Arrivederci, Milano!

I opened my shutters at daybreak to enjoy the last lingering view of the Duomo.  I doubt I'll ever have this view again although I hope I return to Milan.  There was endless fascination in the play of light across the facade--rose in early morning to golden in the afternoon.  But next time if I want to experience it I'll be down in the piazza with the rest of the tourists.
Let me sum up if I can.  Spring was a great time to come.  The weather was terrific!  I spent most of  my days under serene, blue Canaletto skies.  Ironically the only gloomy days were the ones when I left the city.  In the summer Italy tends to be steamy.
The Milanese mostly wait for the green crossing signal before crossing the street in contrast to the constant and cheerful jaywalking of London and Paris.  I still don't know how the woman manage to walk in those shoes what with the cobbles and tram rails and all.
This year was the 150th anniversary of Italy's uniting as a nation, so their tricolor red, white, and green was much in evidence.
Milan is an easy city for tourists with most sites concentrated in the historic center.  I walked most places and didn't get lost too often and never seriously.  The place is remarkably flat for easy roaming.  The metro is easy to use as well.  If I were going to stay longer I'd try out the trams.  Milan makes a great base for exploring the surrounding area although I did not get to do enough of this.
The food is good, which one does expect in Italy, but I really enjoyed trying the hearty Lombard specialties.
Italy (or at least Lombardy) has a greater proportion of Really Good Looking Men than any place I have ever been, and I include Southern California.  Honestly some of these guys look like movie stars and no one seems to notice them.  Obviously this subject needs further research.
But beware the young man lurking at tourist sites handing out "friendship" bracelets.  The friendship will cost you.
A tradition which I had not mentioned earlier is to go to the Galleria Vittorio Emmanuele and find mosaic bull representing Tuscany.  Milan's symbol is a red cross on white and is much in evidence, but the story is that if a visitor grinds a heel on the bull's--er--parts, said visitor will have good luck.  This might be simply a jab by the Lombardians at the Tuscans, but you will always find a crowd there and the "parts" have long been worn away.  Yes, I ground my heel along with the rest, but the real luck in the first place was getting to come to and get to know Milano.

The Ghost of a Masterpiece

Disclaimer:  I am no longer in Milan but I wrote the posts each day.  Feel free to ask questions and comment as if I were still in Italy.

Even damaged as it is Leonardo's Last Supper is astoundingly beautiful and compelling.  Seeing it was heart breaking.  Although I have seen it in reproduction over and over, when I looked up at the refectory wall at Santa Maria delle Grazie I nearly burst into tears.
Open another tab and look up the Mona Lisa.  You can probably find it on google images.  Go ahead.  I'll wait.  (hums)
So you found it?  Note the gentle changes of light and shade that create such a naturalistic image and the wonderful expression.  Do you see the color?  The detail?  The subtlety?  That's Leonardo, and no one--ever--EVER--has done it better.  Soak in its beauty.
Now search the Last Supper.  Imagine it the way Leonardo conceived--executed like the Mona Lisa with all its detail with that wonderful chiaroscuro.   He did not use the usual buon or wet fresco technique because that would have meant rapid painting and no revision.  He wanted to contemplate, edit, smooth, and create an unprecedented depth of expression.  So he used tempura on the wall, but within a few years the work began to flake.
The richness of the color and most of the detail he painted is gone and gone forever.  Nevertheless, the power is still there to see.  "One of you will betray me," the statement from the central figure of Christ ripples out.  The apostles are grouped symmetrically in four groups of three each and two groups on each side.  Each man has his own individual reaction of astonishment, bewilderment, despair.  Philip is the best preserved, his hands poignantly gesturing towards his breast with the question burning eleven of the twelve's mind.  "Is it I, Lord?  Is it I?"  Only Judas--his face in darkness and his hand clutching the bag holding the thirty pieces of silver--knows the truth.
One of the things that struck me seeing it in person was the beauty and harmony of the colors even as faded as they are. So when you come and see it--and you MUST!--you will see a wonderful work full of psychological depth, emotion and beauty most of all, but it will be a mere ghost of the artist's intention.
Each session is limited to twenty people, and we had to pass through a series of air locks.  Visits last fifteen minutes, and the time passed quickly.  I had a hard time tearing my eyes away.
And by the way . . . Please do not bother me with the Da Vinci Code.  Yes, John is beardless and swooning.  It is a convention of representation.  It's the apostle John.  Seriously.  Not anyone else.
And I discovered that if you weren't able to reserve a viewing, there is a scalper on site.  I don't know how much she charges but she does offer a last chance for those not able to reserve.
I spent the rest of the day wandering around looking for chances to stop merely licking windows and buy some things.  I returned to Amorino for my favorite flavors:  Amarena, Nicciola, and some chocolate from Ecuador that was So Good it nearly Killed Me.
For dinner I had some salad and some pasta with herbs washed down with the last of the Lambrusco.
Ciao!

