Remarkable Milan
Milan was a complete surprise for us in more ways than one. Our Adventure of a Lifetime was a plan to travel for all of 2018 around the world. We spent more than a year planning our adventure which began March 1st, 2018 with two months in Italy. Our original plan wrapped up Italy with a week in the Cinque Terre, an overnight in Milan, and then a high-speed train to Paris.
As they say, the best laid plans… While in the Cinque Terre we began researching our train tickets from Milan to Paris and discovered there was a massive rail strike occurring in France. After considering many options we decided to scratch Paris and save it for a future trip.
But what to do with the extra week in Paris that we just picked up in our schedule. Milan! We were going to Milan anyway for an overnight. We decided to extend the overnight into eight days and nights in Milan. After all, Milan is a world class city, know as the fashion capital of the world. Also, after two months in Italy, we have fallen in love with everything Italian and really don’t want to leave.
We arrived in Milan cold with a fresh hotel reservation, and ZERO background or research on what was there or what we wanted to do and see.
Our travel skills have become highly tuned with our two months living in a foreign country. We quickly developed a plan. The following are our Five Favorite Memories From Milan.
Piazza del Duomo and Milan Cathedral
The heart of Milan is Piazza del Duomo, and the centerpiece of the Piazza is the Milan Cathedral. The Piazza is a large and expansive plaza filled with sight-seers enjoying the massive cathedral dominating the center of the Piazza. People are taking pictures, groups are gathering, and many folks are walking around with their jaws dropped in amazement.
The Cathedral is the second largest Catholic cathedral in the world second only to St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City. It took nearly 600 years to build the cathedral with construction beginning in 1386AD. It is one of the finest examples of Gothic architecture. There are over 3400 statues decorating the cathedral which can hold 40,000 worshipers at one time.
Navigli Canal District
We celebrated our anniversary while in Milan. For a very special celebration dinner we visited the Navigli Canal District. The area is named for the 50-kilometer Naviglio Grande canal. Construction began in 1157AD as a post-medieval defensive trench and continued over the next 100 years. The trench evolved into a way to irrigate crops and was continued to be widened and deepened. It became more and more navigable during this time until 1258 when the canal reached Milan at the bridge of Sant’Eustorgio, now called Porta Ticinese.
The Navigli Canal neighborhood is home to restaurants, bars, shops, art galleries and studios. It has a hip urban vibe and is a great place to relax in the early evening for aperitivo and people watching. The wide sidewalk promenades are lined on both sides of the canal with sidewalk cafes.
La Passeggiata
We found a very inviting spot to sit and relax with drinks and aperitivo. As the sun set, the street scene came to life. Settled in with refreshing beverages, tasty snacks and a comfortable seat with a view of the world, a couple of hours quickly passed. An endless stream of couples and families walked past for their nightly la passeggiata enjoying the evening air and looking for their own little spot in paradise.
We took the opportunity for a long slow stroll along the canal, across one of the foot bridges and back down the other side. Ultimately, we arrived back where we had started at Ristorante Bugandé and decided this would also be a perfect spot for a romantic dinner.
We were shown to a secluded candle lit window table where we enjoyed a relaxed dinner to continue our celebration. In typical Italian style, dinner was very slow-paced accentuating we had no place to be and nothing to do except enjoy the here and now.
A special evening wouldn’t be complete without some delicious gelato.
Sforza Castle and Sempione Park
Milan’s enormous 15th century Sforza Castle was built to protect one of Milan’s noble families. The design of this castle is much like a fort with fortified walls surrounding an interior open space. We thought the structure was very attractive with its tall towers and walls of small red bricks laid in intricate patterns. The castle once had a large moat and drawbridges for protection.
Sforza Castle is home of several museums. We visited the Pietà Rondanini Museum which houses a single unfinished sculpture – the Pietà. This is a project Michelangelo began sculpting in the last decade of his life and continued up until a few days before his death in 1564 at age 88. It’s an even more beautiful and moving sculpture because it is a work in progress that allows you to see the marks of the tools used. It is also possible to see places where Michelangelo changed his mind on how the sculpture would be composed.
We also toured the Museum of Ancient Art which houses a lot of Roman architectural pieces, some ceiling frescos and a collection of medieval armor.
Afterwards we joined the thousands of Milanese citizens celebrating Liberation Day in the adjacent Sforza Park. There were thousands of mostly young people picnicking, tossing balls around and enjoying the warm spring day in this gorgeous park.
Visiting George Clooney
Varenna on Lake Como
A short 1-hour train ride North took us from Milano through the Lombardi countryside and into the Italian Alps. We arrived at a cute little train station serving Varenna for our day trip to Lake Como. We caught a few momentary and breathtaking glimpses of Lake Como out the train window. The station is on a hill above the town looking down and over the lake.
At the bottom of the hill we are greeted with spectacular panoramic views of the lake and surrounding mountains. A large white swan swims by in the lake. There is a large piazza leading to a promenade that hugs the lake and leads to the town.
Varenna is a village of 775 residents situated on the shore of Lake Como. It is about 36 miles north of Milan and is very old having been founded by fisherman in 769 AD. Lake Como has become noteworthy as the home of the rich and famous, including George Clooney and Gwen Stefani.
