Coffee shops in Italy are plentiful and it has to be pretty hard to compete.
So how does Starbucks open up a location in Milan and attract people who are willing to wait in line to enter and drink their special blends when there are so many authentic coffee shops throughout the city?
I have never been a coffee drinker…give me a Diet Pepsi in the morning and I am all good! But when I had the opportunity to stop by the Starbucks Reserve Roastery while on one of my layovers, I said yes, as I was dying to see why people stand in line to enter the beautiful…and historic…Poste building in Piazza Cordusio.
The Starbucks Reserve Roastery opened on September 6, 2018 and was created to pay homage to the Italian espresso culture that inspired Howard Schultz to create the Starbucks Experience, 35 years ago. Not just your ordinary coffee shop, the Reserve Roastery is a total experience which captivates your imagination and attention!
The first thing I noticed was the size. All 25,00 square feet of it!
But it wasn’t just big…it was beautiful…and colorful…and elegant…and fascinating…
Taking our place in line at the main bar, we perused the menu and made our order decisions. Serving everything from espresso, to nitro draft to cold brew to tea to hot chocolate…all is made to order and so worth the wait. Having ordered a chilly cookies and cream Frappuccino concoction, I sat at the bar with my friends, near the Scolari coffee roaster, the heart of the roastery, and savored my drink.
Cool music was playing giving it more of a club feel, but every now and then, a clattering noise from above caught our attention. Copper tubing, snaking its way across the ceiling, transported coffee beans to their holding cannisters at the main bar. How cool it that? A coffee bean highway!
And that’s not all. Nooks and crannies were filled with sculpture and murals lined the stairway leading down to the beautifully equipped bathroom, constructed of locally sourced marble and up, to the ArriviamoTM Bar where the vibe is definitely more about drinking, however, not coffee. If specialty cocktails are your thing, this is the place to be…the 30 foot long marble bar is the working space where mixologists create their passions.
The Princi Bakery occupies the left side of the space and houses a wood-fired oven, the tool for making proper bread and the nearby gift shop offers Starbucks merchandise as well as rare and exotic high-quality Arabica coffees sourced from around the world that you can take home and make for yourself.
.Many people choose to sit in the outdoor space, perfect for people watching, but I think staying indoors gives more insight into the art and science of coffee making in Italy!
I am still not a coffee drinker, but I would definitely visit Milan’s Starbucks Reserve Roastery again!
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It always seems that they happen when I have plans to visit other towns in Italy. While they usually give plenty of notice, for some reason, I usually miss that information until I arrive at the train station and realize that something is amiss.
Last October, exactly that happened. Skipping my nap, I readied myself for my day trip to Vigevano, the city known for its shoemaking history. With my list of places I wanted to visit in hand, I arrived at Porta Genova train station, purchased my ticket and walked out to the platform to await my ride. My train was supposed to leave at 12:40, but the time had come and gone. As I began to study the departure board, a man began speaking to me in Italian. My confused look must have clued him in that I did not speak his language, so instead, he said, “Signora, no trains, no trains!”
WHAT? NO TRAINS?
Refusing to believe his revelation, I continued to wait, eventually realizing that not one train had traveled through the station. Trying to look up any bit of information on the internet, I had no success, even with attempting to find an alternate route, other than driving or walking.
Defeated, I realized that I needed to find an alternate plan for the day. “Okay, think…”, I said to myself. Realizing that I was near the Navigli Canal area, I decided to head that way.
It was a beautiful, fall afternoon, perfect for strolling along the waterway, so I attempted to enjoy my plan modifications…with a scoop of gelato to cheer me up! Having been in this area before, I decided to seek out more about what makes it special.
Until the nineteenth century, the Navigli canals were the port area of Milan allowing the reach of Lake Maggiore, Lake Como and Ticino. Consisting of two major canals, Naviglio Grande and Naviglio Pavese, these canals were used to import the marble needed to construct the Duomo church.
Navigli Grande
Today, there are alternate methods of reaching other Italian cities and for receiving goods and merchandise, but the Navigli canals still play an important part in the Milanese daily life. An exciting place where locals and tourists alike meet to enjoy the lovely evenings while the evening light reflects on the waterways, many restaurants and bars are available to choose from. The last Sunday of the month also draws crowds for the Vintage Market, which hosts exhibitors from all over Lombardy selling an odd assortment of goods.
It wasn’t Sunday and it wasn’t quite happy hour yet, so I opted to analyze every shop, alleyway and piece of architecture along the way. Not long after I began my explorations, I stumbled upon something interesting. What appeared to be an awning covering a small stream, I learned was the Vicolo Lavandai, the former laundromat, dating back to the last century. One would expect that it was the meeting place of women, however, it is interesting to note that in fact, it was the men who did the washing here. The small stream was fed by the Naviglio Grande and on wooden boards, also known as brellins, they scrubbed their clothing items. These men created their own trade association in 1700, the Confraternita dei Lavandai which had St. Anthony of Padua as its patron saint and it was to him that they dedicated the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie al Naviglio.
Vicolo Lavandai
This church was where I headed next, a short distance down the canal.
Santa Maria delle Grazie al Naviglio, had its humble beginnings on the left bank of the Naviglio Grande in the sixteenth century with a chapel built to house an image of the Madonna. The chapel was eventually demolished and a larger Baroque church was built in its place, being devastated by fire in 1719 and then restored. At the end of the 19th century, the church, deemed to small for the growing parish, was demolished and replaced with a larger one in 1909…the current church.