Bergamo

Disclaimer:  I am no longer in Milan, but I wrote the posts every day I was there.  Feel free to comment and ask questions just as if I were still in Italy.

Buon giorno
First dinner.  I had some pizzoccheri, and I think it was my favorite meal of all.  Pizzoccheri is another Lombard specialty and is a sort of buckwheat fettuccine only the noodles are short.  You can't go wrong with anything drenched in cheese and butter.
So I spent the afternoon in Bergamo which is a little over an hour train ride from Milan.  When I said I was coming here, a friend who had been said "Don't miss Bergamo!"  And I am so glad I did not!
Unfortunately I did not have enough time there.  For one thing I had to wait in line about forty minutes at the ticket office thus missing the train I'd hoped to take.  Only one window was open and the line snaked on forever.  A few of the Italians were furious, and we were all impatient.  Then a wait for the next train, and then the ride with many, many stops.  But I enjoy train rides taking the opportunity to snoop at all the buildings, backyards, and whatever within the reach of my eyes as we roll along.
So we fetched up at the train station and I hopped out, bought a ticket, and boarded the bus to the upper city.  You see Bergamo comes in two parts.  The lower city is beautiful, and what I saw of it was grand.  It is also where the real people life takes place.  The historic center is up a steep and narrow winding road.  The thrill of riding a bus squeezing through the low, narrow stone arch of the old city walls has to be experienced to be believed.
The upper city is compact and steep and also extraordinarily beautiful.  There are museums, but the real sight is the city itself.  Towers soar.  Stone arches lead to passages and piazzas.  You will feel the rough cobbling beneath your shoes.  Such places tend to be very touristy and Bergamo is, but I assure you none of the charm is diminished.  Every other shop seemed to sell pastry.  I had gelato.  The flavors of the day were:  Baccio which is hazelnut and chocolate and pistaccio,  I spent happy hours wandering around.  I did also go to museums.  In one I found a Portrait of a Man that several experts believe portrays Cesare Borgia.  I climbed up to one of the castles.  Alas it was a rather misty day, so the view over the lower city and the countryside was not as glorious as it could be.
But, Pil, you have just one more day in Milan and have not mentioned the most famous sight of all!  What about the Last Supper?
I see it tomorrow morning, and I'll want to focus on it so let's get the business aspect of it out of the way right now.  When folks tell you to reserve early--Reserve Early.  Seriously! I waited until the weekend before I left figuring, Oh its a low season. I'll get in.  Well, I very nearly didn't!  Tomorrow which is the day before I leave was the first open reservation, and I tell you, getting to see the Last Supper is almost as hard as getting an invite to the Royal Wedding.  I had to register at the site, and provide my age and passport number.  I had to print out the "ticket" and need to bring it and my passport with me.  The only other way to get in is to sign up for an expensive tour of the city, which a lot of folks might find very worthwhile.  So forewarned is forearmed.  If you are going to be here in summer, you need to reserve MONTHS ahead. Just saying.

Out of Town

Disclaimer:  I am no longer in Milan but wrote the posts daily while I was there.  Please feel free to comment or ask questions as if I were still in Italy.

