The Italian Job is Complete

We have spent our last two days in Italy on a quick tour of the northern stretch from Verona to Milan - it's time to say arrivederci to this wonderful country before we tackle Greece.

Although its famous cousin, Lake Como, seems to garner more attention (I guess it doesn't hurt when stars like Mr. Clooney snatch up the waterfront property), Lake Garda is no slouch. We spent a day exploring the towns of Bardolino and Malcesine (don't the names just roll of your tongue?), on the hunt for beautiful scenery. No timetable or itinerary - just wandering around.

Neither place disappointed.

Although we might have to give the slight edge to Malcesine - even on a cloudy day it was magnificent.

It helps that there was a great little castle for the kids to explore - I tried to get Owen to jump, but not even a double scoop of gelato would convince him.

A rather strange moment as a tuk-tuk came chugging around the corner. I thought we had seen the last of these in Sri Lanka! Seems like a wedding was taking place at the castle today, and the lucky couple were sent off in style.

Good photograph by Annie - helps when you have a photogenic subject (the castle and lakeside town, of course). I only give my tan another week before it fades away - let's hope the sun is shining in Greece.

"So tell me punk - do you feel lucky?"

The view from the top of the castle - I think the kids want a castle of their own when we get back. No matter how good a treehouse I might be able to come up with, nothing beats a 900 year old fortress with a moat, tower and dungeon.

We had planned on leaving the kids alone so we could enjoy a romantic dinner at the restaurant just downstairs from our apartment - I should have learned some Italian and figured out that the place was closed on Wednesdays. So we ended up here instead and only had the best pizza EVER!

We said goodbye to our home for the past eight nights - having our own place with some extra space and a working kitchen was a refreshing change. We'll definitely miss this apartment. For those thinking of travelling to Italy with kids, you may be well advised to look at apartments instead of hotels. They are usually cheaper, and offer way more flexibility.

Our last day involved a morning train ride to Milan - by the time we arrived and settled into our hotel, we still had plenty of time to give the main sights the once-over. The Duomo in central Milan was definitely the nicest church we've visited in Italy this trip.

This is owing in large part to its incredible display of stained glass. While most travellers to Europe are drawn to galleries filled with paintings by the great masters, I am partial to sculptures and stained glass. The only regret was that we didn't bring the binoculars - that's another piece of advice when you visit big cathedrals.

And what's Milan without going to the mall - and not just any mall - but the Victor Emmanuel Gallery. It is one of the oldest in the world (150 years), and definitely the most stunning I've ever seen (I seem to be using that word a lot on this trip).

Best looking mall cops in the world. Shirley thought they were, well, stunning.

Here's a photo for Alex K. Sorry you won't be getting these as souvenirs, but I think you might like to hang out in this place for a while.

Owen was not too sure what the fuss was all about when it comes to Prada, but he certainly enjoyed the Ferrari flagship store, complete with two F1 cars.

But this is probably the only Italian car I'll be able to afford after this trip's over. This little thing only fits one person.

And Milan is a fitting place for our "Last Supper". While we didn't have time to go visit the real da Vinci painting while we were here, we thought we would re-create the moment ourselves.

Not sure if Jesus had pizza, but we are using a little artistic license. He's attacking that thing like it's our last night in Italy. Oh yeah. Bummer.