The exterior was a bit confusing for me as it did not look like many of the Italian churches I had visited. In fact, it did not really appear to be a church at all remaining largely unfinished. I entered the portal set in its rough brick façade and took a look around, still not convinced that it was a church that I was setting foot in.
Santa Maria delle Grazie al Naviglio
Glancing around, I noticed that the church’s neo-Romanesque interior contained three naves covered by a barrel vault. As I made my way down the main aisle, I admired the afternoon light filtering in through the stained glass windows established throughout the church. Two bronze pulpits and two additional altars flanked the main altar. These altars were crowned by stained glass windows depicting the Cross and the Madonna. The altar on the left was formerly the main altar and contained a statue of the Pietà which was originally housed in the previous church. The right altar is dedicated to Saint Anthony of Padua, the protector of the nearby laundrymen. The highlight, however, was the neo-Gothic high altar which showcased a beautiful temple containing a bas-relief of God the Father Blessing.
Bronze pulpits
Altars dedicated to Saint Anthony of Padua and the Pieta
Santa Maria delle Grazie al NaviglioSanta Maria delle Grazie al NaviglioSanta Maria delle Grazie al Naviglio
Making my way through the church’s interior, I was continually drawn to the rich stained glass windows and the church’s clean lines. Stopping in the baptistery, I admired the stunning fresco of Jesus’ baptism by John the Baptist.
Baptistery
The cafes were starting to attract a few patrons interested in cappuccinos and stronger concoctions. As tempting as a nice, chilled Nastro Azzurro sounded at that moment, I decided to make my way to one other place.
Passing the Church of San Gottardo al Corso and Porta Ticinese, the former city gate of Milan, I snapped a few photographs of each, but with neither being my intended destination, I continued on.
Church of San Gottardo al Corso
Porta Ticinese
Finally, I made it to the place that had been on my list of things to see in Milan for some time…Basilica di Sant’ Eustorgio or more specifically, the Museum of Sant’Eustorgio and the Portineri Chapel.
Basilica di Sant’ EustorgioBasilica di Sant’ Eustorgio
Walking through the cloister, I made my way to the entrance to the museum. Here, I paid my entrance and began my self-guided tour through the museum. After St. Ambrogio, the 4th century Saint Eustorgio is one of the most noteworthy medieval structures in the city and stands on the ruins of an Early Christian Necropolis. It houses the famous Portinari chapel as well as numerous artworks of different nature.
Remains of Early Christian Neocropolis
Moving from the southern portico of the first cloister to the remains of the early Christian necropolis, I admired the frescoes that decorated the walls of this area. Heading then to the former chapter house of the primitive Dominican monastery and then the monumental sacristy, I inspected the large collection of relics, liturgical objects, vessels and reliquaries that were exhibited in the walnut cabinets. While the collection is vast, many which were referred to in the archives, have been lost over the years.
Monumental SacristyMonumental Sacristy
Continuing on to the sunlit Solarian Chapel with its black and white floors, I stopped for a moment to appreciate its simplistic style. Turning and navigating the hall on the left, I then found myself in the famous Portinari Chapel.
Solarian Chapel
Portinari Chapel
Portinari Chapel
Commenced in 1460 and completed in 1468, this jewel of the church, created in the Renaissance style, is absolutely breathtaking. With walls decorated with frescos by Vincenzo Foppa and a multi-hued dome, it contains the relic head of St. Peter of Verona, to whom the chapel is consecrated. Originally slated to function as both a family chapel and mortuary, the marble sepulchre of Peter of Verona was moved from the basilica into the chapel in 1736. A marble altar was erected in front of it, on which was place a silver shrine containing the saint’s head. In the 1880’s the sepulchre was placed off center in the chapel to be better illuminated and the shrine containing the head was moved to a small adjacent chapel. The chapel also includes a number of paintings by undisclosed Lombard artists including frescoes such as the Miracolo della nuvola e Miracolo della falsa Madonna, and a depiction of the martyrdom of St. Peter Martyr.
Portinari Chapel
Portinari Chapel
Portinari Chapel
Finally, I made my way to the dimly lit basilica which was once an important stop for pilgrims on their journey to the Holy Land because it was said to contain the tomb of the Three Magi.
Basilica di Sant’Eustorgio
Basilica di Sant’EustorgioBasilica di Sant’EustorgioBasilica di Sant’EustorgioBasilica di Sant’Eustorgio
Founded around the 4th century, it was named after Eustorgius I, the Bishop of Milan. In the 12th century the revered relics of the Magi were taken to Cologne, Germany and it wasn’t until the beginning of the 20th century that fragments of the bones and garments were returned to Sant’Eustorgio. Today, they are in the Three Kings altar.
Three Kings Altar
On the right side of the church there are chapels commissioned from the 14th century onwards by Milan’s prestigious families each contain important frescoes and tombs. The high altar offers an imposing marble polytypch from the 15th century and other important works by Ambrogio Figinia can be found in the church.
As I exited the church, I took a few moments to analyze its more modern exterior, dating back to the 19th century. What is interesting to note is that the belltower is topped with a star instead of a traditional cross, giving homage to the Three Magi.
