Exploring Milan

There it stood, willowy and magnificent. The Gothic Duomo rose up like a manmade mountain from the pavement and struck awe into anyone who walked by. It made all other buildings around it look shabby and unrefined. With a staggering 3200 statues on the 135 pinnacles that stood boldly out of the amazing structure, it was a true masterpiece. The statues were ornate and detailed, and the marble had a shade of pink in it. The piece of artwork was an amusement park to the eyes.

My heart was racing. There were thousands of butterflies fluttering in my stomach. I was tense. I walked slowly towards them... and began the climb up the 165 stairs.

I thought it would never end. Flight after flight, step after step. The relentless sun shone in through the windows. And then, finally, it ended. The sun burned in though the doorway and blinded me. It looked like the Doorway to Heaven. I hesitated for a split second and then stepped through the arched doorway.

I gasped when the light died down. It was, breathtaking. Amazing. Majestic. Beautiful. My jaw was hanging open. It took me all my concentration to remember how to close it again. The statues on the pinnacles and the doorways were just magical. There were statues of every kind. Scholars, knights, warriors, artists, animals, in fact, there was even an evil Donald Duck! ( true fact; see for yourself) I was amazed. I never wanted it to end.

After we finished the roof top of the Duomo, we headed to the actual church. It was pretty grand. We saw the tiled floors, the arches in the roof, the domed roof, the statues, and even the well preserved dead bodies of the priests of the twelfth century in the sarcophaguses! Ooooooooohh...

We finished in the basilica and headed to La Rinascente, the local department store. We started at the eighth floor and decided to work our way down. The eighth floor was all about the food. We walked up to a chocolate store that caught our eyes. There were colourful chocolate shoes and handbags, big and small. I decided to buy two mini chocolate handbags. They looked delicious.

After La Rinascente, we did more shopping next door at Galleria Vittoria Emanuele, a large shopping centre with a huge dome in the center and detailed paintings on the ceilings, where we also stopped for late lunch. I had a fabulous Pizza Margherita! After that, we headed out and started walking to Castello Sforzesco, the Sforzesco castle.

The castle was huge. Barracks, a once full moat, enormous courtyards, tall trees, everything. We explored the castle and then went into the park beyond it. At the edge of the park was a mini Arc de Triomphe called Arco Della Pace. It was about the invasion of Napoleon. It was exactly like the Arc de Triomph in Paris. Really.

Finally, dark was coming, and we headed back to the hotel. We settled back into our room, and the day closed around us.

Milan Cathedral -- Piazza del Duomo








Donald Duck turned Evil!!


Colourful Chocolate Shoes & Handbags


Arco Della Pace


Castello Sforzesco


Galleria Vittoria Emanuel

Going In Between

My dad put the luggages in the cart and we moved on to find our seats. We found them and sat down. The seats in first class were wide and very comfortable. I settled in and waited for the train to start.

As we rumbled along in the high speed train, the scenery really was very beautiful. There were corn fields and wheat fields that stretched on and on, and lots of them too. The golden colour of the fields together with the luscious green hills in the background really made the French village out in the countryside carefree, tranquil and ideallic. It was indeed very beautiful.

We went through region after region, and then, we reached the Alps. They were stunning. There wasn't snow on them, but they were still amazing. They rose like pillars from the ground and reached to the sky. We could see the ski lifts used during the winter when people went to ski. I wondered how magnificent this place would look in the winter. It would look truly divine.

As we sped through the alps, we realized that a handful of the mountains actually had snow on the tips of them. It was where heaven touched the Earth.

The houses were really simple, but very pretty. Most of them had two stories and about four windows in the front. They were painted a light shade of orange, which made it look like you were looking at them during sunset. I could imagine those Italian folks dancing the night away in these houses. They must live a really fretted life.

We slowed down, and I realized that our journey had come to an end. We finally stopped at a really grand station ( well, it WAS Milan) and I was struck by awe. My dad brought our luggages to us and we pulled them to the taxi station. I hopped into the taxi and fastened my seat belt. I settled in, and wondered just what would happen to me here.

