Arrivederci, Milano!

I opened my shutters at daybreak to enjoy the last lingering view of the Duomo.  I doubt I'll ever have this view again although I hope I return to Milan.  There was endless fascination in the play of light across the facade--rose in early morning to golden in the afternoon.  But next time if I want to experience it I'll be down in the piazza with the rest of the tourists.
Let me sum up if I can.  Spring was a great time to come.  The weather was terrific!  I spent most of  my days under serene, blue Canaletto skies.  Ironically the only gloomy days were the ones when I left the city.  In the summer Italy tends to be steamy.
The Milanese mostly wait for the green crossing signal before crossing the street in contrast to the constant and cheerful jaywalking of London and Paris.  I still don't know how the woman manage to walk in those shoes what with the cobbles and tram rails and all.
This year was the 150th anniversary of Italy's uniting as a nation, so their tricolor red, white, and green was much in evidence.
Milan is an easy city for tourists with most sites concentrated in the historic center.  I walked most places and didn't get lost too often and never seriously.  The place is remarkably flat for easy roaming.  The metro is easy to use as well.  If I were going to stay longer I'd try out the trams.  Milan makes a great base for exploring the surrounding area although I did not get to do enough of this.
The food is good, which one does expect in Italy, but I really enjoyed trying the hearty Lombard specialties.
Italy (or at least Lombardy) has a greater proportion of Really Good Looking Men than any place I have ever been, and I include Southern California.  Honestly some of these guys look like movie stars and no one seems to notice them.  Obviously this subject needs further research.
But beware the young man lurking at tourist sites handing out "friendship" bracelets.  The friendship will cost you.
A tradition which I had not mentioned earlier is to go to the Galleria Vittorio Emmanuele and find mosaic bull representing Tuscany.  Milan's symbol is a red cross on white and is much in evidence, but the story is that if a visitor grinds a heel on the bull's--er--parts, said visitor will have good luck.  This might be simply a jab by the Lombardians at the Tuscans, but you will always find a crowd there and the "parts" have long been worn away.  Yes, I ground my heel along with the rest, but the real luck in the first place was getting to come to and get to know Milano.