Basilica di Sant’ Eustorgio
As my day was coming to a close, I took a seat at the restaurant I chose along the Navigli Grande. Reflecting on the turn of events due to the train strike, I was sad that I wasn’t able to stay with my plan of visiting Vigevano. Yes, I struck out!
But…that didn’t mean that I lost the game. With some quick thinking, I was able to salvage the day and see some amazing sights within the city. And Milan is full of them!
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Vicolo Lavandai
Address: Alzaia Naviglio Grande, 14, 20144 Milano MI, Italy
Hours: 24 hours, daily
Admission: free
Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie al Naviglio
Address: Alzaia Naviglio Grande, 34, 20144 Milano MI, Italy
Hours: unknown
Admission: free
Church of Saint Gotthard al Corso
Address: Corso S. Gottardo, 6, 20136, Milano MI, Italy
Hours: unknown
Admission: free
Porta Ticinese
Address: Piazza Ventiquattro Maggio, 20123 Milano MI, Italy
Hours: Church, daily, 0745-1200 and 1530-1830. Museum of Sant’ Eustorgio, Monday, closed. Tuesday to Sunday, 1000-1800.
Admission: Adults, €6,00, Children (ages 6-18), €4,00, Children (under 6), free.
Getting There: From Piazza Duomo (MM1 and MM3) with Tram 3. Trams 9 and 10 (Piazza XXIV Maggio stop) and from Piazza Sant’Ambrogio (MM2) with bus 94 (DeAmicis-C.so Porta Ticinese stop).
Having studied art and architecture, they always draw my interest. There are days, during my layovers, that I just wander around taking pictures of public art…and it is never in short supply in any city throughout the world.
One fall afternoon in Milan, I was walking the streets in the Navigli Canal area. Trying to locate another particular point of interest, I spotted something else marked on Google maps.
The Macan Music Wall.
Not quite sure what this would reveal, I headed in that direction.
Each year, in addition to Milan’s famous Fashion Week, the city also hosts Music Week, a pace of concerts, showcases, meetings, workshops, webinars, exhibitions and presentations. During Milan’s 2018 Music Week, the event was kicked of with the inauguration of the Macan Music Wall, a public artwork dedicated to music, unveiled, commissioned and gifted by Porsche Italia to the city.
This imposing mural covers the façade of a building in via Conchetta (corner of via Troilo) and was created by the collective of urban artists Orticanoodles and the Leagas Delaney agency. Entitled “Music Is A Never Ending Journey”, the work depicts a gigantic beating heart placed at the center of a musical cosmos. Around the heart, planets and constellations inspired by different genres and musical instruments rotate, as in a star map. Painted with special fluorescent paints, it is even visible during the nighttime hours.
To make your visit even more special, pop your Airpods in and tune to Porsche Italia’s Spotify channel, entitled “Music Is a Never Ending Journey” for the full experience!
While this is not a major attraction, it was interesting to discover while in the area and I think that it would be quite the spectacle to behold at night!
Many more art installations, sculpture and graffiti can be found the in Navigli Canal area, including the Wall of Dolls ( https://snappingtheglobe.com/?p=6924). Put on your walking shoes and start searching!
Wall of Dolls
Navigli Canal area art installations, murals and grafitti
For more pictures, check out Facebook, Snapping the Globe and Instagram, @snappingtheglobe.
Macan Music Wall
Address: Via Conchetta, 8, 20136 Milano, MI, Italy
Hours: 24 hours, daily
Admission: free
Getting There: Tram 3, L.go Mahler stop. P.TA Genova FS metro stop, walk 16 minutes.
All over the world, there are traditions that are practiced during the Christmas season.
Foods, special pajamas, holiday shows, places to visit…the lists are endless.
My family has some special traditions that we have upheld over the years and our children have come to cherish these characteristic customs. On Christmas Eve morning, I start a chicken and sausage gumbo (a nod to our Cajun heritage) and let it cook throughout the day, filling the house with a delightful aroma. During the evening, we put on the Christmas Story for its 24 hours of continuous broadcasting and laugh at how many lines we can recite. Most people are familiar with our favorite, “You’ll shoot your eye out!” But, it is during the days leading up to Christmas Eve that we enjoy an entertaining outing each year.
While we decorate our home with white lights lining our porch, wreaths on the windows and deer grazing in the yard we can’t hold a candle to many of the acclaimed and festively decorated homes in the area. In years past, we filled our yard with a giant blow up Snowman, a waving Santa Claus, gift packages and many more thousands of lights, but over the years, the effort it took caused us to minimize our display.
While we love our small display, it is the many other homes and businesses in the area that we look forward to visiting each year. The Tacky Light Tour is a huge tradition during the Christmas holidays in many cities throughout the United States. Every year, people hire transportation companies to drive them around in small buses, vans and stretch limos, to see Christmas light displays…or they might do as we do. We load up the kids into our car, swing by Starbucks for hot chocolate, put some holiday music on the radio and do the driving on our own!
This has always been one of my favorite pastimes and of course, we always had our favorites homes to visit, with quite a few places having been featured on national television programs.
Of course, being a flight attendant, the privilege of getting to experience other country’s Christmas traditions is a great gift. While it is delightful to see these cities light up for the occasion, as is the case with the Amsterdam Light Festival (their version of the Tacky Light Tour, though definitely NOT tacky), the best part is the Christmas markets…great places to pick up unique gifts and foods to bring home to offer our holiday guests.
