My flight arrived yesterday evening, followed by a train ride into the city. I caught a cab and loved the winding ride through the tight streets. Summer had arrived. It was warm. People were out strolling and the sidewalk seating was filled with people enjoying their aperitivi with friends. The whole mood had shifted in two weeks! (Although I was told that the Milanese just came off a spell of rain while I was enjoying sunshine in Seattle.)

Today, less than 24 hours after returning, I was riding my bike along the canal under a sunny sky and a low-80s afternoon. I rode for more than 2 hours and smelled wild rose, jasmine, gardenia… and some plant whose scent approximates the combination of sweat and urine.

Just 15 minutes south of Milano by bike, I was enjoying the sight of bright yellow fields of rapeseed (canola) speckled red with poppies. The stuff of masters’ paintings. Beautiful.

The cottonwood fluff was so thick that I had to hold my breath as I rode through certain areas. The pathside has become downy-soft.

As I had seen both flying into Milano and on my ride, the rice paddies are being flooded and reflect the blue of the sky above. (Who would think that Milano is surrounded by rice paddies?!)

I like the summary that this ground-level billboard provides, illustrating signature Italian food products. “Giant in quality. Small in price.”

There’s a new section of bike path whose “official” opening every cyclist has been waiting months for. They long ago gave up on waiting and simply ride around the barricades. The problem is the two underpasses that were built below the level of the canal and have been flooded all winter and spring. Today, though, they were clear of water and allowed me to keep riding without risking my life in the alternate: a busy roundabout ON A BIKE! I went further today than I normally do, almost to the town of Pavia.

This collection of signs amused me. The drainage ditch and small road behind are closed. Fishing is forbidden, as is harvesting mushrooms. What are they thinking? Such a sign TELLS me that this is a hot spot for gathering mushrooms. It gives a person reason to cross over and start hunting! (Don’t they know you should always keep your mushroom spots SECRET?!)

This poor snake didn’t make it, but the salamander I saw at the last second did. I wonder what kind of snake it is…

A sculptor has taken over this old hydraulic plant and has built a workshop (low, with the blue trim) and sculpture garden, right next to one of the canal’s many locks. One of these days I’ll have to stop and chat with him.

It pleases me to have nearly completed one year on the Naviglio Pavese Canal, with its seasonal changes. It holds something different for me each time I roll along at its side and I continue to marvel and revel. I find myself singing and speaking Italian to myself. (Uh oh. Scary.) And I certainly find myself smiling.