faster than expected, but we had several screaming kids on the plane, so the trip was not short enough! When we arrived in NY, Amanda's parents were coincidentally in town and they kindly picked us up from the airport. We enjoyed coffee and downloading on our trip.

Indeed this is one of many trips with Amanda and it was a wonderful two weeks in Italy. Despite rain, ailments, and clickety clack, we made it through and got to see a wonderful country together. I will forever remember the beautiful things we saw and the wonderful meals we ate. Thanks Amanda for everything - it'll be lonely without you!

And to Italy, I hope that I see you again and not in another 23 years!

Last Day on the Peninsula

Today we enjoyed breakfast and packed up. After checking out, we read on the terrace and enjoyed the view below:



After reading for a few hours, we had lunch at Bar Il Molo. It was recommended by the Americans we met yesterday. Specifically they enjoyed the avocado with shrimp - it was tasty, but we think they were more excited it was an avocado, because they're from California. I had a salad with tomatoes and eggplant while Amanda enjoyed a pasta.

Once lunch was over, we checked the train schedule and decided to take the train leaving in 25 minutes. So we picked up our luggage from our hotel and clickety clack, dragged our luggage across town to the train station. We caught the train that took about 50 minutes to get back to Milan. We were at the Milano Centrale train station for our fourth time. We walked a few blocks to the Hilton. I actually do not like staying in American hotels overseas as they cost too much, but ironically enough with the Expo, this was the most reasonable hotel that met our needs.

We checked in and conveniently enough were upgraded to an Executive Room (for the win) and researched our last dinner in Italy. While listening to BBC, we decided on La Latteria San Marco. We took the metro 3 stops to Moscova and after walking in the wrong direction for a bit, finally found our restaurant.

It was a cash only 7 table restaurant that changes the menu daily. It was fantastic and fresh. Amanda had fusilli pasta with tomato and cheese and I had a lemon and spicy pepper pasta. Afterwards, Amanda had stuffed artichokes and I had calamari. All of it was seasoned so well - a collage of our final meal below:



After dinner, we decided to have one last gelato. I sprung for 2 scoops - hazelnut and chocolate while Amanda had pistachio - a perfect way to end our last full day in Italy.

On our walk back to the metro, we were also again surrounded by cottonwood seeds that seemed to fill the spring air. They were indeed flying everywhere at the Expo and managed to even fly into our restaurant and into the subway. I think they follow us, because they don't want us to leave!

Lake Como

After a lovely breakfast at our hotel, we relaxed in our room. Then it started to downpour, so we waited out the rain and napped before we headed out.

Amanda had read about a short vertical hike here in Varenna. I was a little nervous about a "short vertical hike", as the last one I remember is going up Wanya Picchu in Peru. It was a bit slippery on the wet leaves, but it was fine. Here's a photo as we started to ascend:



The walk was lovely as the rain had refreshed the village - the air was crisper and the haze was gone. We walked by a cemetery and up into the hills. Our goal was to see a river spout that feeds into the lake. A photo below - apparently this is glacier water originating from the Alps:



Descending was lovely too - here's a photo:



We walked through the eastern part of town and past the Villa Monastery. Here's a photo:



After our hike, I had a chocolate and hazelnut gelato. It really hit the spot! We then walked over to the ferry docks to catch a boat to Bellagio, another town on Lake Como. Here are a few photos of the Swiss Alps from our short boat ride:





I would also like to apologize to Amanda. She handed me a few pages on Bellagio that she tore out of her guidebook. While I was reading, a gust of wind blew them into the lake. Luckily, we still had a map and these towns are small, but clearly we did not want to litter in Lake Como!

We arrived in Bellagio looking for a wine tasting room. We ended up at Apertiivi where Amanda ordered a Tuscan flight and I had a Lombardy one. Between our first and second glasses, two old colleagues of mine, Kevin and Christina who are married to each other, entered the bar - such a small world! I hadn't seen them since September, but coincidentally, they too had seized the same travel deal! Although they just went away on their honeymoon in February, they felt Milan for $400 round trip was too good to pass up. We chatted and caught up over a few glasses and they headed back to Como on an early ferry.