Over the years, I have visited the markets in Amsterdam, Paris, Belgium and Germany. This year, I was lucky enough to be in both Milan and Rome in December during the openings of the market season.
Milan was decorated beautifully, especially the area surrounding the Duomo. A market consisting of 65 wooden chalets offered ornaments, gifts, foods and drink to the masses of masked visitors while the Christmas tree in the square was still being strung with lights. Nearby, inside the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, the Swarovski tree stood tall, glittering with its vast collection of crystal ornaments.
As we made our way through the streets of the city, we encountered lighted walkways, festive window displays and storefronts lighted to attract Christmas shoppers. Such a fabulous time, we had in Milan, I couldn’t wait to visit Rome on the next weekend to see the market in my beloved Piazza Navona.
As the day grew dim, we headed out to cross the River Tiber and make our way through the back alleys towards the Piazza Navona. Alas, nothing was for sale except for the usual fare of the usual vendors. No chalets, no lights…no market!
Thankfully, we discovered some lights strung across the narrow pathways and streets throughout the city as well as the occasional Santa Claus keeping watch over the outdoor dining areas. While I was sad that Rome had chosen to forego the festive market, the Catholic church made up for it in another way. During the darkened hours of the evening, we made our way over to St. Peter’s, to gaze upon the annual nativity on display, while standing in the shadow of the great basilica. This is a tradition that I would like to keep each year.
Leaving Italy and heading home to prepare for my family’s own celebrations, I was looking forward to experiencing our traditions once again. While my own home had been lighted immediately after Thanksgiving, I perused the list of the homes on this year’s Tacky Light Tour. Knowing that I could have driven by many of these homes many times in the weeks preceding Christmas, I preferred to wait patiently for my children to return home for the holidays.
As tradition would have it, we started with a house on Wendhurst Drive, less than a mile from our own home. This house has been featured on numerous news and television programs and has been adding lights and decorations since 2000. Starting with a few lights in the bushes and a single sleigh, the home now boasts a total of 2,207 homemade decorations, 180,388 lights and takes approximately seven months to set up. Mr. and Mrs. Thompson, the owners of the home, hand out candy canes in front of their nightly display, offer a photo station, a Santa mailbox, a guest book, a Mistletoe Kissing Station.
9716 Wendhurst Drive, Glen Allen, Virginia
We continued our journey throughout the west end of Richmond, following my map from house to house, gazing in wonder at the mazes of lights gracing each of the homes on the list. At the end of our journey, I noticed one house that we had forgotten near the beginning of our tour. Retracing our steps, we made our way to a new listing on the Richmond Tacky Lights List on Croft Circle. As we approached, we noticed motion on the roof…Santa dancing and waving to passersby…and on the ground, the Grinch holding court!
“Merry Christmas!” they called out to our passing car!
As we sipped our hot chocolate and sang along to Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas, we made our way back to our home stopping briefly to admire our own lights and look forward to our upcoming gumbo feast.
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When in Milan, everyone ensures a visit to the Duomo, the city’s wondrous cathedral.
There are, however, a great many other churches throughout the confines of the city limits, each with their own special notoriety.
Having made many trips to the Duomo, I have made it my mission to mark off each of the others on my map during my visits to Milan. One by one, I researched and chose carefully for the particularities of each. As I set out from my hotel, I made my way toward the the one that I had my eye on and it was actually just around the corner from the Duomo…Santa Maria presso San Satiro.
This Italian Renaissance structure was built from 1476 to 1482 and houses the early medieval shrine to Satyrus, brother of Saint Ambrose. Constructed on the site of a primitive place of worship, dating back to 879, the church was commissioned by the Duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza and designed by Donato Bramante. It was once an important pilgrimage site during the 13th and 14th centuries when word reached the masses that it contained an image of the Madonna that shed real blood when stabbed.
Though there are many interesting features, the one that everyone comes to see is the false apse, one of the early examples of trompe l’oeil. Working with a small plot of land within the city, there was not enough space to build the choir, the space behind the altar. The church’s dimensions had to be abridged, making the space awkwardly short. Bramante’s solution was to formulate an area by creating an optical illusion. As I walked into the space, indeed, there appears to be a real apse behind the altar, but as I made my way throughout the church and to the side of the altar, it was evident that it is only a relief applied to the back of the wall.
I must admit, I was so intrigued, I made three or four trips back and fourth from the entrance of the church to the side of the altar to compare what I was seeing.
After resolving my visions, I spent a great deal of time discovering the other treasures within the multi-naved church, including an image of Virgin with Child and Two Donors, the 15th century baptistry, several terracotta busts in the sacristy, an altarpiece of the Extasis of St. Phillip Neri by Guiseppe Peroni and outside, the Romanesque bell tower that dates back before the 1480s construction. Besides the main attraction, however, is one other major piece of artistic importance, the Cappella della Pietà, the chapel built in the 9th century to honor Saint Satiro, brother of Saint Ambrose. This chapel houses the 15th century terra-cotta Pietà and lovely Byzantine frescoes and Romanesque columns. As is throughout the rest of the church, the lighting is dim, but you can drop in 1 euro into the box so that the space will be illuminated.
