Milano, Italy

I have just spent the last three days in Milano with an old friend from school, Paul Rabinowitz, and was pretty blown away with the place. Milano is an incredible city, and seeing it with Paul, who has been there for about 9 months now, was a real treat. There is a young and vibey feel to the place, and I met some brilliant people who Paul studies design with there. I am really looking forward to going back to visit him after his holidays in September.

The Galleria

The Duomo

The Duomo at night

Sienna, Tuscany, Italia

On Saturday we had an incredible barbecue at Francesco's house, cooking the traditional fiorentina steak. That is also something I love about Italy, the cuisine changes so much as you move from region to region. Tuscan's tend to eat a lot more meat, especially game such as wild boar. The hunting season starts pretty soon (end of September if I'm correct) and so I want to try see if it is possible to go out for a little hunting stint with someone. But back to the fiorentina. The Tuscans pride themselves on the quality of their meat, and so the steaks here are always amazing quality. But they don't mess around in the size department either. I don't know if the photos will actually do it justice. It was enormous!

After lunch we headed off to Sienna. Sienna is the other major city in Tuscany next to Florence, and the two towns have been fiercely competitive since their inception when it comes to just about anything. I wasn't really sure what to expect when we headed off, but it was beautiful. Sienna's duomo is magnificent, and the late afternoon sunlight that hit the main piazza was also magnificent. They have just recently run the Palio in Sienna, which is an ancient horse race which takes place in the town itself. Incredibly dangerous but a massive tradition. Saturday night we attended a birthday celebration in the winelands of Chianti Classico. I'm pretty sure that night I was speaking fluent Italian, as it tends to happen after pints of red wine.

Main piazza in Sienna

Sienna's Duomo

Typical Tuscan cypress

Another Tuscan sunset

The Duomo, Firenze

Whilst in Firenze I made a point of taking a photo of the Duomo every time I walked past it. It is a spectacular cathedral! These were some of the best shots...