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Returning To Milan. Duomo And Pasta

“Heaven is where the police are British, the lovers are French, the mechanics are German, the cooks are Italian and it is all organised by the Swiss.

Hell is where the police are German, the cooks are English, the mechanics are French, the lovers are Swiss, and it is all organised by the Italians”. (from a T-shirt from Lake Como)

Italy from above

My husband and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversay this month and with this ocasion we decided to go back to Italy, as there is where we spent our honeymoon. We picked the north of Italy this time, as I was eager to visit Lake Como with its world famous Villa Carlotta and Turin for quite a while now and this seemed like the perfect excuse.

In May we booked a Ryan Air flight from Valencia to Milan for only 36euro return per person, all taxes included. We had used Ryan Air before and we knew it wasn't a fancy airline but it's the cheapes European airline so far and they have lots of destinations to choose from.

Tip: One of the budget airlines to travel Europe is Ryan Air. The Irish airline operates more than 150 destinations and over 1000 low cost routes. It can be a cheaper and faster alternative to traveling Europe by car or train for longer distances.

The flight was nice and we landed in Milan Bergamo airport at about 6p.m. Bergamo is about 54km from Milan and from what I've heard, a taxi could get to 100euro. But not to worry, there are buses that will take you to Milan Central Station for 9euro. They also have a 3 for 2 offer. We took such a bus and we were in the city in less than an hour.

This was our second time in Milan. First time we have only managed to see the cathedral and Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II as we did the honeymoon trip with an organized group, as one of the few all inclusive vacations we've ever taken, and there was little time alocated to Milan. Apparently there is a consensus among people that Milan is big, modern, industrial, and fashionable but it is not one of Italy's best cities. Milan is more like a huge shopping center for turists where you can hire a personal image and fashion consultant that will take you to the shops in your budget and help you take the best decisions. But we weren't in Milan for shopping. We wanted actually to get to know the city.

Once we made it to Milan we got a free map from the Tourist Information Office and we headed for our hotel, about 35 minutes walking from the Central Station. We packed light as we were going to spend only 6 days in Italy so it wasn't a problem walking with our backpacks till the hotel.

Tip: In most European cities you can get a free map with all the places of interest pointed out from the Tourist Information Office situated eighter in the Rail Station or city center or both. Buying a city map is completely unnecesary and a waist of money.

We had planned ahead our route and printed it from Google Maps so we would take the shortest and most interesting way to the hotel. We like walking and avoid public transport as much as possible because except saving money one can actually get to know a place better this way. Getting the pulse of the city and the routines of the locals is more of a slow learning process.

Milan has some tram lines operated by the ultramodern 'jumbo' green tram, others run by yellow or orange antique traditional carriages with wooden panneling inside and glass chandeliers. In the picture is probably one of the oldest trams in Milan. It actually has written on it the year in which it was made - 1951.... or so we believed... till we so a carraige on which it was written 1654. Then we realised the numbers on the trams were just codes, not years. I thought this was a very good example of how your eyes can mislead you and your brain can play tricks on you when you are in foreign lands.

Antique traditional carriage in Milan

About ten minutes from our hotel it started raining cats and dogs. Luckily we had an umbrella. But we got soaking wet and all shriveling to the hotel anyways. We stayed at Hotel Brasil, Via Gustavo Modena, 20, a nice and clean, recently renovated 2* hotel. We had sink and shower in the room, the toilet was down the hallway, but for 42euro per night the double room, I think it was a good deal. The staff spoke English, the towels and sheets were provided by the hotel, daily cleaning, hair dryer, small TV, etc. All in all it was a nice experience. Situated about 30mins from Milan's Cathedral, in a nice neighborhood with mostly old bourgeois houses and Carrefour Market in the next building, the hotel has only a few rooms so it's better to book in advance. Breakfast can be contracted for 3euro, but we didn't, though we saw some croissants, cereals, a coffee machine and alike on the breakfast table in the morning. A light breakfast for a light amount of money I could say.

Italians like to have dinner from 7 to 9p.m. We were celebrating and craving for an Italian pizza so we asked at the reception for a nice pizzeria. The guy recommended us the one just across the road, 100meters to the right, called Pizzeria Trattoria, a neighborhood pizzeria, small and far from luxuriours but with good prices and even better food. Pizza prices started from 5euro, big pizzas and delicious with lots of cheese as I like them. We had a pizza and gnocchi al gorgonzola, the most heavenly pasta dish I've ever tasted, and that means a lot from somebody who doesn't usually fancy pasta. But in Italy... pasta is more then just pasta, it's fresh, homemade pasta, finger licking good. And holy cat, the rations were so big that you could feed a whole family and it only cost 6euro. Now this prices come with a trick. The serving tax is not written anywhere, but you pay it just the same. We paid 2euro extra each. You can always order take away pizza to avoid this tax.

Tip: In Milan most restaurants charge an extra "serving tax", approximate 2 Euros per consumer.

Gnocchi al gorgonzola

Aftrer dinner, the rain had long stopped, and we decided to go for a walk to the city center to pay a visit to the cathedral by night. Milan's Duomo is a huge gothic piece of fine architecture, with countless statues and pointed towers. The cathedral took five centuries to complete and it is considered by some to be the fourth-largest church in the world. In Milan all roads take you to the Duomo. It is a meeting point for tourist from all over the world, a place to marvel at the vastity of human imagination and to gasp with surprise at the power of art.

The famous "Madonnina" atop the main spire of the cathedral is a baroque gilded bronze artwork. One can see it from nearby by climbing the stairs up till the roof (5euros) of taking the lift (8euros). But the Duomo is rich in decoration from ground till top. You can walk around it and admire it from different angles. It is well worth 1 hour of your time as it is one of the most beautifull cathedrals I've ever seen, at least on the outside.

Duomo from Milan by night

Next to the Cathedral is Galeria Vittorio Emanuele II, connecting the Piazza del Duomo to the Piazza della Scala where the world famous Scala Theatre is. Probablly one of the fanciest shopping malls out there, it houses a Prada shop, a Luis Vuitton shop, jewelery, painting and book shops, restaurants, cafés and bars and why not, a McDonald's right in the middle. Named after Vittorio Emanuele II, the first king of united Italy, it was originally designed in 1861 and built by Giuseppe Mengoni between 1865 and 1877.

Galeria Vittorio Emanuele II, Milan

We were tired and we went back to the hotel. The next day we were to wake up early and take the train to Turin...

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