The rich decorations throughout the church intrigued me as I wondered throughout investigating every niche. The ceiling of the main nave was golden and lent to the warm glow throughout and the beautiful tri-chrome floor under the magnificent dome was spectacular.
Exiting the church, I turned to re-examine the facade which remained largely unfinished, until the 19th century, due to disagreements between the architect and the executor Giovanni Antonio Amadeo. Tucked away behind the gates, on Via Torino, its quite easy to realize how many people would walk on by, mesmerized by lure of the great Duomo which lies a short distance away.
Don’t walk on by. Don’t go to the Duomo.
Step through the gates and discover this work of artistic and archaeological importance!
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Sitting on the floor of my childhood home, my brothers and I used to have major competitions to see who could build the best houses, the best cars or any other idea that caught our fancy. Sometimes we were quite successful in our endeavors…sometimes it was an utter fail!
My three children all played with LEGO and although they are now grown, we still have the boxes filled with small pieces stored away as they can’t seem to part with something special from their childhood.
Lately, it seems that LEGO are everywhere we look. A new Primetime television show highlights LEGO enthusiasts and their creations competing to be crowned LEGO Master. A LEGO exhibit, The Art of the Brick, is touring the world (currently in Los Angeles) and highlights more than 100 original sculptures and re-imagined versions of some of the world’s most famous art masterpieces.
It was the knowledge of The Art of the Brick that prompted me to trek across Milan to visit the latest LEGO exhibition, I Love LEGO that was being hosted in Milan’s Museo della Permanente. It was a rainy day…the perfect kind of day to spend indoors enjoying an art exhibit and I was excited to see what this one offered, knowing that Art of the Brick had been in Milan during the past few years.
Museo della Permanente
After paying my admission, I headed up the stairs to the exhibition rooms where there I was greeted with the first display…the Grande Diorama City. Consisting of 250,000 pieces, this city contains the Legoland Hospital and the Empire Brick Building (topped with King Kong) and a waterfront, a la French Riviera style, complete with small, luxury yachts that even Oprah would be tempted to book a holiday on.
Next on the agenda was a reconstruction of the Forum of Nerva, which was completed and inaugurated by Marcus Cocceius Nerva in AD 97. Though rather small, this figure was created with 80,000 pieces and looks like many of the buildings that can be seen in Rome. There are dozens of miniature soldiers and a tiny Julius Caesar-like figure!
Moving on, Space was the subject of the next diorama. Though the first two peaked my interest for their originality, I was a bit disappointed with this one. Consisting of only 12,000 pieces, it was laid out like a landing strip with individual space ships and vehicles laid throughout. Maybe some people can not build space ships, however, I felt that particular display had no originality, most of it looking as though it was constructed from store-bought kits.
The exhibit continued through a small, purple room, lined with pictures frames made of LEGO bricks highlighting famous works of art made in the LEGO people style…think Vermeer’s Girl With a Pearl Earring, La Giaconda’s Mona Lisa and Jan van Eyck’s Portrait of a Man in a Red Turban.
Partitioned into three sections was a large room containing the next three exhibits. First, I studied the Pirate Diorama, another sad model that only incorporated 12,000 pieces and looked like it was also assembled from store-bought kits. There were two pirate ships, an island filled with palm trees and an alien-like octopus…or so I thought that is what it was.
In the next section was the Castle Diorama built from 250,000 pieces. This one at least appeared to be original and interesting to investigate the areas of the castle’s grounds.
The final section, was called the Eyrie, a massive fortress inspired by the television series Game of Thrones. This immense piece took two years to complete and covers a surface of nine feet, while the actual piece is almost six feet tall. There are many alcoves and openings to discover in the fortress and I was really able to appreciate the ingenuity and imagination required to build such a piece.
On I proceeded…
To the LEGO playroom?
Okay, I thought, this must be the pit stop for kids to duplicate what they have seen before moving on.
But…there was the gift shop…and there was the exit!
Seriously?
I paid 13 euro to see seven LEGO exhibits with only a third of them worth the admission price! This was not what I was expecting! I had anticipated huge, original pieces and duplications of masterpieces (not paintings…full-scale replicas).
So, what’s a girl supposed to do?
I forced myself to do another walk-thru, went back to my hotel room and looked up the dates of The Art of the Brick.
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Address: California Science Center, 700 Exposition Park Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90037
Hours: 1000-1700, daily
Admission: Adults (ages 18-64), $19.75, Children (ages 4-12, 3 and under free), $12.75, Students (age 13-17 College Students with ID), $22.70, Seniors (age 65+), $22.70.
Truly one of the most devastating events of mankind, we need to see and constantly be reminded of the Holocaust, so that horror is never repeated.
Of course, everyone knows the story of Anne Frank. I have visited the museum dedicated to her memory in Amsterdam and have also visited the Holocaust museum in Washington D.C. I have also read many books on the subject and plan to visit some of the former concentration camps during my future travels. It is heartbreaking to realize how many perished during this time and the terror they must have faced, but education is important so that we have understanding and compassion for what transpired during that time.
As I was researching items of interest in Milan, I stumbled upon a museum which is relatively unknown to most tourists even though it is located a short distance from Central Station, the point of entry and exit to the city for both tourists and locals.
During the war, when the Jews were being rounded up and transported to the concentration camps, Milan Central Station was the point of exit for many Italian Jews.
