Milano

Of the places we have visited, Milan is most characteristic of a modern city. It’s also quite old, however, and the contrast between various-aged buildings stands out, as well as the range of times, cultures, and architectural periods they span.

            The duomo, or cathedral, ranks among the oldest Milanese structures, although some parts have been or are in the process of being restored. The vivid colors of the intricately beautiful stained-glass windows stand out prominently against the dark interior with its high, vaulted ceilings and grey stone.

                          

            In going to the roof of the cathedral, we found ourselves among the parapets, rather than in a small space above a dome, as is the case with several others. We were, rather, next to a larger – and thus more gently-sloped – dome. It is possible, from up there, to see through some the shorter downspouts of the rain gutters, leading from the cornice out a few feet away from the walls, and ceasing, in mid-air, to exist. They might be described as decorative narrow cylindrical tunnels made of and extending through the stone of the cathedral.

            From these parapets, we could also see a clock set on top of a nearby building. Behind this clock lie several residences and rooftop gardens. Either that clock or another nearby - most likely both - struck the time while we were still in the heights of the structure; either the hour or the half hour had been reached. It is incredibly useful to have clocks in public squares, and the bells send more wide-reaching alarms as to the time of the day.

            The number of clocks and bell towers in Italy is quite high, owing to the high number of churches and other grand old buildings, government and otherwise, which house them. The resulting bells are lovely and can be heard throughout the city or town at any hour of the day. They often ring at half and quarter hours as well. Their number is perhaps rivaled only by the number of statues and monuments standing in Italian piazzas.

Firenze

The Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore, or the duomo of Florence, stands as a fascinating object to gaze at. Quite large, it is yet composed almost entirely of beautifully intricate artwork. Even the architects' models and drawings — housed in the Museo dell'Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore — must have taken inordinate amounts of time and skill. The amount of effort that the structure must have required, over its years of construction, bears witness to the dedication of those involved in it.

Some of the tools used in construction, or replicas of them, are displayed in the museum, as well as in a room adjoining the descending passageway of the cupola of the duomo. According to the museum, new tools and building techniques were invented specifically for its construction, not because such a dome had never previously been built, but because the ancient-Roman methods and devices originally used to build one had been forgotten by the medieval centuries.

The museum of the duomo houses, besides those objects already mentioned, a number of paintings of the cathedral as well as several pieces taken from the cathedral itself, at least some of which have been replaced by either permanent or temporary replicas. Some of these will remain indefinitely in the museum or some other indoor situation, while others have been recently restored and will soon be returned to their places within the cathedral. The museum displays these pieces of art from the duomo at closer range, and the intricacy of each piece and of the whole becomes that much more astonishing.

The outer duomo surface boasts many statues. Among these are the Sybils, which stand in a row on the Campanile, or bell tower, which stands next to the cathedral. These figures refer to the pagan prophetesses of Ancient Rome, who were believed to have foretelling abilities. According to the information in the museum, their presence was supposed to represent the connection between diverse religions, specifically that between the Jewish and Christian faiths and the historically Hebrew and Gentile peoples. The Sybils worked among the pagan Roman people, among whom Christianity eventually spread from the Jews. 

Venezia

Venice seems to have more tourists than locals, and many of those who are not tourists work in the city but do not live there. However, this imbalance does result in a mixing of the cultures brought in by the tourists. We stayed at a particular hotel with a German-speaking group as well as a French-speaking group, in addition to the Italian employees, members of each group would occasionally be present in the lobby simultaneously, and the room would fill with the words and differing tones of four languages.

The hotel itself stands as part of the continuous curving line of buildings on a street. Like many such buildings, its narrow front belies its size. Its architectural layout reflects the layout of Venice in its lack of central hallways and symmetry. The route to our rooms required taking a zigzag path through the building; to reach the first floor, one must first go to the second.

The windows open outward to let in voices and sounds, not only from the street below, but from other windows on the same level and above. Likewise, in walking along the quieter streets — those further away from the canal, we passed below conversations between those leaning out of windows and those gazing up from the street. Many windows boast the only green in sight, as grass appears to be contained to miniature courtyards and to parks at the edges of the city. The window boxes brighten the grey ''piazze,'' as do the Venetian children running across the open squares.

