By the time you read this week's column, I will, hopefully, be in Milan. I haven't been abroad for the best part of two months now, so the Ayatollah and I are on the road again to pastures new.

The plan was to go via Lingfield Park and Loftus Road, where my referee friend was in charge of the Fulham v Everton FA Cup replay, yesterday, before flying off from Stansted today.

Mind you, I had a similar sort of plan on the way to Hamburg before Christmas and that ended abruptly in a lay-by near Newbury.

We are on a two-legged tour, so to speak, as we are also going to Copenhagen when we fly back from Milan next Tuesday.

That could be the tricky bit. We are scheduled to arrive back from Milan at 4.30pm on Tuesday afternoon, before leaving for Denmark at 6.20pm, less than two hours later. I have this fear that I could be spending Tuesday night at Stansted airport if the Milan flight is delayed in anyway.

Let's hope most of the world's terrorists are on holiday next week as well.

I have been to Milan once before, but only to the railway station during my first ever trip abroad at the tender age of 16. I was on a school trip to Rome, by train, and all I remember is that on the journey from Milan to Rome we were talking to some Italian soldiers who were drinking a local brew called "grappa".

It was Italian firewater; a fruit-based spirit that blew your socks off. Being young and adventurous, a long word for stupid, the young impressionable English boys couldn't refuse the brew when it was offered to them by the grinning soldiers. There was a long queue for the toilets as the train rattled down through Italy.

We will be watching Milan v Perugia in the San Siro on Sunday as well as going trotting racing on Saturday.

Milan, of course, is one of the cultural centres of Europe, (why else would I go there?), the highlight of which is "Il Doumo" the cathedral, a gothic marvel, I'm told.

It has 135 spires and took the best part of 500 years to complete. Add to this, La Scala which is one of the most famed opera houses in the world, and the Da Vinci Science museum, which boasts 40,000 square metres of space with 15,000 objects including a reconstructed Art Nouveau train station, whatever that is, and once again I will have culture coming out of my ears.

Moreover, when we tire of all the culture, Milan is of course a centre of high fashion, famous for its designer shops and boutiques. I've even bought a new pair of trainers so I don't feel left out.

Copenhagen has a reputation for being expensive, so drinking could be off the list, but a visit to the Tivoli Gardens is a must, as is the Round Tower, the city's best lookout point and Europe's oldest observatory.

Some quick tips before I go. Barnsley, Bristol City and Luton will all win on Saturday and either Davis Love or Mike Weir will win the Pebble Beach Pro-Am.

Meanwhile, Petrulla can win at Wetherby on Saturday and Merchant's Friend has a chance at Sandown.

All being well, I will be coming live from Milan next week.