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Keegan’s school ended on June 17, and we did not waste any time: the same night we boarded a plane for Italy. The flight was smooth and uneventful: we even landed almost on time. I left a little worried, because Matt had not been feeling very well in the previous few days, but fortunately his sister Mary was able to extended her trip and stayed with him the whole time we were away.

We spent the first week in Milano. Incredibly, jet lag was not a huge issue this year, for neither one of us. Keegan slept with me the first night, but it went ok. It was only a few days, but we managed to live them to the fullest. On the first day, I got to see Loredana and Francesca. Loredana gave me a wonderful, long, reflexology massage, while the kids were quietly watching Tv. She is really good.

Mom cooked many delicious meals, and we were even able to enjoy a few all together.

My Milano visit included nice evenings out with old friends, apreretivis, trying delicious food from Valtellina and Milano, and of course Italian pizza. I had a nice dinner with my sister, to chat and catch up. I met a preschool friend for lunch, I went window shopping and of course I spent time with my parents.

Loredana took us to the “Luna Park of idroscalo” (basically like a permanent fair). It had lots of rides, very similar to the ones at the San Diego fair and Keegan had a blast but he only lasted a couple of hours.

Water Rollercoaster

flying ride

Water roller, Keegan’s favorite

Keegan really enjoyed the free fall ride. It consisted of jumping off from a ledge, landing on an inflatable element. He enjoyed it so much he insisted I tried it too. I did, as I do enjoy jumping from high places: it bring me back to my memories of diving off the high rocks at Sestri, when I was a kid. Unfortunately, a few years had passed, so when I landed, I ended up breaking some blood vessels in one of my toes, and, three weeks or more later, it still hurts.

Loredana’s husband, Carmelo, picked us up, and he took us for a little ride, first to see the airplanes land at Linate, and then to check out the Castello Borromeo, an ancient castle just outside Milano, at Peschiera. It is a private property, so we could not visit it, but we posed for photos.

Keegan was somewhat bored, but he immediately perked up when Carmelo asked him if he wanted to drive. Reluctant at first, he accepted and actually drove for a few meters. He was so excited!

One day I was able to drag Keegan for a long walk in the old Milano. We started with the newly restored “darsena”, a mandatory stop, at least according to my parents and all my friends. Its reconstruction restored to the City its harbor and an historical, symbolic site in Milan. I have to admit it is beautiful, both by night and by day, and, at least for now, it seems to be quite a popular spot for the Milano by night.

Besides the harbor itself, the project included the creation of a park and plenty of walkable areas. It also included lots of huge, plastic animals in bright colors, part of temporary exhibition, I believe. Well, the kids loved climbing on them.

colorful snails invading Porta Ticinese

From there we started a long trek to the Duomo, passing for many historic places, like the St. Lorenzo’s columns, moved from an ancient roman site.

We walked, and even shopped, as Keegan became increasingly cranky and hungry. We calmed him with the promise of a nice ice cream after lunch. We stumbled upon a large, stuffed minion, so he had to pose with it.

We finally stopped for lunch at Panino Giusto, a Milano institution. With our stomachs full, we walked some more, and lo and behold, we discovered the relocated Magum Milano Store. It must have been Keegan’s luck, since we had no idea where it moved to. Keegan was blown away. The ice cream was so big, he had to save the chocolate covering for later. I got my usual: vanilla ice cream dipped in white chocolate and pecans and chocolate bits, and drizzled in milk chocolate. Mmmh, delicious!

We also took a ride in the old trolley, the same orange ones you see in San Francisco. It is hard to see from the photo, but the sign above keegan says: Non Sputare” (do not spit). Somewhat, it seemed appropriate.

We walked so much we ended up in Piazza Duomo, which inspired him to go on top, but we postponed it to the next day. We were able to push him till Piazza San Babila, but we had to get on the subway at that point…still very impressive. Click on the map to see the full path.

The next morning, Keegan, my dad and I went to see the Duomo. We got on the elevator and checked out Milano from the top. It is always breathtaking.

Contrast: duomo’s guglia and he new skyscrapers

Piazza del Duomo

Palazzo Reale

with nonno

Of course, part of the Duomo was covered by scaffolding: the building is so big that once they finish cleaning it, they have to start again. In fact, it is called “La Fabbrica Del Duomo” or Duomo’s factory. At least the famous, gold plated Madonnina (little Madonna), symbol of Milano, was visible.

We also noticed something new: a few modern sculptures, scattered on the top. It made for a strident contrast, and one, in particular, seemed somewhat inappropriate for the location. What do you think?

Once we got back down, Keegan wanted to see the inside of the church. Well, I do not if it is due to the Expo 2015, but now you have to buy tickets to get inside, unless you are attending religious functions. This is exactly what we told the guards, but it was not really a lie: once inside, Keegan and I lighted candles for Matt…and Keegan lit one for himself, so he could have enough money when he grows up. He has his priorities straight. Maybe our talks about finances have left a mark.

Two of our candles are at Keegan’s left, on the bottom row.

Of course one of our favorites activities is spending time with our family, and Keegan was delighted to be able to hang out with his cousins and visit them at home to meet their cat. Naraiana, who is becoming quite the cook, tried to involve Keegan into making some fresh pasta…

It was absolutely delicious! So the first week really flew by, and we got ready for the week at the beach, at Sestri Levante, the event Keegan has been waiting for the whole yea. And to be honest, so did I.

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