Buon giorno,
The weather turned yesterday, and it rained over night and was cold and cloudy this morning.  In other words, it was not a great  day to go north.  But museums are closed Monday, and my time here is growing so short.  I took the train to Lago di Como.
First of all at some point Italy switched over to daylight savings time.  Fortunately I noticed the discrepancy between my watch and public clocks, or catching trains and my plane home would have become problematical.
I strolled down to the train station and bought my ticket and hopped aboard.  The trip took about an hour.  At first we crossed the Lombard Plain created by the mighty river Po.  Then almost imperceptibly we began to climb.  The landscape began to change.  Hills and stands of conifers appeared.  The hills grew steeper and higher, and then we began to descend toward the lake.  Como Town dates back to Roman times and now is a very pretty place to visit.  In fact if one were sufficiently rich it would be a good place to indulge some lakeside dolce vita.  The truth is that all the luxe action is further north at Bellagio, a place that I (alas!) have no time to visit this trip.
I had gelato, of course.  The place I stopped at had a flavor called Giotto.  How could I resist?  Giotto proved to be some hazelnut vanilla.  Very tasty.  My other flavors were cinnamon and walnut, and both were sublime.   The sky was over cast and the temperatures chilly, but I enjoyed walking around the town and took a long walk along the lake.  I marveled at the steep sided hills and the houses perched on them.  Then back home to Milan.
Hey, Pil, what about risotto Milanese?  I'm not having any this trip, but I have made it several times, and I enjoy it.  What makes the risotto "Milanese" is a pinch of saffron.  If you don't have any make risotto anyway.  I don't have a lot of patience for painful "authenticity" where the story is you can't make the whatever without unobtainable ingredients.  In fact the Real Deal includes quite a bit of butter, beef stock, and some of the veal bone marrow from the Osso Bucco that the risotto traditionally accompanies.
Ergh!
 Yes.  Still you MUST use short grained rice.  Arborio is the Italian variety, but you can find California grown short grained rice for less money in most grocery stores.  Using mixes is wimping out because making it from scratch is just as easy.   I am sure you can find the proportions of ingredients on line or in one of your cookbooks, but the important think to remember is that risotto takes a hot more liquid than the usual two to one proportion.  Heat some olive oil (butter is more authentically Lombardian) in a pan and add a tablespoon or two of finely chopped shallot or mild onion.  Add and toast the rice grains (in olive oil if you don't want butter because no one will know the difference!). Then add a little white wine or vermouth and stir until it evaporates.  Now you have a choice.  You can add hot stock (I use chicken) with saffron bit by bit and stand there stirring as the rice absorbs the liquid and then add more, which I have done.  Or you can dump everything into a slow cooker for an hour and a half.   I understand you can also cook risotto in the microwave, but I have never tried it.  Look it up on line if you are interested.
The rice will be gooey and creamy looking.  The grains should be cooked through and tender.  At this point the Milanese would add more butter and grated Parmesan.  Skip the butter.  Parmesan is sufficient.  Or mix in whatever you like. Eat with a fork right away.  I like this with Prosecco, but probably red wine is more traditional.
What did you have for dinner tonight?
I had some olives, salad, some proschiutto cotta, and some indifferent canneloni.  I tried Lambrusco which is a red slightly sparking wine.  It was ok.  I am not sure it's meant to be drunk with dinner though.
Ciao

A Slowish Sunday

Disclaimer:  I am no longer in Milan but I wrote the posts each day when I was there.  Feel free to comment and ask questions as if I were still in Italy.

