For my boyfriend’s 31st birthday, I took him on a surprise trip to Milan. This trip had been in the works for a long time (since last summer!) because he has always wanted to go to Italy but had never been. I picked Milan because it seemed like a good destination for a long weekend, and I try to avoid repeats if I can (I’ve already been to Rome and Venice).
We spent the first day roaming around the city in the 95 degree weather. It was quite uncomfortable but we had a good time. We headed first to the Duomo (of course!), which is Milan’s number one attraction and the largest Gothic cathedral in the world. We also went up to the rooftop terraces which are quite like those of the Notredame in Paris.
Our next destination was the Galleria Emanuele Vittorio, a long passageway with expensive stores and restaurants, originally designed in the 1800s.
After passing my a square and statue dedicated to Da Vinci, we headed to the Castelo Sforzesco, which contained a number of museums dedicated to various subjects, including instruments, furniture, Egyptian artifacts, and art.
Here comes the only disappointment from out trip: we went to the church where the original fresco of Michaelangelo’s “The Last Supper” is, and the tours were sold out for the next 2 weeks. Shame on my guidebook for not saying anything about having to go on a tour to see it! Normally you can just see it yourself, i.e. every other famous painting. That was disappointing for sure, but the church itself (Santa Maria delle Grazie) was beautiful.
The last stop on our first day was the Pinacoteca di Brera, Milan’s art museum. It has an overwhelming collection ranging from the 1300s to contemporary art and is housed in a large building with a pretty inner courtyard. The collection includes, among many other things, a large statue of Napoleon.
On Sunday, out second day there, we took a day trip to the small city of Como, which is right on the lake. Located 43 kilometers from Milan, it’s an hour train ride to Lake Como and a nice place to spend a day, although unlike Lake Ohrid in Macedonia, has no beaches for swimming (at least that we could see).
Still, it was nice to get out of the city, and there is a cable car that offers stunning views of the surrounding area as we ll as of the lake.
The city center is also beautiful, with a cathedral that was surprisingly pretty.
On Monday out flight didn’t leave until the late afternoon, so we decided to visit the “Venice of Milan”–the neighborhood of Navigli, which features a few canals with lots of restaurants and bars. There was also a Latin American market happening, with many smaller shops where I was able to buy tamarinds, something I’ve only been able to find in Florida!
It was relatively easy to see the highlights of Milan in a day and still be able to take a day trip to Lake Como, and we enjoyed the sights and the food…Pizza and pasta every day! With cheap flights with Ryanair or Easyjet leaving at numerous times throughout the day, this trip can be pulled off super easy and is very enjoyable.