Melby's Travels

DAY 1 FLIGHT TO PARIS It was my first time boarding the plane through the tarmac (instead of a walkway). From my bird's eye view, I noticed that the layout of the land near Milan consists of cluster of houses surrounded by small fields for farming. We also passed through the Alps, bordering Italy and Switzerland. FIRST IMPRESSIONS It felt like the New York of Europe, with the organized bustle. In addition to the many expected bread and cheese shops, there were many bookstores. Also, I was pleasantly surprised to see a large proportion of African and Middle Eastern food, especially Lebanese! The kebabs looked pretty good. LUNCH Quiche - looks like people here enjoy caramelization, but the eggs were not overcooked at all. I enjoyed the pungent Roquefort cheese in it too. Brioche au sucre - there's literally a chunk of sugar in the middle of the bun. Could have been fermented for longer, but sugar helps to compensate for some of the lost flavor and texture. MUSEE D'ORSAY They...

 Porta Genova - a neighborhood that was formerly edgier and is now the center for art and designer offices A little canal. Not as nice as Venice obv but still quaint ARMANI/SILOS - showcases pieces from the 80s till today. also a temporary photo exhibit Some of the less out-there works that I might see myself wearing There were definitely many photos (from around the world) that spoke to me. The photos of New York from the 1950s were rather shocking to me. For instance, several buildings in the NY skyline were missing.

DAY 1 - POMPEI For this weekend, we stayed in Pompei, the city that has the ancient ruins of Pompeii. It felt like the American Southwest, although we were in the Italian Southwest - the cacti, colorful houses, and lack of sidewalks... It was surreal to walk through such monumental structures in Pompeii. One thing I didn't expect were how high the sidewalk was compared to the roads! Scaled some sketchy stairs... We didn't expect the buildings to be so tall and grand, considering that people of that time are rather short by today's standards. Seeing the only slightly fainted colors of storefronts, juxtaposed with the plaster forms of people trapped in volcanic ash, really brought to life what it was like to have experienced the volcanic eruption. Approaching the colosseum Being in a different country doesn't stop hackers from hacking   Look closely, us duking it out in the Colosseum LA BETTOLA DEL GUSTO - part of the "slow food" movement Bonus appetizer - dough...

When you flush the toilet, the water doesn't swirl; it just goes straight down. As a result, the toilets use more water and are generally less clean after one flush. There are some large doors that have smaller doors cut out. So to get out of the building, you just have to open the smaller door. Not sure if this is meant to save energy (building or personal) or if it's less strain on the hinges. There are little divots in the asphalt sidewalk, where it got too hot and motorcycle kick stands melted the sidewalk and created an impression. Round-a-bouts are pretty big here There are espresso vending machines (that can also give you cappuccino and all sorts of other coffee drinks), just like candy or potato chip vending machines in the US. A "macchiato" is espresso with a little bit of milk, not some of the crazy drinks at Starbuck's Italians don't really eat bread with olive oil or mozzarella with balsamic glaze, as we Americans think they do. Lots of "pizza...