Buon giorno
I got a late start because I needed to wash my hair, and I came back earlyish because the weather has turned a bit, and it was chilly, but I got my legs stretched.
I strolled down Via Alessandro Manzoni. Before we reach our destination let us speak of Manzoni because I downloaded his classic novel Il Promessi Sposi or The Betrothed for us English speakers onto my kindle because I wanted to gain some insight into the Lombard character. There's a reason you have never heard of it. It's not that it's a bad book, but it is a very old fashioned one, full of author's asides, digressions into history, pages of elaborate description and much tell without showing. Think of an Italian Sir Walter Scott. But the book has had a profound effect on Italian culture. For one thing eating polenta became not just the respectable but the patriotic thing to do.
Ah here we are the Villa Poldi Pezzoli one of those grand urban palaces belonging to another of Milan's avid collectors. Unfortunately this one was bombed in 1943--uh--probably by us. After all we also took out Monte Cassino. Anyway much of the original furnishings were destroyed, but donations of art and objects have turned the museum into a worthwhile destination.  The building is just beautiful and the exhibits well done.  As I enjoy seeing how the other less than one percent live, this was one of my favorite places to visit.
And I just happened to be back in the neighborhood of Amorino.  The street is narrow and lined with shops and eating places on the ground floor but the buildings are very pretty in different earthy and pastel colors with wrought iron balconies, painted shutters, and roof top gardens.  Today's flavors were Amarena (yes, I know but I get extra cherries) Marron Glace or candied chestnuts--nutty wonderfulness, and last but not least my favorite Nocciola or hazelnut served with actual hazelnuts.
I also paid off my cosmic travelers karma to folks who helped me because a couple came in and sat at the tables not knowing they had to place an order at the counter.
On my way to the next stop I took the opportunity to stroll through the Castello Sforzesco again.  I visited the Palazzo d' Arte.  Aren't you tired of art, Pil?  This museum holds Modern Art, so it was something different. The most interesting thing was a Very Contemporary--think references to Wikileaks--exhibit of graphic art.
Then home via Billa, the supermarket fortunately open Sunday afternoons.  I'm getting bold.  I got some salad fixings and some vinegar and a small bot of olive oil.  I may try actual cooking in a day or so rather than boiling fresh pasta or microwaving something.
Today's excursion into into Milanese Culture:  Il aperitivo.  This is both a drink and a social event, and if you visit Milan you can buy a few drinks and take advantage of the free happy hour buffet.
What should I order, Pil?
Whatever you like, I suppose.  To be Italian you could try a sparkling wine.  Make it Prosecco.
Or to be classically Milanese try a Campari and something.  Now I happen to like it with soda, and I have no idea if one fourth Campari and three fourths soda is correct, but that's what I do.  Campari is also an ingredient in a Negroni along with gin and some other stuff.  You can look it up on the internet.  You may also have your Negroni Sbagliato or incorrect if you mix it with a sparking wine (use Prosecco!)
Doesn't Campari taste like cough syrup?
No.  Some people don't like it.  It tastes of bitter herbs, but I happen to enjoy it.
 Doesn't it get its color from bugs?
Er.  Cochineal is widely used as a colorant.  Don't let it bug (heh heh) you.
Yeah.  Any alternatives? You could try Zucca, which is a rhubarb liquor.  If you go to Galleria Vittorio Emmanuale II you can go to Zucca Bar and try it, but stand at the counter.  I got mine at Billa.  My bottle says you can have with with soda or some orange juice as far as I can tell as the label is in Italian.  The latter sounds kinda icky to me.  The stuff looks like Dr. Pepper but smells like vegetables.  It has is a definite smoky taste and is a little sweet.  It's not bad, but I am actually relieved that I don't like it a lot because I don't think it's found outside Milan.
Ciao!

Not All Who Wander Are Lost Part II

Disclaimer:  I am no longer in Milan, but I wrote the posts day by day when I was there.  Feel free to comment and ask questions just as if I were still in Italy

Buon giorno!
I had a somewhat frustrating day. It is wonderful to be in Milan, but when I went to visit the old Roman Amphitheatre and museum I could see something was there but found no way in. Then I faced a series of locked up churches.
So I went walking--much more amusing to do than to read about. The historic center is full of beautiful buildings for those who like architecture mostly late Baroque and nineteenth century. I saw tourists taking pictures of banks and department stores! I just wandered around saying, "Hmm looks interesting over there," and ended up off map with no idea where I was. When this occurs one can go back or keep walking forward. I did the latter and got in a good leg stretch. I actually ended up in a real people neighborhood and had a good look around before returning to the historic center.
For my fellow window lickers: Milan presents unparalleled opportunities to slurp. Name any luxury brand you like, and you will find multiple outlets here in Italy's--Europe's--the Galaxy's--capital of fashion. Bags are the big thing among the ladies of Milan. I have never seen so much Gucci in my life.  I have posted a picture of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele which is the mother lode of style.
I returned to Brea and Amorino for my gelato fix, and I may indeed return tomorrow. I enjoyed Amarena with lots of cherries, dark chocolate (oh so rich!) and creme caramel (to die for!)
One thing I have noticed is that the folks here walk around very wrapped up. Most people seem to be wearing heavy jackets. I feared being cold but I am just fine with a sweater, and sometimes I even take it off, but let's talk about FOOD and DRINK.
Pasta, Pil? Yes. I have been eating pasta because it's easiest to boil or microwave, but as the Tuscans were stigmatized as bean eaters by the other Italians, the Lombardians were scorned as eaters of Polenta.  And by the way you can forget about the Mediterranean Diet here. It's all about butter and cream in the Northern Italian traditional dishes. Polenta made with cornmeal, which you can buy in a grocery store. You need not fall for fancy imported stuff. If you don't fancy standing at the stove stirring for an hour, you can make a big batch in the slow cooker. Or for a small batch, do what I do. Cook it in the microwave. The proportion is one part polenta to three parts water. Stir to remove lumps. In a microwave safe container with a lid, cook on high three minutes. Stir well because there will be more lumps. Cook on high for two to three more minutes.
Ok, Pil. I have a bowl of polenta. Now what? Well, it's bland by itself. Add some salt and use it as a base for a highly sauced stew or chili. Or dump in a lot of grated Parmesan and some red chile flakes. When it's dried you can slice it, fry it up and put stuff on it.
What's to drink? Well, I shelled out for a bottle of the local sparkling wine called Franciacorta. And . . . well . . . I didn't like it that much. I'll wait while you pick yourself off the floor. It's not bad. I like Prosecco better, which is probably more of a tribute to my plebeian taste than anything else.
Ciao!