Traveling through The Alps

Mont St. Michel

Michel darted into the cave.  There were ancient skeletons scattered around the enormous first chamber of the cave.  Michel said a silent prayer for the dead in this wretched place that reaked of fear and death.   He slid silently into the second chamber, even larger than the first.  It was in this chamber that he saw his prey, snoring ominously on the cold stone floor, next to a pile of dusty bones.  The seven-headed dragon, the demon.

Michel unsheathed his sword and silently counted to three.  He raised the sword above his head and swiftly brought it down on this evil creature's neck.  The tough scales protected the dragon from getting his head chopped off, but the action woke the villainous creature.  The dragon's seven green heads howled in pain and their eyes locked on the man who had caused them that pain.  Michel smiled wryly and artfully dodged the dragon's first charge.  The dragon roared with fury and frustration.  Michel ran with blinding speed towards the dragon and sliced his belly.  The dragon stumbled and howled again in anger.  The beast leapt at Michel but Michel bounded at the dragon and slashed three times at its black heart.  The dragon bellowed with rage and his beady, black eyes focused on Michel, revenge the only thing in its cold mind.  He charged towards Michel, but Michel dodged, ran up the grimy cave wall and leapt at the creature.  He landed on the back of it.  The dragon thrashed around wildly, trying to throw Michel off.  Michel plunged his sword with such force into the creatures back, that he reached the heart and pierced it.  The dragon stumbled weakly, and crashed loudly to the floor, dead.

"Trin, Trin, let's go!" my mum's call  interrupted my reverie as I stared at the statue of archangel Michel,  perched atop the spire of Mont St Michel.  I turned around to my mother and ran towards her.  We followed the tour group into the abbey of Mont St Michel.  It was a huge abbey, one that we were about to  explore ourselves.  We walked through the huge, limestone rooms that dated back to the 700s. They had pillars that stretched up and up.  Some windows were stained, but some weren't .  There were balconies that let you see the land that stretched on and on forever.  We walked through room after room of magnificence and limestone.  The abbey had been home to the Benedictine brothers for centuries.  It truly was beautiful.

After we had finished in the abbey, we had free time.  We left the abbey and went down to the shops that were lined around the hill of Mont St Michel. There were bakeries, souvenir stores, sword stores, and others.  In fact, the way the village was set out, it reminded me of the city of Minas Tirith in the Lord of the Rings.  It was really very pretty.

Finally, it was time to head back to Paris.  I had enjoyed today very much.  I would never forget it.

Mont St Michel was thought to have been built in 708.  It was built to honour the archangel Michel where the legend says he fought and defeated a dragon, which is the symbol of the demon.   Quite soon, it became a major focus for pilgrimage.  In the tenth century, when the Benedictine brothers settled in to Mont St Michel, a village was starting to flourish on the walls.  Three hundred years later, it had grown to the foot of the rock.

Mont St Michel was built as a stronghold during the Hundred-Years-War in France.  It resisted every British attack and became a national symbol of identity.  Following the dissolution of the French parliament, the abbey was used as a prison until 1863.  In 1874, it was classified as a historic monument and went under major restoration.  Now tourists  and visitors may go and see the magnificence of the abbey.  In 1979, Mont St Michel was classified as a world heritage site by UNESCO.

This place has a strong feel of sainthood in it.  I highly recommend it.



Village in Mont St. Michel



Abby of Mont St. Michel



St. Michel statue atop of the spire

My Chocolate Affairs

Bruges. That was our destination.  When we reached Bruges, all of us in the tour bus were divided into two groups, English and Spanish.  With the English group, we had a walking tour. We saw the medieval style buildings, which were simply gorgeous. They were quite narrow, but most of the buildings had three or four stories. They reminded me a lot of a European village in the 1600s.

As we walked along, I noticed that the narrow roads were cobbled. It really added to the impression that I was in a medieval village. There were even lots and lots of horse and carriages. I saw the white convent, where the olden day ladies would live when their husbands went to war. It was set in a green, picturesque park.  It was very pretty.

