Flights, Friends, Family, GARTH!!!!

Wow.  Between Christmas parties, shopping, shipping, flights, friends, family, Garth, and lots of food; December came and went before I even noticed! 

I worked up until the day I left for the States.  I finished up in Aviano with a fun staff Christmas Potluck and even took home a few raffle prizes!  I got home Thursday night excited to leave the next morning and a bit overwhelmed with the amount of packing I still had to do that night (seeing as I had yet to even pull out a bag).  As I should have expected, Rosario met me at the door, "Ke-Tee, I been waiting for you.  I mek pizza, you come eat!!"  I mean really, of ALL times...who invites you over the night before you're leaving for 2 1/2 weeks to go overseas.  But of course, how could I say no?  I couldn't.  So over I went to Rosario's for some homemade pizza, all the while running through my To Do lists in my head!  I know you may be thinking I sound like a cruel person, but I really am thankful and appreciative of all he does for me...sometimes it's just really bad timing!

Hmmm...and speaking of bad timing.  I couldn't have picked a worse day to book my flight home.  Most of you probably heard or read my status updates about my horrible flying (or lack there of) experience on my trip home.  To sum it up I spent 5 nights in London, 17 hours in lines, and a little over 1000 dollars stuck at London Heathrow and the surrounding area on my way home for Christmas.  Yep, totally wasn't expecting that! 

For those of you interested, this is the long version...I emailed it out to many of you when I was staying at Kahea and Matt's house in Mildenhall, England.  But here it is reposted for those that didn't read it:

Friday I left Venice on British Airways (BA) and arrived in London Heathrow at 230pm. They announced to us that there were some delays in arriving at the airport because of snow. So when we touched down we were the 20th plane "queued" to get a spot at the gate to unload. There were other planes taking up the spots because they were having trouble de-icing and were not taking off. At this point when we touched down there was a dusting of snow on the ground and the grass was not even covered. So we then sat on the runway for 2 1/2 hours on the plane. When we finally unloaded at 5pm most of the flight had missed their connecting fliglhts. (Mine was at 415) So they directed us into a line to re-book flights. So I get into that "queue" and wait FIVE hours in line. I met a bunch of people around me, a big group of Army guys and a couple from Sweden and we had a great time laughing and joking around. So we finally all got up to the desk and we all got flights re-booked for the next day or so and as I'm leaving the desk, they announce they are closing those desks for reservations and everyone needed to leave. There were probably 100+ people in line still who had been waiting for hours and hours as well. So at this point I had a flight rebooked for 10am on Saturday morning. They gave me a hotel voucher for hotel 30 minutes away that I chose not to use because by the time I got a taxi and headed out and then came back by 7am the next morning, it wasn't worth it to me.


So, moving on from the booking we then went over to customs because we were staying in London. Waited an hour and half in the line to go through customs. Met another group of people there flying from Geneva (they all met on the plane) trying to make it to Canada...so I hung out with them for awhile. After making it through customs, we went to the baggage claim, which no one told us if we had to pick up bags or if we leave them or what we shoudl do. We got down there and there were 15 carousels (sp??) of bags with thousands of bags sitting all over the place down there with ABSOLUTELY no organization. A lady I met on Saturday spent 6 hours in line getting her bags and found out that the workers left Friday night and left bags on the planes and didn't even unload them all.


Anyway, we decided it wasn't worth it to get our bags. I was already re-booked so I was just hoping it would be put on my next flight. And there was a 2-3 hour line to talk to a baggage claim rep. So we by-passed that and the Geneva group chose to go to the hotel (bc they weren't re-booked yet), and I decided to stay the night at the airport. So it's now midnight on Friday night and I went to a little store there and bought some chips, yogurt, and chocolate crispies since I hadn't eaten since a croissant in Venice that morning. Then I headed upstairs to pick out my spot on the floor. I finally got in touch with my family through Skype. i was calling my friend in Italy to post messages on my wall so that Kelly or someone in the fam would see them and could let them know i was stuck. I layered my coat, jacket, gloves, hat, and wraped my scarf around my face and laid on my bag to attempt some sleep. I dozed for 30 minutes here and there and at 3am I was so cold I picked up all my stuff and found an open chair. I sat and rested my head on my bag til 5am. I then got up and headed to the bathroom to get ready for Day 2. I went through security at 5am so I would be there in PLENTY of time for my flight. The gate wasn't even listed unil 9am, so I found a comfy couch (bc no one was allowed through security unless they had a flight booked) and I slept for a bit that morning.