Not a point of exit for escape…
A point of exit to their new existence…that of one in Nazi concentration and extermination camps.
The platform, which is located, out of sight, in the area below the main level of Milan Central Station, is where prisoners departing from San Vittore prison were loaded onto cattle wagons and sent to their demise.
Milan Central Station
Today, this platform has been transformed into a place where visitors can come to remember and gain knowledge. It is a symbol of the deportation of all Jews and other persecuted people who left their homes and cities in the same manner, never to return.
Entering the museum, I discovered a very modern space dominated by a long wall in the center. The word Indifference is engraved here, representing the reason why this museum was possible. At the top of the ramp, I entered the third level where I began the actual museum experience.
Twenty-four parallel tracks run through the center of the museum, once the area created for postal wagons, and display the original cattle cars which were used to cram thousands of prisoners inside for their expulsion between 1943 and 1945.
An extremely sobering experience, you can walk inside and through the cars to the opposite platform. Once inside these claustrophobic spaces, however, it is rather frightful to think about being jammed into this small car, shoulder to shoulder, with no food, water or fresh air. Although I wanted to pay my respects to the small memorials set up in each of the cars, I had to constantly walk out to the platforms to gather my bearings.
Heading into the dimmed corridor, I contemplated the wall which displays the names of the 774 Jewish citizens who were deported from this station to Auschwitz-Birkenau. Highlighted are the twenty-seven names of those who survived deportation. There are also many posters on the wall which describe many of the victims.
On the far end of the tracks is a unique meditation chapel and there are enclosed spaces for visitors to watch videos of holocaust survivors’ stories, although, if your Italian is not up to par, you will not get much out of it as there are no subtitles.
While visiting Milan, you will likely pass through Central Station at some point of your stay. The museum is located a short walk around the eastern side of the museum’s entrance and doesn’t require a large amount of your time. Take an hour or so out of your day to be reminded not only of atrocities of mankind, but of the bravery and perseverance of those around us.
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You’ve never heard of it? It is the basilica that plays second fiddle to Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece which resides in the adjacent refectory!
Most people do not trek across Milan in search of this church. They duck inside before or after the visits to the Last Supper or visit as a consolation when they cannot get tickets to lay their eyes on the famous painting.
I am here to tell you, however, even if you can’t secure tickets to the Last Supper, a visit to Santa Maria delle Grazie, next door, is a must. Years ago, when I was practically laughed out of the ticket office when I inquired about last minute tickets, I consoled myself with a visit to the basilica. Now considered a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it was constructed under the orders of the Duke of Milan Francesco I Sforza and completed in 1469. While the basilica contains some amazing treasures, it is the notorious painting, housed in the refectory of the adjacent convent that attracts thousands of visitors each year. Though the Last Supper is the main attraction, it is not to say that the church itself should be overlooked.
Taking decades to complete, the church was originally designed to serve as the burial site of the Sforza family, however Ludovico Sforza’s wife, Beatrice was the only member buried in the church in 1497.
Since I arrived extremely early for my visit to the Last Supper, I decided to take another look around the basilica I had visited so many years ago. As I entered the structure, I vividly remembered its beauty and all that it has to explore, however, the chapels on each side of the church are the definitely the highlights. Upon completion of the church, the most powerful families who were granted patronage of the chapels to bury their loved ones, then decorated each chapel with the artistry of the period’s masters and each is magnificent and unique.
The Chapel Atellani’s prominence is an altar-piece of the Virgin Mary with Child, St. Vincent Marty and St. Vincent Ferrer by Cariolano Malagavazzo dating back to 1595. The frescoes from the 17th century were painted by the Fiamminghini brothers and detail the the miracles by St. Vincent Ferrer and his martyrdom.
The Chapel of St. John the Baptist displays an ornate candelabra, an ancient organ and an altar-piece of St. John the Baptist admonishing a devotee painted by Marco d’Oggiono. The frescoes on the walls and ceiling were painted by Ottavio Semini in the 16th century.
The Chapel of St. Joseph’s altarpiece was completed by Tiziano’s disciple, Paris Bordon and highlights the Holy Family with St. Catherine of Alexandria.
The Chapel of St. Peter Martyr contains frescoes by Giambattista Lucini of St. Ludovico Beltran and St. Paul. The altarpiece is entitled The Martyrdom of St. Peter of Verona.
The Chapel of Conti (forrmerly Simonetta) offers an entrance gate of bronze, dating back to 1669, which was formerly the railing of the high altar until 1935. The altarpiece is a marble monument of the Virgin Mary received into Heaven and Eve at her feet, sculpted by Arrigo Minerbi in 1941. On the sides of the chapel are centographs of Senator Ettore Conti and his wife, Gianna Casati, by Francesco Wildt. Conti was the illustrious benefactor who ensured that Santa Maria delle Grazie was restored and rebuilt after World War II’s bombings damaged the church.
The Chapel of St. Dominic’s magnificent altarpiece is of St. Dominic, holding the rosary, receiving the book and the stick of the evangelic preaching from the Apostles Peter and Paul, by Carlo Pontion. Its walls contain fragments of the glory of the Dominican Saints by Francesco Malcotto that were originally in the apse of the choir.
