San Jose & Santa Cruz, CA

I've had a chance to do a little bit of exploring the last couple weekends, one trip to San Jose for errands, shopping, and most importantly, lunch on a patio in the sun in April. And one Sunday day-trip to Santa Cruz. I'd never been here before, so I started with lunch on the "south" side of town, at the Crow's Nest, then walked my way all up in SC proper. It def has a great beach town vibe, pretty big pier to walk, and crowds to navigate (especially if you drive into the heart of downtown).

Overall, they were both enjoyable, but having ways to avoid traffic would be ideal., IMO.

SJ

SC

 Very tasty, but you do pay for the view in the price of the food and drinks, fair.

There's also a reason to remind Midwestern visitors about sunscreen. It'll bite you later in the day if you forget to apply it out here, without a doubt.

Buongiorno from Specialized-Italy! Milan, Italy

I wanted to highlight some of the nicest historical & current bikes, and the office overall in Italy. It's all pretty much pictures. If you can identify the bikes, you're a bike nerd. I'll try to make this follow - current bikes, historical bikes, current parts, historical parts...

That's it for the bike nerds.

Italy + Random = Awesome, Milan, Italy

Simply some of the oddities of Italy/Milan. This group includes images of cars, wallpaper press dies, and other random items...

 They love their entryways.

You MUST try Limoncello when in Italy.

Il Massimo del Gelato, Milan, Italy

As a dessert on top of this Milan coverage, I give you, gelato!! And Mama Mia!!! THIS is THE place in Milan, possibly all of Italy for gelato.

I believe there name could have two meanings:
1. The owner's name.
2. Massimo also seems to translate to "maximum" or "highest", which I'd say is fitting here.

Tucked down a quiet street in the northwest side of town, it's an amazing place to taste and try all the gelato flavors you've never thought you could have:

Pera / Pear
Giandua / Nutella
Stracciatella / Chocolate Chip
Fleur di Latte / Flower of Milk
Mango
Pistacchio
Chocolate-Rum (Jamaican)
Spicy Chocolate (Azteco)
and so many more.

Just look...

I was only able to hit this place up three times during the week-long trip. Partly due to finding it late, and partly due to not planning properly. I would have gone everyday if I could have, and tried new flavors each day... still, I did alright...

Azteco (Spicy) Chocolate & Pistacchio

Straciatella & Giandua

Selfless selfie with my gelato "dealer" (she mans their register)...

I must also point out, like a Classic American, I went into this gelateria and placed my order without having Euros on me. Bonehead. I asked this nice older lady (mostly with visuals), "Can I use credit card?" No. "Can I use American dollars?" No. So, they actually let me take the first taste of their gelato without paying for it and told me to pay them the next time I came in. I went back the next day before dinner with some Euros and paid them. How about that though?!

And finally...

 Pera Williams / Cannella (Cinnamon)