Trip to Milan, Italy Day 3
The interior of the Milan Cathedral, or Duomo de Milano. Nobody spends 600 years building a structure anymore, but they really should.
It is Monday morning in Milan. What a great and busy weekend! The guys are working so I can do whatever I want today. In my happy space. Bob leaves for his meetings so I get myself together and head down to the piazza at the hotel which will be my office for the morning. I will do a blog entry and then head out to do some exploring. There is a large da Vinci museum in town but being Monday, most of the museums are closed. So I think I will go to the Milan Cathedral and climb on it and in it. And then go buy that purse I was looking at yesterday. Yes, I am gonna shop. It will take all of 5 minutes, which I will endure.
My "office" for the day. Working on the piazza at the Mandarin Oriental, Milan, Italy.
The breakfast buffet at the Mandarin is lovely. I am seated in the back of the piazza by a jasmine plant that smells heavenly. Breakfast is a small plate of fruit, meat, cheese and bread plus a latte and fresh squeezed orange juice. Gotta tuck into my writing. It takes time. Probably 5 hours or more for an average post, as I edit, and edit, and edit. Photos call to me. Others lie flat. I hope to tell you the most entertaining and informative story I have to give. With links to more info. Anyway, here is a slideshow of the buffet, which is amazing. The cakey things look delicious, but I do not go there.
The piazza and the breakfast buffet, where I will spend some quality time this morning.
It is almost 1:00pm when I go to the duomo, but since I now know it is 7 minutes by foot, I am ok! I head up to a vantage point where I get a good view. It is called the Duomo 21 Terrace, where they serve lunch, dinner and snacks. I am in snack mode, so I get a table on the deck overlooking the piazza and the cathedral. Once done, it is time to get a ticket to the Milan Cathedral. You can walk the exterior terraces, the roof, and then descend into the main cathedral.
The view from the Duomo 21 Terrace. What a vantage point!
I purchase a "Fast Track" ticket that allows you to use a separate (shorter) line, take a lift to the exterior terrace level of the cathedral, walk up to the roof, then again take the lift down into the interior of the church. Up we go. I am now at the terrace level. The detail of the structure is mind-blowing, and the views are spectacular. Again, another slide show, we'll let the pictures do the talking.
The exterior of the Duomo di Milano. Construction started in 1386 and was completed in 1965, some 600 years later.
A little on the Duomo di Milano - it is the largest church in Italy (St. Peter's is larger, but it resides in Vatican City.), and the third largest church in the world. Construction began in 1386 and was completed in 1964. It is built of brick with Italian marble overlays. As one can expect, construction never really ends on a building like this as one can tell from the scaffolding on certain sections. Maintenance and cleaning are an ongoing and never-ending effort. After examining the intricate detail on the exterior, I descend the lift for the interior of the church. Here's another slideshow for you.
The stunning interior of the Duomo di Milano. The massive stone columns measure at least 10' in diameter.
The cathedral tour has been nothing short of spectacular. Clicking on any of the links above will provide you with more detail of the construction and patronage of the Duomo di Milano.
It is hot today, and all this climbing about has me a little parched. What I REALLY want is some gelato. The line for gelato, however, is about 50 people deep, so into the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II I go. Lo and behold, there is more than one gelato stand. I am all in. One scoop vanilla, one scoop chocolate. It is dreamy.
A large cone of delicious. Do not fail to have some gelato when in Italy.
I do stop at Bric's Milano and purchase a small purse I saw yesterday, and then head back to the hotel. It is our last night in Milan. Tomorrow we leave bright and early for the airport. We spend seven hours in Hamburg before heading to Paris for two nights, then we head home. Dinner tonight is at the hotel restaurant "Seta". I'm going to leave you with some pictures. Bob and I shared a chicken baked in a salt crust and then served three ways. It was delicious, but we are tired, and need to wake early. See you in Paris by way of Hamburg.
The restaurant Seta at the Mandarin Oriental, Milan, Italy. Each dish is a work of art.