Milanoramo

GANG. I was a little "whatever" about Milan when I planned this trip. I mean, yes, I've gotten more into style lately, and it's a huge center for menswear, but it's also got the rep of being a modern city without most of the loveliness we think of as Italian, and I kinda figured... schmeh? Well guess who continues to be a big dumb dummy who doesn't know anything about cities that are actually fantastic? It, in the parlance of our times, me. After the jump: twenty-four hours in a cool joint.

YES I am still climbing to the top of buildings (the Duomo here) for some reason. NO for some reason this was not as terrifying as they usually are, and YES I assume that's because my brain somehow thinks standing on a marble (?) rooftop away from the edge is safer than standing on a steel platform at the edge of any other building, the human heart is a mystery.

With only a day to rattle around the city, I made quick work of a few things to get a taste, ultimately leaving with a sense that I wouldn't mind spending a couple more here someday. Well, to be specific, I texted friends that I wanted to move to the neighborhood where I had dinner because it had some magical energy that appealed to me at a bone-deep level, but you know, a couple of days would be cool too.

Milan, living up to all my stereotypes, but also being amazing?

I popped into a few menswear stores, including some with tremendously friendly sales associates (delightfully little snobbery here), including one fella from Saint Louis who talked me through the philosophy and approach of Caruso, a label I now love while knowing I will never be able to afford it. Travel! It's a thing or something!

Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in the early morning, all... art deco, right? I'm bad at architecture ANYWAY IT WAS NICE.

The Duomo was cool, though contrary to national stereotypes, this Northern Italian site was run in the most incoherent and disorganized way compared to e.g. places in Rome and Florence, with their ticketing line opening at 8 AM and serving a grand total of four patrons by 9 AM. It was worth it (I think) to get a ticket to the rooftop, even with some restoration work afoot, though I'd say probably worth eating the extra fees to buy your ticket online and print it at home.

Old and New Milan, all jumbled together, from atop the Duomo!

My favorite area on this blitzkrieg, though, had to be the Navigli district, where I had dinner. It's alongside an old canal in the city's southwest, with tons of nightlife and restaurants, and some spots like my dinner joint: a coffee shop by day, appertivo spot in the early evening, restaurant and later bar at night, and throughout the day a grocery/market for their produce, cured meats, cheeses, wines, etc. Their food was amazing, and the staff were extremely cool, chatty and friendly (and gave me a free espresso at the end of the meal as we talked shop about their setup and how much I loved it). In short, it was nifty and I would 100% explore here more if I had the chance to swing back.

A quieter stretch of the Navigli at night, around the corner from the buzzy scene that was afoot elsewhere!

After an afternoon, a night, and a morning, I split for the airport, where an €8 flight to Oradea, Romania set me on my Balkan chapter. More on that in the days to come - this was an intense, sometimes challenging, often lovely, and frequently rewarding leg of the trip. Ciao til then!