We saw the canals of Bruges.  In fact, because of these canals, people call Bruges ' Venice of the North'.  There were boats on the canals that did tours. We kept walking until we reached the Market Square.  It was the largest square in Bruges, and it was where people in the olden days would sell goods.  It really was very big, and there was a large statue in the centre of it.  It was surrounded by shops of all different sorts.  They were also very medieval looking.  The walking tour ended here.   My parents and I went to have lunch. They decided to have mussels with fries and a beer each.  That meal is like the classic meal of Bruges.  I decided to have a Flemish style steak with fries and a Pepsi.

When the food arrived, let me tell you, it smelled amazing.  My food was set down in front of me, and I dug in immediately.  It also tasted amazing. This was truly the way to enjoy food in Belgium.  I was ecstatic.

After the delicious meal, my mum uttered the words I'd been itching to hear all day.  " Let's go look for chocolate."  Bruges, after all, was renowned for their chocolate.  My heart skipped a beat.  I leaped out of my chair and grabbed my bag.  My dad payed the cheque and we left to get chocolate.   Well, I skipped.

It was very hard to decide on the first store.  The cobbled streets seemed to have endless lots of chocolate stores!   Eventually, we just walked into the first store that captured our eyes.   We looked at all the delicacies. They were all handmade and very beautiful indeed, but, then again, when is chocolate not beautiful?  Never, that's right.  We bought a selection of chocolates there. We headed back to the street and walked into the next store.  We spent ages in there.  We eventually decided on the chocolates we wanted.  There were  pralines and ganachés, milks and darks, crèmes and whites, and not to mention the different shapes the chocolate came in.  We must have headed into about twenty stores by the time we reached Chocoholic, my favorite chocolate store that we went to.  Well, they were all my favourite, but Chocoholic just had a lot of pure awesomeness. I bought two chocolate sheep, and my mum bought more chocolate pieces.  I hadn't thought that was morally possible. I was having more fun than a kid locked in Disneyland overnight.

When we finally finished with all that chocolate, mmmm, yum, yum, we headed to the canals where we would take a half hour boat tour.  As we were waiting for the boat, we started munching on the chocolates.  They were absolutely scrumptious.  I was enjoying this. A lot.

The boat tour was very relaxing. With the occasional spray in my face, the boat tour was very informative.  The tour guide spoke four languages! Amazing.  We saw the little stone bridges, paved to perfection.  We saw the  medieval townhouses.  We saw the churches.  We saw Bruges.

After the boat tour, we headed to the  Notre Dame Church  of Bruges.  Notre Dame means old lady, so there are a lot of Notre Dames Church in Europe. We went inside and saw the grand gothic interior. There were majestic pillars and intricate statues. The tiled floor was decorated with various patterns. There was an underground tomb and  a canister with Phillip the Handsome's heart in it.   Eerie but interesting.

Finally, it was time to meet the tour guide again.  As we were waiting for everyone to come back to the meeting place, I saw a confectionary store.  I bounded in gleefully and bought some chocolate-covered waffles.  As the woman at the cash register processed my waffles, I inhaled deeply.  It smelled so good!  Like gummy bears mixed with chocolate.  Mmmm, delicious.  I headed back out with my purchase just as we were leaving.  This would be a day that I would never forget.







Market Square in Bruges


My Flemish style steak cooked medium to perfection


Chocolate store in Bruges


More Chocolate stores...


see how my chocolate collection is growing...

It all starts.

I was finally in Paris. We had stepped off the plane and caught a taxi to our hotel. The hotel was off the famous Champs Elysées. We  couldn't check in this early  so we dropped our bags at the hotel and went off to explore.


We decided that we wanted breakfast.  We walked up to the café and the waiter found us a table. I looked at the menu.  There was so much good food here!  Not that it surprised me all that much.  It was France after all. I finally decided on crepes with Nutella. I'd never had crepes before, but they looked absolutely divine. I ordered, and in no less than ten minutes, my families orders arrived. I spread the Nutella over my crepes and cut into it. I lifted the fork to my mouth and bit the crepe. Sweet, buttery and delicious. It was just heavenly! I savored the dish for as long as I could. It didn't last very long. Ten minutes and I had finished it. It was officially the best breakfast of my life.


