It’s no secret that many of us live for the weekend – whether it’s spending the day on the sofa watching Netflix or heading out for a jam-packed day with friends. Earlier this month, however, I decided to do something a little extreme – spending a day in one of Italy’s most popular cities and making it back home to Britain again in a matter of hours.
I had already been to this destination before and vowed to myself that I would visit again during the spring or summer. Of course, I kept my promise, but this time, instead of spending three nights, I, alongside my family, decided to spend a day there. At half 7 in the morning, we boarded a plane from Stansted Airport to the beautiful city of Milan, arriving at Milan Bergamo Airport around 10.25am local time. As soon as we stepped off the plane, we were met with a wave of heat that brought so much excitement. We then paid 80 euros for four return coach tickets from the airport to Milano Centrale station to begin our day trip adventure.
The journey took around 45 minutes, which was ideal for me to get some more sleep, as I was still recovering from waking up at 3am to prepare for the day. Once we arrived at the railway station, we hopped on the M3 metro line straight to Duomo station.
Now, Italians have got many things right, from the fashion down to the food. However, one thing not spoken enough about is how cheap their metro is. According to my online banking, I only spent 4.40 euros (£3.72) travelling to and from Duomo. It could be down to the fact that it’s only four stops on the line, but I still think it’s an absolute steal.
It seemed as though travelling to Duomo was on everyone’s agenda for the day, as the quick journey was made up of a super busy train, and when we got to Milan’s renowned Cathedral, well, you can just say that the whole area was packed!
The paths were filled with people taking photos – me being one of them. After a quick look around, we made our way to the country’s oldest active shopping arcade, Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II.
The shopping spot was even more packed, with more selfie-taking visitors. We didn’t spend too long in there, as our main quest was to find somewhere nice to eat. The queues stretched for what looked like miles at some of the food spots, which I’m not surprised about because, as said, Italians know exactly what they are doing when it comes to food.
We took a few detours, including watching street performers and popping into a few shops, before finding a lovely restaurant called Caffe Dante. The service, the food, everything was 10/10, especially the incredible tiramisu.
At this point, we only had a few hours before it was time to head back to the airport for our 8:45pm flight home. I can confidently say the day was an absolute success despite being absolutely shattered by the end of it.
Day trips abroad are the perfect way to take a quick, well-deserved break from life’s routine without taking too much time out, and I feel as though they might become a new hobby of mine.
However, the next time I decide to visit Milan or any other famed city for the day, I’d try to visit on a weekday instead of a weekend in hopes that it will be less busy and easier to navigate.
