Buongiorno Sweet Friends!

I spent so much time at the Duomo on my first day in Milano, I had to spend my second day catching up to my itinerary!! After a shower and a quick breakfast, I set out for La Scala opera house.

La Scala is one of the most famous opera houses in Europe. It is said that if you play La Scala, then you have “made it!” It opened in 1778 and has 3,000 seats in the pit and six tiers of seating in boxes that rise up to the domed ceiling. The stage is one of the largest in the country and every famous opera star has performed on it. While it was lovely, it was not nearly as impressive in grandeur as the Paris National Opera House. Look at me! Just 2 months in Europe and I’m already becoming jaded. I toured the museum as well with it’s library and sampling of costumes. Groups of school children had obviously toured the opera, seen one of its productions and then rendered their version in the form of drawings and mixed media artwork. A full on 3D Lego model of the opera house was also on display.

Next, I walked to di Brera, a bohemian, artsy neighborhood with beautiful cobblestone streets lined with stucco townhouses dipped in yellows and reds and oranges. It was lovely. I toured the astronomy museum and the botanic gardens there as well as a few various churches along the route. I also walked through the Pinacoteca di Brera, which is an art museum but also the University’s art institute. Students roamed the ancient halls attending classes and workshops. What an amazing place to study art!! I ate lunch at the Café de Arts and sat outside watching the pedestrians. There were many vintage shops and art galleries to browse and enjoy.

After lunch, I walked to the Castello Sforzesco, the city fortress now museum. It was built in 1368 with four 80 meter long walls and four square towers encircled by a moat. It was later turned into a palace residence. The fortress turned palace was destroyed and rebuilt several times but a good bit of the original walls remain. It now houses several museums with many very famous paintings inside. I however wanted to enjoy the sunshine, so I opted to stroll the grounds and head through the Castello to the 116 acre Parco Semione just behind the Castello.

It is a gorgeous park with several lakes, sculptures, tons of trees, ducks, turtles and many children playing. There were also quite a few sun bathers and lovers enjoying the day as well. I walked the length of the park to the back where stands the Arch of Peace. It looks very much like the Arch de Triomphe in Paris only smaller. I also happened on a small group of very young, handsome, well-built guys training on the park’s pull up bars. Viva l’Italia!!!

Only two more stops on my itinerary – Santa Maria delle Grazie, the church where da Vinci’s Last Supper is painted, and San Maurizio at Monastero Maggiore. But first, I needed a snack. I happened upon another bakery with the green olive breadsticks, so I bought one. They were not nearly as wonderful as Princi’s version, but I ate it nonetheless.

I had heard and read a lot about The Last Supper fresco at Santa Maria delle Grazie. The fresco painted by Leonard da Vinci in 1490 started to deteriorate almost immediately. Apparently he used some new technique and the paint literally stated to flake off soon after completion. That combined with several wars, the Nazi’s using it as target practice, the nuns scalding it with heat from the kitchen and just years of abuse, it’s not in great shape. Many artists have worked to restore it but none have come close. Nonetheless thousands of visitors flock there every day to see the well-known fresco. I was not one of them. You have to buy tickets months in advance or be part of a paid tour group to see the painting. I decided it was not worth the money to me to buy an expensive tour just to see the painting. Fortunately, I saw a digitized version the night before that supposedly was very close to how the original looked.

That said, the church itself is quite spectacular and worth a visit in of itself. It was constructed in 1463 and has beautiful arching ceilings and cloisters.

I pressed on towards the San Maurizio al Monastero Maggiore. This was one of the most beautiful and fascinating churches I toured. It was originally a Benedictine convent and the interior is stunningly beautiful with frescoes covering every surface and bursting with color. The church took 12 years to complete and was inaugurated in 1515. It’s divided into two somewhat separate churches, one for church goers and priests and one side for the nuns. The nuns could watch the service through a grate behind the alter. The frescoes cover every inch of the interior and are glorious in color and variety. The pictures really don’t do it justice.

I always feel so small and insignificant when I visit places like this. Not because of their grandeur, but because of their timeless significance. These building continue to bring joy, hope and comfort to thousands of people daily and they have been standing for centuries and will likely remain standing. As I tour each city, each building, each sacred place, I realize again and again how small I am and how meaningless my problems and frustrations are. I don’t mean this in a negative or bad way; I mean it in a good way! Next week, I won’t remember what I was so worried about today. The stress I might have felt over something will be forgotten tomorrow or the next day. These things are small and silly compared to the big picture or rather the big timeline. We are not even a blip on the timeline of humanity and we don’t even register on the timeline of the Universe.  It just kinda puts things in perspective for me I guess. Perspective is a wonderful thing to have my friends. That and green olive bread sticks!!!

Ciao!!