Monday, February 17
We finished packing our things and headed for the airport. After months of preparing, waiting, saying goodbye, a couple trips to the Chicago Consulate and braving a snowstorm to get our passports, we were finally on the plane.
We were sat in the front row of Comfort+ in the Airbus 330-300, ready to take off for Amsterdam, where we would have a short 2-hour layover before getting on our next and final flight to Milano Linate. However, the pilot announced that the extreme cold (-30F) was causing issues for the trucks that were supposed to come and clear out the toilets. Apparently all the waste was frozen.
This crappy situation set us back about 30 minutes, which was anxiety inducing since we had never been to the Amsterdam airport and knew we had to go through customs, etc.
The flight was about 8 hours exactly, Comfort+ wasn’t the most comfortable, but we did have good legroom. Emilie got maybe 30 mins or an hour of sleep, Daniel could not fall asleep, but he recommends the movie Conclave. He does not recommend Venom: The Last Dance, or Joker: Folie a Deux (he turned that off after maybe an hour).
We made it to Amsterdam, customs was no problem, and had plenty of time to spare waiting in our small gate. On our final flight, Emilie was sat next to some friendly local Dutch guys going to a soccer game in Milan, beating them in a game of chess. Daniel is now connected on LinkedIn with a guy from Georgia heading to Milan for business. Daniel learned a lot about what this guy does for a living.
Daniel and Emilie at MSP airport about to go through security
Daniel and Emilie on their plane from MSP to AMS (Amsterdam)
AMS airport, waiting for the flight to LIN (Milan Linate)
The view from the airplane close to landing in LIN
Daniel and Emilie in LIN grabbing their luggage
Tuesday, February 18
After landing in Milan at local time 10:30 CET, we took an uber with our 4 checked bags, two carry ons and two generous personal item backpacks to our new apartment in Navigli, right along an ancient canal designed by Leonardo da Vinci.
The area we live in is very popular for locals and tourists of all ages to come for dinner and aperitif, as well as some cafes too. We have not had time to explore too many yet, but we are excited to live in an area with so many options.
When arriving at the apartment, we were greeted by a translator and worker. They showed us the 60 sq.m. one bedroom apartment and answered any questions we had. They then left and we were on our own, except for the cleaning lady who had about 30 minutes left of work to do in the apartment.
To get into our apartment, you enter through a very small door which leads you to a small courtyard. Green grass and plants surround the area, even some lemon trees. Our apartment is at the end of the courtyard.
Our apartment consists of a general living space furnished with a couch and side table. There is a small dining area with a table and a small kitchen with a mini-fridge and freezer. The walls are held up by old brick arches and white brick and plaster. It is beautiful. Our bedroom is concealed by glass walls with blinds for privacy.
After the cleaner finished, we got cleaned up from our long travel day, at this point we probably had been awake for about 26 hours (Daniel set a timer when he woke up on Monday to track it), then hit the town.
The street our apartment is on
The door we enter from the street to get to the courtyard our apartment is in
Our courtyard
The door to our apartment
The couch in our living room
Our dining room. The stairs on the right lead up to our bedroom and our kitchen is on the left
Our dining room window
Our kitchen window
We walked to the Duomo di Milano, which took about 25 minutes. On the walk there, we were able to explore a little bit of the city and see a few landmarks. At the Duomo, there were multiple promotionals set up for the upcoming 2026 Olympics which will be hosted in Milan. We did not get tickets to enter the Duomo, but enjoyed the view and some pictures.
From there, we took an uber to Daniel’s new office. We met with some of his team members for a coffee and Daniel gave his computer to IT so they could get it ready for his first day on Monday. We took an uber back to our apartment. Close to Daniels work, they are building the Olympic village. We are interested in how busy it will be next year.
We stopped at a Carrefour Express, which the locals say is a more expensive grocery store. However, the dried pasta, which is the same brand you can find in a more fancy US store, is still less than half the price. We got some groceries to survive the next few days and made our way back to the apartment. We had some pasta and got into bed, all by 7 pm. We were wiped out, but by staying up as late as we could, we felt we combatted the jet lag well. Daniel's timer made it to 30 hours by the time we finally made it to sleep.
On our way to the Duomo, we go through the Arco di Porta Ticinese. This is a gate of the former 12th-century Walls of Milan. This landmark is about a 5 minute walk from our apartment.
On our way to the Duomo we pass by Basílica de Sant'Eustorgio. For many years, this was an important stop for pilgrims on their journey because it was said to contain the tomb of the Three Magi or Three Kings.
On the way to the Duomo we pass Porta Ticinese Medievale. This is one of the three remaining medieval gates of Milan.
On the way to the Duomo we pass Colonne di San Lorenzo. This is a group of ancient Roman ruins, located in front of the Basilica of San Lorenzo.
An Olympic promotional in front of the Duomo
Duomo di Milano. It is famous for being the third largest cathedral in the world
Daniel and Emilie in front of Duomo di Milano
The Amplifon office, Daniel's new workplace
Wednesday, February 19
After 14 hours of sleep, we woke up at 9 am and got ready for the day. This day’s mission was to find some other grocery items and some additional items to compliment our furnished apartment.
On our way out to Aldi, we stumbled upon a cafe just one street over on Naviglio Grande. We stopped in for a ham and cheese croissant, a chocolate muffin, iced latte, and some cranberry juice. Guess who got what!
We found an Aldi that was about a 25 minute walk from our apartment. We got some more pasta, sauce, eggs, milk, cleaning supplies, our first pound of beef, and more. The prices are very friendly, especially at Aldi.
We pack up our goods and make our way back where we have, you guessed it, pasta for lunch.
Naviglio Grande, the street next to ours. This is our walk to Aldi and where we found the cafe
The cafe we stopped at on the way to Aldi on Naviglio Grande
Aldi
Daniel and Emilie with their groceries from Aldi
On our way back from Aldi, we saw a boat in the canal
Some street art we saw on our way back to Aldi
What we bought at Aldi
Our new reusable Aldi bags
After lunch and a relaxing break (we did not beat the jet lag as well as we thought), we headed 20 minutes into the city center to a small Ikea, made up of two modest floors. This part of Milan is very modern, clean, and popular. We got a few goods, and made our way back. Another pasta meal for dinner, followed by some card games and an early bedtime. At this point, we have spent only one night in Milan.
Before getting ready for our 2nd night sleeping in Milan, we planned our first excursion from Milan. We chose Verona, which we left for the next morning.
On our way to the IKEA, we pass by Basílica de Sant'Eustorgio
Our walk to IKEA
Daniel and Emilie in front of IKEA with their purchases
San Giovanni in Conca is right outside of IKEA. This dates from the 4th century
Our pasta dinner
This move has been a really big transition. Nothing is familiar. A new location, with a new language, different currency, etc. However, it slowly begins to feel somewhat more familiar, but very slowly.
Thank you for reading. Check back for our next post!
– The Hills
