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Venice and the Doge’s Palace
After breakfast, we checked out of the Excelsior Hotel Gallia and traveled to Venice. After dropping off our bags at the Hyatt Centric, we took a vaporetto via the east side of Venice and visited the Doge’s Palace before walking around the city and having dinner and gelato.
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Duomo di Milano and More
After breakfast at the Excelsior Hotel Gallia, we visited the interior of the Duomo and its museum. We had lunch, visited the Basilica di San Lorenzo Maggiore, and walked through the exterior of the Castello Sforzesco before dinner.
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Milan’s Historic Center
After breakfast at the Hampton Locarno, we took the train to Milan and checked in to the Excelsior Hotel Gallia, next to Milano Centrale. We walked through the historic city center, seeing the Piazza del Duomo, Basilica di Santa Maria delle Grazie, and Basilica di Sant’Ambrogio.
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Lugano and the Two Mountains
After breakfast at the Hampton Locarno, we headed over to Lugano where we visited two mountains, Monte Brè and Monte San Salvatore. We spent most of the day there, returning to Locarno in the evening for dinner and a walk around town.
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The Fortress of Bellinzona
After breakfast at the Hampton Locarno, we took the train over to Bellinzona where we visited the three castles that comprise the city’s UNESCO listed fortress and walked through the historic city. Afterwards, we returned to Locarno where we visited the lakefront area and had an excellent dinner.
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Locarno and Cardada
After flying to ZRH from IAD on United, we took the train to Locarno and took a funicular, aerial tram, and chairlift up to to the top of Cardada. After enjoying the peak, we descended, visiting the Sacro Monte della Madonna del Sasso on the way. We checked in at the Hampton by Hilton Locarno before visiting the waterfront area of Ascona.
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A Warm Afternoon at the Meadowlark Botanical Gardens
We visited the Meadowlark Botanical Gardens in Northern Virginia this afternoon. As usual, we saw many beautiful flowers as well as a variety of birds. The highlights of this visit were seeing an Osprey catch a fish as well as spotting Baltimore Orioles.
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Leaving Athens
After a late breakfast at the Grande Bretagne, we went for a quick walk around the Akadimia district to the northwest of the hotel before checking out. We took the Metro to ATH where we departed on United in the afternoon for EWR.
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The Acropolis Museum
After breakfast at the Grande Bretagne, we visited the Acropolis Museum where we spent the entire morning. After lunch nearby, we visited the Areopagus, the hill closest to the Acropolis. We then walked back to the Grande Bretagne where we had dinner at GB Roof Garden.
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Mediterranean Easter Sunday
Today is Easter Sunday! Most things are closed, including museums and historic sites. So, after breakfast at the Grande Bretagne, we went to the beach near Piraeus to touch the Mediterranean for the first time. After walking around a bit, we returned and had roasted lamb, a traditional Easter meal in Greece, at The Greco’s Project.
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Here and there but not quite everywhere!