After our bicycling trip, we spent a few days in Milan before going home. It’s always a bit of a culture shock to come into the big city after spending a week plus in the quiet countryside. And even though the Du Lac et Du Parc Grand Resort was in the busy resort town of Riva del Garda, it felt very private and a bit like being in the jungle. Palm trees and greenery I guess.

We left Riva Del Garda by ferry on Lake Garda, stopping at a few towns to pick up and drop off passengers along the way.

We also saw lots of windsurfers and para surfers in the windy sections of Lake Garda.

After a two-hour ferry trip, we docked at Gargnano, grabbed a slice of pizza on our walk through town to meet our motor coach, and boarded the coach for a two-hour trip into Milan.

Upon arrival at our hotel, a guide took us on a walking tour that covered many of the spots we wanted to see. These included the Duomo, the number two recommended site to see in Milan. With construction commencing in the late 14th century, the Duomo has been under construction for six centuries with some stoppages due to wars or finances, and under the guidance of multiple architects.

The church is the fifth largest in Europe, is believed to have more statues than any other church, and at the top of the intricate pinnacles are life-sized statues including one of Napoleon. Mark Twain said about the Duomo, “They say that the Cathedral of Milan is second only to St. Peter’s at Rome. I cannot understand how it can be second to anything made by human hands.”

Next to the Duomo was the entrance to The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Italy’s oldest shopping gallery containing primarily luxury retailers.

We briefly checked out the Prada store where we had our temperature taken and our hands sprayed with sanitizer before we could enter.

On the other side of the Galleria was the famous La Scala opera house.

This was the current playbill.

That night we had dinner at a cafe near the hotel.

All the eating was outdoors but we peered inside to see what that looked like.

The next day we decided to leave the city and go to Lake Como, the number three most recommended thing to see if you are staying in Milan. We took the Metro (subway), changed lines, transferred to a train which we missed and had to wait an hour, caught the next train for a one-hour ride, then walked to the passenger ferry which took us across Lake Como to Bellagio. We docked at noon.

We set a time and place to meet for lunch and then began exploring. The Bellagio we saw was full of shops and cafes along the water’s edge and uphill from there via multiple narrow alleyways of steps.

At the top of the hill we checked out the Basilica di San Giacomo. It dates from the 12th century and is fairly small and unadorned, a respite of quiet among the shoppers along these streets.

We managed three other stops in the time we had. Our main stop was at Arco Sports where Ross bought a bicycling jersey. It was interesting because the proprietress had met several well-known cyclists and had their photos in the fitting room. They had visited here because they were doing reconnaissance on the Madonna del Ghisallo, a steep hill that’s frequently featured in cycling races such as the Giro d’Italia or the Giro di Lombardia.

Our other stops included Barindelli & Frezzi to purchase a silk scarf and Arte e Mode. The items in this Arte e Mode shop – I think there was another in the city – were designed by Pierangelo Masciadri and included jewelry, purses, scarves, and ties. The tie display included ones he has designed for American presidents including Clinton, Bush, and Obama and the shop displayed photos of when each wore them. I looked at a necklace for a long time but finally settled on a pair of earrings. The photo below is the designer with Goldie Hawn.

We met our group for lunch and then repeated our ferry, train, and metro scenario to get back to Milan by late afternoon. All I can say about Bellagio is, too many shops, not enough time.

Our final morning in Milan included getting our Covid test at a pharmacy for entry back to the U.S., and shopping in the Brera District. This is an artsy, bohemian-style neighborhood that is good for food, galleries, and shopping. Our hotel was about a fifteen-minute walk from here.

First we stopped at a stationery and handmade paper shop, F. Pettinaroli & Figli, #4 Brera. This shop also specialized in antique paper and maps.

Right next door was Riggadritto at #6 which also specialized in cards, stationery, and assorted gifts.

Once again, we ran short of time to check out more shops. We headed back towards the hotel and stopped for lunch at a nearby cafe.

Along the way, we saw many parking areas for motorcycles.

And we frequently passed by this neat red brick church, the Church of Santa Maria del Carmine, near our hotel. The current church was built starting in the mid-1300s but the facade was completed in 1880. Installed in 1986 in the Piazza del Carmine is a bronze statue, Grande Toscano, by polish artist Igor Mitoraj who passed away in 2014. His work frequently included fragmented torsos.

In the afternoon we went to the Santa Maria delle Grazie, the church that houses the painting of The Last Supper by Leonardo DaVinci. And this is the number one attraction to see in Milan.

We had tried to get tickets well in advance but with Covid, tickets could only be obtained a week prior to attendance. We were lucky to get them.

While waiting for our allotted viewing time, we watched kids playing soccer.

And a wedding was taking place in the church.

Then we were able to view the painting in an older section of the church. I had always thought of the painting as a framed oil but it is done in fresco style on an end wall of the former dining hall in the monastery. It was not done in actual fresco style and this has contributed to the loss of most of the original painting even though there have been multiple restoration efforts.

The painting depicts the reaction of the disciples the moment after Jesus told them one of them would betray him. Much analysis has been done of Da Vinci’s placement of the figures in the painting as well as other symbolism in the artwork.

The next day we said goodby to our friends, left the hotel at 7:30 a.m. and later that morning, boarded our flight for home. Great trip. So glad we were able to bicycle in this part of the world. We now have a completely different impression of this section of northern Italy than when we were here nearly 20 years ago. We got to see more and do more, even while trying to navigate the hazards of Covid.