After breakfast, we decided to walk the Champs Elysées. We stopped at different spots of Champs Elysées to take pictures.


The Champs Elysées was a very long and very beautiful road. There was lots of shopping to do too. There was a Louis Vuitton where we spent almost an hour in there shopping.  There was an Adidas store where I did many physical fitness assessments by their high tech computerized equipments.  There was Solaris where I bought a pair of sunglasses. Big, bright, and just very Parisian. There was also the Disney Store. There were just lots and lots of nice stores. The scenery was also very beautiful. I liked it a lot.


We reached the Arc de Triomphe. It was huge and majestic. It was ornately carved with many statues. We climbed to the top and took lots of pictures. After we had finished there, we started heading to the Eiffel Tower, the icon of Paris.


Just before the Eiffel tower was the Palais de Chaillot. We watched a busking show where a group of French men were breakdancing. It was really cool. There were flips and spins, and perfect synchronization. They were very good.


The word that came into my head when I saw the Eiffel tower was 'magnificent', even though I'd been there once before. It truly was. We headed towards it, bought our tickets and started the climb. There were lots and lots of steps, but I never got tired. Maybe it was the exhilaration of being in Paris. We reached the first level and took lots of pictures, read the signs and began the climb to the second floor. The second floor was even more amazing than the first. The view was breathtaking. We took even more pictures. I didn't actually think that that actually could've been possible. It was.


When we reached the top floor by elevator, well, I was flabbergasted. The whole of Paris was in view. I was lost for words. It was spectacular, although I  had seen it before. It was almost as if it was more beautiful this time. The look on my parents' faces told me that they felt the same way. It truly was a sight to be seen.


When we had finished with the Eiffel tower, we went on a cruise River Seine. We saw many sights and highlights of Paris. The Notré Dame, the Louvre, the bridges, the Musée d'Orsay just to name a few. I enjoyed it very much.


As we walked back to the hotel, we stopped at the Place de la Concorde. I was awed at the grandness of it. It was made up of two absolutely gorgeous fountain with intricate statues, and in between the two fountains was an obelisk, with delicate Egyptian carvings. The fountains had a beige encasing, and a majestic, green centerpiece rose out boldly from the centre.


Sitting on the centrepiece were nine statues. I think that one was Neptune, but I can't be sure. Also, around the beige encasing were four mermaids that spurted water gracefully into the centrepiece. I loved it. The obelisk also was very magnificent. It was beige with carvings on it, but the top was a gold that glinted brightly in the sun. Truly amazing.


Finally, we had finished, and the day was coming to a close. We walked to the hotel and checked in.  We settled into our room, and let the day end.

 Place De La Concorde 

 

 Paris Eiffel Tower

 

Arc De Triomphe

The Ocean Calls

I dived off the boat and felt the cool water hit my skin. I swam out, away from the boat, and saw movement in the still, azure water. The next moment, I saw three dorsal fins rise up  and they were coming towards me. And then, I saw the three of them perfectly. The three dolphins jumped up out of the water and started leaping through the air. It was the most beautiful and captivating thing I'd ever seen in my life. The dolphins disappeared under the water again. I wondered where they had gone. Then I felt something rubbery push my hand. I closed my hand around it, and then I was sailing through the sea with the dolphins.


"Excuse me?" the air hostee's silky voice woke me up from my dream. " Would you like to have your meal?" My eyes were still blurry and I was feeling groggy. "Yes, thanks."  I mumbled incoherently. I looked at my watch. It had been eight hours. Six to go. It hadn't felt like eight hours. I then realized that my watch was on Aussie time, not Malaysian time. So, eight hours to go before we land in Paris.  I pulled the table out and the beautiful, immaculate looking hostee placed a tray on it. Robotically, I started munching away at what should have been breakfast, but instead I get Chicken Cordon Bleu. It was actually quite good. Well, good for plane food. 


After I had finished my breakfast and the hostee cleared my table, I started reading on my iPad. It was a book called Linger, by Maggie Steifvater. It was about a werewolf who falls in love with a human, and the werewolf wants to become fully human. The book is able to make me feel all the emotions that the characters felt. It was really good. I started to get tired again after reading for  a while, so I decided to have a sleep. I reclined my chair fully into a flat bed, and settled back into the capsule.  I began to doze off, and I began where my dream left off. 

