Day 7, Milan

The Duomo Through an Archway

I had signed up for a tour to Lake Maggiore, another of the Italian Lakes near Milan, but the tour was canceled. Again, I could have taken the train and gone by myself, but I thought better of it. Instead, I left the hotel to find the hop–on hop–off sightseeing bus station near the hotel. I couldn’t find it and took the metro (carefully going down and up the steps to the train) to the Duomo. I knew where the stop at the Duomo was. Photo: The beautiful Duomo through an archway.

The Duomo Through an Archway

The Duomo

I got on the bus in front of the Duomo. My first stop was to be the Basilica Sant’ Ambrogia, after the bus first stopped at the Pizzia alla Scala and the Castello Sforzesco. The hop–on hop–off bus is a very easy way to get to the tourist sites of Milan.

The Duomo

Along the Way

Statues on the side of a building seen along the way.

Along the Way

Close–up of the statues.

Along the Way

Near the Castello

Another pink alligator plus green and yellow turtles.

Near the Castello

Castello Sforzesco

I realized after the bus left the Castello stop that I had gotten on the wrong bus––I wanted Line A but had gotten on Line B. So I got off to get on the other bus, which also made a stop at the Castello.

Castello Sforzesco

Arco della Pace

I was at the back of the Castello where a very large park, the Parco Sempione, is located. The Arco della Pace can be seen from the Castello grounds. It is a triumphal arch which was built to face Paris to welcome Napoleon. The people of Milan soon grew tired of Napoleon and then turned the horses around with their tails facing France.

Arco della Pace

Close–up of the horses.

Arco della Pace

Castello Sforzesco

I found a number of things of interest in the Castello Sforzesco that I missed on my last visits to it. Walking in through the back of the Castello.

Castello Sforzesco

An interesting small courtyard.

Castello Sforzesco

The Corte Ducale without construction equipment in it as on my last visits.

Castello Sforzesco

A birdbath.

Castello Sforzesco

The Cortile della Rocchetta.

Castello Sforzesco

Sculptures on a wall near the entrance.

Castello Sforzesco

Looking upward.

Castello Sforzesco

Looking from the Castello past the fountain to the statue of Garibaldi.

Castello Sforzesco

Chestnuts are roasting and there is also coconut for sale.

Castello Sforzesco

Basilica Sant’ Ambrogio

Now on the right bus, I got off at the Sant’ Ambrogio stop. I asked what direction to walk from the stop. I walked through one of the arches of what looks like a medieval structure.

Basilica Sant’ Ambrogio

Close–up of the statues above the arches.

Basilica Sant’ Ambrogio

The Basilica Sant’ Ambrogio. I recognized it from a photo in my tour guide. But I couldn’t figure out where its entrance was.

Basilica Sant’ Ambrogio

I finally realized that I was following college students to their university. I asked some of students where the entrance to the basilica was and they told me that the church was closed until 2:30 p.m.

Basilica Sant’ Ambrogio

Sant’ Ambrogio

I saw this billboard on my way back to the bus stop––here, the alligators are yellow.

Sant’ Ambrogio

And also this interesting lady on another billboard.

Sant’ Ambrogio

Navigli

I got back on the hop–on hop–off bus and was planning on getting off at the Navigli stop to walk around what is left of Milan’s canals. However, the bus stopped far from the canals and the area didn’t look like a place I wanted to walk around. I was able to take some photos of the canals on my next trip on the bus.

Navigli

S. Lorenza Maggiore

The bus also made a stop at S. Lorenza Maggiore, but it looked deserted so I didn’t get off the bus.

S. Lorenza Maggiore

Along the Way

A very old Roman structure.

Along the Way

The Duomo

Back at the Duomo where I got off the bus and took some more photos.

The Duomo

Close–up of the middle window.

The Duomo

The sky was clear today and I was able to get a photo of the golden Madonnina (Our Little Virgin Mary), a symbol of Milan. It is at the top of the Duomo’s highest spire––but hard to see unless you are looking through binoculars or zooming in with your camera.

The Duomo

Statues on top of other spires. So elegant and perhaps seldom being able to be viewed.

The Duomo

More of the statues on top of the spires.

The Duomo

Piazza del Duomo

I ate lunch again at the Galleria. I think that I have now tried almost all of the Galleria restaurants, but the one I went to today was the very best. It is the last one on the right looking at the Duomo and the least crowded probably because it doesn’t have an extensive menu. I had spaghetti with olive oil, brocoli, cherry tomatoes, and capers––very very delicious. Photo: Piazza del Duomo, looking much different with the sun shining than under the previous days’ cloudy skies.

Piazza del Duomo

One of the beautiful covered walkways at the Piazza del Duomo.

Piazza del Duomo

And another of them.

Piazza del Duomo

Near the Duomo

It was too early to hop back on the hop–on hop–off bus to return to Sant’ Ambrogio, so I walked a bit around the Duomo area. With your back to the Duomo, these buildings are across the Piazza del Duomo to your right.

Near the Duomo

Close–up of the clock tower.

