Day 6- Venice, the Haunted City

We got up early and I found out that Alvaro was sick. We forced him to stay home and be sick for a day so he could recover quickly. On the way there, I saw Verona, the city that Romeo and Juliet took place in, and Padua, the city of Taming of the Shrew. All I could think was, "I've come to wive it wealthily in Padua!" "No, bro, go back, this train station's creepy!" Italy's countryside is more industrialized than Germany's. Germany's countryside is gorgeous, and I sort of missed it outside my train window. I got a little spoiled in Germany by going there first a few years ago, I'll be honest.

Molly and I took the train to Venice, and I was so excited. 

I never imagined I’d be here EVER. And I’m here in the winter, so the “stink” was down (the canals get really smelly in the summertime). She kept on telling me about how Venice was a really unique city, but it was also really creepy and that you could imagine it was inhabited by vampires. I tried to tell Molly about Doctor Who. She doesn’t get it. 

Yet.

We arrived in Venice, and basically, we took a crazy path literally around the city, but I think we saw everything. Molls has been here a few times with her work, but rarely for fun. I'm pretty sure it's going to be my favorite city in Italy when I leave. It's very creepy, in general, but that could be because it's so different from any other city I've ever seen. I like the macabre and the scary.

The Grand Canal outside the Venice Train Station

Venice was originally a bunch of mud islands that were built up by men. It’s basically in the mouth of where the water run-off from the mountains of the Po and Piave rivers (freshwater) blends in like a lagoon to salt water. Therefor, it’s not truly salt or freshwater. It has a distinct smell and blue-green color that I haven't really seen anywhere else. It reminded me of the lagoon water in Opryland from when I was a kid, before they destroyed it for a mall.

Grand Canal

It was settled by a group of Romans from Veniti that were fleeing north to escape the Roman empire. It became a major center of commerce and trade in the 1300s and Venice is incredibly important to Italian history. The Moorish and Spanish influence over the city and the architecture were intense and blended with the Roman culture.

The north point of Venice

The islands were later fashioned into canals and tiny, narrow streets. There were no cars, but there were some bikes and a LOT of boats!

Venice looks like a fish from the map.

It’s not a terribly big city, so it was mostly explorable in one day. The first thing I noticed is that the buildings are close to together and very tall, too. They go up about 4-5 stories each. There were allies so narrow that you could have leapt from rooftop to rooftop, no problem.

My sister in the Venice "streets"

An actual University! Can I study there?

We went to the Jewish District, and got to see the Holocaust Memorial. People from the New Jewish Ghetto were deported to Concentration camps, and Venice had a large ghetto already in place. It was an incredibly rich and successful center of trade before World War II.

I kept on thinking of Shakespeare’s the Merchant of Venice. I’m glad I got to see the memorial.

I immediately noticed that when the tide came in, the sidewalks disappeared under water.

They put out these risers that had wood sheets over them when the water got too high on the sidewalks and the businesses put up water-tight seals over the bases of their doors to keep the water out. Venice is sinking! Parts of it will crumble or sink into the sea, eventually. 

We had lunch near Fieyero Square, where a church was. I had a tuna and onion pizza (no comments from the peanut factory, it was delicious!) and we were surrounded by French tourists. We also had white wine, which the bars here keep on tap!

We basically did a whirlwind tour. We went to San Marco Square, where the movie the Tourist (and probably countless others) were filmed.

A Solar Clock in San Marco Square

I got to see the San Marco Tower, that 100 years ago, collapsed into the square. But, miraculously, nobody was killed! They rebuilt it and it’s really, really tall now. At the end of the square, there’s the Cathedral of San Marco. The square itself gets flooded during high tide, so my sister and I were having to enter the cathedral on the risers. It’s one of the most beautiful, Orthodox-looking cathedrals I’ve ever seen, but the sad things it, the experts are thinking that it was crumbled into the sea in the next 50 years. I’m so sad that this is going to be the only time I’ll ever get to see this beautiful piece of work in worship. The floors were beautiful marble craftsman ship, but it was getting warped from the foundation unsettling. I felt it as I walked. So many bishops are buried there, it will be so sad when that happens. 

After this, my sister and I went to ride the Gondola. Our Gondolier was a funny guy, and had gone to school for driving the Gondolas, Gondoliering was not in his family. We had to lean to the sides so we could go under bridges, and by now, it was late in the afternoon, and the Christmas lights were on. We saw Casanova’s House, Marco Polo's place, and the French Consulate on the canals! Can you imagine having to take a Gondola to work everyday! Rowing up and down the beautiful Canals and entertaining tourists? Can I do that, please?

