A long flight but a smooth one, and I’ll take it. Nine of us boarded the plane. JR just started a new job—Yay, JR!—and will join us later in the trip. But for the flight to Milan, it’s me, BW, Jason, Kat, Griffin, Logan, Lauren (his lovely girlfriend) Kayla and Colt.

I manage to catch about four hours off and on sleep, and I’ll take that, too.

Hot is the word when we land, but it’s July, after all. The bleary travelers pile into two vans—two weeks means a lot of luggage—and we’re whisked off to our hotel. Memories are coming back to me. BW and I visited Milan years and years ago at the invite of my Italian publisher. We stayed in this same gorgeous hotel.

Check in is easy-peasy, and we’re offered to sit in the lounge and enjoy a drink while our mountain of luggage is dealt with. Oh yes, please!!

And I remember doing an interview in this airy, sumptuous room with its crystal chandeliers and pale pinks and creams.

A little champagne to smooth out the edges from a flight over the Atlantic, and we scatter to our rooms. Unpack the section I’ve cleverly organized for our short stay in Milan.

Clean up, freshen up, and change into something cool for our wandering around the city, and some lunch. Jason opts to stay back and get some sleep, so Kat and Griffin come down, Griffin does love hotels, and declares our suite big and fancy. He’s not wrong.

And the efficient Kat begins a google search for a restaurant that will suit the eight of us.

And here’s Colt, and here’s Kayla. Logan and Lauren will catch up with us, so off we go.

Milan is busy and urban, and its many fashionable shops tempting. I’ll have to carve out some time for some shopping. But now, we’re hungry! After the flight, the walk is just great, despite the heat.

We hit the big shopping area with its stunning glass roof, colorful tiled floor. [Laura note: The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II] Griffin wants to go fast, and has my hand, pulling me along so he can keep up with his cousins. We—or Kayla—is following Google Maps to the restaurant we have in mind, but weirdly, the connection’s going in and out. We find another that looks promising with outdoor seating, and they can take the eight of us.

Ah. Now we sit in big cushy chairs and fan ourselves with the pretty provided fans. No pizza today, which is a sad for me and Colt, but there’s pasta! And wine. And delicious bread along with cheerful service. The servers wear jackets in the same colorful patterns as the fans. It’s just adorable.

And here’s Logan and Lauren who managed to find us. Spaghetti for me, and though I can’t eat half of it, it’s just fabulous. Honestly, the first bite reminds you why the Italians should be in charge of food for the entire world.

By the end of the meal, Griffin’s finally fading. Kat and BW head back with him, and the rest of it hit the gelato stand right next to the restaurant.

Boy, oh boy, as if pasta wasn’t glorious enough, now there’s gelato. Strawberry for me, and it tastes like summer in a cone. We lick and make yummy noises before wandering and poking into a shop or two.

Kayla and Colt discover Pokeman cards, and are joyful to add to their collection.

It’s great fun for me to walk around Milan with my grandchildren, watching them enjoy the sights, the sounds. And it’s sweet to me how well the siblings get along and look out for each other.

Logan sees a DiVinci display at a museum. Why not? And it’s fascinating, mostly centered on his inventions and engineering. Lots of his sketches and replicas of his way-ahead-of-his-time machines.

Then it’s back to the hotel. Kayla’s proven her exceptional sense of direction to me before, so I follow.

BW’s napping, so I sit in the parlor. I have a book, I have my IPad, and a nice place to sit.

Dinner is discussed on our What’s App for the trip. The vote is unanimous for room service. We’re all pretty travel weary. Kat takes all our orders and makes it so.

More incredibly cheerful service as two tables filled with domed plates are brought in. With a surprising lack of chaos, all that’s organized. We relax, we eat and enjoy.

And solidify our plans for tomorrow’s trip to The Duomo—preceded by pizza.

I’d vowed to make it until nine so I’d get a good start on putting my body clock on local time.

Just make it.

Sleep great, wake ridiculously early, but that’s okay.

I crush some candy for awhile, scan some headlines. Now I write this blog, which Laura will post when she wakes up—six hours behind me. Then as the clever Jason helped set me up, I’ll work out in the parlor, streaming from my tablet to the TV.

I’ll clean myself up for the day while BW meets Kayla and whoever else decides to have breakfast.

We only have a handful of days here before we head to Como, so we have to pack as much of what we want to do into that short time.

And as always, it’s lovely to be back in Italy.

Nora

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Note from Laura: As is tradition, may I present the first bit of #randomkatness for Italy 2026.