18. Milan: April 28 2023. A Day in Milan and Update on Mike’s Covid.

Day Two of Paxlovid for Mike

While Mike is pretty much tied to his room here at the hotel, watching Italian TV (I think he seems a little better than yesterday), I figure I should take advantage of this return visit to Milan. I’m in a separate hotel room and feel fine.

So I walked… about 6 miles total and climbed about 8 floors. I walked from the hotel to the Piazza degli Affari, where I saw the famous “finger” which is strategically facing the Italian Stock Exchange, the Borsa… a sort of “F*** You” to the world of bankers and corporate CEOs. The statue is titled “L.O.V.E.” which stands for “Liberta, Odio, Vendetta, Eternita” (Freedom, Hate, Vengeance, Eternity.) It was created in 2010 by Maurizio Cattelan, who is well known in Italy for controversial art works. The statue was supposed to be temporarily placed in Piazza Affari but the Milan municipal government decided to keep it in the piazza indefinitely. The artist has never commented on the meaning of the statue, but everyone assumes it refers to the economic crisis that affected Europe from 2008 forward. The stock exchange is a fascist-era building. It should be noted that Piazza Affaari is in a business district and not a tourist destination, although word has spread and people do come and take pictures-–mostly of themselves with the statue. When I got to the piazza, there were just two other people there. 

From there I walked through the medieval part of Milan through the Cinque Vie and on to Santa Maria Presso San Sanitoro, a 15^th Century church… and just roamed the neighborhoods in and around this path I set out on… I went to see the Wall of Dolls, a protest art piece with scores of dolls tied to a wall—symbolizing crimes against women. Eventually I returning to Piazza Duomo and to the hotel to check on Mike. We are actually now neighbors as he is in Room 106 and I’m in 107. If we knew Morse Code we could communicate; instead we are opting for iPhones—the contemporary Morse Code. 

After a brief refreshing rest at the hotel, I headed out to actually visit the Duomo. I figure when in Milan—one must see the Duomo, even if you’ve seen it before. With ticket in hand (actually don’t think we needed to pay for tickets years ago) I trekked (along with many others) up to the roof and terraces of the building. The Duomo is 350 feet tall and has 135 spires. It was (according to my phone) six flights up and six flights down. These narrow stairwells with uneven treads and risers brought me to the many terraces and the roof where you could see the spires and trusses up close and get great views of Milan. 

Construction of the Duomo started in 1386 and was initially intended to be made of terra cotta, but once the design was revealed and the grandeur was understood, the project was done in marble that came from the Lake Maggiore area. In order to get the marble to the site, canals had to be dug and those canals are visible along the “navigli”. Thousands of artists and sculptors were involved in the construction and architects from across Europe were invited to participate – 78 different architects were involved. The church was consecrated in 1418 but in reality only the nave was finished.. Construction of the church continued for several centuries more. Frankly I had forgotten how many stairs there were (256 to get to the terraces); had I remembered I might not have done it. But I did do it and glad I did. And the inside of the Duomo is spectacular –- in some ways more “barren” than so many other churches in Italy. There are supposedly 3,400 statues, 135 gargoyles, and 700 figures within and on the façade of the building. 

Following the Duomo I headed back to the hotel briefly and then –-having already walked more than 15,000 steps (and my foot is not totally great yet) and climbed all those stairs—I decided to take a taxi to dinner. And unlike last night when I took a taxi I was much more careful with my pronunciation of the street name (Last night I needed to go to Via Corsico, but I guess my pronunciation made it sound like Via Corsica—big difference, totally different parts of the city. Ate at Il Carpaccio; interesting menu. 

And then I headed back to the hotel. 

Tomorrow is another day. Hoping Mike will be well enough to see a little of Milan before we leave. I think his isolation will end on Sunday. Keeping fingers crossed.

Best –

Fern