Sunday, 12 January, 2020
After my early morning arrival in Milan, I only had one driving thought in mind.
What was it you ask?
Why to get to Pasticceria Marabelli near the Villa Skorpion II for a cappuccino and one of their internationally famous pistachio brioches of course.
As it turned out, they were closed until this coming Tuesday for vacation after their busy holiday baking season.
Damn!
Fortunately, my good friend and driver Enzo Petrillo had an alternate plan instantly that whisked us off to another of Varese's great pasticcerias that was new to me.
Pasticceria Canziani
WOW!
GREAT call Enzo!
After our shared morning sugar rush, Enzo dropped me off at the Villa Skorpions II at about 9:30 a.m. to unpack and have some solitude until we met up again for dinner.
Jet lag was looming to be sure.
Instead of sleeping after settling in, I headed into Varese via bus to see how things were going on this bright, chilly Sunday morning.
It was 10°C/50°F outside, crisp but refreshing to this recent California resident.
When I got on the bus, the driver had his heater cranked up to about 33°C/90°F! I forgot how much Italian's love extremely warm conditions in cars, busses, businesses and homes during the Winter months.
I opted to walk part way before boarding on the Z line bus for the first time in 2020 in order to revisit some familiar sights.
The old Sant'Ambrogio church
was still standing
It's about a seven minute walk from the Villa Skorpion II.
The town piazza near my
favorite butcher shop
Closed on Sundays.
Part of Varese's weekly
Sunday street fair
My first 2020 sighting of the
Basilica is San Vittore Bell Tower
Lots of knick-knacks were on sale
Red fur at the Basilica
It was about noon with perfect
weather for a Sunday stroll
Great helmets could
be had for a song
Colorful, eye catching knobs
The church next to the
Villa Skorpion II was also
still in one ancient piece
A close up of the church's
weather beaten statuary
With the "Usual Suspects"
at dinner in neighboring Brinzio at
il Borgo Ristorante e Pizzeria
On the left are Federica, Santa Barbara, Giorgio and Enzo.
On the right we have, Edvin, Raffa, me and Emma.
We had some really good pizzas at this new spot for me.
I enjoyed the friendship and camaraderie even more than the delicious pizza dining with these members of my wonderful Italian family.
All in all, it was a good first day in Italy's Lombardia region!
Tuesday's re-opening of Pasticceria Marabelli's can still not get here fast enough though.
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