The Final Countdown

It was finally time. I put my bag into the boot of the taxi, and let the adrenaline rush through my veins. It was finally time.


Now I'm sitting on the plane, writing this, and wondering what will happen to me during my time in Europe.  No doubt, I'm psyched. I  have ways to keep myself entertained. Dad has spent ages loading movies onto the iPads, and he also downloaded some books for me. Of course, I also have my blog. I'm very comfortable, because my seat can  recline back to the stage where it is almost flat and it is in a capsule. I have a comfy blanket and I also have a pillow. Ah, this is the life...


Our stopover is Kuala Lumpur. We'll get out from the airport for a few hours with our relatives to celebrate mum's belated birthday at a restaurant and then we will continue our journey to Paris. We will hang out in Paris for four days, including a day-trip to the chocolate medieval town of Bruges, which will be a whole lot of fun. Yes, chocolates, chocolates and chocolates... The thought of all that chocolate makes me salivate already...


Why, you might ask, are we going to Paris? Well, you see, my mum absolutely adores the city of Paris. She reckons we should shake off the jet lag in Paris before we get into Italy.  After all, it has been 4 years since we last visited Paris. I do like Paris a lot.  In my memory, Paris is such a relaxed, calm and beautiful city.


After Paris, we go to Italy where we will explore city to city for six weeks. Italy, aaah, sweet Italy.  I can almost smell the freshly baked Pizza Margherita already. Of course, apart from eating lots of pizzas and gelatos, we will be doing lots of sightseeing especially those famous historical places and magnificent museums. And how can we miss shopping while in Italy? Finally, after Italy, we go back to Paris for another few days again before  we head back home. It will be a great trip, I know.


So, now you can probably see why I am so excited about this trip. I'm sure that you would be too. So, so long for now. I promise to give all you guys following my blog, a good, long and detailed description of my adventures in Europe.


I'll come back to you soon! Bye!

Snow Leopard

Cracks. I wanted cracks. I had contemplated how they would look. White base with black splotches to make white cracks. That would be great on my toes.


We walked into the salon and I inhaled deeply. I love the smell of these salons. So, clean. I walked up to the colour shelves and picked white and black for the style that I wanted.  I showed the beautician the colours and she led me to the massage chair where I would get the pedicure spa done. I was psyched.


After a long time of pure pampering, it was finally time to dry off. My nails looked fantastic. Like a snow leopard's fur. I was over the moon. Still am.


It took a long time to dry the nails. But 'The Renovators' was on, so it was quite an enjoyable period of time. Finally, the nails were dry enough, and it was time to go. I was elated with my nails. Just elated.

My Snow Leopard Feet!

The best ingredient

Sitting at the table, we had a lengthy and spirited debate about what we were going to do for Mum's birthday. I finally convinced Dad that, although he had made the booking six weeks in advance, we should cook a three-course meal for mum instead of going to The Press Club for dinner. And so, the executive decision was made. It would be a home cooked meal by Dad and I! : )

We spent ages poring over recipes, and finally, we came up with a menu.

Entrée: Donna Hay's panned seared Scallops with soft Toffee Apple salad.

Main Course: Jamie Oliver's Baked Chicken and Chorizo.

Dessert: Nigella Lawson's irresistible Self Saucing Flourless Chocolate Pudding.

 

It didn't take long for us to decide that dad would be the chef for entrée and I was to be in charge of the dessert. It would be a combined effort for the main course. We also agreed that we would get the ingredients a day before D day.

We must have spent a couple of hours in the supermarket and we still didn't have all the ingredients. We started wondering if we had set the standard too high... Luckily we managed to get the remaining ingredients in another supermarket.

Finally, it was Mum's birthday. We sang happy birthday in the morning and presented her our gifts. I wrote mum a poem and she absolutely loved it! I couldn't wait for the evening and I knew mum would be so surprised.