The Chapel of St. Pius V contains tombstones of Branda Castiglioni (1495), Luigi Arcimboldi (1496) and Cecilia Magenta (1585). There are fragments of frescoes by Montorfano and the altarpiece of Pope Pius V is by an unknown artist.
The Chapel of St. Catherine contains a bronze Crucifix on the altar designed by Ecce Homo, earthenware on the altar table, six bronze tablets with episodes of the life of St. Catherine of Siena, and a (now walled-up) reliquary where the mantle of the Sienese saint is preserved. There are paintings in the lunettes of St. Catherine of Alexandria and St. Catherine of Siena and an altarpiece of the Virgin Mary of Child and St. John the Baptist and St. Peter Martyr, by Nicolo of Cremona.
The Chapel Della Torre highlights a painting of the Virgin Mary adoring the infant Jesus with St. Ambrose, St. Lucy and the offerer’s family. If you glance upward, you will notice an example of the original decoration of the XV century.
The Chapel of Marliani (or The Angels Chapel) depicts an altar piece of St. Michael defeating Satan which dates back to 1560 and there are nine angelic choirs on the vault by an unknown painter.
The Chapel of St. Martin de Porres has four cenotaphs from the XVI century on the walls and an altar piece of St. Martin in Ecstasy by Silvio Consadori.
Chapel Sauli’s main focus is the Crucifixion by Giovanni demio of Schio. On the walls there are elegant angels created by earthenware covered in stucco, that carry the instruments of the Passion. If you look closely, there is evidence remaining of the bombardment from World War II.
Finally, St. Crown’s Chapel offers the Deposition from the Cross by Caravaggio dating back to 1616. Its original masterpiece, The Crowning of Thorns Coronation by Tiziano was stolen in 1797 but was recovered and now housed in the Louvre. The vaults and walls display frescoes with scenes from the Passion.
After making my rounds of the illustrious chapels, I made my way through the remainder of the church, admiring the decorated vaults and domes of the nave and the apse.
The two-level choir of the friars for the holy liturgy has thirty-three Carthusian-styled seats on the lower level and forty-two on the upper level decorated with figures of angels and saints in the Lombard style. The modern organ is lowered in the middle of the floor. The choirs of Italy’s churches are always a favorite of mine with their elaborate carvings and I am always able to imagine the beautiful sounds that must emanate from this area.
The outside of Santa Maria delle Grazie is also not to be missed! Make sure to not miss the family crests that decorate the outside of the church.
Though Santa Maria delle Grazie is consistently outshined by the Last Supper which is housed in its refectory, every visitor to Milan should make their way to its location and give it the respect it deserves!
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And how many years have I tried to get tickets to the Last Supper?
Too many!
Never spending more than twenty four hours each time in Milan, it was a difficult decision to spend money on something that might not happen. Weather might move in. Sickness might strike. A car accident could render me stranded on the roadside. And, I would not make it to Milan.
You get the picture.
So, each time I looked for tickets to see the Last Supper the day before or even the day of, there were none. Even testing my luck, I had gone to the office and inquired, thinking they might feel a bit of pity and suddenly find “one” ticket. Detecting a bit of laughter behind their comments, directing me to come back first thing the next morning, I always walked away defeated.
After a long night in flight, I was riding to my hotel and browsing the internet. Divine intervention must have inspired me and I suddenly felt the need to check for Last Supper Tickets. Imagine my astonishment to find a site that had one ticket left!
Quickly entering my information, I made the purchase and was so excited that I could hardly take my much needed nap!
My admission time was for later in the day, so I did get that much needed nap, even allowing enough time to visit the church next door, Santa Maria delle Grazie, afterward.
Sitting in the piazza, I watched the various tour groups meet their guides, anxiously awaiting the arrival of mine. Of course, I let my imagination get the best of me, thinking that I had stumbled upon a fake web site and no one would be here to greet me. Finally, walking around, I inquired with a couple of the other guides about my tour and started to meet the members of our group…yet still no guide.
Eventually, we were told by the gentleman, who was there to give our guide the audio-earpieces for us to wear, that our guide was running a bit late, but would be here with us for our admission time. Finally, we spotted him quickly walking down the street and we were soon verifying our tickets and receiving our earpieces. We entered the building, passing through security and took our place in the long hall, readying for our time to enter the airlocks which protect the Last Supper from the elements.
First door, last door…we were in.
And nothing prepared me.
Many years ago, I went to the Louvre and was excited to see the Mona Lisa. It was only when I arrived at its location, deep inside the museum, that I found that it is so much smaller than I anticipated.
This was the opposite!
I expected The Last Supper to be quite small, much like the Mona Lisa, and instead found that it took up the entire wall of the right side of the building. And not only that, The Crucifixion by Giovanni Donato da Montorfano takes up the opposite wall! Certainly, I never expected to see two masterpieces in the same room!
Our guide was very informative and explained each of the paintings to us, pointing out every small detail that we may have not noticed on our own.
The Last Supper was commissioned by Ludovico Sforza, the Duke of Milan, to be painted in the monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie and was completed in 1498. A representation of the meal that Jesus shared with his apostles, it shows the different reactions that each portrayed when Jesus shared the news that one of them would betray him. It is topped by the Sforza coats of arms painted in the lunettes that are formed by the triple arched ceiling of the refectory. What I found most interesting was that Leonardo da Vinci wandered the streets looking for likenesses to base the figures of the painting on. When the monastery’s prior complained about da Vinci’s laziness about finding someone upon which to base Judas, da Vince responded that the prior would make a great model!
