Thursday - Vernazza to Milan

We spent the first half of today in Vernazza starting with a chilly breakfast on the deck ( I am wearing down).  We hadn't yet visited the Parish Church of Santa Margherita di Antiochia which goes back to the early 1300's so we took a look at it. It is a simple church set right on the tiny harbour with a bell tower that was part of Vernazza's defense system. We also peeked into a few shops selling local delicacies, such as ham, olive oil, and wines. We had our last meal in Vernazza at the Gianni Franzi Restaurant which belongs to the hotel we stayed in. Spaghetti with seafood - delicious! We travelled to Milan by train via Genoa and Pavia. Milan Centrale was jam packed so we were happy to escape to the serenity of our hotel, a stone's throw away, and watch the opening ceremony of Milan's 2015 Expo on TV with performers Diana Demrau, Andrea Bocelli, Marco Armiliato, Francesco Meli, Lang Lang and others with the La Scala Orchestra. We liked the tributes to Verdi, Puccini, and Rossini. The free nibblies at the hotel happy hour served as supper and the bar tender is trying to get us opera tickets for La Scala tomorrow night. I am thinking our stay in Milan is off to a great start!