Rainy Milan

We got into Milan last night and found our hotel about a block from the central train station. It is clean, servicable, cheap and has about the worst bed I have slept on in quite a while. It reminds me of the army cot I had as a kid. Great shower and the Giro ‘d Italia on the 14″ flat screen TV in the afternoons though.

We got a 48 hour Metro Pass and headed over to the Duomo area (three stops away). The Duomo or central cathedral, is the historic center of the city. It is a beautiful building with lots of spires, each topped with its own statue. On one side of the square is the Galleria, a Rodeo Drive like shopping area with all of the high end stores.

After touring the Duomo, the Galleria, and walking over to the original castle/fortress that protected the old city, we came back to the Duomo Plaza and had lunch at McDonald’s, which has a two story store with a spectacular view out over the plaza, if you are lucky enough to score a window table (which we were — Patty’s great karma again).

After lunch we went over to the church that has the “Last Supper” painting by Michelangelo. You can now make reservations for a 15 minute tour in July on-line. They are sold out through June. We were hoping for a last minute cancellation. The desk will not even discuss it but refers you to a telephone number. Patty called them, and when the guy at the counter saw they were able to find a slot, he called Patty over and sold her a 3:30 pm slot, that had just cancelled (did I mention her karma?)

To kill a couple of hours, we walked to the Museum of Science and Industry which has great displays, including a large number of Michelangelo drawings and models made from his drawings, along with a lot of other great exhibits.

The rain was coming down pretty hard and we got pretty wet where our rain jackets did not cover us walking to and from the museum. The viewing of the wall painting of the Last Supper was worth the hassle and it was interesting to see it in place.

After our viewing we caught the Metro back to the hotel to dry out.

After a rest and watching Mark Cavendish win a sprint stage of the Giro, we took the Metro back to the Duomo area and had a good dinner at a Rick Steves recommend place. We are ready for bed.