Porto Genova Antiques Market

Today, we woke up to a clear, sunny morning & decided to see if we could find the open air market at Porto Genova; all we knew is that is takes place the last Sunday of every month & there are lots of cool vintage clothes to be found.... After cappicino & getting directions from an English speaking Italian, we wandered through a few streets, turned the corner, & were greeted with this; hundreds of dealers lining both sides of the canal. Not only were there the dealers here, but on every side street, there were more to explore, plus all the specialty vintage shops & cafes in the area that were open :)

Although prices on a lot of things seemed high, I had a great time wandering through & looking at all the stuffs; there was everything: antique funiture, jewelry, vintage clothing, handmade items, books, dolls, and more.... It was cold, & there were tons of people, but it was a lot of fun :)

Alysa & Denise--another model, from Holland--were with me in the beginning, but I got sidetracked looking at all the cools stuffs & they wandered off on their own, which was ok. I rather enjoyed strolling through alone & looking & taking pics.

As usual, lots of dogs: I couldnt resist a quick snap of this large bassit hound in his green sweater :) Makes me laugh; too cute.

An amazing amount of antique chandeliers; I wish I could have brought a couple home to hang in my house! I settled instead for a nice selection of crystal pieces for jewelry making--enough to put together a nice collection of new pieces when I get back. I cant wait to play when I get home :) So far, thats all I have bought for souvineers (besides shoes) But, there is another market on Tuesday, so we shall see if I find any more treasures :)

Thats all for now. Alysa is off to castings again tomorrow, & I am going back to the computer repair shop to check up on progress. Looking forward to cappicino in the morning at our fav. little cafe around the corner....

Ciao!!

Views From my Evening Stroll....

Tonight I took a stroll around the neighborhood with the camera....about 4:30 in the afternoon. A bit early, according to the locals; they all take a stroll between 6 & 8: shopping, etc, waiting for the restaraunts to open up. The dinner places close around 4 & then open up again around 8-ish, so there is time to kill between end of work & dinner :) I am not used to the late dinner thing still, but I like the work schedule here; business starts around 10 am, long lunch break, & work ends around 6:30 pm.... Except the little coffee shops; they open early & many stay open late too, for a quick stop for coffee in the morning on the way to work, or a stop afterwork on the way home for a glass of wine & apetizers before dinner....Anyway, we begin the tour with the view from the front of our apartment; we are on the 4th floor, & I love looking out at the rooftops & little houses on top of the buildings every day...



This is the view from the stairwell, on the 2nd floor; we overlook a little courtyard. Notice the laundry? There are no dryers here; everyone hang drys. I have been scared to do this though, I keep imaginining my underwear falling from the 4th floor & landing on someone in the courtyard....

This is the entrance to our apartment building; the doors must be like 12 feet tall; all the buildings have them; cars can actually drive through to the courtyard inside. When they are closed & locked like this every night, you have to use a key to open a mini door within the big door...




And here we are, walking down the little street: this is my fav. street near our apt; it almost feels like an alley, but there are little shops & restaraunts all along it; lots of little tiny artist studios & design firms---makes me wish I could rent a little tiny studio with living quarters & set up shop while here....next trip, perhaps :)



A tower crane; there are tons of them all over the city; seems to be lots of construction going on....

This is one of those little artist studios; this lady does all sorts of funky jewelry & accessories; the space is tiny, as you can see, but it adds to the charm :)

Another lovely buiding & cool restaraunt that I wish I could afford to try :)

And this is the entrance to a really schwanky looking restaraunt/lounge. Love the lights & the wooden ceiling; the restaraunt is actually through the doors to the right; all decorated really cool like this; I stood there like a tourist gawking---peering through the windows & wishing husband was here to take me to dinner....

Another cute little street with all sorts of nifty shops; just at sunset...