After some Italian cold cuts, cheese, and more wine, we finally left and walked a loop in Bellagio. Here's a photo of Bellagio - you can see the shining lake:



While waiting for the ferry, we chatted with Americans that we had run into last night. They were planning to hit the Expo this week and asked for some tips. We took the ferry back to Varenna and Amanda and I ate at a cute restaurant. I had eggplant parmigiana and linguini with lobster. Amanda had the same linguini and then a steak frites. Here are a few photos:



After a relaxing day of drinking wine and not doing much, we returned to the hotel. I'll say, it was a perfect day in Lake Como!

Last Supper

As some of you may know, I work very hard to get difficult tickets. Machu Picchu in Peru and the Alhambra in Spain are just two examples of where I refresh that extra tab in my internet browser, waiting for the day when the tickets are released and hoping to get U.S. credit cards to work on overseas websites. Getting tickets to see Leonardo Da Vinci's "Last Supper" was no different.

They release about three months in advance and the website is a bit frustrating as it will say tickets are available when they are not and vice versa. However, I was able to get tickets for today at 9:30 am, one of two sessions that includes an English guide! The visit lasts a mere 15 minutes and you have to enter two different rooms to control the humidity before entering the actual room. And obviously, photos are forbidden.

The painting that has been restored several times, endured bombing attacks, vandalism, and even a simple enlarging of the central door and removed Jesus' feet, is simply unbelievable. It's much larger than I expected and seeing it in real life and the perspective Leonardo had, was the highlight of my day. Here's a photo of the copy that you can take a picture of in the bookstore:



The painting hangs in the Santa Maria Della Grazie in Milan. Specifically, it hangs in the originally Dominican monastery dining room. Here's s picture of the church and the courtyard, as well as the entrance to the viewing:



After our 15 minute visit, we visited the lovely church - here are a few photos:



After our visit, we retrieved our luggage from our hotel that was just across the street and headed to Cadorna station where we caught a train to Como Lago Nordo. The train ride took about 50 minutes and we arrived at the southernmost point of Lake Como. We walked a few blocks to catch the ferry. Here are a few photos of Como as we were leaving the docks:



Our ferry lasted 2.5 hours. Lake Como is an inverted Y-shaped lake that has beautiful Lombardy towns. We stopped in Tremezzo, Bellagio, Menaggio, Lecco, and Lenno. You could see the pretty villages, villas, grand hotels, churches, and gardens. Here are a few photos including a villa that was in a Star Wars movie and a hotel pool within the lake:



Although the ferry ride was lovely, I had forgotten to take my seasickness pills before it was too late and I was pretty queasy. As such, I was pretty happy to see our final destination, Varenna - a photo below as we were docking:



We walked along the lake to our hotel, Hotel Du Lac. We have a top floor room which is actually a duplex and has a panoramic view of the lake. Here are a few photos:



After an afternoon nap to sleep off my nausea, we walked around town. It feels very medieval with the cobblestones, alleyways, and paths. It is charming, quiet, and peaceful - exactly what we were looking for to decompress. Here are a few photos - we even saw wedding photos being taken:



As we hadn't eaten lunch, I was starving, so we sat lakeside and I ate some bresaola with mushrooms, cheese, and arugula with a glass of wine. Amanda had something similar. Here's a photo:



We were also entertained by ducks who also enjoyed al fresco dining lakeside:



For dinner, we ended up at Osteria Quatro Pass where we shared a chianti, and I had buckwheat ravioli which is a local specialty and Amanda ordered fresh perch. Our food was tasty, but putting it all together in a photo collage makes it look very white or bland - we did have grilled vegetables, salad, and fruit, but I didn't take photos of those:



After dinner, we returned to our hotel that is quite charming, despite the thin walls. The next few days will surely be peaceful as we relax before the end of our trip!