I then got up and headed down to my gate when it was listed on the screen. I walk down there ready to get on the plane and the attendant there tells me my flight has been cancelled for today. And no flights are going out until at least after noon. She tells me I have to claim my bags since my flight was cancelled then directs me down through the terminal and I end up BACK down at customs AGAIN. Without ever leaving the airport. I ask people about it and they told me I had to go through it again to get to baggage. So I'm in an hour and a half line for a SECOND time and have yet to leave the airport. I get to the customs lady and she doesn't even take any of my papers bc she saw I had never left. I'm then back in baggage claim and the scene is even worse than Friday night. There are even more bags down there. People are rummaging through all the bags, there are handwritten signs on some of the bags attempting organization...there is a line a couple hundred yards long to speak to a representative and people were getting the answer, "well they're here somewhere". It was like the scene of a disaster when hundreds of people are trying to identify bodies (maybe that's a bit morbid...but it's seriously what it felt like).


At this point I've walked through all the bags (or attempted to) and cant' find mine anywhere. It's about 10am and I couldn't decide if I should wait in a 5 hour line for bags when I still didn't have anything booked to even leave yet. And once you leave baggage claim you can't come back unless you go back through security and customs. That's when I lost it and sat down on the floor and pulled out my computer and got on Skype and called my dad crying at 430am his time, with no idea what to do. They kept telling us to call the BA booking number, but no one was getting through or they told us to go online to re-book. WHen you went online it said to call for your options and wouldn't let you do anything. So dad said to leave the bags and go get rebooked.


I had heard in line on my second time through Customs that someone had gone over to Terminal 3 to re-book with American bc they had no cancellations on Friday or Saturday morning, it was onlY BA. So I head over to terminal 3...took the Underground (subway) bc the free train stopped running. And I get up there to have the AA flight attendants saying all of their flights were now suspended until 5pm when they would make the next announcement. At this time the whole airport had shut down.
I was defeated once again and when talking to the Flight Attendant started crying again. I think she felt bad for me and I was just asking her to find a plug bc I couldn't find one to plug in my dead laptop. And my minutes had run out on my phone and I needed more Euro put on it. Luckily she found a plug for me and I then realized I didn't have the right plug conversion for the UK. A guy in line overheard me and he offered me his...bc clearly he was sitting in line going no where. So I get it charged and called my parents again having a break down. I got in touch with my friend in Italy and she went to base to add more Euro to my phone so I could use it again. I decided to attempt to get re-booked over at BA again so I head over there next...


Just to be told they weren't going to book anyone here...you had to take care of it on your own. Only7 flights were going out that day, everything else was cancelled. When I told the guy that no one was getting through on the phone he said, "all i can tell you is to be persistent". They took all the attendants away from all the desks and there was no one there to help you at all. So I decided I needed to find a hotel bc I couldn't do another night freezing in teh airport.


It's 3pm now and I go downstairs and get on my computer and get in line for hotel reservations. I can't get anything online, so I wait, and wait, and wait. FOUR hours in line for a hotel reservation. While I'm in line I meet a girl on her way back from Delhi to Boston (Jyoti) and a couple on their way back from a cruise (David and Barbara). We chat for the 4 hours and decide to go to the same hotel so we can split taxis and stuff like that. The girl and I decide to share a room so we can split the cost bc the hotel reimbursement is only for 200 pounds per double occupancy room. So we get up there and the guy says the cheapest hotel they have is 440 pounds for a room per night. That is about 700 dollars! So we took it and split it. And David and Barbara got a room. We then all four head to the train to take it to Paddington Station. We found a McDonalds when we arrived at Paddington and were all starving bc no one had eaten all day. So we eat dinner and get in line for a taxi to take us to the hotel. 45 minutes standing outside for a taxi...but we made it to the hotel.


