Milan - March 2011

Hi all! So, we drove down to Milan, Italy for a weekend

to see Derek's cousin Alex. He was studying there and we

were able to see him the last weekend of his trip. I could not wait

to check out one of the fashion capitals of the world! Here is Derek

and Drake as we are having a relaxing drink out on the terrace of

our hotel.

Drake and I after a cafe lunch by the Duomo.

Love, love, love. One of my favorite hotels we

have stayed in.

What would a trip to Italy be without GELATO!

I thought this one was unique because they made all of them

to look like wedding cakes!

Mama got to shop! Another flagship store

checked off the list. :)

And after that we stopped at the Gucci cafe. Yes, they had a cafe

attached to the Gucci store. One must recharge after shopping! Hee hee.

Here we are with cousin Alex at the Gucci cafe.

Ok, after Derek let me have my fun with fashion and shopping

we did some other sightseeing. This is Il Duomo in Milan. It is the

world's largest Gothic cathedral. It was started in 1386 and only completed

about a hundred years ago.

Alex and Derek in front of a statue of Leonardo da Vinci. I was

really bummed that we could not see The Last Supper in person.

The church where it is only allows viewings on Tuesday-Friday and we

arrived too late on Friday. Next time!

This is the Castello Sforzesco that used to be the seat and

the residence of the Duchy of Milan and one of the biggest citadels

in Europe. Now it houses one of the city's biggest museums and art

collections.

Drake taking his bottle outside of the Castello Sforzesco.

Derek thought it was funny that I was getting all wet when the wind

blew the fountain mist on me. Ha ha ha.

More of the castle.

Still more...

Another view from the street. And, well, that was all the history

that I wanted. Back to shopping and eating Italian food!

We had a wonderful time catching up with Alex and I was blown

away with the fashion. It was "visual overkill" as one book said!