Viaggio Musicale, the Concluding Blog Post

On a musical Journey, I along with the Westminster May term group traveled through seven uniquely intriguing Italian cities. Beginning in Venice with opera Don Giovanni and finishing in Milan with the ever so well fitting epic conclusion to Wagner’s Ring Cycle. We experienced food, wine, sights, language barriers and musical performances with the help of planes, trains, boats, bikes, buses, and foot.

 

We began in the city of canals, where boats and feet are the only mode of transportation. We spent the first couple of days here where we did the touristy things like trying gelato for the first time, riding the gondola, and going out to eat as a massive collection of college students. Going for morning runs, learning the language, drinking wine, and getting lost were the routine for the two days spent in this water wonderland. Last but not least we finished off with a steamy and powerful opera known as Don Giovanni which was composed by the infamous Mozart.

 

We then travelled by bus through the epic and very scenic mountains of Northern Italy and arrived at our destination, Castellina in Chianti, right before dinner. With amazement we took to our new home, a wonderful Tuscan Villa that is perched on the top of a hillside and surrounded by beautiful vineyards. Then it was time for dinner, where I experienced firsthand what it is like to eat and live like an Italian. Where the food is the catalyst for the entertainment and conversation of the night. Our four course meal consisted of wonderful fresh and local vegetables, hand rolled pasta, and homemade apple tart for dessert. It was paired with Reds and Whites Chianti that were grown right on our homeland, Vegi Vineyard. The group was very content calling this 17th century, but newly remodeled, Villa our home base for the next week.

 

 

The next few days consisted of day trips to the Renaissance capital of the world, and capital of Tuscany, Florence. I remember taking this down in my notebook while gazing out at the panoramic view of the city from the Pitti Gardens; “The city burst at the seams with endless winding streets colored with hues of orange, yellow, and pale off white. Flower beds and awnings add nice little accents to the rustic slated tile roof tops that cover the renaissance style homes. The city is nestled right up against the foot of a terrific mellow mountain range that grows from the ground and offers a spectacular spectrum of green from the dark wooded areas all the way to light green open faces. Houses of yellow, white, and red are dropped without pattern into these magnificent hills and seem to rest so peacefully” As if that wasn’t enough, this city was the creative hotspot of the Renaissance period and has a legendary artistic history. I was fortunate enough to glance at both of Botticelli’s masterpieces, the Birth of Venus and the Primavera. Also, seeing the Statue of David was one of the greatest artistic and touristic moments of my life. It opened up a whole new world of appreciation for me as I was taken back by the sheer size and attention to detail that Michelangelo carved into this Marble. Plus this city offers an amazing open air market and beautiful sights around every corner.

 

Besides one sunny day that we spent hanging out at the infinity pool, drinking wine and eating cheese, every other day consisted of small day trips to cities like Ferrara, Siena, Piza and Luca. These cities all stood out as in their unique way things about them. For example, Siena housed many incredible churches and gave off a small and local Italian feel. Piza was a small city but houses the seemingly magical leaning tower that was lots of fun to take pictures and people watch around. We also made a small detour here and went out to Mediterranean coast to eat fresh seafood. Luca was one of my favorite cities because it offered a break from the regular walking routine. It was here that we all rented bicycles and got to explore this little gem of a city on two wheels instead of two feet. This is a city I am always going to want to return to with a motorcycle, as the winding streets and countless Ducati’s unleashed a fire in my soul to rip some Italian metal around those bends.

The last major city that we went to was the fashion capital of the world, Milan. It has been a while, actually the entire trip, since I have seen anything like this metropolitan gem of high fashion, status and culture. A trendy mix of old and new style architecture outlined the city that holds multiple Prada, Gucci, Burberry, Ferrari, Ducati stores in which you can easily blow your entire bank account in less than 5 minutes. I must add that it was fun to go window shopping through a mall that was 11 stories tall and filled with Designer stores! Then there was the Opera. Housed at Teatro Alla Scalla, the most prestigious opera house in the entire world. The Westminster students had the pleasure of witnessing the fourth and final act of the Ring Cycle, Götterdämmerung (Twilight of the Gods), opera which is the life masterpiece of Wagner, and a 6 hour long opera. The orchestra was grand and the singers had powerful ways of wooing the audience. It was a great show! It was a wonderful way to conclude this life changing experience and trip.