We got our rooms and got internet hooked up, I had bought a conversion plug and got my laptop charged. Took a shower finally just to put on the same clothes...but I was at least clean. In the mean time, mom had been calling the 800 BA number in the States and after 4 hours of a busy signal, she finally got through and got me re-booked for a flight on Wednesday the 21st. So I at least had a booking. We headed to bed and woke early the next day to make it to the airport. Jyoti had a flight at 125 to JFK. So we arrived to the airport that morning to find no one at any of the desks. Her flight was cancelled, all arrivals were cancelled, and they were doing absolutely no bookings at the airport, you had to go online. I then went to someone to ask about picking up my bags since I was for sure getting no flight sooner than Wednsday, and she told me that they weren't giving out any bags, they would be put on your flight when you finally got re-booked.


Luckily the night before at the hotel I had received a message from my friend Kahea who I used to work with at the Youth Center in Avaino. Her and her husband, Matt, had just PCS'd to England about a month ago and she said there was a free shuttle from London Heathrow to base about 2 hours away and I could show my military ID and get on and they could pick me up from base. SO, since all of my previous plans were not working out...this was the next option. So, Jyoti got in touch with distant relatives in London and she had a place to go, so we wished each other well and parted ways.


I then head back over to Terminal 3 to catch this shuttle. As I'm waiting outside for the shuttle for an hour. I was told the early one ran that day and it was on delay, so it should be coming. I waited and waitd and no one came. I noticed a guy walking around with a military backpack and asked if he was goign there too. He was. He was stationed at Mildenhal and was trying to fly home, but got cancelled. So he then called base and asked about it and was told the shuttle was not making it's final run that day. So here we are stuck AGAIN. It was comical at this point how many things could go wrong! So I found the card of the driver who took Jyoti and I to the airport that morning and called to inquire about a price for a ride to Mildenhal (bc there was about a 2-3 hour line for a taxi outside). He said it would be 250 pounds...about 400 dollars. So we agreed to take it and split it. The cab arrived and took us down to base. They guy I met was a Captain in the AF, a civil engineer. He was very nice and we had a fun ride. It's just so helpful to have some company bc then you're not feeling like poor, poor, pitiful me.


So I arrived in Mildenhal and Matt and Kahea were there to pick me up. We stopped by the BX and got clean underwear and socks, and two shirts and some leggings to wear. We then headed to their house where they had ribs cooking in the Crock Pot and made mashed potatoes and corn on the cob for dinner. We sat outside around their fire pit and burned boxes, then came in to watch Elf. It was such a refreshing and needed change from my nightmare of 3 days. I got a good night's sleep last night and Matt cooked us breakfast this morning. It's now 345pm and we're on base using internet. They just moved into their house on Wednesday, so it's not hooked up yet. And we're going home to chili tonight. I have tomorrow here and then I'm hopefully getting out on Wednesday.


This experience has been UNBELIEVABLE. I have been in shock about how horribly the airlines and the airport have handled this situation. Every where you turn you get the answer, "I can't help you." It was just one slap after another after another. But amidst all that, you meet people in your situation that helps make it so much more bearable. I ran into my friends from Geneva the next day (after I was supposed to have left) and they ran up and tapped me and said NOOOOOO, we were just talking about you and hoping you made it out. Then they offered a number where they had gotten through to British Air and all been booked. And got online to try to book me at their hotel they had found (it was full). But everyone offered everything. Jyoti even had a clean pair of unused UNDERWEAR with the tags still on that she gave me at the hotel room so I didn't have to go 3 days!! Just stuff that people don't HAVE to do, but they are willing to help out. So that was very refreshing and made me want to help others as well, like carrying bags and offering info when I could.

So this is where I stand...and I'm hoping desperately to make it home on Wednesday because as of right now, I'm getting in 2 hours before the Garth concert I'm supposed to go to that I have been talking about for weeks and weeks!!!! And I just want to see my family and friends. But I'm tough and I can handle this...maybe with a few breakdowns...but I can handle it. So, prayers would be welcomed and hopefully things are up and runnign soon. Just wanted to update...congrats if you made it all the way through this email...didn't think it would be so long!! Sorry!!!