Love this door....notice the mini door? So funny :)

And yet another cute little shop; I want one!! This one is only about the size of my office, but its sooo cool :)

And finally, back on the 4th floor of the apartment building :) This has been my favorite part of being here; actaully feeling like a local (sort of) & experiencing everyday life here. Love the tiny little grocery store around the corner with the owner who barely speaks English, but somehow reccomends the best wine, & the cute little coffe shop just down the street: same thing: locally owned by a very Italian guy who has only said one word of English so far... But after stopping in everyday, he makes my cappicino just the way I like it as soon as I walk in & smiles at my attempts to say things in his language :)

We are in a very non-touristy area & I like it; the people we see on the street are coming & going to work, school, business; living life. I am finding that I really like it here; I could picture living & working here.... perhaps someday.....

Little Old Ladies, Doggies, & a bit of sunshine :)

Finally got some sunshine today :) It was a beautiful morning: warmer than it has been :) Although, it got cold again & snowed tonight while we were wandering around getting lost, as usual :)
A few snaps this morning on the walk to the computer repair place; my laptop is still there; went in to check on it; they speak no English; had to call in a guy to translate for us..... Looks like it might be dead: I have the black screen of death; apparently pretty common with Windows vista...still working on it; any computer experts out there; send suggestions my way :)

This is the park that we walk by or through on the way to the agency; our apartment is on one end of the park, the agency on the other. It's nice; lots of doggies; there are lots of fenced off areas where people can come & let the dogs run around. Dogs are very well behaved here, btw: they all walk on the leash really well & rarely bark or jump on people. And most of them are wearing sweaters or some such cute doggy-clothing :) And, on that note; here is a lady with 2 doggies; a little old lady in a hat: there are a lot of them around here: its very cute....

And here is a sculpture in the middle of the park.

I am having a lovely time feeling like a local :) I stop in every morning at a little locally owned cafe for cappicino; the guy that owns the place is always there; from early morning until late evening; he speaks hardly any English, & did not seem to like us at first, but has warmed up to us over the last couple days. Will take pics tomorrow :)

ciao for now :)

Amber

McDonalds, Markets, Rooftops, & Haircuts

Yes, there are quite a few McDonalds in Milan....crazy, huh? And, I saw a small Burger King too! The McDonalds here are much fancier, though; this one had 3 stories, was very well decorated, & serves cappicino, cafe, & other selections you dont find in the US. We stopped in to warm up one day while at Centrale Station waiting for a friend to arrive by train :) This is the open air market that is really close to our apartment; one side has fresh produce, cheeses, & all kinds of wonderful looking food related stuff, and the other side is all about clothes: great deals on shoes, jeans, coats, etc---looking forward to going back on Saturday to really shop. We just happened to discover it while walking to the metro station on Tuesday; its open every Tuesday and Saturday; at St Agostino Station (encase you plan on visiting...)


Later on Tuesday, while Alysa was doing a photo shoot, I got to go back to Duomo Square & visit the Cathedral with an old friend: we walked inside the church; omg, its amazing! They do not allow photos, though, so no pics from that....Aftewards, we walked around outside & found the elevator to the roof; you can pay 8 euro to get a lift to the top; so far, the best money I have spent! It was sooooo cool; very high up & amazing views of the city.It was soooo cold, but so worth it; we spent over an hour, wandering about & taking photos.... It was a bit scary, to be honest; there is one spot where you have to walk up a narrow staircase and can look down over the edge; I was hanging onto the railing for dear life!The building is amazingly huge & beautiful; the rooftop was the highlight of the trip so far :)


And, finally, here is Alysa at a very fancy salon in downtown; the agency asked her to go: her haircut was kinda messed up, so they felt she would do better with a new cut. It looks sooo much better, & she seems to have a whole new outlook, along with the new haircut :)

Thats it for now; internet access is still sketchy; the service we have is really weird; and very hard to figure out when everyone at the store speaks Italian... So, we shall see how that goes; I am off to the Wind store again tomorrow, and hopefull will be able to pick up my computer from the repair shop; alive or dead....good thing Alysa got the Netbook right before we left... The computer is just one more thing to add to the list of things going wrong: along with flight delays, lost bags, dead blow dryers, & weird internet service.... But, I am still having a great time, & enjoying being here; everyone has been so friendly & welcoming, even if they dont speak english at all :)

Ciao for now....

