Milan
Italy has been frustrating so far. I flew in from Lisbon last night and arrived around 11:30pm. the hotel i booked was nearby but the hotel shuttle wasn't running anymore at that time. since it was late and my options were limited, i decided to take a cab. for literally a 5 minute cab ride, i was charged 20 euros! i couldn't believe it and i told the cab driver to wait while i went inside the hotel to ask if the price was reasonable. apparently, unfortunately, it was correct. in Milan at the airport, the drivers can sometimes wait hours for a customer and the minimum fare is 20 euros. what the hell? the shuttle, had it been operating, would've been 3. =( also, the hotel i booked was the priciest place i'll be staying at throughout the trip, essentially because it was close to the airport and i was arriving so late in Milan. in addition, the front desk requested that i show my passport, which they KEEP until the next morning. after being ripped off for the cab ride and then having them ask for my passport, i was appalled. if the receptionist didn't show me the other passports he had, i think i would've walked outta there. that is because of security purposes and some new law i'm told.
furthermore, the smell of cigarettes was so strong in the room i could't really sleep. it's hard to sleep when you can't breathe clean air!!! to add insult to injury, i wake up early to catch the 7:30 hotel shuttle to the airport so i can get to the Milan central train station to catch my 9:05am train to Venice. but the train from the airport (took 50 minutes!) doesn't go directly to central station so i need to transfer to the metro afterwards. (i opted out of the bus from the airport directly to the central station because i was warned that would take longer because of the morning commute). so i finally get to the train station, buy my ticket, only to MISS the damn train by two minutes! ugh. the next one is two hours later - so i wandered outside and found this internet cafe.
i'm spending so much $ and wasting time for a detour from Milan to Venice. had i known earlier, i would've paid more to fly straight to Venice. =( hopefully, this info is of use to someone who travels to Milan in the future.
ok, enough venting. i just hope the rest of Italy makes the unfortuitous beginning worthwhile...
furthermore, the smell of cigarettes was so strong in the room i could't really sleep. it's hard to sleep when you can't breathe clean air!!! to add insult to injury, i wake up early to catch the 7:30 hotel shuttle to the airport so i can get to the Milan central train station to catch my 9:05am train to Venice. but the train from the airport (took 50 minutes!) doesn't go directly to central station so i need to transfer to the metro afterwards. (i opted out of the bus from the airport directly to the central station because i was warned that would take longer because of the morning commute). so i finally get to the train station, buy my ticket, only to MISS the damn train by two minutes! ugh. the next one is two hours later - so i wandered outside and found this internet cafe.
i'm spending so much $ and wasting time for a detour from Milan to Venice. had i known earlier, i would've paid more to fly straight to Venice. =( hopefully, this info is of use to someone who travels to Milan in the future.
ok, enough venting. i just hope the rest of Italy makes the unfortuitous beginning worthwhile...