Ciao, for now!!

Love, Katie
 
As an update, I am SO incredibly thankful to Kahea and Matt who opened their home to me, even though they had hardly moved in it themselves.  I had such a fun time with them and we spent some good time catching up!  I kept telling Kahea I was going to visit, just didn't expect it to be quite that early!!
 

Kahea and Matt

 Kahea and Matt's cute little dogs, Miley and Ninja!!

So nice to have Kahea...and her clothes to wear :)  Thank you, thank you!

The first thing that went as planned on this trip was my flight out on Wednesday.  And surprisingly I DID make it to Garth!  I arrived in Chicago only slightly delayed.  I waited in the baggage claim to look for the bags that I knew wouldn't arrive.  Shocking...they didn't.  I then took off running to my connecting flight in a separate terminal in Chicago O'Hare and made my flight as it was boarding.  I borrowed someone's phone and called home to tell them I had no bags and ran through the airport, but I was on the plane and I was making it home in time to see Garth!  Mom informed me my bags were in Houston and were flying to Nashville and would be delivered on Thursday.

 

When I touched down in Nashville I washed my face in the bathroom and attempted to fix up my face and my hair...it's a good thing the concert was dark!  I was met at the pick up by Ashley and Andrea and airplane bottles of Fireball whiskey!  What a welcomed site!!  I jumped in the car and we headed down to Broadway with just enough time to stop at a bar and have some food and drinks before the show!

 

 Welcome to Nashville...my drivers were waiting :)

 Best friends...with some Fireball.  Mmmmm!!

 Ashley and I.

 Mr. and Mrs. Lambert!

Ashley, Andrea, and I

 

And WHAT A SHOW IT WAS.  I mean really, maybe the best thing I've ever seen!  Oh he was so great!!  It was everything I hoped it to be and more.  He and Trisha both sounded like they were straight off their CD's, he played pretty much every song you would want to hear from him.  He came back out about 3 times and even did an acoustical set playing songs that people were holding up on signs in the audience!  Man, I love Garth.  My love for him is rivaling Keith Urban...those of you who know me...that's kinda huge.  It's a very different love for both in my mind and I think I can love both of them equally, each for different reasons :)  I really wish my video would load right on my computer because I could give you brief 15 second clips of pure awesomeness...but until I can figure it out, you'll just have to take my word for it!
 
 

 
So, the rest of my trip will come in a following post.  I need to head to bed as I have a long day at work tomorrow.  Well it's a combination of Summer planning, work potluck, work, then working Kid's Night Out til 1030 tomorrow...yep, it's a full day!  Ciao for now!! 
 
Love.

Two Countries I Love!

I have been counting down days until I come back to the States for a few months now.  I absolutely LOVE Italy, but there are things I miss about home. 

Things I love about the States:

My family, duh!  Can't wait to come home to see them and spend time with them.

My friends I haven't seen in a year...that's WAY too long! 

The RADIO!!!  I'm a huge radio person and I can't wait to catch up on all the current songs and my beloved Country Music!  I've started hearing songs on award shows that I've never heard before...that's sad. 

Jersey Mike's ham and cheese sandwich with ONLY mayo. 

Walking into a store or restaurant and speaking perfect English without feeling bad that A) I am totally butchering their language or B) I don't know how to ask for what I need. 

Seeing American Griswald Family Christmas houses...Italians just don't do the decorations quite the same!! 

Going to the Christmas Eve service at my church and ending the evening in candlelight singing Silent Night. 

Having the cashier bag my purchases instead of handing me the bag.

CHEAP shopping!!!  I'll be paying in dollars instead of  Euro!!

And more than 10 channels replaying the same shows on Armed Forces Network!!


But for all the things I love the States for I have lists of reasons why I love Italy as well:

I leave my house every day and see the snow covered Alp mountains (assuming it's not too foggy)!!

A speed limit is a suggestion and I'm never concerned about tickets...

The wine is often cheaper than water!

Once you are seated at a table in a restaurant it is yours for the night.  The server is not looking to turn the table to make more money...you take your time!

Cheese from the weekly market...never had anything like it...it's SO good!!

