Finding Simplicity: Milano

I really needed to get away this weekend and we still had the rent a car for a few more days. Rob and I decided to take a trip to Milan! The awesome thing about Geneva's location is that many things are within driving distance. Milan for instance is inly 4 hours away. Not bad! It could take you four hours just to get across LA. (That is an exaggeration of course.)

We headed out later then we wanted on Saturday morning after doing the last minute research on driving directions and how to park. Parking can be a major issue in European cities if you have no idea what you are doing. Many of the websites warned of not trying to drive in inner Milan since it can get really crazy. Italian drivers don't exactly follow all the rules. The swiss are rule followers but the Italian driver blatantly go way over the speed limits. For example, we were on the major A4 highway and the driver in front of us decided it was okay to drive in-between the two lanes blocking everyone else.

We stayed in a budget hotel really close to one the metro station stops. We ended up parking in a huge garage meant for weekday commuters. There are probably about 10 of them around the perimeter of the city and all of them are close to a metro stop for easy access into the center. I literally mean center. The whole city seems to be built in concentric circles around the cathedral in the center.

We walked a ton and saw a few of the major sights. We didn't get to see the "Last Supper" since you have to reserve tickets in advance. (At least this is what we were told). The milanese people are known for their fashion and it shows! Lots of people walking around decked out in D&G, Prada, etc. It was just fun to people watch.

Unfortunately.... we couldn't find any good food. We totally know it exists - but we just couldn't find it. We ended up on Saturday night at a total tourist trap. BOOOO!!!! We should have walked off as soon as they brought us a menu in English. That was a big warning! We actually went on this long hunt for a vegetarian restaurant and it wasn't even where it said it was! We were starving by this point and ended up eating at a McDonald's! (GASP!) All along the freeways of Italy are these "Autogrille's". While technically fast food - they have some pretty decent sandwiches and would have taken these over MickeyD's any day. (Side Note - The is actually a chinese fast food place in Geneva called Mr Wong's. They intentionally use the McDonald's "m" upside down for the "w" in Wong. )

Driving thru Mont Blanc was quite the experience. Like most freeways it has a toll, but this tunnel was a little pricey. 44 Euro round trip. It had a bad car accident a few years ago (about 20 people died in a fiery crash and a memorial is set up outside the tunnel) and they have since installed a ton of safety measures. You have to keep the distance between you and the car in front of you at least one blue light measurement. (See the video) It is amazing how the weather changes from one side to the other. The Italian side was clear sunny and bright. The French side was super foggy and cloudy.

I really needed this weekend to get away from the insanity of moving. Getting "away" actually made driving back into Geneva feel more like coming home.

Here are pictures and videos from the weekend's adventures. We are still learning how to become better photographers so bare with us here!