Thanks to all who helped me plan my trip. I couldn't have done it without you and I would have missed so much!!!
I landed at Malpensa/Milan at 11 am. This has got to be the most remote airport from a small city. And the train to Milan doesn't even go to the Central Station. First mistake. I took the Metro (hotel's directions), so I had to change metro lines. Second mistake. The metro with luggage is a bear, two and three flights of stairs, NO down escalators, few up ones. Otherwise the metro is super, easy and fast. But with luggage I should have taken a tram or bus. BTW I never found out if the metro passes were also good on the trams/buses.
My last night was also in Milan. Being tired-er and smarter, I took a taxi from the central station to the hotel and back to the central station the next afternoon. I then took the bus from there to Malpensa airport. It was cheaper (7 euro) than the train, right outside the station (so no walking for miles with luggage after leaving the cab), and I didn't have to get the the OTHER train station. The buses seem to run more frequently and don't take any longer when you factor in the walking thru stations to get to the train platforms.
Oddly, hardly anyone in Milan at the tourist sights speaks English. The French and German visitors I met were equally frustrated by this. I had better luck getting directions in English from Italians on the street! This seems to be strictly a Milanese "weakness." Everywhere else, English was universally spoken.