We took a lot of pictures today so be prepared.

We made espressos in the apartment with a tiny 2 cup stove top maker. It is so small that it cannot fit on a burner without toppling over so there was a wire adapter on the stove to support it. We need one of those! The slightest breeze has knocked over our espresso maker more than once, spewing molten hot coffee all over the kitchen. Well, I may have had something to do with those mishaps. As a result, Ken made it a mission to find us one.

We walked to Porto Nuova and took a 2 hour train to Milano for a one night excursion. Ever since I saw a photo of the duomo in Milan, I wanted to see its gothic glory in person. Eventually Ken has come to share this appreciation of Christian architectural decadence or at least that what he tells me!

The train was crowded and we were surrounded by a large group of older, well dressed, elegant women and one suited man who stood in the aisle amongst them. I saw they had printed itineraries for something but I couldn't eavesdrop enough to figure it out. I tried to read a book but couldn't because I was picking up words here and there and quite frankly I just love listening to the sound of the Italian language and I don't get to do it that often. We noticed that Italians like to travel in packs. teenagers, women, men...it is a very socially close knit society and I think it is an admirable quality.

We had a lousy lunch at a tavola calda called Farina e Pomodoro. These are common establishments and the way it works is you choose from a hot table what dishes you want and they are scooped onto a plate for you. Maybe it was the time of day, or the dishes of the day, but the food was disappointing. We were hungry and at 2:30 there wasn't much open in the neighborhood.

Milano




passing by Teatro La Scala

We got off the train and walked to the Ibis Centro. It is a large and modern hotel and typically Ibis - clean and efficient with a very friendly and helpful staff. We dropped off the bags and made a bee line for the Duomo di Milano. It absolutely lived up to our expectations despite the gray sky.

gothic splendor in Milano

at last...




we are here

Be prepared to see a lot of pictures! Every pinnacle is topped by a statue and the whole structure looks as if it is covered in lace. The architectural details are astounding. It is the fourth largest church in the world and took half a millennium to build. It had been under scaffolding from 2003- 2008 to restore the facade. We were lucky to see it without it, fully restored and squeaky clean.

the altar with a baby Jesus

Without a tripod, forget about interior pictures - except this one. After looking at the interior we took the lift to the roof. We've seen scenes from Italian films shot from the roof of the duomo. When you are up there you can't believe that the public is granted to such an usual viewing experience.

oh man we're really here!

and really really really cold!

the buttresses were flying

my sometimes reluctant model

the little Milanese

Ken on the roof




Jen on the roof

There was a walkway around the perimeter of the roof, ending on top. The views were spectacular. In the distance the clouds were breaking, letting through a blast of orange and pink.

thank you for the sunset

the lonely statue

gorgeousness

Our guide book recommended the view of the duomo from the top floor of the department store La Rinascente. It was too dark at that point to see much, but on a sunny day you would be able to see the side of the cathedral. We desperately needed to warm up from the roof experience, too. The store was so crowded that I was feeling claustrophobic and didn't want to stay long. We went to the kitchen floor and looked for that mini-espresso-pot-gas-range-adapter-thingy but didn't find one.

By this time, it was totally dark, and the lights on the duomo really showcased its beauty.

night lights on the duomo

to the right was a huge LCD screen showing advertisements
that projected colored light

the Christmas tree




the Jen

the triumverate in Piazza di Duomo: Galleria Vittoria Veneto, tree, and duomo




the opposite side of the piazza




Ray-Ban, was American, now owned by the Italians

We went into the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, a beautiful glass domed shopping arcade with high end shops. There were tons of people in a holiday mood. The glass domed roof was coated with blue lights.

the beautiful domed ceiling

me cold

Ken cold




Prada...

....Louis Vuitton, and the illustrious McDonald's

It must have been zero degrees tonight. We wandered around the area and stumbled into Piazza Mercanti, what remains of the medieval city. A night food market with mostly Sicilian sweets was there.

artisinal food market with a Sicilian slant




we've seen these parading in Palermo - the real ones





one, please

we didn't know what it was, but it was good

slabs of chestnut pie and chocolate with pear pie




there's only one thing I like more than chocolate and that's cheese




a pyramid of sausages




its a bad place to be a pig

At the end of the market was a flag for a Steve McCurry photo exhibit which was an amazing treat. He is a documentary photographer famous for the National Geographic cover of the Afghan girl.

the famous photo

The exhibition was beautifully presented and we were very happy to stumble upon it. There were photos beautifully mounted in thematic sections : joy, children, war...I can't remember the rest. There must have been over 100 large prints on display in this 700 year old building.

We didn't want to stop at the room for a rest because the hotel was too far out from the center so we persevered in the cold night. A quick warm up happened in the form of an aperitivo at a place called Farniella. I got the house cocktail which was like a pina colada.

it was good, I don't know why I was making that face

a tram in Milano decked out with branded holiday spirit

Wandering around the old center, we found an interesting restaurant called Obika. It is a mozzarella bar and has had a lot of press, with locations in such far flung places like Kuwait City and Tokyo. It was a unique experience and we loved the food and the wine. We got the mozzarella degustazione which consisted of three types of artisinal mozzarella di bufala with a side of 3 house made pestos to compliment (olive, sun dried tomato, and basil).

milky spheres of artisinal delights

salad with olive oil cured tuna, caper berries,
and sun dried tomatoes.

a delicious bottle of Negromaro from Tomaresca




a picture for posterity before waddling back to the hotel