


We had arrived in the old part of Milan the previous day and decided to take a look around.
Google maps I am sure is a great navigation tool in accomplished hands.
I am loathe to admit that navigation is not my strong suit, however surprisingly The Bride let me take the lead.
Out the door we go!
Go right.
Now left.
All going well until google indicates we are heading in wrong direction.
We backtrack and recalibrate with a new heading.
After several recalibrations we arrive at cafe which I had been seeking.
We had excellent coffee and croissants served by a charming waitress this would set the standard for our tour coffee and croissant daily.
During our stop start journey The Bride had spotted the dome of the Duomo nearby.
The Duomo was to be our cultural target for the next day of Last Lap Tour.
With limited local knowledge but armed with my slightly successful foray with Google maps I plotted our route to The Duomo.
Tomorrow arrived we were up early and headed for new favourite cafe for a light breakfast.
Whilst having a coffee I rechecked Mr Google.
We exit cafe The Bride heads right.
No it’s left I say.
It’s this way I saw it yesterday.
Nah it’s left the maps are saying.
MAXX!
As the atmosphere had become a little heated very quickly I make the decision
to give Google the RS.
We head right and arrive at the Piazza in front of the Duomo shortly afterwards.
And Wow what a fabulous Piazza it is!
Galleria Vittorio Emanuel 11 to the left and Duomo dead ahead.
Fighting both kamikaze pigeons as well as tourists doing weird poses for selfies we eventually were able to cross Piazza and enter the Galleria

One thing we noticed on tour that in general the Italians do not seem fazed at all by the spectre of skin cancer. Walking about in the hot sunshine no hats or sunblock to be seen.
They are, in general, wearing light clothing with barely a tattoo in sight.
Overall a much more attractive look I think.
I think being sunsmart is wise however when you go to a local Aussie beach and see the kiddies completely covered in rashies caps and sunblock factor 60 i am thinking this cant be much fun.
Back in the glory days in the bustling regional city of Bunbury things were different indeed.
All that was required was a towel, bathers and a set of thongs.
In and out of the Indian Ocean all day until you were a red as a cooked lobster. I just thought we did not even take any water for the day- wonder how today's frequent sippers would have gotten on}
Head home on bike to get then recommended skin salve of white vinegar.
(standard vinegar in this case as white wine vinegar was to arrive several decades later along with sunblock)
A few days later skin would fall off in sheets.
Next weekend back to the beach to continue building a suntan.
Inside the cathederal it is massive, mind blowing in every way.
You could easily fit a soccer pitch inside although the massive columns would be a problem.

It only took 600 odd years to build must have been one of Niche Livings earlier projects!
What struck us both was right in the middle of all this opulence was a tiny box where the churchgoers could donate to the poor. I guess this was only allowed if you had any loose change after shelling out most of your hard earned to the Church.
The Duomo has a capacity of 40000 which to put in perspective is more people than a Fremantle Dockers home crowd.
Max On Tour
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