One of my cousins just wrote to me and asked, “What are the highlights of your time in Milan… so far?” I’ve been mulling it over all day. Hard one to answer. I think the highlights have been mostly little things, little bright moments or little challenges surmounted. Many a gorgeous sight and delicious meal, [...]

The other night, lying wide awake at 4:00 a.m., I realized I heard nothing except my own breathing. The relentlessness and menu of sounds around here, makes silence rare and startling. It’s been almost 25 years since I’ve lived in an apartment, and I’ve never lived in such a city environment. This has been an [...]

…a lot like Christmas. Thanksgiving tomorrow and no sign of a turkey on my horizon, except for the snippet I had on Sunday. After searching the entire Saturday street market, I DID finally find one stall that had sweet potatoes (the pale yellow, not the deep orange yams). I bought two and will cook them [...]

What a really nice group of people! I enjoyed a Thanksgiving Luncheon today with the “Americans in Milan” (AIM) group from the larger Benvenuto Club. About 70 people gathered at the Hotel Gallia for conversation, company, charitable fund-raising and a turkey dinner. We finished the evening, 5 hours after we had begun, by dancing to [...]

After 5 months here in Milano, I’ve finally had people over for a meal! I invited Evelina, Glenda and Lydia, from the office at NABA, to come join me for lunch. We all see each other whenever I’m on campus and we get along well. Just before they arrived, I baked a fresh loaf of [...]

Today, I walked into a very dark room, let my eyes adjust, and then marveled at 22 pages from Leonardo da Vinci’s “Codex Atlanticus”. His original drawings. I saw his mind working. Observed his mulling things over. enjoyed the surety of his hand and his line. To be in the presence of the evidence of [...]

One thing that I brought back with me from my time in Ireland this year was enjoyment of traditional Irish Soda Bread! Here in Italy I’ve been on a constant lookout for dense, moist, flavorful bread with some nutritional value. So much of what I’ve found is white, light, fluffy and dries out in a [...]

Always pack along tools when moving to another country! Point One: This is the land of calcium deposits from the water. After boiling water just once in my stainless steel pan, the bottom and sides are covered with a white calcium film. The sinks and shower build up deposits from any standing water. The cleanser [...]

Again! I got on the subway. Seated myself. The doors closed, and “Twang!” As soon as the train pulled away from the station, the guy started playing a random riff on his guitar and projected it throughout the train car with an amplifier in his backpack! I had seen him over the summer, too. Same [...]

I’m smiling, amused. I just walked home in the pouring rain. Gym bag and  groceries hanging heavy from my shoulder. My black-and-white polka dot umbrella amidst the sea of umbrellas. This was no tourist moment. I was just heading home like everyone else, and put my new leather boots on the radiator to dry out. [...]