Ciao bella, Italia! Four Italian cities in one month makes for the best cultural experience I’ve had in Europe. Also, it’s the country to which I’ve visited the most cities (outside of the U.S.), replacing the previously-crowned Mexico (Cancun, Cozumel and Puerta Vallarta). From the fashion capital, Milan, to the food-and-wine-famous Parma, to the beautiful, historical Venice and, lastly, the great, wondrous Rome. Grab your glass of Bellini or Moscato and enjoy the view; this will be a longer one.
Milan felt most familiar of the four. I wouldn’t say Milano was as heavily characteristic of “historical” Italy as the others appeared to be. It felt more like a city I may have already visited. We started with walking the city streets past Porta Garibaldi and visiting the Gothic Duomo di Milano cathedral, which put me in the mindsets of other cathedrals and cathedral-styled buildings I have visited in Spain (Barcelona Cathedral, Segrada Familia) and Belgium (Cathedral of St. Michael & St Gudule). Perhaps I was expecting fashion shows on the sidewalk (like Paris), but it also wasn’t as fashion-present as I expected; likely because I couldn’t afford any of it, so take that with a grain of salt. We started in the Piazza del Duomo, and walked to Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, which is the oldest, active shopping mall in Milan; it also requires the longest money. Later, we visited Sempione Park and hit the nightlife in Navigli, which reminded me much of Amsterdam – a favorite! We felt we had conquered Milan in a day, but the experience wasn’t complete without the brunch near the canals we had the next day.
All photos taken with Nikon D5100.
Parma was a top-two favorite of the four. It is not a large city, and it may not be on tourists’ radar, but this was largely part of its charm. It was home to, by far, the best food I’d had in Europe to date: the Parma ham, the Parmesan cheese and Parma wine are staples in a Parma dinner, and we couldn’t get enough of it. The dining experience was exquisite and characterized by the duration; it would take about two hours at a minimum, as dinner is just as much about bonding as it is eating. An employee at our Parma site owns a wine vineyard and winery just outside of Parma, near Felino Castle. There were stunning views of the city and the castle while we tasted the organic, Parma-grown, -fermented and -bottled wine. The town is small, but it’s just right for an authentic experience, if you are a tourist that gets annoyed by many tourists. If you are triggered, just take a sip.
All photos taken with Nikon D5100.
Venice was my favorite city of the four! Venezia is a striking, colorful city. Home of the Bellini – my favorite cocktail drink. The island has no roads or bike paths; the only modes of transportation are by boat in the canals, or by walking the narrow pathways (about arm-span width) and the bridges. We learned a lot about the city on the walking tour, like the fact that the city is sinking due to the foundation built on water/marsh land, in combination with the increased usage of motorboats, which are accelerating the erosion; the city is made up of 100+ islands, and each bridge we cross is crossing into a new island; and, the giveaway signs that a restaurant is catering to tourists/inauthentic (1. Menus are laminated, 2. There are pictures of the food in the menus, and 3. Someone is standing outside soliciting your business – spoiler alert). It was not easy to avoid this kind of restaurant, so we were tourists despite this information. We sailed a gondola on the Grand Canal and its smaller sibling canals, visited the Basilica, and searched for the best gelato. The gelato was fun, delicious flavors; my personal favorite was the pineapple and coconut mix. Venezia easily wins most aesthetically pleasing.
All photos taken with Nikon D5100.
Rome was the biggest and most tourist-filled of the four. This makes sense, as Roma is the capital, and probably the first city that comes to mind for Italy. It’s a combination of Milano and Venezia, in the sense that it has a mix of modern, big city feel and historical Italy feel with the architecture, Colosseum and ancient ruins. You could see sites that are hundreds of years old and also find a coffee shop with wifi, playing the latest Kanye and Kid Cudi album (real-life experience). In addition to the Colosseum and ancient ruins, we visited The Vatican, which is technically a separate nation, the Vatican Museums, the Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter’s Basilica. The historical art was incredible to see in person. These tours were my favorite part of Roma / The Vatican (and a super plus to count The Vatican as an additional country visited) – if you can’t tell by now, I’m an ‘I like art’-type girl (Vintage Ye).
All photos taken with a Nikon D5100.
Yet and still, there is much more to see in Italy, and I am excited to return! It is super easy to get around via train (unless you’re going through Bologna). Italy is certainly top two European countries I’ve visited thus far. And it ain’t number two.
Jenai M. Davis 