Milan Day 2
We were up at the crack of dawn Wednesday hoping to catch Leo's Last Supper. Unfortunately, we were not able to get in. Oh well, I guess we'll just need to come back to Milan. Darn!!
We rode the packed subway back two stops to the Duomo (cathedral). It is the 4th largest in Europe after London, the Vatican and Seville. The interior of the Duomo is awesome, in the truest sense of the word. The large columns are the size of giant redwood trees! The stained glass is brilliant! The mosaic floor stunning. I'm running out of superlatives and haven't described the paintings, ornaments or carvings yet.
As impressive as the inside is, it is nothing compared to the outside! The cathedral was built over 400+ years, from 1386-1810. It is Gothic architecture-very intricate-and almost more gaudy than Gaudi's cathedral in Barcelona. Actually, after having seen Gaudi's cathedral still under construction, it gave us a great sense of the work involved.
Unlike other cathedrals we've visited, we were able to climb to the rooftop. (We could have taken the lift but chose to climb. Justifying more gelato later!). Not only did we have a spectacular view of Milan, but we could see the flying buttresses, gargoles, hidden staircases, etc. that aren't visible from the ground. Oh, and I forgot to mention that it's made from pink marble which has just been cleaned. Magnificant does not do it justice. We spent a couple of hours on the roof alone and took lots of pictures.
We had intended to visit the Duomo museum, but it is closed for renovation. Instead we stopped at McCafe (yes, owned by McDonalds) for a capuccino. Starbucks look out! Great cappuccino at half the price. Then we strolled through the 5 story upscale arcade with the glass dome to the opera house plaza with the statue of Leonardo. We decided to walk the 2 or so miles back to our hotel. It started with window shopping through Milan's version of Rodeo Drive-Versace, Gucci, etc. On the fringes we got to our kind of stores, but didn't really see anything unique. Milan has great shoes, but they seem very expensive. The cheapest are about 40 Euros or $55 for very casual shoes.
We successfully navigated the ticket window at the train station. With an hour to wait we bought some foccacia and enjoyed an impromptu picnic. We boarded the 2:00 train for the Cinque Terre. I was going to tell you about that part of our trip, but am too tired from a day of hiking the coast trail. Guess you'll have to tune in tomorrow.
Hope you are all well.
Ciao,Barb
We rode the packed subway back two stops to the Duomo (cathedral). It is the 4th largest in Europe after London, the Vatican and Seville. The interior of the Duomo is awesome, in the truest sense of the word. The large columns are the size of giant redwood trees! The stained glass is brilliant! The mosaic floor stunning. I'm running out of superlatives and haven't described the paintings, ornaments or carvings yet.
As impressive as the inside is, it is nothing compared to the outside! The cathedral was built over 400+ years, from 1386-1810. It is Gothic architecture-very intricate-and almost more gaudy than Gaudi's cathedral in Barcelona. Actually, after having seen Gaudi's cathedral still under construction, it gave us a great sense of the work involved.
Unlike other cathedrals we've visited, we were able to climb to the rooftop. (We could have taken the lift but chose to climb. Justifying more gelato later!). Not only did we have a spectacular view of Milan, but we could see the flying buttresses, gargoles, hidden staircases, etc. that aren't visible from the ground. Oh, and I forgot to mention that it's made from pink marble which has just been cleaned. Magnificant does not do it justice. We spent a couple of hours on the roof alone and took lots of pictures.
We had intended to visit the Duomo museum, but it is closed for renovation. Instead we stopped at McCafe (yes, owned by McDonalds) for a capuccino. Starbucks look out! Great cappuccino at half the price. Then we strolled through the 5 story upscale arcade with the glass dome to the opera house plaza with the statue of Leonardo. We decided to walk the 2 or so miles back to our hotel. It started with window shopping through Milan's version of Rodeo Drive-Versace, Gucci, etc. On the fringes we got to our kind of stores, but didn't really see anything unique. Milan has great shoes, but they seem very expensive. The cheapest are about 40 Euros or $55 for very casual shoes.
We successfully navigated the ticket window at the train station. With an hour to wait we bought some foccacia and enjoyed an impromptu picnic. We boarded the 2:00 train for the Cinque Terre. I was going to tell you about that part of our trip, but am too tired from a day of hiking the coast trail. Guess you'll have to tune in tomorrow.
Hope you are all well.
Ciao,Barb
posted by Barb Ardell at 4:28 PM
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