A rest day today so I again am in the chair. And luckily the weather dawned bright and warm. Our campsite is just a few miles to the west of Milan city centre and it was easy to go and return by a combination of bus, tram and metro. Our first stop en route was at the impressive towering San Siro football stadium, the home of both AC Milan and Inter Milan.

An opportunity not to be missed for the football-mad Bowers boys. And an even bigger treat was in store as we discovered that we could have a tour of the stadium. If you hate football please forgive the indulgence of the next few paragraphs. There is some amazing cultural heritage to follow soon  – promise.
In the stadium museum we could pose by the shirts of famous players past and present.

We could pretend to be players in the AC Milan changing room.

We could all imagine ourselves on the immaculate pitch.

I could play act at being a grumpy manager in the swish dug-out by the side of the pitch.

And then we could wander around the stands and see the hospitality boxes.

Having stowed away our football boots, we went hot foot to the Piazza del Duomo, the site of Milan’s amazing cathedral.

And a short walk away up some exquisite side streets we made it to the huge Castello Sforzesco  with the fabulous Sempione park behind it.

By now though the heat was getting to us and so we travelled back to our campsite to flop. Sometimes rest days can be more exhausting than actual ride days.