Moma Rosa

An excellent choice of venue to celebrate the Big Fella's 60th.  Complimentary prosecco to get us in the mood. A couple of entrees including a tasting plate which turns out to be about four plates of tasty treats. Probably enough to sate our appetites but by now we are in celebration mode and they give us plenty of time to have the tucker settle before mains are served.

And what mains we enjoyed. Tony had the lamb chops, Eva had some spaghetti, Anne had sea bass and I enjoyed a nice piece of steak with little potatoes and some lices of fennel, zucchini and such.

Marina Bay Sands

After ascending 56 floors to take the view from the observation deck, we were exposed to the heat and the glare. Took dome shots and left before we expired.

Neither of us could see ourselves in the infinity pool.

Back on terra firma, we wandered around the shopping precinct and have settled down to a bagel with smoked salmon, a cup of English breakfast  and an iced coffee. $SGD 23.90.

All the name brands are here. Just a shame that there aren't too many shoppers.

In flight fun and games

Watched the Superman movie, Man of Steel, followed by World War Z, The Lone Ranger and then Heat with Sandra Bullock.

Needless to say, we didn't get a lot of sleep.

Big Booking Bugger Up

The penny dropped sometime after I read the flight details. It is not really possible to spend Friday night at the hotel in Singapore and be able to land at Tullamarine on 7:20AM Saturday morning. 

Milan: the grand tour

Tuesday 1st October

To celebrate Tony's birthday in style, we joined the tour bus to see the highlights of this magnificent city. So far we have seen the multiplex cinema (and a Turkish KFC store: KOC).

Leaves are dead or dieing on the trees in the park but the flowers are still in bloom.

Just passed the statue voted the ugliest in the city. No argument there. A tower block based on the Castle Sforcese wins ugliest building among countless contenders.

Passed the Duomo and La Scala (again) and journeyed down Via Manzoni which has the Milanese fashion houses.

Just swapped buses and heading towards Piazzale Cadorna. Location of 'Needle, thread and knot', a sculpture representing the importance of the fashion industry to the city.

Viewed remnants of the canal system that connected to the river. The city's port was the country's 13th most important during its heyday.

Got off the bus around one o'clock and wandered up Via Garibaldi looking for a place to have lunch. Struck gold.

Brunello Osteria

Tuesday 1st October

Well done, Tony! What a choice for your birthday lunch. No pizza on the menu tells you something. No shit food here.

Voted the best Ostaria in Milan/Italy/the world we are unsure, but certainly impressed by the big glass award that took pride of place next to the wine rack.

Took a punt on the Brunello lunch for €14. Certainly backed a winner. Spiral pasta in a simple leek, butter and pepper sauce. Chicken with walnuts and home made chips for mains. Tiramisu for dessert.  A glass of the Girlan 448 and Rosso e Montalcino. Complimentary grappa with our coffee.

Eva had a tuna salad and the Birthday Boy and Anne had spaghetti. All good.

We shared a plate of cheese and jam also.

Eva and I checked out bus departure times for Malpensa and then waddled home to rest up for dinner.

Ristorante Xier: Smorgy's for the Milanese

Monday night (30th Sept) and Tony turns 60 Aussie Time.

Opposite the three star Hotel Florida, Ristorante Xier aims to please all comers with its array of food on offer in this all-you-can-eat barn.

While it is billed as an Italian Chinese buffet, this overlooks the presence of the sushi train, the grilled beef section and the chocolate fountain.

Choose the ingredients, stick a peg with your table number on the side of the plate along with a colour-coded peg that indicates the sauce it is to be cooked in and hand it to one of the chefs. When cooked,  your meal will be hand delivered to the table.

At €20 per person,  this is very good value. Providing we don't get food poisoning.

The wine was also exceptional value at €4 per half litre. Not saying that it was vintage.  Just that it was cheap.