It was a race against the clock. My hands were stained as I rushed around the room. I yanked the drawer open and grabbed what I needed out of it. I dashed back to my station (yes, I have been a big fan of Masterchef and this is the lingo!) and started doing what I needed to. Then I heard the sound of feet padding down the stairs. Oh No! She was coming. Why hadn't I been faster? Well, we did agree for mum to come downstairs at 7 pm sharp. It was a terrible scene. Stains everywhere, faces splattered with various substances, and mum was going to see it all. Aaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh! But in hind sight, it was probably not a bad idea that mum saw it. That was The Effort of Love! Dad has never cooked before too.

Everything was nearly ready. Although the kitchen was not a pretty sight, the dining table was. We had put a white tablecloth with subtle embroidery over it, just so we could really get the feel of fine dining ambience. We put the forks, knives and spoons next to the perfectly gleaming plates, just how fine dining restaurants would set them out. Mum just couldn't believe how well we had transformed the dining area! I relaxed for a moment, and just stopped to admire the table. 

DING! The oven's bell abruptly ended my short reverie and pulled me back to reality. The first two courses were ready to be served, I put my pudding in the oven as it could be cooked while we enjoyed the first two courses. 

Everyone sat down for their first course.

"Mmmmm," mum said. "Well presented and absolutely divine! Just soooo Delicious" 

"Thanks honey." my dad replied with the proudest grin on his face. Dad was worried before that he couldn't pull the dish together. He did well! And it must have been yummy, because the dish went very quickly.

Next was the Chicken and Chorizo. We took the baking tray from the kitchen bench and put it on the table. Everyone took their turns in taking some of it. It was delicious. The chicken was very juicy, and the whole dish had a nice 'Zing' to it. "Mmmmm" was all anyone could say. 

Finally, it was my dish! The Self Saucing Flourless Chocolate Pudding served with Creamy Vanilla Ice Cream and Fresh Mixed Berries... I put a scoop of vanilla ice-cream and berries onto each plate. I served up, and prayed it was yummy. I cut into mine. It was gooey on the inside. Just as I had hoped. "Great job, Trin!" my mum said, with her mouth full. I was very proud. 

When we had finished up everything, mum said with a very big and bright smile, "Thanks guys. It was the best birthday meal ever!"

My face had an even bigger smile! 

So if you ask me now what's the best ingredient for any dish? The answer is Love.

My Self Saucing Flourless Chocolate Pudding

Me making the pudding

Pan seared scallop with soft toffee apple salad

Baked Chicken and Chorizo

The Beginning.

Well, here it is. My first blog!!  I am sooooo excited but mmm, how to start, where to start?? (think, think, think)

 I can't think of anything but Italy at the moment! I'm going to Italy in three and a half days, and I'm totally psyched about that. So, what am I looking forward to most in Italy?  Well dad and mum are going to hire a car and go city by city, town by town in Italy for 6 weeks. So, there's the Colosseum, then there's the Leaning Tower of Pisa, then there's the Duomo, Pompeii, Almafi Coast and, and, and, oh!! There's just so much to look forward to. In fact, there's nothing not to look forward to. I can imagine it all. The vibrant colours, the warm, delicious aroma of freshly baked pizza, the bustling streets, and I can even imagine the sun setting at night. Mmm, feeling like Julia Roberts in 'Eat Love Pray' already.  Yes, we are going to Naples too even though people tell us it is a bit of rough city.  I guess Naples is going to be a huge difference from Lake Como where we will stay for few days.  I wonder we will bump into George Clooney in Como... : )

I'm so excited about it that I've been finding it hard to sleep at night. At least I'll have lots of time to catch up with sleep on the long flight…. and it will all be while I'm dreaming of destination Italy! Italy's just got me daydreaming 24/7.

I have started packing too.  Something very rare in this household.  There was a trip when we went to Japan for holidays, mum started packing half an hour, yes half an hour before the taxi arrived to take us to the airport!! That's my mum for you.  I guess she traveled so much, especially with her work all those years that she had picked up the skill of super fast packing. Mum got me a new luggage and a matching back pack for this trip too.  My old one is a bit small now.  I will load some pictures in a few days time.

Till then!