Duomo di Milan
The first (and the main) place we visited in Milan was the Milan Duomo.
The Duomo is at the center of the city. Visitors can immediately notice the immense size of the cathedral. It’s simply massive. The Milan Duomo is the largest cathedral in Italy in terms of the size, and the third largest in the world.
We went up to the top and from the balcony we were able to oversee the entire city. The balcony provided an interesting viewpoint, where one can see the old and the new in one frame – the modern city landscape peeking through each pillar of the old cathedral.
The Annex had historical archives including old sketches and photos of Duomo. Even in the 19th century, the Duomo and the plaza looked almost the same as today. It always gives you a special feeling that the buildings look the same after hundreds of years, but only the people have changed.
Pinacotera di Brera (Brera art gallery)
It’s easy to think that the only thing to see in Milan is the Milan Duomo, but the city’s renowned art gallery, Pinacotera di Brera, is a great art museum; Art lovers should definitely check it out. They also had open sketchbook where one could practice drawing!
Other cities and attractions
Unfortunately we couldn’t see the other must-see art in Milan, The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci, which required months-advance reservation.
While in Milan, we also visited a few small nearby cities in Northern Italy. We drove to Verona, a small town full of history and old town charm. Visiting the city was like walking into the 16th century.
We also visited Lake Garda and Lake Como. At Lake Garda, we were lucky to see a spontaneous classical music performance, which in our opinion was a world class performance. Italians certainly love classical music and live and breathe it in their daily lives.
Our next destination is Switzerland, where the theme will be more about nature and breathtaking scenery, rather than art and art history.