More Venice pictures:

Carnivale Masks

Tee hee. You can wear the Medusa mask in front!

Body armor made of carnivale masks

Not even the most expensive carnival mask I saw- I saw one over 1600 euro!

We rode the water taxi home, which is pick-pocket central. All I had to do was keep my theft-worthy items in the zippered pocket of my bag, and keep my hand on the zipper, and I was fine. Molly and I started playing “Chandelier Watch” as we travelled back to the train station. There were some fantastic houses on the grand canal! Can I please move there?

We went home, and brought some proseco! The train ride home was pretty fun!

Day 5- Mamasita, donda esta Santa Claus?

I set my phone alarm, but left it on Airplane Mode so it didn't try to get to the cell tower and roam. It didn't wake me up super-early, sadly. Alvaro and Molly got up around 6 am to Skype with his family in Juarez at their midnight and open presents with them. Molly went back to bed, and Alvaro fell asleep on the couch. I woke up around 10, and we made a delicious breakfast with a cake/bread for French toast and marsconi whipped cream and raspberries. Nom nom nom nom!!!

Then, we opened Christmas presents- Molly has paid for us to go to Venice and Florence as day trips! That was my big present from her! After this, we made a hummingbird cake for the Consulate Christmas party later tonight. It was messy, but fun! I checked my facebook and found out my friend Becca in Phoenix got engaged! Congratulations Becca and Tyler!!

We called and talked to Momma and Daddy later, and I told them all about our Christmas Day so far. It was good to hear from them, and they filled me in on their Christmas Eve at cousin Chuck's house. Momma definitely had a good time :) And luckily, everybody got along! Good to hear!

After watching some Family Guy, I wrapped the White Elephant gifts for tonight’s party at Steve and Julie's, Molly's coworkers at the Consulate's office. We got ready for the Christmas party, (unfortunately, I didn't take pictures). The people in attendance were several of the other consulate officers, their kids, and the brave Marines who guard the offices.

At the party, Steve and Julie were watching a dachshund breed named Nino, who was blind, but pretty happy and adept. Sweet doggy! So much fun to pet him, and I really feel that pets are so important for making a house feel like a home, no matter where you are! And yes, Manny and Mo were missed! I got to see Steve and Julie's apartment, it was amazing. It's great family lodging, really beautiful and really comfortable. I felt right at home!

After drinks and Christmas dinner, we ate the desserts, and our hummingbird cake was a hit! We then played Dirty Santa with White Elephant gifts, and it got really intense! Nino got a little shaky from all the laughing and noise (poor thing!).  I got a present of candy, nuts, lever 2000, a finance book from 2008, a scarf, and a copy of Captain America: the First Avenger! Yea! 

The Marines took the last of the hummingbird cake home to the Marine's House, they definitely deserve to be treated well for all their responsibilities. They do a great job.

We caught a right home with Monsef and Candace and jammed in the car to the Gorillaz’s Feel Good Inc! I went to bed early so we could get up early for the Venice trip, leaving the apartment at 7 am! Sorry about the lack of pictures, we took a BUNCH at Venice! I can't wait to tell you all about Venice tomorrow! Sleep well!

Day 4- Have a Holly, Jolly Christmas... Milano Style!

I went to visit the US Consulate’s office- had to surrender my passport to the Marine on duty. That's okay, they gave me a pass. Molly, Alvaro and I had lunch, a huge piece of Lasagna, and few customers were there, so the square they gave me was HUGE!!! Sorry, not being a foodie today, didn't take a shot.

After lunch then, I had the afternoon to myself. I didn't want to sit around and be lame in the apartment, so I walked down the Duomo by myself. I got to see a lot of beautiful shops. There's something to be said about walking through a city; you get a totally different view than if you were riding in a car through it. You can stop and study, admire, window shop, etc. Brera's a pretty cool place to be.

Another cool alley in Brera that I thought was pretty!

Hackett's of London! Hey Ms. Peggy and Kaylie!