After a short walk we found numerous restaurants with terraces lining the lake waiting for our arrival. Barbara had researched and found a recommendation for Il Molo. We have had very good success with research and recommendations so far, so we passed many inviting cafes until we came to Il Molo. We are glad we did. Lunch at the water’s edge was an excellent experience, and for added Hygge (Danish word meaning coziness), they even had blankets available to take the chill off.
Hygge on Lake Como
The blankets were a nice and appreciated touch. We’ve had such great weather since arriving in Milan, we didn’t even check the weather. Oooops! We arrived in Varenna and it was cold and overcast. Not a problem, except for Jon who only wore a short-sleeved shirt, he REALLY appreciated the blanket.
After lunch, we walked up the hill toward the monastery, and then through the main town plaza. All along there were pretty sights to take in and many narrow hilly lanes that all lead back down to the water’s edge. Before our visit was over, we have walked a loop of nearly 3 miles through the town and little streets arriving back at the train station. Catching our train back to Milan we chatted about our wonderful day trip visiting the lake country nestled in the foothills of the Alps.
Cimitero Monumentale di Milano – Monumental Cemetery
Normally a cemetery would not make our list of favorite memories. However, the Cimitero Monumentale di Milano or Monumental Cemetery is not like any cemetery we’ve ever seen. Instead of a cemetery, it is better to think of it as a most unusual open-air art gallery.
The Monumental Cemetery is a unique destination and in fact one of the most visited places in Milan right after the Duomo. We learned that Northern Italy is known for its grand Monumental Cemeteries that memorialize loved ones, but also were a way to display wealth, individual taste, family and civic pride.
The sheer size of the grounds are hard to fathom. We were astounded at the size of the grounds, and the vast number and variety of sculptures, monuments, tombs and chapels. Many different artistic styles are represented. The grounds are very well maintained and though it was a warm muggy afternoon, the shade trees lining the walking paths made this a very pleasant place to spend an afternoon while appreciating this unusual open-air art gallery.
After entering and walking for nearly an hour, we discovered that we had barely seen a small fraction of grounds. At 61 acres this eternal home is about three quarters the size of Disneyland Anaheim which makes it pretty monumental. A Monumental Cemetery is one full of monuments and sculptures that honor loved ones.
People Watching
Milan is the fashion capitol of the world. We observed this wrapping up our two months in Italy. Many people in Milan seemed to be a little more polished and dressed for style than other parts of the country. One of our favorite past times is to enjoy a cup of coffee and watch people going about their daily activities.
A couple of ideal locations we discovered for people watching are Terrazza Duomo 21 and Ristorante Bugandé.
Terrazza Duomo 21 has an open-air terrace located in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II overlooking Piazza Duomo. It offers a wonderful perch to relax, enjoy a beverage and take in the sights and people. We enjoyed relaxing with a beverage taking in the Piazza Duomo and all the activity. Two memorable sights that stood out were the people taking Instagram pictures in full fashion model style as if they were the only people on this massive stage. Also, there were street vendors selling bird seed and helping people have dozens of pigeons’ land on them for a picture. The reactions of the people after a bunch of birds’ land on them was hilarious. Many teenage girls would squeal as the birds would get close. Other people reminded us of the ‘bird lady’ in the movie Home Alone 2 in New York’s Central Park covered with birds.
Ristorante Bugandé is a cozy restaurant with sidewalk café seating on the Navigili Grand Canal. Sitting at a side-walk table in the early evening during the La Passeggiata time offers a nice experience to relax and people watch enjoying the night scene. We loved this restaurant so much, after taking in the street scene, we moved inside to a window table for a late night romantic dinner.
Where to Stay
Milan is flat and compact resulting in a very walkable town, and good public transportation makes it easy to get around to anyplace you want to go. During our week in Milan we stayed at the NYX Milan Hotel and would highly recommend the hotel and location. NYX is conveniently across the street from the main train station and located overlooking Piazza Quattro Novembre. The Piazza is a hub for many of the main trolley lines around town. There is a Metro station beneath the train station, and the buses also stop all around the area.
Favorite Restaurants
Ristorante Bugandé – Outstanding bar and restaurant on the Navigili Canal offering excellent food and drink.
Radicetonda – Wonderful Vegan Kitchen offering many unique and tasty vegan options with a comfortable relaxed dining room.
Ha Long Bay – Nice Vietnamese and Asian restaurant next to NYX and Piazza Quattro Novembre.
Clash – NYX Hotel – Hip urban vibe with excellent food set in the NYX Hotel.
Pizza Italiana – Quaint little family owned Italian restaurant near main train station. The pizzas are excellent.
Helpful Links for 5 Favorite Memories Milan
Piazza del Duomo and Milan Cathedral
Sforza Castle and Sempione Park
Cimitero Monumentale di Milano – Monumental Cemetery
Like this? Share it on Pinterest. . .
With so many places to see in Italy, Milan has not really been on my immediate radar. But, a few months ago I read “Beneath a Scarlett Sky” which is a delightful book that puts much of Milan, along with its history and beauty, front and center. I’ve wanted to go see it since, and have enjoyed your article here very much.
H Carrie – Milan is sure to Wow you. We were surprised and really taken by Milan. We did not have it on our radar for out travels in Italy. It was planned to be a quick overnight point to catch a high-speed train to Paris. Due to the rail strike in France, we decided to spend a week in Milan instead and were enchanted immediately. Milan proved to be one of our favorite memories and experiences of our two months in Italy. We plan to definitely go back. Glad you enjoyed our story. Happy travels – Jon & Barbara