Category Archives: Milan

Maundy Thursday

I took this photo just 9 days ago at the Monumentale Cemetery in Milan. Today and this whole week Christians around the world remember the events that led up to the crucifixion and Christ’s resurrection over 2000 years ago. I always look forward to celebrating our risen Lord who is alive today. The Last Supper and the Washing of the Disciples Feet are both remarkable events. While in Milan I was also able to see Leonardo da Vinci’s mural of the Last Supper. The original mural is on a wall of the refectory (dining hall) in the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan, Italy. No photos allowed. This next sculpture of Jesus washing Peter’s feet is at the Gardens of the World in Thousand Oaks, California.

GOTW-practice035

 

Excerpts from John chapter 13…

It was just before the Passover Feast. Jesus knew that the time had come for him to leave this world and go to the Father. Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love.

Jesus knew that the Father had put all things under his power, and that he had come from God and was returning to God;  so he got up from the meal, took off his outer clothing, and wrapped a towel around his waist.  After that, he poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him.

When he had finished washing their feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place. “Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them.  “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and rightly so, for that is what I am.  Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet.  I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you.

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

On Top of Old Duomo…

…all covered with marble.

For 7 euros you can climb to the roof of the Duomo. For 12 euros you can ride an elevator up. I believe there were just over 200 steps total to get to the roof.

On a clear day you can see as far as the Alps and Apennines.

Dear was intrigued with the design of this building that we could see from the rooftop of the Duomo.

The Duomo is decorated with an amazing number of beautifully sculpted statues and spires. There are more statues on this building than any other in the world, 3159 in total. 2245 Of these are on the exterior together with 96 gargoyles and 135 spires.

The most famous of all these statues on the Duomo is the Madonnina (Little Madonna), a copper statue of the virgin Mary covered with 3900 pieces of gold leaf. It was cast in 1774 by goldsmith Giuseppe Bini and sculptor Giuseppe Perego. The statue, almost 14 feet high, was placed on top of the cathedral’s tallest spire and until 1959 marked the highest point in the city at 108.5 meter.

As with many old structures like this there are ongoing restoration projects. You can see the scaffolding surrounding the spire of the gold statue.

The views of all the architecture from the roof was worth the trip up those stairs. This post is a photo overload but after all the effort to get to the top I didn’t want to stop clicking away.

Within the Duomo

With a cathedral as old and magnificent as this one the history connected is too much to share in a blog post. One of the interesting side notes we heard is that the sanctuary was designed to be able to hold 40,000 parishioners at one time. It is the largest Gothic cathedral and the second largest Catholic cathedral in the world.

The inside of Milan’s Cathedral is expansive but rather dark. There are five large naves divided by 52 pillars – one for each week of the year – that support the cross vaulted ceiling.

We arrived too late to the Duomo to investigate the Crypt and Treasury.

How are your plans for Easter shaping up? Although I’m feeling better I’m still not at a productive state.  I’ll be taking it easy for a few more days.

Duomo Milan

Milan Cathedral is the cathedral church of Milan, Italy. Dedicated to Santa Maria Nascente, it is the seat of the Archbishop of Milan, currently Cardinal Angelo Scola. The Gothic cathedral took nearly six centuries to complete. I’ll be sharing several posts on the Duomo. My first photos will be of the front of the Duomo. My future posts on the Duomo will be from the interior, the roof and the rear.

The cathedral of Milan holds over six centuries of history and the entire building is made of pink-hued, white marble that comes from the quarries of Candoglia. Its construction began in 1386 on the area where the basilicas Santa Tecla and Santa Maria Maggiore stood and later became “encompassed” in the new cathedral. Architects, sculptors, artists and thousands of specialized workers became involved in the Fabbrica del Duomo (the construction of the cathedral) which, it can easily be said, has never stopped operating. Even today, in fact, work still continues on this extraordinary piece that is the symbol and heart of the city.

This was one of the highlights of Milan but it also has it’s downside. Tourists are bombarded by pickpockets here that work in tag teams trying to distract you while they try to steal your valuables or just con you out of your money. We enjoyed the views of the Duomo away from the crowds.

