The flight out of Newark New Jersey was a trip to remember. As I had never flown out of the country prior to Italy, it was interesting to see how the airline accommodated for a longer flight. Our Plus3 group was provided with snacks, meals, dessert, and a bountiful amount of movies to pick from. After 2 movies and a few hours of sleep, we bumpily descended into Milan, Italy.

While traveling to the hotel, we were able to see the cultural and architectural features of Milan. I was surprised to see a more modern style of buildings than I had expected. The city’s ability to incorporate lush vegetation like trees and flowers into the General infrastructure which created a much more natural and immersive atmosphere. After dropping our luggage off at the quant, hotel Sempione, we walked to the nearby delicatessens for lunch. Much like the contemporary style of Milan, I wasn’t expecting the dining experience to be nearly as long as it was. In addition, the appetizer plates, entree, and dessert large portion sizes took me by surprise in that our table had plentiful food to go around. By the time we finished our entire group was exhausted from the flight and our extravagant meal, so we decided to rest back at the hotel. After regaining our energy, we decided to go out and look for some dinner.

Going off the advice from our tour guide Luca, we decided to visit a local Pizza place, L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele. Despite there being rumors that Italian pizza wasn’t comparable to pizza from places like New York, the fresh ingredients and meticulous cooking made it a true Italian experience. After dinner, we explored the streets of Milan in order to scope out other points of interest for later this week. We were able to find gelato, pizzarias, and shopping areas that will surely keep us occupied for the rest of the week.