I can drive two to four hours and be in 5 different countries depending on your direction. 

Skiing in the Alps...for 30 Euro (less than $50) a day!


Clearly I am blessed to be surrounded by so many great things.

It's December Already!!!

Auguri!!

So I've been busy, trucking right along in day to day life.  Nothing major and exciting, but busy none the less.  I finally broke down and bought a planner.  I had one when I first arrived here left over from back home (when it was necessary) but after a few months of nothing to write in it...I quickly gave it up.  After being here a year I now need a planner again because my schedule is filling up!  I guess that's a good thing.  So pretty much my planner has filled up with things like car appointments, dinner dates, movies, lunches, work meetings, and To Do lists.  Wow, thrilling, huh?

As some of you may know, we recently celebrated Thanksgiving over here...not sure if everyone is aware of the holiday as it seems the retail stores like to skip it and go straight into Christmas.  And while I don't usually care much for Thanksgiving, it was actually a great day.  It was a new experience this year celebrating the feast with five Americans and six Italians.  It was a "grande Americana fiesta".  I think everyone thoroughly enjoyed it and it was an excellent time to practice my Italian since very little English was spoken/understood by our guests.  It's amazing the gratitude you can express and friendship you can develop despite a language barrier.  On a side note...I looked at our Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in a whole new way.  As we were watching it with our Italian friends at dinner (thank you time difference) it seemed quite odd to watch and LOVE big massive balloons of Ronald McDonald and the KoolAid man floating down 5th Avenue.  Oh well, they seemed entertained as well :)

 Here is a picture after the delicious Thanksgiving meal with Rosario, "the other man in my life", as my friend Donna posted on Facebook :)

And I'm not sure why this uploaded sideways...but here is my first attempt at making a pie crust from a box...without a rolling pin.  I mention that like a rolling pin would have actually helped...HA.  I quickly shifted to a frozen crust that  Kika bought for me (since there were only 4 left on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving)  My pies turned out beautifully with the frozen crust...that's CLEARLY the way to go.

So amid my plain day to day life every now and then fun things pop up like going to Christmas Markets in Austria and going on the first ski trip of the season to the Alps!  Yay!  I have been taking a break from the travels since clearly I hit them pretty hard this fall...but Austria and Cortina were just day trips.  The perks of living on a small continent!

Last Saturday Kika and I drove up to Villach, Austria to go to the Christmas Market...we then headed over to Klagenfurt to hit up that one as well.  We weren't a huge fan of Villach, but LOVED Klagenfurt.  This was a beautiful nativity set on display.  I'm still looking to find a nice wood or ceramic nativity scene (a small table sized one) over here, but so far they have all been around 200-300 Euros...that's a little steep.  So I'm still looking.

Just walkin' in a winter wonderland...no big deal :)

And this weekend we packed up the car and our gear and headed North to the Italian Alps to the ski town of Cortina d'Ampezzo.  Taylor and I drove through the town last Christmas on our way to Innsbruck, Austria and we both thought it looked neat and wanted to go back.  It was much better than I expected after reading online.  It just opened for the season Thanksgiving weekend so it was looking like all the runs weren't open yet due to snow levels...but when we arrived it was awesome and almost 100% open.  We were all very pleasantly surprised!  And even better it's only an hour and a half away (without traffic!)

Please enjoy a bit of the scenery...

 Greg and Kika

 The boys...minus Taylor...but he'll be there soon enough...41 days to go...but who's counting?

So as I mentioned above the countdown is for sure on until Taylor comes back home.  We both are SO, SO ready!!!  And my other countdown I have going is to my trip home for Christmas...less than 2 weeks...11 days to be exact!! 

Hope you're having a Happy December full of shopping, crowds, candy, decorations, lights, music, and joyful celebrations of our Lord's birth among all the other good things that come during this wonderful month!!!

I'm Alive Still...

