Milan-Venice

We flew nonstop from NYC to Milan, Italy.  Our tickets were $450 roundtrip, a great deal!  We had a couple hours before our train left from Milan to Venice, so in route to the central trail station, we detour to see the famous Duomo (cathedral) in Milan.  As we walked from the Duomo, thru the shopping Galeria, to the main train station, we found several refugees walking the streets, giving away bracelets and asking for donations.  We found this throughout northern italy and Paris, many refugees selling on the streets, or homeless refugee families on the streets.  In southern Italy, and the Netherlands and Scotland, we did not see this.

We made it to our train on time, and were able to stop for some yummy italian lunch, and treats along the way.

Venice is beautiful!  We enjoyed wandering the streets, carrying our bags up and over bridges, crossing canal after canal after canal.  

The view from our room and private balcony.  Can't get any better! We were exhausted and ready for bed, but if we slept, we knew we'd be up in the middle of the night.  So we headed out for a Gondola ride, and some pizza for dinner.  One thing we learned in Venice, was that many of the high tourist cities of Italy charge a "table fee" just to sit and eat dinner in their restaurant.  What?!?  This is not gratuity, a completely separate fee, and it's per person, about $1.50 per person on average.

The next day, after a good nights sleep, we left our bags at the front desk and set out to explore more of Venice.  We walked, and walked and walked.  We had fun exploring the squares found in every neighborhood. The markets were fun to browse, and we loved the glass shops all made nearby on Murano Island.  For lunch we grabbed a few yummy panini sandwiches from a street shop.  We picked up a few souvenirs and then it was time to head back to the train station, and take the late afternoon train to Turin.