Last night we made it to the local pizzeria recommended by Giancarlo- OK Pizza did better than live up to its name. Light crispy crust with delicious toppings washed down with prosecco. Just the job, and nary a word of English, German, French to be heard. Viva l'italia!

Another day dawned in Milan, and while mozzie extermination had not been complete, we had made a difference!

We had a big day of walking planned- with the Duomo, La Scala and the Sforza Castle in our sights. The forecast was for rain, and the skies were backing that up, so we set off with raincoats and Giancarlo's thoughtfully provided brolly. Both proved absolutely unnecessary. Ain't that always the case? We stopped in and joined busy Milanese for a morning coffee as they made their way to work. Again, an English free zone.

Stop one, the Duomo. We wanted to beat any crowds to get a good look at the roof. We started on the inside with an audio tour. We both kept trying to get our heads around this vast building and its six hundred years of history in the present form and over 1700 years in a variety of devious forms. That's dedication!

The main attraction internally is, for us, the size and proportion of the space. It somehow managed to accommodate tourists, worshippers, organ maintenance and masonry repairs all at the same time today! We climbed the 158 steps to the roof - a mere bagatelle - after our climbing exploits in Bologna and even Varenna. The roof has to be seen to be believed. There are statues that no one would ever have been expected to see, invisible from the ground- statues that are probably the work of journeymen and apprentices yet each embodying months of work in their own right. Angels, saints, prophets, martyrs, gargoyles- they are all up there like decorations on a gigantic wedding cake of flying buttresses, pillars, arches - you get the idea! To describe the experience as magical sounds hackneyed, but it really is the best way to describe it. We returned to the interior and spent about another hour with the audio tour of highlights.

Our next stop was pure indulgence. Just as in Florence the department store Rinascente had a cafe on its rooftop over one of the main squares, so here in Milan, they have a terrace on the 7th floor with views onto the terraces of the Duomo. A lovely place to have coffee and a few little biscuits while looking back at the magnificent church - at about 25 dollars Aussie for the experience!

Time to look at the Museo del Duomo. While many of these can be quite dusty and run down, Milan's is very modern in its approach, choosing really interesting items rather than putting everything on display. Of particular interest are the many sculptures that have been replaced by remade versions in the constant process of maintenance. You get very close to them this way.

Those who followed our efforts to see La Scala on Saturday will remember we couldn't get in because there was a concert on. We had no problem today. I had planned all my conditionals and past perfects and continuous past but didn't need them. We were just waved in to get a look at the vast sea of red and gold that is La Scala- with the added bonus of seeing the concert orchestra warming up. Pictures do a better job of the description. The boxes which made up the bulk of the accommodation from the galleries are really quite small!
It is easy to imagine the nobility of years gone by sitting in their boxes, dining in the back rooms, playing cards, and who knows what else!

We had lunch in a much less swanky place- the Bellavista bar, joining the tail end of the office workers' lunchtime rush. Good, local food - pizza and schiacciata, at a reasonable price and an all Italian crowd. We simply walked 5 minutes away from the main tourist drag on via Dante and there were several places like this to choose from. Along with the food, we had two soft drinks and two coffees and all for 25 euro.

The Sforza Castle was next. We mainly wanted to get a look at the building and its surrounds. It is a very imposing structure that seems to have been beautifully restored after the ravages of WWII. The surrounding parkland - the Sempione Gardens - made a lovely spot for a rest.

A little shopping and we crossed the day's walking tally (thanks to the Jawbone band) at 12.6 km. barely the energy to blog and cook!