On the opposite end of the building is the Crucifixion, which depicts the crucifixion of Jesus Christ outside of Jerusalem. At the foot of the cross bearing Jesus, is Mary Magdalene, Saint Dominic, founder of the Dominicans, Saint Thomas of Aquinas as well as other saints and leaders from the Dominican order. Figures of the Sforza family are incorporated into the painting.
During World War II, bombings threatened the existence of the church, monastery and the paintings. As Allied Leaders bombed many major European cities, the walls of the refectory were reinforced with sandbags and scaffolding to help protect the two paintings within.
When a high-explosive bomb landed eighty feet away on August 15, 1943, it was thought that all was lost. The building’s roof had caved in, the cloister had collapsed and one whole wall was blown out.
Miraculously, the paintings had survived.
The Last Supper and the Crucifixion have endured for many years since, yet both now are in an extremely fragile state and acute measures have been extended to their care. Both paintings now reside in a climate controlled atmosphere and much work has taken place to restore some of the former glory to the paintings. Only limited viewings are available (twenty-five people every fifteen minutes) each day and a state of the art infiltration system was recently installed. Despite all of these efforts, however, they may not be around for younger generations to appreciate in the coming years.
Some things last a long time, however, nothing lasts forever, so if you can get to Milan sooner than later and get tickets for Leonardo’s masterpiece…run don’t walk! It is one of the most enlightening experiences in all of Italy!
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Most churches can be construed as museums. Filled with religious works of art and exhibiting stunning architectural features, you can enter, in most cases, without paying an exorbitant fee and spend as much time as you wish, not only viewing the treasures, but spending a bit of time in solitude and contemplation.
The Church of St. Fedele is not only much like I described, but it is the only church in Milan that really does have a real art museum within its walls.
After visiting La Scala Theater, I noticed that St. Fedele Church was just around the corner. It was starting to sprinkle and if I was lucky, it would take up a bit of the time I needed to kill before dinner. Pointing myself in that direction, I covered the short distance quickly and stepped into the large square, admiring the statue of Alessandro Manzoni, the Italian poet and novelist.
The Jesuit church, which dates back to 1579 and is dedicated to St. Fidelis of Como, took the title of Santa Maria alla Scala in San Fedele when Santa Maria alla Scala was demolished in 1776 to make way for the Teatro alla Scala. Much of the destroyed church’s ornamentation from that church was brought to San Fedele.
The elegant facade which stands out in the St. Fedele Square today, was completed in 1835, however, many years later, during World War II, the church was severely damaged during a bombing raid. Though since repaired, the exterior should be examined thoroughly as it features a group of statues representing the Assumption, designed by Italian sculptor, Gaetano Matteo Monti.
The interior is a single nave church with tall columns, but adorned less ornately than others I have seen throughout Italy. There are, however, some notable pieces, including a Pietà by Simone Peterzano, a St. Ignatius by Giovanni Battista Crespi (il Cerano) a Transfiguration by Bernardino Campi, and a “Sacred Heart” by Lucio Fontana.
As I made my way around the church, I decided that it might be a short visit after all. Admiring the altar and the sanctuary, I was approached by a gentleman who asked if I would like to see the other parts of the church. He explained that St. Fedele is unlike any other in the city as it incorporates an art museum within its walls. Intrigued, I paid him the three euro entrance fee and was admitted to the sacristy.
As I made my way through the rooms of contemplation…the sacristy, the crypt, the sacellum, and the chapel of the dancers…I noticed the ancient reliquaries, liturgical objects and paintings that are usually found in religious spaces. There were also, however, works of art by Christo, Warhol, Arman, Rotella, Schifano and Radice, all collected by artist, designer and architect Nanda Vigo throughout his life. Overall, an experience that showed how important art and culture were to the Jesuits.
SacristyArt pieces mixed with religious icons at entrance to sacristy
Chapel of the Dancers
Art installation
What I enjoyed most, however, was what lies beneath the church. In the crypt, there are the remains of St. Fidelis, however, in a small airtight room on the right, there are the Relics of the 365-day Calendar. The little shrines are organized in daily order from Jauary 1 until December 31 and contain the relics of all the saints of the Catholic calendar that have been canonized until the beginning of the 19th century.
Making my way up to the church’s main level, glancing at my watch, I realized how much time had passed since I had made my way here. There was a great deal to see and experience, unlike my first impression.
Ancient artists have demonstrated over the centuries that there is a direct link between art and faith…just look at the treasures that adorn most churches. St. Fedele brings it to a new level and a new century with modern art.
Just remember, when Michaelangelo’s Pieta was placed in St. Peter’s Basilica, and he was alive, it was modern art!
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The Church of San Fedele
Address: San Fedele Street, 4, 20121, Milan
Hours: Monday and Tuesday, 0730-1630. Wednesay through Friday, 0730-1800. Saturday, 1000-1930. Sunday, 1000-2000.
Admission: Free to visit the church. San Fidele art exhibition in the sacristy and rooms of contemplation, €3
Getting There: Metro, Lines M1 and M3, Duomo stop or Tram, Line 1, The closest station: Duomo (Metro Lines M1 and M3), Teatro alla Scala stop.