Not All Who Wander Are Lost . . .

Disclaimer:  I am no longer in Milan but I wrote the posts day by day when I was there.  Feel free to comment and ask questions just as if I were still in Italy.

Buon giorno!
Not all who wander are lost . . . But quite a few of us are!
This was not entirely my fault. The guidebook called the museum by one name, but the city of Milan called it something else entirely, so I walked past my destination twice and ended up making a big circle around to end up where I started.
And molto grazie to the kind woman walking her dog in the Giardini Publica.  She spoke no English but understood the word toilet and pointed me in the right direction.
So after much walking, asking a policeman for directions, walking etc.  I approached the building from the other side.  The architectural style was the period I was looking for--late eighteenth, so I determined to go in anyway.  Milan calls this the Museum of Modern Art, and I guess if your history goes back to before the Roman Empire, you can call paintings of the Renaissance modern.  The range goes up to the nineteenth century, but the building most elegant and more interesting than the paintings and sculptures.
My next stop was the Pinoteca Brea for some more art, but before I went in I had some gelato.  Indeed strolling down a charming cobbled street I encountered an old friend--Amorino.  If I patronize a place that uses a putto as its symbol you know the gelato has to be superlative.  I had Amarena, which is vanilla and cherries, Mandorga, which is almond, and a rich, dark chocolate.
Then on to the Pinoteca Brea.  The museum holds Milan's premier collection including the Dead Christ by Mantenga and Carravaggio's Supper At Emmaeus among other delights.  I especially enjoyed some light-filled views of Venice by the great Canaletto.
When I decided to come here and began my research, I soon discovered the Milanese were deeply style conscious, which anyone who has seen me knows I am not.  But I decided to dress in black to fit in and always to appear to know where I was going even if I didn't.  This worked.  In fact it worked too well because Italians kept asking me for directions.
The Museo Bagatti Valsecchi an attempt to recreate the Renaissance by two old money Milensi and proved marvelous place to visit, but I don't see how anyone could actually live there. The place is a expert mixture of genuine Renaissance furniture an art and some carefully contrived reproductions. Many of the objects were repurposed.  For example the relief from an altarpiece became a head board. One of the most delightful finds were some tiny chairs, a child's toilet, and a round wooden walker for a toddler.
I have been moved out of the big suite into a smaller one.  Marco told me this would happen when I checked in.  I still have the superlative view, but this time the (somewhat smaller)  bathroom is done up in green marble with bluish veins.  There's a giant tub with a jacuzzi--and a bidet, of course.
For dinner I had canneloni with spinach and ricotta cooked in the microwave.   It's just like home.  You can pick up ready-made dinners at the grocery.
Ciao!