Near the Duomo

An old courtyard.

Near the Duomo

Restaurant in the old courtyard. Looks like it would be an interesting place to eat at.

Near the Duomo

Statue through arches in the courtyard.

Near the Duomo

Statues on a building.

Near the Duomo

Inlaid heads.

Near the Duomo

Close–up of the heads.

Near the Duomo

Sant’ Ambrogio

View of Sant’ Ambrogio.

Sant’ Ambrogio

The view through the entrance.

Sant’ Ambrogio

Inside the basilica.

Sant’ Ambrogio

Biblical serpent?

Sant’ Ambrogio

Close–up of the serpent.

Sant’ Ambrogio

Arches and a Golden Bird.

Sant’ Ambrogio

Close–up of the Golden Bird.

Sant’ Ambrogio

The altar.

Sant’ Ambrogio

The apse mosaics.

Sant’ Ambrogio

Close–up of the mosaics.

Sant’ Ambrogio

Many arches.

Sant’ Ambrogio

The pulpit rests on the sarcophagus of Flavius Stilcho.

Sant’ Ambrogio

The outside of the sarcophagus.

Sant’ Ambrogio

Stained–glass windows.

Sant’ Ambrogio

One of the chapels.

Sant’ Ambrogio

For about 3 euros, you could visit the museum of Sant’ Ambrogio, which exhibits church relics and other church–related items. Photo: On a wall.

Sant’ Ambrogio

The work is called “Piagnoni.”

Sant’ Ambrogio

Navity scene.

Sant’ Ambrogio

On a wall.

Sant’ Ambrogio

“Innocents’ Urn” from 1449.

Sant’ Ambrogio

Intricate ceiling.

Sant’ Ambrogio

Another view of the inside of the basilica.

Sant’ Ambrogio

On the courtyard walls are bas–reliefs, pagan and early Christian incriptions, and memorial plaques.

Sant’ Ambrogio

One of the bas–reliefs. You really need a guide when visiting this church as I am sure that I missed much of interest in it.

Sant’ Ambrogio

On the Bus

I had a cappucino at a cafe and then got back on the hop–on hop–off bus. Wall that we passed. Milan has much grafitti, this grafitti being more interesting than most. But graffiti in Italy is not gang–related (as in LA), but rather just “venting”––writing something about a favorite soccer team, or about someone loved, or something political. It is allowed because it wasn’t allowed when Italy was a facist state.

On the Bus

On the Bus–The Navigli

From my last go–round on this bus route, I knew exactly when to get my camera ready to take these next three photos. The Navigli today is what is left of the ancient system of canals in Milan that was used for commerce and for moving materials––such as the stones used to build the Duomo. Its system of sluices was designed by Leonardo da Vinci in the 1400s. With a better system of transportation, the canals were no longer needed and they were filled in. Only a few remain. Zani Viaggi, the tour company, offers a tour on Fridays and Saturdays of the Navigli. If I’m ever back in Milan, I would like to take the tour. Today, there are many restaurants along the canals.

On the Bus–The Navigli

A Navigli canal.

On the Bus–The Navigli

You can see a covered restaurant along the canal in this photo.

On the Bus–The Navigli

On the Bus–A Church

I don’t know the name of this church. It was closed off.

On the Bus–A Church

On the Bus–Wall Sculpture

A sculpture on a wall.

On the Bus–Wall Sculpture

On the Bus–The Duomo

This photo shows a back view of the Duomo. From this angle, you can see how much higher is the spire with the Madonnina on its top. At the Duomo, I changed to the Line B bus to take it back to the hotel. I wanted to see where it would leave me off as I planned to hop on the hop–on hop–off bus the next day. Keith was free for dinner tonight and he again asked the concierge for a restaurant recommendation. This one was not in walking distance so we took a taxi to it. The taxi driver was watching a small TV on his dashboard while driving us––quite disconcerting. At the restaurant, we were asked if we wanted to sit in a pretty covered patio area and we said yes, not knowing that smoking was allowed in it (smoking is no longer allowed in Italy’s restaurants except for outside tables and, as we found out, anything that can be called a patio even though there is no outside air in it). Anyway, we had a great dinner––I had lobster and salad and Keith had a seafood extravaganza: octopus, spiny Italian lobster, clams, and truffles. Keith asked what kind of truffles they were––thinking they were something earthy. No, they were sea truffles, something like clams. When we got back to the hotel, I found an e–mail message for me from e–Kit, the company that I had my European tri–band phone from. They had lost their third–party supplier––hence, no more cell phone service until I got back to LA and put in the new sim card that they would be sending me.

On the Bus–The Duomo

Sant’ Ambrogio

I got back on the hop–on hop–off bus and got off again at Sant’ Ambrogio. The entrance was right at the front, now with the gates open. Sant’ Ambrogio was originally founded in 379 by Saint Ambrose, Milan’s first bishop and the city’s patron saint. Today, it is a bit more than 16 centuries old. It was enlarged in the 9th century and again in the 11th century. It is the finest Medieval building in Milan.