Instagram Recap: September

I've been in Milan for about a month now. Here is September in review, via my Instagram photos.

Arrivederci, Wisconsin! Apparently, when one leaves the country for an extended period of time, getting a goodbye photo with the new cat is more important than one with, say, the parents or siblings. (But look, he's even shedding a tear over my departure!)

Have you ever wondered what the Stockholm airport looks like at 7:30am? Completely empty, evidently. I was completely alone for a good hour before I saw another person. Langoliers, anyone?

No wonder Italians are so good at soccer football. Tobia and his classmates scrimmage each other for an hour after school every single day.

Welcome home! This is where I'm living: 47 Via San Vittore. Bellissimo!

I knew Tobia and I would get along well when he opted to put on these lime green pants and leather jacket for an impromptu fashion show.

Ah, Italian coffee. We've had a rocky relationship, haven't we? Granted, our first meeting got us off to a pretty rough start. Unprepared for the thick, rich, strong liquid that is Italian coffee (more of an espresso, really) I was so shocked by my first taste that I spat it out in the sink. I've since developed a way to acclimate myself to the stuff: I've been mixing one tiny cup of espresso with a larger mug of hot water. I decrease the amount of extra water by a bit each day (okay, by like a teaspoon). I'll be taking shots of espresso like a real Italian by this time next year!

Something I love about Italy is that nearly everywhere you go is casually picturesque. Even less expensive apartments in not-as-nice areas of town manage to look quaint and charming. Sure, I cropped out the bottom part of this building where Italian curse words were graffitied, but that's besides the point.

Santa Maria delle Grazie. This beautiful church is mere minutes away from my apartment, and I walk past it nearly every day. Still, it never ceases to amaze me. It's already proven it will be there for me in times of need, like when I'm locked out of the apartment for an entire night and just want to sit on a cushioned chair for a bit.

Like Santa Maria delle Grazie, il Duomo will never be boring to me. Every time I'm in the area, I end up pausing for a few minutes just to admire another part of it more closely. You could stare at the exterior for hours and still fail to notice everything there is to see.

Kayla and I met while we were both picking up our respective children from school. This photo was taken at Fuori Oscuri, a bar in Brera where a gathering for expatriates was taking place. That's one great thing about Milan; it's so international, there are always events happening where you can meet people who are just as much an outsider as you are.

Not wanting to wander around Milan with my face buried in a map, I took pictures of a map on my iPhone and consulted them when needed. I say that in the past tense because lately, I don't need a map at all! Milan was initially terrifyingly confusing to get around... I mean, does it really look like those streets have any rhyme or reason to them? You can't just "go around the block" if you take a wrong turn. But rather surprisingly, it's easy to get around once you begin to learn the general layout and the landmarks.

This is inside il Duomo. You can just see how spectacularly massive it is; look at the size of the pillars compared to the people! Entrance is free, but to take photos you are supposed to purchase a wristband for three Euros. I didn't know this and was snapped at by an incognito security person. Not wanting to spend three Euros each time I came inside, however, I've started bringing the first wristband I paid for with me and just taping it on my wrist after entering.

Milan is pretty big, but I've found it fairly easy to get anywhere I need to go by foot. If, however, my destination is too far, the metro is really simple to take too. After conquering the London underground and its 5,497 different lines, Milan's three line metro has been a piece of cake.

Tobia is obsessed with soccer, and his favorite team is one of the Milan teams called Inter
Milan. We wrote this story about how the Inter Milan coach, Mazzarri, brought Tobia onto the team and he scored the winning goal against Catania. Bravo!

Ah, mamma mia, the pizza, the pizza!! This is a Napoli style pizza from a place on Porta Romano. Napoli style pizza (basically, anything below Rome) has a slightly thicker, doughier crust compared to northern style pizzas, which have paper thin crusts. 

Gelato. What really needs to be said? There are gelaterias literally everywhere here, which for me is a wonderful, wonderful thing. "A small cup/cone, please," was the first thing I learned to say quickly and perfectly. For anyone planning a visit: Uno piccola coppetta/piccolo cono, per favore!" I recommend cafe, stratiacella, or cioccolato fondente.

I creepily snapped this photo on the metro for a dear friend back home whose parting words were, "Take photos of the hot Italian men!" This one's for you, L.K. 

Michaelangelo and Brunelleschi of the 21st century! I helped a bit with this masterpiece, but most of it was actually done by Greta and Tobia. Buon lavoro!  

Beautiful Venizia.

Back to school! I'm taking an Italian class two days a week, and it's been an interesting experience. I think I'm one of the youngest people in the class; there are students of all ages from all around the world. I'm the only American, there are a few Chinese and Japanese students, a man from Ireland, a few Brits, a Canadian girl, and a Russian girl, just to name a few. The teacher speaks only in Italian (obviously) and I quickly learned that utter confusion is a universal language. With a strange mix of everybody's mother tongue, we tend to figure out directions and assignments together.

As you can probably see, this is a beautiful, goose down Burberry winter jacket. In a Burberry store on Via Montenapoleone, this would easily cost 600 Euros. In the tiny little brand name outlet I just happened upon one day, it costs 249 Euros. Not bad at all, considering other winter jackets I've had my eye on are between 100-200 Euros. 

I'll close with this recent bit of Tobia's creativity: Witch Dog. It began as a witch and somehow morphed into a canine. In any case, it's a fitting creature for Halloween (which they do celebrate in Italy).