Milano -- Learning About the City

Traveling is all about the connections you make with people along the way.  Today we connected with two wonderful Milanese friends, Marco and Silvia, who have a close connection to Central Oregon (which we just learnt today) and who showed us their city as only locals can.

Marco and Silvia are the good looking ones

Back in 2008 Marco and Silvia's daughter Camilla attended Sister High School.  She knew our kids.  She stayed at with our good friends Bill and Tracy Anthony in Sisters, and they all became good friends with Rod Bonaker and Maret Pajutee.  Maret introduced us via email but we did not know about the Sisters connection until we met today at Piazza Muscova.  Small world.

Together with their son Peter and another cycling friend we had a wonderful day of exploring the amazing parts of a city that we could never hope to find on our own.  Here's a small bit of it

La Scala -- the famous opera house

Learning about the municipal structure

The sculpture in front of the stock exchange.  In the US we have a bull.  In Italy, a fuck you
sculpture by a Catalonian artist.  We love the sense of humor (or is it perspective?)

We saw the best churches that you don't find on the beaten path.

And learned the history of each, and the nuances that you could never learn without local knowledge

St. Ambrosia.  The tower on the right is presbyterian,  On the left, catholic.  My tower is
bigger than yours...

And had a great Milanese meal at a small trattoria

Peter, Silvia, Marco, (forgot your name, sorry), me

What a fantastic day.  Thank you ever so much Marco and Silvia!

Thunder storms this afternoon but we're anxious to get on the bike tomorrow morning to head north to Lake Como.

Until then, 

Buona sera