Friday, 7 June, 2019
The weather forecast called for a hot, sunny day in Lombardia, perfect for a trip to the capital!
Thus, we were off via train
to Milano's Cadorna Station
We had decided that it would be a perfect day to visit Milano's famed Naviglio District that surrounds the canals designed by none other than Leonardo da Vinci.
The canal system originally
connected Milano to Lago Maggiore
and commerce with Switzerland
We were both a tad hungry
so we started to hunt for a
dining spot on the shady side
on the Naviglio Grande
Our view from our table at the
Osteria Le Vigne
Also part of our dining view
of the Naviglio Grande
The Osteria Le Vigne has won
lots of awards over the years
Our meal was certainly award worthy in our humble opinions.
After yet another excellent meal in Milano, we opted to walk along the Naviglio Grande to improve out digestion.
Ceramic mermaids worthy of
Brian and Koreen FitzGerald's home
It's a long way to Lago Maggiore
These canals are no longer used as a main commercial thoroughfare but this area has become a thriving hub of Milanese nightlife.
We sought refuge from the Sun's merciless
rays in this enchanting, hidden garden
that housed several art dealers' shops
A church with a bench in the shade
was also a good idea before . . .
. . . boarding a tour boat for a one
hour cruise down the Naviglio Grande
Interesting protest art
That blue wave of a roof is made up entirely of bottles and other waste made solely of plastic.
The idea is to remind passersby of the huge environmental problem that discarded plastic items have created for our oceans and their inhabitants.
Our cruise continued . . .
HEY!
That's the Osteria Le Vigne
where we had lunch
Laurie riveted by
canal cruise sights
Canal side St. Christopher
graffiti art near . . .
. . . the Chiesa San Cristoforo
A sleek two person shell
Anyone up for a good row?
More canal grafitti art
A grand old rowboat with a dilapidated
old brick building in the background
I think that this may be
a political statement
Our fellow cruisers disembarking
from our sturdy river boat
After a cruise on the canal on a warm
day, a gelato was the definite call!
We had first visited this charismatic
gelateria when we visited Milano with
our son Michael back in 2009
The limone and fragola cone really hit the spot!
Next time maybe we'll try the crêpes
A spot for conversation back on
the Naviglio Grande
We agreed that it was about time to head back to Varese, so we headed back to the Cadorna Station for the start of our hour long train ride.
Uh-oh . . .
When we arrived at the station, we first checked the departure board to see when the next train to either Laveno or Varese was leaving.
SOPPRESSO
It means deleted or cancelled. We were in the midst of an Italian rolling work stoppage which I had first come across last year.
There was no need to panic, these rolling strikes do not last all day. We just needed to come back in about 90 minutes to check the board again, something would be running North by then.
We hoped.
Thus we headed to the nearby
Sforza Castle for more shade
while waiting out our train issues
Interesting castle art
A bit of comforting shade in
Parco Sempione just outside
the Sforza Castle gate
The Sforza Castle is indeed
an imposing sight
Not sure what this structure's
original purpose was as it is
located outside the castle
A great medieval castle demands
a great defensive moat
After our 90 minutes enjoying all that the Parco Sempione and the Sforza Castle had to offer, we headed back to the Cadorna Station too find that the trains were running again just as we suspected.
Our train to Varese left in just nine minutes.
It was a good ending to a great day in Milano.
It was a good day from
a health standpoint too
The 2019 Italian DII American
Football Playoffs start tomorrow!
Only 12 of the 19 DII clubs are still playing.
The top four playoff seeds (Milano Rhinos 8-0, Cernusco Daemons 7-1, Roma Pretoriani 7-1 and Reggio Emilia Hogs 7-1) all have round one byes.
Seeds five through twelve all play Wild Card games on Saturday.
Our #7 seeded Varese Skorpions (6-2) will be hosting the dangerous Palermo Sharks (3-5).
Back in March, our Skorpions eked out a 28-21 victory over the Sharks at Skorpion Field after trailing 0-14 early in the First Quarter.
Don't let their record fool you, the Sharks are well coached, have an excellent playmaker at QB and possess a roster full of players that give an all out effort for the entire 48 minutes of every game.
Stay tuned . . .
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