ITALY, Day 3, July 10, 2011

 

Another varied day, with some surprises. After breakfast, luggage was loaded under the bus, and then we boarded the bus with our day packs. We were off to Milan. However, our bus had slightly different ideas. About six miles outside of Milan, it started beeping on us, and the driver pulled to the right side of the road. The air brakes were having problems, and we stood around outside the bus for a little over an hour while another bus was called as well as a mechanic to fix the problems of the first one. Our luggage underneath the bus remained where it was, but we had to take our backpacks and any other carry-ons with us. Temperatures were getting quite stifling, and the temperature high today, all told, must have been about 95 degrees. So this was not the easiest day to be lugging around anything.

However, mind over matter. Milan is in Lombardy, Italy’s richest region. Sometimes it seems to have more in common with its neighbors to the north than with the rest of Italy. It was ruled for about two centuries by the French and the Austrians and takes its name from the northern Lombards, who ousted the Romans. Lombardy, as a border region, has always been vulnerable to invasion, just as it has always benefitted from being a commercial crossroads. Charlemagne and Napoleon both came to Lombardy to be crowned king, and big business continues to take Milan more seriously than Rome.

The dynamo behind the country’s “economic miracle” in the 1950s, Milan is an Italian city like no other. It is a historic city with a spectacular cathedral and enough churches and galleries to keep someone interested for a week, and it represents the cutting edge of Italy’s fashion and design industry.

Medieval Milan rose to prominence under the Visconti dynasty, who founded the late-Gothic Duomo and built the nucleus of the Castello, both of which we visited today. The Castello continued to be built after the Visconti dynasty had been brought down and the Sforza family took over instead. The Sforza family formed one of the most luxurious courts of the Renaissance. The last Sforza, Ludovico, is the one who commissioned Leonardo da Vinci in 1495 to paint “The Last Supper.”

Milan fell to the French in 1499, marking the beginning of almost four centuries of foreign rule, which included the Spanish, Napoleon, and the Austrian Hapsburgs.

Getting out at the Pallazzo Sforzesca first, we toured that defensive structure first. With its crenellated towers and fortified walls, the red brick defensive structure is one of Milan’s most striking landmarks. Much of the structure is under scaffolding right now, so we mainly toured the three courtyards and outdoor aspect of the fortress, since we had lost some time regarding the difficulties with our first bus.

After that, we walked down the street to a square that included the famous La Scala Opera House (“L’Italiana in Algieri” by Rossini and “Attila” by ? were on the playbill, and city hall faced the structure to the right, and in the square was a statue of Leonardo da Vinci and some of his students. Tucked on the right back side of the square was the famous Galleria Victor Emmanuelle, a brilliant shopping arcade with high ceilings, incredible stuccowork, and a McDonald’s situated most centrally in the middle of a court surrounded by frescoes of the continents and a brilliantly tiled floor with the courts-of-arms of the various Italian states (by the way, everywhere there were posters proclaiming “Auguri, Italia!” which translated means “Congratulations, Italia!” as this is the 150^th celebratory year of Italian Unification in 1861.

And then the famous Duomo! It was begun in 1386 under the Visconti family, but was not completed until the finishing touches to the façade were added in 1813. Styles go from Gothic to Necoclassical. The marble, chosen by the Viscontis in preference to the usual material of brick, was brought on specially built canals from the quarries of Candoglia, near Lake Maggiore, and continues to be used in renovation today. It is an amazing church, and has 136 spires, densely forested with saints, evangelists, prophets, gargoyles, and other figures. The interior is striking for its dimension and atmosphere. It has five aisles and 52 piers. A half-light filters through the stained glass windows, and, as it was Sunday, a service had just ended while we were there, and the scent of candles and the haze of incense created a very otherworldly effect.

By this time, our feet were hurting, however, and it was 3:00 and we had had nothing to eat. Additionally, backpack straps were beginning to bother us, and so we stopped at a restaurant for comogli on foccaccia sandwiches, which meant, essentially, ham and sour cream on foccaccia. We ended with dessert by getting gelatos, and I had a pistaccio gelato that did the heart good!

Shortly thereafter, we walked down to where our first bus, which by this time had been repaired and was humming contentedly, was waiting for us. We drove from Milan to Venice for about four hours, passing such towns as Verona and Peschiera. Finally, Venice knows exactly how to present itself in its most advantageous and seductive light. The bus and cars, passengers, dogs, etc., loaded up, and we, as passengers of the bus, were required to exit the bus. We climbed to the fore of the ferry so we could see the upcoming sights firsthand. Mind you, it was late afternoon light and very mellow. All of a sudden Venice’s famous landmarks started coming into view, and I was so moved that I wept at the sight of it all. What pictures I was able to take. I will not divulge anything of the city’s particulars until I see them tomorrow. Let’s only say that we will be in for an immense treat of a lifetime tomorrow. Meanwhile, we are staying on the island of the Lido di Venezia, a long barrier island separating the lagoon from the Adriatic Sea. The hotel is in the restored Hotel Bortoli, a historic hotel. Its te4rrace offers fine views of the San Marco Basin out to open sea, and Venice is a few minutes away by boat.

As we entered the hotel we immediately went to dinner, which consisted of pasta salad with pesto; chicken, wild mushrooms and carrots, and a tiramisu pudding for dessert. And now I am writing you this note, after a long day. More tomorrow! Good night! As ever, Sylvia