Life is good.  Will update soon :)

Pics are Posted

Alright, on this beautifully, rainy, cold, grey, Halloween Sunday I have finally taken time to get caught up on blogging and more specifically blogging with pictures!  It takes awhile to browse through all the pictures and pick the best ones to upload and then have the patience to wait for them to upload to Blogger.  But still watching movies in pajamas at 2pm gave me the perfect opportunity to do so!  Since I already did a blog about the French Riviera trip I decided the pictures would make a bit more sense if I added them in with the text instead of creating a new post with ONLY pics.  So I included them here.  The trip was gorgeous...enjoy the pics!!

Riviera Post With Pics Included!

Aaand...I'm now on hour 7 on the couch in pajamas and I've also included pics from Mama's visit and did the same as above...I incorporated them into the previous post.  So enjoy!

Mama's Visit With Pics Included!

Mama Comes to Town!!!

After France came what I have been MOST excited about for months and months...Mama's visit!!!!!  And on a side note, Mama (pronounced Muh Muh) is my grandma, not my mom :)  I've been told there was some confusion there.  It never even crossed my mind because she's been Mama for 27 years, but I forget that sometimes people spell Momma that way too!  So anyway.
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On Tuesday afternoon I was meeting Mama and three of her friends: Judi, Miriam, and Jane at the train station in Venice.  I was going to ride the train with them back up to Pordenone and then drive everyone back to my house.  So their train arrives and I'm waiting on their track looking for them to exit the train.  Sure enough I see Mama and her friends trying to unload 8 (massive) bags and four carry-ons off the train with a good 2 foot step down.  It was almost comical.  I ran down to them and helped unload as the train worker was standing outside the door with his whistle ready to get the train going again!  But they all made it.
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On the way home they told stories of their cruise which sounded absolutely wonderful.  They had such a fun time and got to see SO many places!!  Barcelona, Rome, Florence, the Amalfi Coast, Tunisia, Sicily, etc...they all were so funny and were in such great spirits!  They were proud to announce they made it through the whole trip with only being scammed one time.  Some guy told them he worked for the train station and then offered to load their (8!!!) bags on the train.  They allowed him to help and he then asked for 5 euros a piece.  But if you ask me, judging from my experience helping them load and unload their luggage on the train, I might consider the "scam" more of a blessing...I'm just saying!!  :)
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When we arrived in San Quirino at my house, we had time to drop bags, do a quick tour and then literally run out the door to dinner.  We had reservations with a local Italian lady who does dinner parties in her home.  She does a home cooked meal and serves it in her dining room.  It is such a unique and delicious experience.  We went with my girlfriend Jennifer and her parents.  We had a salad, bread, pumpkin risotto, rosemary chicken with peppers and eggplant, and a marscapone dessert.  Despite being worn out I think everyone had a fun time!
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After dinner with Raffa and her husband "Cinderella" because he does the dishes!!  Pictured: Judi, Jane, Mama, Me, Raffa, "Cinderella", and Miriam

. On Wednesday we spent the day in Venice.  We took the ferry to the island of Murano to watch glass blowing demonstrations and to do some glass shopping.  We attempted to make it back to San Marco's Square in Venice, but my lack of knowledge of the ferry system took us on a 2 and a half hour detour on a boat. Ooops...sorry ladies at least the trip was free (that's what happens when no one is working to ask questions or buy tickets!)!!  The sad thing is I still don't understand the way it works.  Most public transportation is very similar and easy to understand...not this one.
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We finally made it back to the mainland with enough time to walk through the square.  And in Mama's case, dodge the hundreds of pigeons.  She HATES birds and I didn't even think about it, but the Square is FULL of pigeons.  I look over at her and she has put her backpack over her head and is ducking while walking through the crowded Piazza!  It was so funny!!  We then wandered our way through the city back towards the train station.  Wandering might be the wrong word...we were attempting to make a 5:00 train so we were rushing through the city, only to miss the train, but we caught the 6pm one.
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Mama with her pigeon helmet protecting her from the swooping birds!!

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Mama and Judi riding the ferry over to Murano...the one ferry ride I actually got right!

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Lunch on Murano Island.  Taking their "wine picture".  They were so funny, they hid their bottle of water for every picture...no need for water when you're in Italy!!

