Star Date – October 25, 2023 – in this alternate universe I’m writing about months later. (Well, it is based on a contemporaneous travel diary.) And to make it even more surreal I’m actually typing this into my phone en route from Morocco to Orlando – which shall be the subject of another post entirely. And, it’s finally getting published months after that, but these are mysteries of time and space into which I shall not delve.
But back to the “present.” We arose early and niece F drove us to the Gare Nice Ville. Although our train tickets to Milan, supposedly safely housed on our phones, didn’t scan, we managed to find an “assistance booth” that let us through the turnstile (with lots of shouting on both ends of the intercom as we tried to communicate). The train was extremely crowded until we reached Monaco, where practically everyone got off. The train passes along a spectacular coastline, although we did spend much of the time worrying about missing our change of trains in Ventimiglia. But when we arrived, the Milan train was right there waiting for us, we were able to locate our carriage and seats, and it continued by the coast and through numerous tunnels until we reached Milan.
We arrived at Milano Centrale – the station was built in 1931 by the Fascist government. It’s huge and imposing and designed to make the individual recognize his or her own insignificance when faced with the grandiose power of the state…we found the metro and exited at the Missori stop. There’s a complicated roundabout and we circumnavigated it a few times before we figured out exactly where we should be going.
We managed to make our way to the corner of the street where our Airbnb was located – there we met up with possibly the most unusual Airbnb proprietor and Airbnb of any of our European travels. Let’s just say a five star rating was paramount for him. The location was unbelievable. We were just off one of the main streets and very close to the Duomo. You enter through a huge gate/door which leads to a quite beautiful courtyard. Parts of the building are allegedly built in the 15th century by Donato Bramante (and I have no reason to doubt that) but certainly there are lots of additions. The building itself is a mix of apartments and commercial ventures, including goldsmiths, one of which was located right by our studio apartment. You could hear human noise from the other apartments but absolutely no sounds from the street.
The place itself was genuinely weird. The shower was on the same level as the bathroom floor so toilet paper had to be removed before turning it on. A bit like a primitive camper. There was a tiny cooking area and there was no way I would have risked lighting the gas stove. The furniture was very old (or antique, however you want to describe it), and clocks with time zones from around the world adorned the walls.
After we had settled in, we walked to the Duomo. It is magnificent- over the top Gothic architecture- but it is self funded and according to our tour guide, not supported by the Vatican. To raise money they project ads on the backside of the building itself. It’s a bit disconcerting. We also strolled through the 19th century galleria – anchored by a huge crystal dome and home to the original Prada.
We had negronis at a cafe by the Duomo and then decided to try Rossini’s, the restaurant right next to the Airbnb, which turned out to be quite good. I had a very unusual beet risotto with cheese and cherry juice – J stuck with spaghetti with clams. And, our Airbnb host, good to his word, said we would get a discount and we did.
The next day we’d arranged for a city tour, on the theory we only had one full day in Milan. Of course, this entailed another trip back to the Duomo, but this time we actually went inside. It’s built from pink/beige marble that has been beautifully cleaned and was 600 years in the making. In the ceiling, there’s supposedly a relic from the cross of the crucifixion and each year the Archbishop of Milan ascends in a cloud type contraption to the roof, presumably to visit it. Interestingly, Milan itself dates back to the Celts (at least according to the proprietor of our AirBnB).
The walking tour continued on to the Castle, which has been both a residence and military enclave. Security was extremely high.
Our final stop was the friary where DaVinci’s Last Supper resides in what was the refectory. You pass through an airlock chamber to view it and only a few people are allowed in at a time. It is remarkable. The table is a continuation of the room and places you in the scene in a three dimensional way that I had heard about but never experienced. And the 20 year restoration that started in 1999 brings the color and realism to life.
After the tour ended, we walked through the very nice Brera area and past La Scala – where unfortunately there was no performance (tickets were unbelievably expensive anyway) and the museum was closed. But we found a nice local lunch place , not far from the famous “finger” sculpture and then I indulged all my cheap shopping desires at an enormous Primark.
After a brief rest, we walked to the Navigli area, the location of the last canals in Milan – it used to have many. Google maps took us through a not very safe looking way (empty dark parks, etc) so we found an alternate route back. But what a scene in the Navigli. Restaurants and bars everywhere offering all you can ear aperitivo – apparently Milan invented happy hour. Despite this, we found a relatively sedate restaurant where I had a traditional Milanese risotto (Arborio rice, saffron and cheese) and good wine from the Piedmont. I had to buy a cheap and not good umbrella from a street vendor since it was raining and mine was somewhere in France. J managed to find a craft beer place on the way back which ameliorated some of the rain.
Next day we packed up and I made a final Primark run for 6 euro wool berets. Perfect for Florida! Made our way to the train station where we had to wait a long time for our platform to be announced. Crazy Wi-Fi – it’s free but you can’t get the required code unless you already have internet!
Next stop – Venice.
FromSwamptoSummit 