Duomo Square

Today, we had a bit more time: only one casting, & we decided to go the Duomo square; to see the cathedral, & also looking for a shop that sells good boots for a good price... We didnt' find the shop, but check out the pics... This is the glass covered galleria; just off the square where the
church is; lots of restarants & fancy designer shopping....

And, Alysa feeding the pidgeons; thats a whole storey in itself :)

This is the underground train; we took it to a casting way out in the industrial section of town.
This type of thing is mostly what we have seen so far; lots of subway stations....

And here is Alysa & Anna after the casting; walking back to the train station, with treasures in hand :)

More later....

Amber

The Agency...

And now, for a tour of the agency Alysa is working with here in Milano.....
Here she is, entering the courtyard where the agency is located. It's about 3 blocks from our apartment; just across the park & around the corner....

This is what you see as you turn the corner; the agency is in the basement; on the left, there is a little room with a couple computers for the models (and tag along chaperones) to use: on the right, you go down a staircase & see this: A cool desk that changes colors....although, I have never seen anyone sitting at this desk; I think it's just for looks :)

This is the hallway just beyond the desk; the doors to the left lead to a big room where all the bookers & model scouts have their desks; & farther down the hall is a small changing room, photography studio, the finacial office, & the president's office. The whole place has a nice vibe; energetic; there is always good music playing. All the people we have met so far seem very nice & willing to help out in any way to make Alysa & me both feel welcome & comfortable--so far, I have been really impressed & pleased with the way they handle business....

And here is Alysa doing a small photoshoot with Luca; the scout that invited her to come over to Milan. Luca has been our main contact in getting this whole thing set up, & he's been so helpful & accomodating:he has done so much to help Alysa get going & continues to make sure we are both doing ok.

Everyone I have talked to at this agency seem to be very gracious & welcoming; they have not once made me feel like I should not be there with Alysa; that has been nice.

Well, thats it for now; more to come later; we got to see Duomo square today; will post pics tomorrow :)

Amber

Welcome to our little home in Milano...

Wow, its been quite the week!! We have been running since we got here; lots of castings, lots of going to the agency, lots of running around Milano on the metro, trains, & busses; just catching glimpses of the city as we rush by, hurrying to the next location (usually late :) I am finally up and running with the internet service at the apartment, & seem to have fixed the bug on my computer (its been one thing after another on this trip). Really, mostly I have seen subway stations so far, but have taken a few photos: I thought I would start catching everyone up with a tour of where we are staying :)

This is walking down the street, near the apartment: we are really close to a park; lots of people are always there walking their dogs; most of the dogs wear sweaters or other cute outfits here...

This is the little alley where the entrance to the apartment is: its on the right; where the arch is. All the buildings have this big entrace door; like 12 feet tall: open during the day; you walk through to a courtyard area, & then enter into the buildings. At night the big doors are closed & locked & there is a mini-door that you access with a key; I have to duck to go though: like a hobbit door :)
This is what we see when walking through the main door; or the little door at night: we have a key to access the courtyard, & another key to access another little gate on the right; this leads to the stairs & elevator (we are lucky enough to have one). Our place is on the 4th floor...
And, this is the view from the stairwell or elevator on the 4th floor. Our apartment is to the right...

--this is my fav. part; here is Alysa walking down the little narrow sidewalk: the window right in front of her is our place :) The apartment itself is smallish, although bigger than a lot I looked at; we have a kitchen/living room & a bedroom. Its pretty basic; decorated with Ikea furniture, and tile flooring throughout. The last guests left us a few bottles of wine (which I happen to be enjoying right now), lots of rugs, & an odd assortment of italian plug-in power strip things--very handy, since there arent very many plug-ins.

More to come....will post some pics of the agency later. We are getting a bit more settled: figuring out the metro & buses, & how to order in the little cafes: I am finding that I like the really strong cappicinos with no sugar; wakes me up in the morning :) Picking up bits & pieces of Italian; they seem much more welcoming when I try to make an effort to speak the language; even though they are probably just laughing at me, lol.... Looking forward to having some time to slow down & really look around....

Ciao for now...

amber