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Mama and I

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Thursday was spent in Venice as well, this time focusing on the city and the less touristy parts.  We walked through the little neighborhoods and the more local area.  Miriam and Jane were catching a 2pm train out of Venice to head back to Rome.  We had another great day and on the way home, Mama, Judi, and I stopped in Treviso to pick up a menu for my uncle.  He has a restaurant in Sarasota called Treviso, so he was interested in some menus from the local area.  After scouring the town we were finally lucky with a restaurant owned by the "greatest man to walk the earth..." or at least you would think so after talking to him.  After first denying us a menu, then later giving us a life story and complete tour of the restaurant including the kitchen he finally decided to give us a menu and he even thought he'd autograph it for us.  Ha!  Don't be jealous.
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Judi, Jane, Mama, and Miriam on the bridge over the Grand Canal...world travelers!

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Love this one :)

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On Friday morning Judi, Mama, and I head out BRIGHT and early to catch the 6am train to Milano to meet Judi's daughter.  She was in town on business to buy silk for her company.  We met up with Kimberly and her Italian liason and friend, RoseAngelo.  They met us at the train station and showed us all around the city.  It was so great to have them there to explain things and to know the local area.  We went to the Duomo, to the Galleria, and to the Castello.  We ate lunch at a fancy restaurant on the top of a shopping mall overlooking the Duomo.  It was a beautiful, massive city.  It is considered the business capitol of Italy (along with the fashion capitol, obviously).  There are so many office buildings and banks and businesses which isn't nearly as common in many of the other big cities.
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The Galleria (I think that's what it was called!!)

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Inside, full of shops...

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Inside the open air Galleria.  The first Prada store, with the original windows and door frames. 

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The Duomo.

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At lunch overlooking the Duomo with our new friends!  Pictured:  RoseAngelo, Kimberly, Judi (Kim's mom), and Mama

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How appropriate, right?  We walked by a fashion photo shoot going on in the streets!

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After spending the day in Milan we took the train out to Como to check into our hotel and go to dinner on the lake.  Como is a beautiful area surrounded by mountains located about 10 minutes south of the Swiss border.  Kimberly and RoseAngelo took us to a cute little restaurant in Como for a 3 hour dinner with good food, good wine, and good company!
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Saturday we spent the day on a ferry touring the lake by water and keeping a close look out for George Clooney and his house.  We took a picture of 3 different houses we were told were his.  At dinner that night we showed RoseAngelo our pictures to see if it was his house and she said that none of them were his house!  Wow, we were such dumb tourists!  The homes/estates/villas were beautiful all the way through the lake.  We stopped at one town to tour one of the villas.  It was Balbianello (or something like that).  But it was a gorgeous house built on the tip of a peninsula with views of the lake on three sides and out every window of the house!  I found my future vacation home.  I mean, along with Monaco and Nice, and Austria...looks like I have some serious saving/working to do!!!
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A few of the estates around the Lake.

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The Balbianello Villa we toured...gorgeous!

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From the grounds of Babianello.

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Mama and Judi waving to their subjects down below :)

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Another view from the villa...

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Gates to Babianello from the Lake.  We took a water taxi there!

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At the Lenno stop on Lake Como.

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After spending the day on the ferry we headed back to Como to walk around the city.  It was a much bigger city then I expected.  The streets were beautiful as was the Duomo and there was a fun market (where I found the perfect rug for my bedroom!!!)  We headed back to the hotel to get ready for dinner and look who we ran into in our lobby!!!!  George Clooney!!!  :)
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And here is sweet RoseAngelo who showed us around the city and her husband Carlos.

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We were so very blessed with our Milan trip to be with Kimberly and RoseAngelo, it made the experience so much better.  And they both were so kind and so generous it was unbelievable.  Sunday morning is when we left Judi and Kimberly.  They took a flight back to the States and Mama and I took the train back to my home to spend the next week wandering my town and base, enjoying our rest, and showing Mama my day to day life in Italy!
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Mama at Lake Barcis.  Unfortunately the lake was not nearly as pretty as usual because of recent flooding.  But it was still a gorgeous day!

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After our picnic of fresh cheese and crackers, home grown apples, and parma proscuitto!

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Mama at the spring in Gorgazzo.

. Phew, what a trip! 
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Happy Halloween!!!!!!