Simone didn’t sleep in as late as I thought he would, and we managed to leave the hotel about 1 in the afternoon to do a bit of sightseeing – of course, shopping was on my agenda. 
After all, this is Milan! We took the metro from Repubblica to Duomo where I couldn’t resist MacDonald’s, while Simone had coffee.
I put on a jacket and we walked into the Duomo. It’s a huge breathtaking cathedral, and contains many busts of popes looking down at us from the walls. We found a crypt, and also paid 1 euro each to view the cathedral’s treasure. I joked with Simone that he should remain in the room since he is ‘tesoro‘. There was a strange structure later, which Simone figured out to be a man with his skin thrown over his shoulder. We skipped the roof… I made the decision to skip cos there was an entrance fee of 5 euros with the stairs and 7 euros with the elevator, and I neither wanted to take the stairs nor pay more. Ha… I regret it a little now though, I should have gone to check it out.
We then walked into La Rinascente, a department store next to the Duomo. It carried everything branded from cosmetics to bags to jewellery. I decided I wasn’t going to bag anything there, so we left and walked down a pretty shopping street where there were boutiques like Prada, Gucci and Louis Vuitton. We walked further and the shopping became more accessible for ordinary folks like me. I bought makeup from Sephora and a few Tinkerbelle PJ tops from Oysho. Not a lot of shopping, but I was contented. We also chanced upon a sort of “book pasar malam” – makeshift tables with many books for sale. Simone picked 2 books, and I picked one that describes Italian psyche and behaviour in a satyrical manner.
Simone was rather set on finding a nice trattoria where we could taste northern Italian food, or Milanese food. We ended up walking across a roundabout to a castle, which was rather beautiful too. We sat down at a fountain just outside the castle to rest our feet a little before exploring it. Just then, I ran out of memory space on the camera and made a uh, groundbreaking discovery. I could swop the memory cards between the camera, the PSP and the phone! Hooray for Sony products.
Most of the castle wasn’t accessible – maybe cos it was already evening and admission was closed (if there was admission at all) – and we walked right through it (past a picturesque courtyard) and ended up at a park on the other side. A police car was parked there, and Simone went to ask if they could recommend any trattorias. The guy gave Simone a number to call and said it was the best trattoria around with many years of history. He also suggested an area that we could visit as there are many dining establishments in the area, Navigli.
We then walked back to where we came from and stopped at a bar across the road. Drinks in Milan are more expensive than Porto Santo Stefano. At this bar, however, we tried some of the bar food for aperitivi and the food was quite interesting. Bar food in Porto Santo Stefano usually consists of cured meats and dips and fruits, pretty light stuff. Bar food in Milan, however, consists of cold pasta, riso, potatoes and the like. How do people go for dinner after eating this stuff? I was baffled, and I still am.
Simone called the trattoria a number of times, but there was no response so we decided to try Navigli. We took the green line on the metro to Porta Genova, and then asked for directions. After walking down one street, we emerged at a canal that’s kinda cute. The buildings were old, and there were bars and ristorantes and trattorias lined up both sides of the canal. Simone fell in love with the place at first sight… His whole face lit up, and he immediately professed his love for it. I wasn’t very impressed… It felt like Boat Quay to me. But I was happy to see him happy.
We passed by a shop selling various paintings, and there was a painted series of Milan in 4 seasons in the store window that was very beautiful. There were also a few portraits of horses, and they all had 4 horses in them. Interesting that they should all have 4 and I remembered them for it, because I considered buying one of them for my father, then remembered 4 isn’t a very lucky number in our culture.
We came across a bookstore next which was running a sale where every item – book or CD – was going for 2 euros. I ended up picking 5 used books in English because cheap books were hard to find in Porto Santo Stefano… if I find English books in the first place. We walked down the entire canal and turned into the street on the other side of canal. Most of these bars had a happy hour price of 6 or 7 euros, and you could help yourself to all the food on offer. Cool, except if I’d eaten any of that I would have to forget about dinner. We sat down in a quieter beer bar for more aperitivi, and then Simone spotted a trattoria that states Milanese food. Looked good to me… I was attracted to the menu degustazione which includes wine for 30 euros. Other prices for mains looked okay to me too.
The trattoria had quite a spacious interior. We were seated in a section where only one other table was occupied. A couple came in shortly after us and sat at a table behind me. We placed orders… I asked for the menu degustazione and the maitre informed me that at least 2 people had to order this menu. Simone was a great sport and said he could eat that too, though I knew he was about to choose other dishes, so as to try a wider variety of food.
As we waited for our food to be served, another couple walked into our section and sat down. The guy asked for an ashtray, and Simone was instantly alert and asked the maitre if we could smoke in that section. He then requested an ashtray as well, and so did the man sitting directly behind me. The maitre also brought us a glass of red wine each as part of the menu, and a plate of bread covered with a napkin.
Our starters arrived – a huge plate each of cured meats (bresaola, salami and proscuitto), dried fish cooked in vinegar, some unidentifiable crunchy cubes which I thought tasted like pork skin, and some pate. Very yummy, but I couldn’t finish the cured meats. Our primi piatti arrived next – riso alla milanese and tagliolini con barolo vino and sausiccia - half portions on each plate. I liked the riso, which is flavoured with saffron, while I felt that the tagliolini was too strong on the palate and left most of it on the plate. Simone really liked the tagliolini though, and kept making appreciative sounds as he ate it. Secondi piatti consisted of a cotoletta a pollo in panatta (which is a chicken cutlet in cream sauce, garnished with cherry tomatoes) and another meat which er, tasted to me like my father’s stir-fried pork with tomatoes and salted vegetables. Ha… Simone can’t remember the dish so I’ll describe it better when he does.
Our set menu didn’t include dessert, and by then we were both too full for it but it included coffee (and tea for me). Simone also asked for grappa, which was orangey in colour. Simone said it’s a grappa from Torino, and is stronger than colourless grappa. We got away with 60 euros for the entire bill, which means there was no tax and service charge, and either they forgot to charge the grappa or the grappa was complimentary. Great place, great food… I would return if I ever visit Milan again.