World Expo

Girls on a train! We woke up in Naples early to catch our 6:40 am high-speed train to Milan which took about 4 hours. I slept most of the ride, but managed to take this photo of the Italian countryside:



Upon arrival to Milano Centrale station, we took the metro to Cadorna station and walked 5 minutes to our hotel. Our hotel is at the Palazzo delle Stelline, a hotel and conference center across the street from the Last Supper which we'll be seeing tomorrow morning. We grabbed a sandwich at a cute sandwich shop nearby - it was more like a wrap, but it was made with fresh cheese and speck and the place was crowded with locals. We then made our way back to Cadorna station to head to World Expo 2015.

The World Expo apparently happens every couple of years and this year it's in Milan - specifically, the exposition site is about 20 minutes northwest by metro from central Milan. The theme this year is "Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life". I didn't know what to expect since I've never been to a world's fair and I just think of the Unisphere at Flushing Meadows from 1964. But many famous monuments today are from world fairs: the Eiffel Tower and Seattle's Space Needle, for example.

Our first Pavillion was the UN which was promoting Zero Hunger. Here's a trading board of food crops and the front of the pavilion - the board reminds me of the movie, "Trading Places":



When we walked over to the main area, the walkway is lined with pavilions - here's a view of how expansive it is:



I thought many of the countries had cool pavilions. Apparently the average cost of maintaining one is 20 million euros and takes 6 -10 months to build - yikes! Over 140 countries are participating and the Expo lasts from May 1st to October 31st. Hopefully my photos give you a nice variety and sample of what we saw, so here goes....

Here's Angola:



The Czech Republic - many countries showcased their beers and cuisine with bars and restaurants:



Inside Belgium, the fish and plants sustain each other:



Vietnam:



Qatar - the Middle Eastern ones were very cool:



And of course, here's Korea:



Most of the pavilions have shows with lots of visual effects, cool graphics, and art. Korea was no different trying to explain fermentation and the "symphony of food" using robots:



This was a cool visual showing fermentation jars with different food and playing music. My heart tugged a little when they played Arirang, a Korean folk song, as the fermentation showed the results:



China was very cool with the marigolds in front, an exhibit inside, and poles made to look like bamboo, but had lights on top to orchestrate this cool and harmonious show:



The UK Pavillion had a structure that is controlled by bees creating energy in Nottingham which makes the bulbs light up. We had a personal explanation and tour from the director of the Pavillion:



Interestingly enough, the U.S. Pavillion was supported by "Friends of the U.S. Pavillion in Milan", instead of the government. It explained the trends in the foodscape, like "farm to table" and "artisanal" with cute cartoons:



We enjoyed Austria which brought plants and explained the water cycle. We were to breathe the air from Austria as noted below in Korean. We also stood in front of a mirror where you can take a photo that says "Greetings from Austria" using a combination of sculpture behind us and words on the mirror:



I could have watched this guy at the Slovenia Pavillion for hours as he kept dancing and pulling in people - he had so much energy! Hopefully you can see the video which is very short.

After a glass of Malbec in Argentina, we had dinner in Brazil - a plate of different types of meat and salads. We then walked down netting that kids had a lot of fun climbing. Some photos below:



After our full day at the Expo, we returned to central Milan. It was a good day to check out the Expo as many museums are closed on Mondays and we had planned to spend one night back in Milan en route to Lake Como. I'm glad we went as we learned a lot. Also, the Expo is one of the reasons why the NY Times picked Milan as the destination of the year!

Naples

My view at breakfast this morning! Our last day in Capri and the day could not be more beautiful! Amanda got up early for a hike to the grotto, while I opted to relax at the hotel. After breakfast, I read and sunbathed, listening to the birds and church bells...so idyllic!

Amanda returned and we enjoyed lunch poolside. I had grilled sole and Amanda had a pasta with shrimp, calamari, and zucchini. Here's a photo collage with our waiter before he filleted my fish:



After lunch, we still had time to kill, so we sat poolside, looking over the Mediterranean, and relaxed. Eventually, we headed down to the marina while eating ice cream. For the return to the marina, we opted for the luggage service and instead of the funicular, walked down the mountain. The 12€ per person cost was totally worth it - I mean, we can't really eat ice cream with that clickety clack!