I am finally feeling well enough to get things done around here and to go out and about again. It was so good to be back in church this morning and to reconnect with friends. After our morning Palm Sunday service Josh and Laura picked us up for a belated birthday meal in Seattle. We had a great time together catching up and planning some future events together. Hope you had a good day!

Quaint and Characteristic…

Varenna is quiet and peaceful compared to the city of Milan which seems to never sleep. I was happy we had the chance to travel here before Dear started his responsibilities at the Conference. It wouldn’t have been enjoyable for me to travel here alone. Be forewarned that this post will be filled with lots of photos and few words.

Maybe you can tell by these whitecaps that it really was windy in Varenna on this day.

From Varenna we caught the train back to Milan stopped at the hotel to get new batteries for my camera and then headed out again to the Cathedral. We had a full day.

We’re having a quiet weekend for which I am thankful for as I recuperate more and more. It’s hard to believe that we’ll be celebrating Palm Sunday already. How’s your weekend shaping up?

Let’s Start At the Very Beginning…

…a very good place to start.

We’ll start at Como since it comes before Duomo and because we can see the Alps from there and they inspire me to want to sing all the songs from The Sound of Music.

We arrived by train in Varenna on beautiful Lake Como. The train ride was just about an hour from Milan.

The walk into the town gave us some promising views. The day was sunny and clear but very very windy and cold. It was the kind of wind with gusts that threw you off balance at times. This beautiful town is probably bustling in season but our time here was off season with very few people about and very few shops open.

We chose to eat at Ristorante Borgovino on one of the narrow lanes of Varenna.  We were happy with our choice. Dear and I were the only ones in the restaurant and were treated well.

We both chose risotto dishes. Dear had his with Lake Como Perch and I had the special with asparagus. Delicious.

More from the narrow streets and waterfront views of Varenna soon.

I’m happy to report I’m feeling a tad better today. I’m watching snow falling softly out my window. It threw me off guard when I first opened the blinds this morning to see everything covered with a light dusting of snow. How’s the weather in your part of the world?

Ciao Milano

We got back to the U.S.A. yesterday at four in the afternoon. I thought this eagle from the ceiling of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele in Milan was appropriate for the transition back.

It’s going to take a few days to recover from my latest adventures especially since the incubated bug I probably picked up 10 days ago on our flight back from California has decided to loom it’s ugly head. Ive also come home to lots of news that I missed being off line for just 48 hours. You never know what a day holds.

During this lenten season I’ve been reading 40 Day Journey with Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Here’s part of the reading from today on the subject of living in community…

We must be ready
to allow ourselves to be interrupted by God, who will thwart our plans and
frustrate our ways time and again, even daily, by sending people across our
path with their demands and requests.

It’s good to be home and to be able to communicate with loved ones in both their grief and their joy. I’m looking forward to reading about what you’ve been up to as I sit on the couch with a tissue stuffed up my nose. Blessings!

Galleria Vittorio Emanuele ~ P. C. #5

Evening

The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is the oldest shopping mall in Italy, housed within a four-story double arcade in central Milan. The Galleria is named after Vittorio Emanuele II, the first king of the Kingdom of Italy. This galleria is adjacent to the Cathedral in Milan.

Morning

It’s Tuesday and Dear’s last short session at the conference ends this morning. We have plans to visit the Monumental Cemetery and to check out the back of the Duomo. Later we have dinner reservations for our last evening in Milan.

Postcard # 5 ~ La Scala

La Scala is a world renowned opera house in Milan. The theatre was inaugurated on August 3, 1778. We weren’t allowed to take photos inside the auditorium where all the cool box seats are located. We were able to take photos in this adjacent hall with these beautiful Murano glass chandeliers. I’m pretty sure the tour guide said these were Murano glass. She was speaking German and English and sometimes it was hard to follow.

It snowed on Monday morning in Milan. The snow stayed on the tops of the cars but quickly turned to rain. I’m staying in today and will venture out tomorrow in what should be better weather for our last bit of sight seeing. We leave Milan very early in the morning on Wednesday.