A Castle and Great Masters

Disclaimer:  I am no longer in Milan, but I wrote the posts day by day when I was there.  Feel free to comment and ask questions just as if I were still in Italy.
Buon giorno!
Florence has Michelangelo, Rome claims Raphael, but Milan is emphatically the city of Leonardo. He spent much of his long life here, and his years in Milan were among his most productive. Leonardo advertised himself to the Duke of Milan as a military engineer, but the works of his I saw today were from his sideline--art
I was afraid I'd be cold, but so far the weather here has been better than at home. I strolled down to the Castello Sforzesco which holds several highly worthwhile museums. The castle despite its ominous appearance is a lot of fun. Milan holding such a strategic location has been successfully defended and overrun times beyond count, so the fortress was not just for show. Built of deep red brick, it is surrounded by a deep defensive ditch and high thick walls. At one point it was redesigned to resist artillery. Once inside the mood changes, and one passes through a series of colonnaded court yards.
The chapels and hall have long been stripped of their furnishings, but several worthwhile museums have replaced those.
The castle holds a few carefully guarded treasures. Look up in Sala delle Asse to see a ceiling fresco of a botanical fantasy designed and some say painted by Leonardo himself. In the Gallery of Antique Art stands Michelangelo's last work, the deeply moving Rondanini Pieta. Because it remained unfinished the statue has a curiously modern air. Some of the carving is still crude and the sculptor's marks are still clearly visible. Michelangelo liked to edit as he carved as his vision of the image trapped in the marble became clearer in his mind. In this case he lacked the space to achieve what he wanted and the figures are damaged. Nevertheless, the work is powerful and unmistakably his.
To accompany the statue are some of Michelangelo's drawings on display including several of the Crucifixion that he made for friends to use as devotional objects.
The castle also holds a wonderful exhibit of furniture from the Renaissance to the Early Twentieth Century. I also visited the painting gallery and was puzzled by one of the works. The Virgin looks like she smells something bad and Baby Jesus looks like he's about to barf.  Eh?
Behind the Castle is the Park Sempione, a pleasant place to stroll.  My gelato for the day was chocolate, but it was disappointing.  It was not bad, but it lacked the depth and richness I've come to expect.
Then I walked down to St. Ambroglio. St. Ambrose was one of the leading men of his generation during the fourth century, and must have been a truly remarkable individual.  He was proclaimed Bishop of Milan and had the prestige to bring even emperors to heel.
I could have walked home but I decided to take the metro to try out transferring to another line.  The metro in Milan is easy to use and I think less bewildering for a first time visitor than the London Underground or the Paris Metro.
When I got home I tried Bresaola, a Lombard specially of dried beef in thin slices eaten as an antipasto. Another Lombard treat is rich, creamy Taleggio, a white cheese something like Monterey Jack only soft and with addictive qualities.
Ciao!

A Day in Milan

Disclaimer:  I am no longer in Milan but I wrote the posts day by day when I was there.  Feel free to comment and ask questions as if I were still in Italy.
Buon giorno!
It's so nice to be able to have an excuse for my usual bumbling around. It's the jet lag, I murmur. Take last night. It took me ten minutes to figure out how to flush the toilet. Then I turned the tap on and waited in vain for the water to get hot. "Pil, you dope! You're in Italy. C doesn't mean cold. It means Caldo. Turn that one." And I couldn't get the TV to work. It's not incompetence--it's jet lag!
So I am rattling around with lots of space containing a high tech HD flat screen with satellite TV hence my inability to make it work without much experiment.
This morning, after admiring how beautiful the Duomo looked in the morning light, I popped in my contact lenses and went out to get breakfast and something for dinner.
I was out before the grocery store opened, but I found a bakery and devoured a butter laden cornetto.  It was good and fresh from the oven.  A cornetto is an Italian croissant.
I strolled around until the Billa on Via Torino opened. The problem with Milan as with all European cities is that people smoke on the street, especially if they are on their way to work.  I'm guessing they are no longer allowed to puff in the work place, so they are getting their last fix.
At the grocery store, I got some pretty good bread, some Gorgonzola which is not only one of the local cheeses, but its own metro stop, a pumpkin filled ravioli, which is another specialty of the region, a bottle of red wine, and oh yeah some Campari.  Because I happen to like it with sparkling water, that's why.
Carrying the groceries home took longer than it should because I turned the wrong way on via Torino coming out of the store and took the opposite direction to the one I should have taken. Say it with me, "Jet Lag!" What a great excuse!
Then it was time to explore. I strolled around. The old covered market square is right behind my passage. I was enchanted to find atms for banks that are foreign partners with my bank. The savings on atm fees can be put toward more cheese and Campari.
I mostly spent the day exploring, figuring I couldn't get too lost. I went to The Pinoteca Ambrosiana for the art, but the building is fun, too,  The museum holds some nice Titians and Bottecellis.  But the real gem of the collection was the huge cartoon Raphael made for his wonderful fresco called The School of Athens. The preparatory drawing omits two of the most famous figures in the finished work: Raphael's own self portrait amongst the Aristotelians and his portrayal of a brooding Michelangelo on the Platonic side. Some pages from one of Leonardo's notebooks called the Codex Atlanticus were on display in the historic library. Picture a beautiful vaulted room with walls of books and that inticing old paper smell and then getting to look at Leonardo da Vinci drawings.
I then made my way to the Palazzo Reale just off the Piazza del Duomo where a special exhibition on Impressionists was on offer. I have never heard of the Clark Institute or Collection but Mr. and Mrs. Clark certainly had an eye for nice works. They loved Renoir best, so he is most in evidence, but all the major Impressionists were represented including Berthe Morisot.  I especially enjoyed the lovely Pizzaros.
By that time I had worked up an appetite--for GELATO. What else? I had hazelnut and coconut and both were divine. Then I visited the Duomo. The general impression is of massive grandeur, but it does not seem like a typical Gothic interior as the vertical thrust is balanced, and the nave and aisles are so beautifully proportioned that one is not overwhelmed or bewildered. It is, by the way, a living church. Tourists are adjured to dress properly and keep silent as there are always worshipers there.  Security is ever present as well.  A Carbinieri officer wanded my purse as I went in. The picture is of the high altar.
Let's talk about dinner.  I happen to like blue cheese, so I enjoyed the Gorgonzola, creamy and just a bit sharp.   The pumpkin stuffed ravioli was good.  The filling was slightly on the sweet side.  I had some Nevola, a red wine, to wash it down with.
Ciao!

