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18 Days Through Europe
In An Audi Milan
Milan was a little more than an hour
down the highway from Verona. We found the exit and managed the directions
for a while but traffic became heavy in city streets and we passed the
street we were looking for. When we tried to turn around, a traffic cop
wouldn't let us down the street we needed to take. Between her crazy
signals, our confusion, and rush hour traffic we found ourselves in quite
a mess. Motor scooters started whipping around us and horns started
blowing. Bob got us into the flow of traffic which was moving at a good
clip and did a few more turns trying to get back to the direction we were
supposed to go. In a phrase, it was Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. We finally
pulled over. I think Bob wanted to stop the screaming. Finding ourselves
in front of a hotel (not ours) we sent Dick in for directions. The desk
clerk spoke perfect English, had a great map and gave wonderful directions
(so much easier than those gas station stops!). We were only a couple
blocks from where we needed to be and found the Best Western Hotel Blaise and Francis in a few minutes.
It was a very nice hotel but was about a 15 minute walk through a neighborhood where we truly stuck out as tourists. Given the world political situation, I was a little uncomfortable returning at dusk. Once we were at the subway station, it was not difficult to find our destination and buy our ticket. We exited at the Monte-Napoleone station as the desk clerk had suggested to walk to the Piazza del Duomo. While there were nice stores and shops along the way, most were closing down for the day. We found the
Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, a huge glass domed shopping mall with upscale
shops, bistros, and cafes and walked through it to the other side which
opened onto the Piazza. Before us loomed the huge Duomo
We returned to the Galleria to one of the "sidewalk" cafes inside to eat. Polly had heard of a special Milan risotto and we ordered a plate of it to taste. It is a risotto flavored with saffron and a bit of parmesan. Good but not outstanding was our take. The world soccer
finals were being played and as we exited the Galleria to go to the
subway, we noticed the crowd beginning to gather in front of a large TV
screen set up in the square. Young people wrapped in Italian flags were
already beginning to celebrate their team. Looking to glimpse another
culture, we opted to get some ice cream and find a place on the cathedral
steps to watch some of the festivities, keeping in mind that Europeans in
general are very emotional about their soccer. We agreed to split at the
first sign of over-enthusiasm. By the time the game was ready to start, we
were ready to call it a night and we exited the square and the sports
enthusiasts' crowd by way of the Duomo station.
Early the next morning, we set out for Santa Marie delle Grazie. We had booked tickets to see DaVinci's Last Supper before we left the states (a wise move---they were sold out when we got there). The yellow line from the station near our hotel took us to Duomo where we changed to the red line which took us to the Cadorna station. From there we walked a few blocks to the church. The train in Venice could learn a lot from the Milanese subway as far as making it easier on the tourist. Santa Marie delle Grazie is not a very large church compared with others we had seen on our trip but the church and convent hold one of the art world's greatest treasures as well as one of today's most popular controversies. We walked around the church and the courtyard as we waited our turn to go into the old dining hall where the mural is painted on the wall. When your appointed time arrives, your group of 20 people are ushered into an antechamber where the humidity levels are adjusted and pollutants removed from the atmosphere. One more 2-3 minute stop in a second antechamber and the doors open into a dimly lit banquet sized hall. To your right, stretched across the width of the narrow room, is the painting. For a moment, I was breathless. I had purposely not read the DaVinci Code by Brown. I knew there was controversy surrounding it and involving the painting. I wanted to view it through my own eyes untainted by suspicious symbols and markings interpreted by others. In the preceding 17 days, we had visited countless churches, chapels, and cathedrals. All had one thing in common. They emphasized the particular saint they were named for. Jesus was often the minor figure. Here in a perfect example of one point perspective all of the action, the objects, the walls in the setting, drew your eye to the center where Jesus sat. He was the central focus of the painting. It was a welcome sight.
The colors, the
movement of the robes, the anatomical representations were all grand
compliments to DaVinci's talents, although I understand that there has
been so much restoration done that the colors may not be
Back at the piazza,
we looked for the restaurant Polly had read about in Steves' book. It is
on the top floor of a department store and mall, La Rinascente, and looks
out onto the church and piazza. It took a little
The cathedral is
free if you just want to wander around. It is so full of interesting
statues and alcoves, that we opted to rent an audio wand to get all the
information. It took about two hours to wander around the inside and stop
and listen to the commentary. Since this was all we planned for the day we
paid the extra euros to see the For me the most exciting part of the cathedral was exploring the roof. We paid 5 euros to ride the elevator to the roof. Slabs of stone make up the roof covering providing the base for all the spires and turrets that rise above your head. The intricacy of the statuary was amazing. We learned later at the Duomo museum that they are repaired and/or replaced when the weather finally takes its toll. The views of the countryside, the city, the cathedral, all lend to some interesting photography.
We let Polly sit
where she was comfortable when she decided she was high enough and didn't
want to look down. The three of us continued up a few more steps and
walked out across the main area of the building.
Not being interested
in museums, Dick went off to find some more of the great gelato we h The afternoon was waning and so were we. We returned to our hotel and retreated to our rooms for a bit of a rest and nice long shower. Bob and Dick checked with the front desk to find a nice place to eat for our "last supper". They recommended a restaurant that was a bit off the beaten track but had a wonderful menu and quiet spot where we could reminisce about our 18 days together. The most amazing part of the whole trip was returning home after being so closely thrown together in a little Audi for eighteen days and realize we were still friends. Not too many families can survive that kind of closeness and want to plan the next adventure. The hard part will be choosing where in the world we want to go now.
©Karen Robbins All text and photos on this page are copyrighted in my name. Please obtain permission for use.
Last updated 10/18/2008
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(cathedral).
Frommer describes it as "lacy". It is that. There are spires and arches
and statues and intricate carvings all working together to create a light
airy feeling for a massive structure. We promised to give ourselves the
better part of the next day to explore it.
true to his
originals. It is still a magnificent piece and well worth the effort to
see. After our 20 minutes inside the room, we exited another door through
two more antechambers and out into the sunshine once again.
searching to find the elevator but we were rewarded with a nice light
lunch and beautiful view. We could watch people walking on the roof of the
cathedral, exploring the nooks and crannies. We added it to our "to do"
list.
Baptistry. It is underneath the church and shows an excavated foundation
that dates back to the 4th century.
Walking to the front, we found a stone bench and sat for a moment looking
back and up at the golden Madonna sitting atop the highest spire.
Bob poked me and nodded his head in the direction of the guard booth.
Hands crossed over his chest and head slumped forward, the guard had
obviously succumbed to the warmth of the sun and the gentle breeze and was
catnapping. 
ad
the night before while the rest of us went into the Duomo museum across
the piazza from the cathedral. The museum held stained glass windows and
statues that had been replaced from the Duomo. It showed how the pillars
were constructed and some of the plans for the cathedral's construction.
Also of interest were some of the vestments of the clergy.