I arrived at da Vinci Square and walked back to the Galleria, where I saw the Duomo Cathederal and all the little red-tented vendors selling their wares. I walked through all of them on a mission to find a Christmas present for Alvaro from Molly (shhh, can't tell you what!). I didn't quite find the store Molly specified, so I went to the subway stop around 2:30 and walked around it, finding an adequate gift for him. I bought it and went to buy subway passes. For a girl who has grown up in a car-only commuting system, I was a little intimidated, but it wasn't overwhelming. I paid my Euro 1.50 and got a pass for the metro. I had to rely on my metro map to make it to the red line. It was so quick, I loved it, and it wasn't so overwhelming. I had to be patient with myself and not freakout about changing lines to the green line. I managed to get to the right train, and it was only 3 stops before I got to Molly and Alvaro's neighborhood. Quite proud of myself to transitioning over to the public transportation system! Didn't even get pick-pocketed!

Alvaro and I met at Ted One and had a glass of wine with Pasquale, and he ordered a cab for us. Molly was working late and couldn't go with us I went to pay for my wine, but Pasquale told me he'd charge me later tonight. Alvaro and I went to see the Last Supper at Santa Maria della Grazie.

Notice they built a door arch where Christ's feet once were! Derp, guys!

We had printed out the reserved tickets and arrived there to go in. In the waiting foyer, we were able to read about the different restorations that the fresco had been through, and how it had almost been destroy by bombing during World War II. It was very closely guarded and we had to walk through some really severe security. The room was incredibly quiet, and we were able to enter. There were photos of the two walls with the frescos exposed to open air! I'm shocked it was able to be saved! 

What was left of the convent's chapel after allied bombing. You can see the fresco of calvary that opposes da Vinci's the Last Supper

I saw pictures of how it had been repainted and restored in the 20th century. I'm surprised the fresco has survived a long. I turned around and saw a fresco on the opposite wall, and it was interesting, too. One thing I noticed was that the Duke of Milan's consort, Beatrice had been painted in as well, and was identified on the plaque. But I looked her up, and she had been scratched out of the fresco!

She's kneeling on the far right

We weren't able to take pictures, but we did get to go to the gift shop, where I bought a few souvenirs to take home. They were probably over priced, but oh well... 

After seeing the Last Supper, we went to Ted One and Pasquale let us finish off the open bottles of wine at no charge for a Christmas eve present. We stayed home and Karina came over because her flight was delayed. We watched a Christmas Story after a beef roast dinner that was reminiscent of Madge’s Christmas roasts! Sorry, I was not a foodie on this day, but it was really delicious! Molly wants to make another one next Christmas, hopefully she'll be back in Murfreesboro next year!

Day 3 - On My Own

Today was my first real day on my own. For the most part.

I woke up and Molly asked me toc ome down to the Consulate's office for lunch. I hadn't been to visit her and Alvaro at their office, yet. Today, I didn't get to go in, though. I waited out by the fountain to wait on them to come out. We went to a cafeteria-style restaurant, and I felt like I was back in school! I had a combo of fish, gnocci, and green beans, which I couldn't finish.
After this, we went to Bianco Latte for dessert. My sister introduced me to cappuccino over gelato. Are you kidding me!? It was delicious! If I could eat it every day, I probably would! I want to bring it to Nashville on a food truck, it was so wonderful! The gelato basically cools down the cappuccino, but the milk in it creams the cappuccino, so it tastes fantastic. I had a white chocolate gelato with cappuccino, and it was perfect.

Nom nom nom.... new addiction!

I went home to put on some heavier layers of clothes, and I ended up taking a nap. I crashed until about 2, and then I got up and went to see the park. There was a small stadium from the 1940s, and it was kind of cool. It's now for like, kid's leagues games. I was told there was a castle in this park, and I was looking around, and I thought I found it. I thought, "This castle sorta sucks." I took a picture, and then I found out that it was actually the aquarium. 

Man, this castle kinda sucks.

Then, I turned around and saw the castle! I was looking at the acquarium!

OH! THIS is the castle! Whoa...

No, I didn't go inside, and but I think I got a few good pictures. I turned around and saw the arch:

Beautiful arch!

Yes, it was really cool. I took a lot of pictures just to get the scope of it.

Pretty tall... very ornate!

I walked home, relying on the map, but got there just fine. I met Molly and her coworkers at Ted One, and it was a fun time. After that, we had a quiet time and had dinner and watched Firefly at Molly and Alvaro's house before going to bed.

Day 2- Seeing Amazing Art and Football!