Volare!

Disclaimer:  I am no longer in Milan, but I wrote the posts day by day when I was there.  Feel free to comment and ask questions just as if I were still in Italy.
Buon giorno!
When I emerged from the metro nothing prepared me for the splendor of the Duomo gleaming in the fading light of day.  I'd seen pictures of Milan Cathedral and frankly turned my nose up at them.  Spiky.  I said.  Gunky.  But in person . . . Magnificent!
When I announced my destination to my friends nearly everyone looked puzzled and said, Milan? What's there--I mean besides food, Pil?  Because Florence and Rome are the big tourist draws in Italy and for good reason.  Many Italians themselves sneer or shrug at Milan and the Lombardians.  Not really Italian, they sniff.  Germanic.  Well, yeah.  The Lombards were Germans, and Milan still has a hard nosed business image.  But art and history abound--not to mention the food.  I know because of the extensive research I did, reading guide books while sipping Campari and soda.
I flew through London, and on the approach to Heathrow catching a glimpse of the London Eye I wished with a pang that I was stopping there because it is familiar.  After the layover we had a short hop across Europe including a brilliant flight over the Alps with glittering snow on the mountain tops  and glimpses of the deep valleys where rivers ran through small villages.  Although my trip went very smoothly the problem with travel is that after a long (nearly twenty hours from door to door), disorienting, and exhausting trip one must cope with a strange city that uses another language.
My first Italian lesson came at the Milan Malpensa Airport. The helpful local drifting up to the ticket machine to help is looking for money. I got in line at the ticket office instead.
The ride into Milan from the airport is not scenic, but I can tell you that Lombardy is not entirely recovered from winter. Some trees show leaves and blossoms, but most are bare. The sun was going down and it turned chilly. I was able to figure out the ticket machines at the metro office myself. Somehow it becomes easier when one of the language options is English.
A couple of days before I left I received an email from the manager of the apartments that they were switching me to another building and giving me an upgrade. Please be advised that my living arrangement is no where near that of the typical budget-minded traveler. The place was easy to find being right on Piazza del Duomo. The manager came to meet me and show me around the place.  I am in a suite really made for four people.  The furniture is red velvet and gilt.  There's a high def flat screen TV with dvd.  The bathroom is the size of my bedroom at home.  It has french doors and is done up in peachy pink marble with blue-gray veins.  It contains not just two sinks, but a big tub--the kind with claw feet, a shower, and a bidet.  Bidets--I do understand that's not what they are really for--are great for soaking aching feet after slogging around a city.  The outstanding feature of the room, however, is a view of the cathedral and the plaza which alone is worth a hundred euros a night.  It's the best in the city.  Yes.  That photo of the Duomo was taken from my window!
Then I was excited to be here, and went out although it was getting dark to get a panini for dinner. Lots of people were around, and I felt quite safe.
Ciao