Double take

For a seasoned business traveller, a trip to Milan sounds fairly run-of-the-mill. But even in such apparently mundane surroundings, things have the capacity to make you do a double take. Walking into the Duomo, Milan's famous cathedral, on Sunday evening I was awestruck by the fervour of the worshippers. When the Cardinal was introduced, he was greeted not by the polite ripple of applause one might expect in such a venerable and tourist-friendly venue. Instead the congregation rose to their feet and proceeded to give him a 30 second standing ovation, complete with whooping and hollering and the waving of hymn sheets above their heads.
The second shock was one born of ignorance. Heading to a small village called Momo near Novara in Piedmont, I was amazed to see paddy fields and to learn that, along with wine, rice was the main agri-product of the region. The two combined to great effect in a delicious red wine risotto at Cascina Ciocchetta, the local restaurant where I ate lunch.