I woke up after a night of insomnia (I usually can't sleep on my first night overseas) and Molly and Alvaro were making a giant American breakfast of eggs, fruit salad, and biscuits. I was pretty much grossed out on croissants by now.

After breakfast, Molly and I walked through Brera down to the Galleria and by the da Vinci square. The shops were beautiful and expensive, but had a lot of culture to them. I'd love to live here.

Visit Brera!

Did I mention it was trendy AND expensive?

We came across the Teatro di Scalia house, which looked really amazing from the outside. Across the street was the da Vinci square and the Raffaello Madonna painting.

The painting was in a really dark room with a beautiful, but unit interior. It was an education; Molly and I identified the Virgin Mary and child (obviously) and on the right are Joachim and Anna, Mary's parents, and on the left is John the Baptist and St. Francis of Assissi. The cherub in the middle was holding a plaque that was supposed to hold the name of the person who commissioned the painting. The commissioner died before the painting was finished. I believe the city in the background was the commissioner's city, and rainbow presented peace and prosperity.

The one picture I was allowed to take

After we went to the Galleria, which was designed by da Vinci, and was the first indoor shopping "mall" ever. It had a lot of high-end designer shops, filled with pretty and expensive things!

Galleria

Galleria Dome

Good luck bullspin. Three times on your heel and you get good luck!

After this, we went to the Duomo, the largest Gothic Cathedral in all of Europe. One of the statues on the outside of the Duomo inspired the Statue of Liberty, too!

NOT my picture, obviously, but a good professional shot

Photography was forbidden inside, so I'll pull some from the internet to show you. We went inside, surprised to find out that there was a "horoscope" line at the back of the church. It was an astronomy/sunlight calendar, which would show what period of time in the zodiac it was by a little hole of light that fell on it from the east wall.

Interior of the Duomo.

We saw several bishops that had been buried and were on display. Some were only statues. Many had been buried on the Duomo's grounds. The mummified bishop/saint bodies had silver death masks so that you didn't have to see their decomposed faces in the display.

St. Bartholomew. Probably the creepiest statue. An apostle of Chrst, his punishment, how he was martyred, was being skinned alive. That's his skin he's wearing/holding.

I lit a candle and prayed for my family in front of the Virgin Mary before we headed out.

Now that we were leaving, we were hungry and needed to purchase some tickets for Nice, France. Molly and I got some roasted chestnuts, and they were delicious! You can't really get these in America. They tasted like potatoes, just slightly sweet. We went down to the Metro underground, and rode the train to the Central Train books station. On the way there, we ran into a large group of guys going to the Inter Milan/Milan A.C. game. It was a huge deal, and Alvaro got tickets with his best friend at the Consulate's office, Sunil, and his brother and father. These guys were jumping up and down chanting "Go Inter!" The Metro wasn't actually that difficult to understand, even in Italian. I love Metros, I really do! All metropolitan cities should have them (hint, hint, Nashville!!!). We didn't run into any gypsies/pick-pockets on the way to Central. At Central, we waited about 40 minutes to get our number called (not bad) since we couldn't get the tickets online. Molly and I sat on a low bar rail. We basically had to squat down, and it was actually really good on our backs to do that. It wasn't that bad of a wait. We booked tickets to Nice for less thatn 50 Euro a piece! W00T! We're going later.

On the train back home, we saw some gypsy/ pick-pocket girls that had harassed Molly before. They were going after a lady with an open bag (big mistake) that didn't zip up, but once the lady figured out what they were doing, we saw them back off. The trick is to keep your wallet in your front pocket and to keep your purse zipped up at all times.

At home, we went back to Ted One for drinks with Karina, Raj, Arun, and Sunil. Raj, Arun, Sunil, and Alvaro went on to the Inter/Milan football match, and Karina, Molly, and I went back to the apartment to make dinner and watch the match (also to watch for the guys on TV).

I went to bed after taking 2 benadryl and a melatonin. It knocked me out! I guess I needed that since I was so lacking in sleep for the last few days!

To be continued in Day 3, on my own...

Day 0 & 1

I started to Milan when my roommate Greg drove me in. I took a "glamour shot" while in Nashville International.

Can I survive this plane trip?

Unfortunately, I didn't get my soy latte in the shot. My dad was in the hospital but he didn't want me to miss the trip. I talked to him as I was called for the flight to Newark.

It was snowy in New Jersey as I arrived at Newark. 

