Two weeks of Autumn vacation last month provided the perfect opportunity to explore a bit of Europe. After whittling down our grandiose itineraries, my friend Angela and I ended up with an 11 day plan for Italy and then Ireland. We recruited our friend Jessica for the first weekend in Milan, packed our bags (the night before... sorry Dad, old habits die hard), and were ready for anything.
We took a bit of an unconventional route to Milan that first night... Geneva to Zurich to Lugano to Milan. As I've mentioned before, our voie7 passes allow us to travel from 7pm to 5am for free around Switzerland. So, we took a few overnight trains to the last town within the Swiss border and then made our way to Milan with one more train. Would I do it again? Well, actually, yes I probably would because getting to Milan for 6 euros is a pretty good deal. Plus I've lived by the 'I'll sleep when I'm dead' motto since joining the crew team in college so why stop now :)
We fueled up with coffee (and pastries) upon arrival and were ready to explore the city.
As luck would have it, we had an expert guide to help us traverse both the streets of Milan and the Italian language. Anna and I both had the good fortune of living with Anne before jetting off to Europe and it was great to catch up with her over the weekend.
Anna is a perfect host. She embodied the Italian spirit of treating everyone like family and made us feel right at home in Milan. She not only showed us all the main attractions but also took us to the best gelato spot! For this I will be forever grateful. They fill the bottom of the cone with your choice of dark, milk or white chocolate and then top it with a scoop or two of heaven in whichever flavor you desire. Special look below at Jess, Angela and I with our first Italian gelato!
We stopped at the Basilica of Sant'Eustorgio on our tour of Milan. As a self proclaimed Cathedral lover, I always enjoy stopping in to observe Cathedrals, churches and anything in between when I travel. I guess growing up going to mass at the Cathedral in Omaha instilled a love and maybe a bit of curiosity in me that I can't quite shake. I was lucky to have fellow Cathedral lovers to travel with this trip. We happened to go into the Basilica on a whim only to find that the relics of the Magi were kept here for years until being moved to their current position in Cologne at the Kölner Dom. (I got to visit the Kölner Dom last September and was absolutely speechless. It is beyond impressive.) The Basilica was built in the Romanesque style and has a beautiful Chapel that I took way to many pictures in... My favorite part was the rainbow mosaic dome (above) in the Portinari Chapel. So beautiful!
We continued our walking tour and did lots of shopping along the way. Milan is one of Europe's fashion centers and I desperately tried to fit in by wearing a leather jacket... :) Really though I liked the all black look that many Milanese were rocking. I'm a sucker for green (and still struggle to not wear all green on any given day) but could definitely embrace the black silhouette.
Now, the pinnacle of the day (in my opinion) was when we made it to the Duomo. Anna took us down a cute street with boutiques and great shopping and we turned a corner to be greeted by one of the most impressive structures I've ever seen. The white marble stood out beautifully against some of the more modern structures on the plaza. I loved seeing all of the life happening around the Duomo. There are numerous businesses and shops surrounding it and the subway even runs underneath it! To me, it seemed like it was right in the heart of Milan. We didn't have too long of a wait to get inside but I would wait hours to see it again.
I didn't take any pictures inside. At first, honestly, it was because you had to pay for a special wristband to take pictures. Looking back though, I'm glad I didn't because I was able to enjoy the experience so much more by just observing and not trying to get the right angle or lighting so that I could Instagram something later. I'm still not sure I can write about what it was like to be inside. The interior is absolutely massive (it's the fifth largest church building in the world). Standing inside, looking up from floor, past the beautiful stained glass, and up to the ceiling simply took my breath away. I don't think I could explain in better in person than I am in writing but truly, this was a highlight of my travels. The stained glass was incredible and actually, this article (Click here!) inspired me to finish writing this post today. It's worth a read if art or history or glass or cathedrals interest you in the slightest. I love traveling and seeing places that have been around for hundreds (or thousands) of years and it's crazy to think that they couldn't be replicated today.
After touring the Duomo, we made a stop at the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II (Galleria for short I think...) and admired the beautiful windows, paintings, and storefronts of shops I could never afford to spend any money in. Legend has it that if you stand on the bull mosaic on the floor and turn around three times you will return to Milan. I decided I didn't need a bull to tell me I'd be back... plus the lines were long and we were on our way to lunch :)
The best meal I had in Italy was in Milan on our second day. Anna recommended this place and again, for this I am forever grateful to her. Pictured below is hands down, the best gnocchi I have ever consumed. Actually, best pasta. Period. Full stop. We spent over two hours enjoying pasta, sliced meats (the roast beef here brought a tear to my eye) and some of the freshest cheese known to man. I'm getting a little overzealous with this description but it was really that good. Also pictured is a bowl of wine... yes, you read that right. We initially poured our wine into what looked like water glasses because we weren't given your standard wine glass. The waiter returned later to tell us those were for water and the bowls were for the wine. We were certain he was playing a trick on the unsuspecting tourists but did it anyway. A table behind us later followed our examples so at least we weren't the only ones... we got a good laugh out of it anyway (as did the waiters and one man waiting to be seated).
After touring with Anna the first day, we rested up and enjoyed our first (of many) aperitivo experiences. Aperitivo is a Milanese born tradition of purchasing a drink and then getting a spread of appetizers free of charge. Every place does it differently but we had a full buffet one evening and it was the cheapest meal of my trip haha! I would love to bring this tradition back to the states. Our second day was spent doing a bit more shopping and wandering the streets. We of course went back for more gelato before Jess returned that evening to Switzerland. Angela and I enjoyed another aperitivo and wandered the canals before heading in for the evening.
I can't remember the name of the above building but I loved the way it looked; lit up just as the sun was setting. Lots of young people were hanging around this plaza and I felt lucky to be exploring Europe and having the experiences I am. Milan was amazing and I don't think we could have asked for a better start to our trip!
Thanks for your patience as I get back in the writing groove my friends. More to come soon! Ciao!
