Let’s Travel Together
Over the next few weeks, the Italy, Our Italy travel blog articles will be focused on our 2023 trip to Italy. That was a three-week trip done in the fall of 2023. There were six of us on that trip, and it was a wonderful time to share the adventures of Italy with friends. The two couples who went with us were introduced just a few weeks ago in the article titled, “I’m Back!!!”. The six of us spent 11 days together…then Ellen and I rounded out the trip with 3 weeks total.
I am a consummate planner…I do not like avoidable negative surprises occurring in the middle of a trip that we have been anticipating for months and months. P5: Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance. I will pass on a bit of my planning routine as we go along together for the next few weeks. There was one disappointing thing that happened where Viator could have used more proper planning to prevent their own poor performance…more on that in a future article.
Our 2023 Trip Itinerary
Here you can see our trip itinerary with our two couple friends. The itinerary for Ellen’s and my remaining trip will be covered later. I’m hopeful that by observing the two airplane icons, you can tell that Zurich was the starting point, and Venice was their departure point.
As you can see, we started in Zurich, took the Bernina Express across the Swiss Alps to Bellagio, then Milano, a night train to Roma, then Siena, Firenze and ending with a Venezia finish, which is our favorite way to end our Italy trips! [I will fill you in on the next 11 days in a different series that will close out this wonderful visit to Italy.]
Zurich
We love to enter Italy through Zurich! There are a couple of advantages.
First is that you get to visit Zurich. Nough said…it’s nice. Eat at the fun Zeughauskeller. Shop the Bahnhofstrasse as you walk the mile-long street. For another advantage, read about Murren next.
Zurich to Murren — though not visited on this particular trip
You can take a train directly from the Zurich airport (flughafen), or from downtown Zurich, to points south. You’re jet-lagged…it’s no problem if you doze off a bit if you can avoid the fabulous Swiss scenery. If you’re smart (and I know you are), you will spend the night in the cliff-side town of Murren, overlooking the mighty Jungfrau, and where you can take the cable car to the tippy-top of the Schilthorn of James Bond “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service” fame.
As an enticement to stop off in Switzerland’s most charming town, here are a few photos of Murren and its environs.
[Click on the first photo and then arrow thru the remaining photos]
The Bernina Express
On this trip we entered Italy via the Bernina Express over the Swiss alps and then to Bellagio. I presented the Bernina Express to you in a previous blog article. I’ve updated that article with new photos and information. You can see that update by clicking here Another Way Into Italy.
Bellagio
If you missed our most recent meal at Mistral in the Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni in Bellagio from two weeks ago, you can reflect on that by clicking HERE.
On this recent trip, we had an enjoyable boat ride from Bellagio, taking in the sites around Lake Como. That will be covered in an upcoming blog article soon.
Meanwhile, I have two previous blog articles regarding getting to and around Bellagio. Here are those two:
Go There: Bellagio has been completely updated with recent visitation experience.
And then there is Getting There: Bellagio, which tells the best ways to get there.
From Bellagio’s Lake Como beauty, we traveled next to Milano.
Milano
We just spent the day in Milano. The idea was to see the highlights and to then take the night train to Roma. So, that’s what we did…almost.
On this trip, we did not have a good experience while in Milano. I had arranged for us to go see the magnificent painting by Leonardo Davinci of The Last Supper. We had done that before, and we wanted our traveling companions to experience this also.
We went out of our way and arrived outside the Museo del Cenacolo Vinciano well within our meeting time arranged with our guide that we booked through Viator. Moving from group to group and showing them my tour confirmation, all I got was “not us”. This is not an entry that you arrange on the spur of the moment, though I tried right then. So frustrating.
That night, as we rode the night train to Roma, I checked my email. There before me was an email from our booked guide that day telling me that they could not make it. They had my phone number…they could have texted, they could have called, but they sent an email. While in Europe, do you check your email frequently? I do not.
Viator should at the least have a requirement for a backup person for each guide. I will be speaking to them about this.
Since we had been there before, I present you with documentary evidence of such.
Is it larger than you thought it would be? We were surprised.
The reason that it looks a bit time worn, it is because Leonardo did not paint it as a normal fresco, where the paint is applied to wet plaster. He painted on dried plaster, so the paint was only on the surface, rather than embedded in the plaster. The atmospherics of the room are carefully controlled to avoid further deterioration.
The Duomo of Milano
The duomo (aka cathedral) of Milano is quite spectacular. It is adorned with over three thousand stark white statues. Here are a few photos of that spectacular church. Inside the church you will see Sue and Jonathan sitting for a spell after climbing the 250 stairs to the top of the Duomo.
Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
Right next to the Duomo is the architectural wonder of a shopping center which was built in 1865…long before your local shopping mall. All of the major fashion brands can be found here…and fresh coconut if you are so interested.
Should You Spend Time in Milano?
Back in 2019, I published an article titled, “Milano: Go? or, No Go?”. That will give you a good bit more information about how to make your decision on how much time to spend there. Basically, it depends on how much time you will have in Italy, and how much of that time you will want to spend seeing sights specific to Milano itself.
Next Stops: Roma and Beyond
We will spend a good bit more time in Rome, so please stay tuned for future articles about Roma, Siena, Florence, and Venice.
I’ll just give you a whiff of a sniff of Roma for now.
More to come on our 2023 trip with friends to Italy, Our Italy. So, please stay tuned to this Italy, Our Italy channel.
Ciao, for Now
Steve