Snowy New Jersey

I boarded the international flight a few hours after we landed. I actually liked United Airlines; the service wasn't bad and we had individual televisions on the back of the seat in front of us. I was able to choose a movie to watch, and I chose a big, dumb action movie, White House Down.

Ever heard of research?

I really don't recommend this movie. At all. Especially if you are a conservative. I was laughing so hard at it. REAALLY bad, unresearched (they referred to the plane carrying the Vice-President as Air Force One, sheesh) it was just designed as a vehicle for Tatum Channing and Jamie Foxx. I watched Iron Man, and it was much, much better.

All the while, I was so friggin' thristy. Those plane are dry! I'm going to purchase a few liters after I get past the security checkpoints in the airport so that I can avoid the dry sinuses and throat, since the attendants weren't giving out enough water. I didn't sleep much, either.

When I got to Milan, I practiced my resting bitch face and got a bottle of water right off the bat. Marapensa has a lot of shady people, so I kept my hand on my purse at all times. When I left the baggage claim, I saw my sister waiting for me! Yay! Molly and I had a ham and cheese croissant on the panini press and cappuccinos. We had the standing up at the bar, we didn't sit down at the table, because they'd have charged us extra. Marapensa is about 45 minutes away from the main section of Milan, so I got to see the suburbs, which reminded me of the family housing in the Communist Soviet Union. It was kind of scary-looking, but then we got into the city, and it was actually really pretty. Once-in-a-while, you'll see ugly post-war buildings built right beside a beautiful classical building. Like this:

Moscova Street

Italians also love plants, so they basically have a small garden on their balconies, it's really cool-looking. I also saw some gypsy trailer settlements, that looked like garbage. On the way home, I saw at least ten bus stops with this ad on it (no joke):

Because, like, Milan is the perfume and fashion capitol of like, Europe! OMG!

The apartment Molly and Alvaro have is in the Brera neighborhood, and it's apparently a really posh neighborhood. It's also super-cute! The US and the German Consulate offices are really close by, too. No, I will not give you the address.

We had lunch at Molly and Alvaro's favorite "hang out," Ted One. It's like McLaren's on How I Met Your Mother, just Italian. 

The lunch I had was mashed potatoes, pork, and raviolis, quite good! I couldn't quite finish it! 

Me with a glass of wine. See the bags under my eyes?

 I swear I'm not pissed off.

Pascale and me

We went to the market that was a few trailers set up on a street & bought from different vendors Best clementine and walnut EVER. Plus, we saw a full octopus on ice and live eels!

When I woke up, Molls made some strong coffee for me. Our plan of action was to go to recharge the phone minutes on the phone Molly was loaning me and to get some groceries. We walked through Brera at night, and I thought, "I could live here." I was so cute, so cosmopolitan... Until the guy at the TIM store, where we could refill the phone's minutes, acted like a douche. Oh well. We got an umbrella from an illegal in the metro. They line up items (like purses, etc.) on white sheets and will barter for the items. When they see the poliza, they grab the edges of the sheet and make a quick sack and run. Italy is surrounded on 2/3 of the border by water, so immigrants find their way in in droves, but can't always do legal work, so they have to sell. I did get to see one of the seven gates of Milan:

We passed by a nice shoe store, and I was able to look in the window. All the shoes were over $250. Carrie Bradshaw, I am not!
We walked up to the Duomo Plaza in the fog. It's what makes Milan considered the "New York" of Italy, but to be honest, there's not a lot of sky scrapers. It was so foggy, I couldn't see the green lit tower.  Downstairs in the Duomo Plaza, the grocery store Esselunga was waiting. It's a humongous grocery store, for Italian measures. It's bigger than an Aldi's, but smaller than a Kroger's, if that makes sense. I found out really quickly that I wasn't supposed to touch the raw produce with bare hands! People will get really angry with you about that. You have to bag your own groceries in your own grocery sacks. Molls and I got a little overzealous, because we had to carry all the food we bought home, and it was heavy! We stopped off at an "Irish" Football Pub, but it was more international. Italians will serve you beer and snacks automatically go with it, even if you didn't order snacks. After a drink and snacks with Alvaro, we trekked home.
We were still going strong, so we made a salad, and then sat down to watch TV. That's when I started getting tired. I went to bed, but I woke up in the night and stayed awake for several hours due to jet lag. I know I nodded off a time or two, but I swear, I felt one of my cats hop into the bed and start walking around. Creepy, I know!
More will come on Day 2 as of tomorrow! Good night!