We met our luggage porter who also bought our ferry tickets and we boarded the boat. Our ferry ride was 40 minutes and when we arrived back in Naples, there was a massive taxi line. So clickety clack, we walked to the same hotel that was near the train station, the Ibis Styles. We were back in the city grittiness of Naples!

We rested and researched delicious pizza places near our hotel and decided to go to Trianon. The pizza was wonderful! I had the margherita and Amanda had the marinara. Pizza in Naples is famous - the dough is chewy and the middle of the pizza is a bit soupy. Mine had olive oil all over and was so satisfying. Here's a photo collage - you can even see Amanda observing the men at the oven preparing pizzas:



After dinner, we walked back to the hotel. Walking in Italy is no easy feat - essentially it's like a game of Frogger when crossing the street. Most cars don't seem to abide by the traffic signals and you have to confidently walk, hoping the cars will slow down. After one week in Italy, we have gotten use to it.

What we haven't gotten use to, is my massive sun burn on the back of my legs! I got drunk on Capri Sun and the back of my knees are totally sun blistered. I think when I was laying on my stomach, I kept bending my knees, so the sunscreen came off from the sweat; it's literally a place where the sun doesn't shine, so it was super sensitive. A guy passed us on the street and yelled "Mama Mia!" So Italian, but that's what you get buddy for looking at my legs!

Anacapri

Our hotel had a lovely breakfast where they usually have the tables out on the terrace. However, this morning we were inside as it was foggy. Afterwards, we walked down our street where there is a viewing point of the Faraglioni Rocks which are limestone and called sea stacks. Here's a view of the fog over Mount Solaro and the Faraglioni Rocks:



We then napped, sunbathed, and read on our terrace until about 3 pm! We finally motivated to leave our wonderful and relaxing hotel. I, particularly, am exhausted from all the trekking, but it also appears I have gotten a cold - probably from the Roman rain and the running around I've been doing for weeks.

We walked through Capri, and bought ice cream cones to walk down to the Marina Grande (big Marina), instead of taking the funicular down the mountain. After the ten minute walk, we bought ferry tickets to the Blue Grotto. The boat trip circles the island and takes about an hour. Here's a collage of us on the boat, leaving the marina, and the welcome statue to the island:



Here's a photo of Sorrentine peninsula, the island cliffs, and a hole in which the emperor use to have people jump out of - Capri was the vacation home of several emperors:



Here's the White Grotto where you can also see a statue of Mary amongst the stalagmites:



Photos of the Natural Arch that apparently look like an elephant's trunk and more island views:



We actually drove through the Faraglioni Rocks and beneath the arch. Here are some views of the rocks:



Here's Marina Piccolo (little Marina), a winding road, and some rock formations:



The lighthouse, more island views, and the location where Mama Mia, the movie musical was filmed:



Of course the highlight was supposed to be the Blue Grotto. Unfortunately, all the rowboats have gone for the day. You can see from the cavern on the left, that only a rowboat can fit through and people are able to enjoy and swim in the grotto inside. Sometimes you can't enter due to high tides. Although I'm sorry that I won't be able to experience this, my seasickness might make me feel uncomfortable in a rowboat, so I was okay.



After our circle around the island, we returned to Marina Grande where we tried to get a bus to Anacapri, another town on the island of Capri. However, we have learned buses that are supposed to leave every 15 minutes in Italy, isn't always true. So we hopped into a cab, drove on the winding roads, and to the small square in the western part of the island. Anacapri is lovely and definitely lacks the pretentiousness and bourgeois aspect of Capri. Here's a photo of the local church and streets:

Our concierge at our hotel recommended a restaurant called Le Arcate where his best friend Ugo works. We had a lovely meal and great service. Here's a collage of my salad, spaghetti with fish of the day which was monkfish, Amanda's seafood salad and pasta with lemon cream sauce and shrimp. In Italy, the servers often filet the fish table side:

Just about 20 meters away from the restaurant is the bus stop to Capri. Fortunately, we didn't wait long and hopped onto a bus that went to Capri's piazza. We meandered through the streets and leisurely made our way back to the hotel on this breezy night and after our relaxing day!