 

I feel like this final blog post would not be complete without some discussion of the Food and Wine of this culinary motherland. Although overall the trip consisted heavily of Panini and Pizza consumption, there were a few dishes and drinks that absolutely fulfilled my expectations of hearty, local, and flavorful Italian delicacies. For food, I must say that experiencing authentic hand rolled Italian pasta was my favorite experience. The best pasta dish that I had was in Florence at this small little restaurant, which was tucked away behind the famous Ponte Vecchio Bridge. Kelli’s Al Forno pasta dish took home the golden star for best taste of the trip. Hand rolled pappardelle noodles coat your tongue with a delicious creamy béchamel sauce that is full of buttery notes and slight spices which pairs nicely with the tender and consistently warm meat mixed in the dish. And the wine, ahh the wine. So I had many nice experiences with wine on this trip. The majority of them took place in Venice with my professor Michael and dear friend Patrick. It was in this city where I experienced my first Wine bar as well as my first real introduction to wine tasting. I also have to give credit to the producers of Vegi wine which is the local wine that is made where we stayed in Tuscany. But do to the nature of this blog post, I will keep it short and sweet and just describe the star of the trip – an Amarone from 2009. This beautifully complex red is full of deep raspberry and oak aromas. My lips pursed as it entered with a tart sensation, my tongue then rejoiced as the wine balanced itself out and I started to pick up on the fruity berry notes this wine had to offer, and then just as I felt content, I swallowed and found that the wine performs just as well in the finish as anything else as it trails with a nice sensation of bitterness followed by a long lasting berry. The complexity is visible in the color as the center of the wine has a deep burgundy color which lightly simmers to a beautiful red that reminds me of a rose from the first love. As Chipman described perfectly; Color synapses of red, blue, and purple fire in the brain as the final trio of Richard Strauss, Rosen Kavalier plays as an anthem. This experience exposed me first hand to the joy of drinking wine as I found myself easily passing time over a nice red and some cheese. It was first hand exposure to the Italian mindset; il dolce far niente (the sweetness of doing nothing).

 

What an incredible trip this has been. Traveling through the northern part of Italy on a musical journey was the best possible way I could have spent this month. I am incredibly grateful for this experience because it helped me grow as a person, friend and student. A bittersweet sensation has overcome me as I realize that it is now over, but I also realize that it was an amazing trip and will lead to great stories and memories that will serve me over a lifetime.

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Shopping in Milan

Milan was my favorite part of the trip, but I am a little biased because I had a friend there!

As soon as we arrived in Milan I texted my friend Marine and we decided to meet up. I quickly got ready and ran off to the duomo. I got lost at first trying to get to the subway, but eventually figured it out. After a somewhat flustered train ride, I finally got to see Marine! I hadn't seen her since the summer, and was ecstatic to spend time with her. We spent our time catching up and shopping. Marine has a questionable shopping addiction so she was able to show me all the shops and have fun  helping me shop for a suit. We ended up going to a place called Boggi, where they fitted me for a black italian suit. This was my one goal to purchase and am so happy that I could make it happen! Unfortunately they could finish the tailoring in time, so it will not be ready until Friday this week. Marine is going to pick it up and send it to me though! After shopping we went to dinner with her Italian friend, they both luckily spoke fluent english and it felt like I was out to dinner like I am with good friends in the states. The next day I spent the morning reenacting my shopping trip with Marine with all the girls on the trip showing them the shopping district. After seeing the top of the duomo we attended to Opera at La Scala. I was very unimpressed with the production, the first act was just the two main actor primarily walking around the stage, with intermittent interpretive dance. I left early to spend more time with my friend Marine, we walked around the duomo and went and saw the old castle nearby. We left early in the evening and did dinner near her flat before heading back to the hotel and reminiscing about the summer camp we both worked at.

Overall, Milan for me was a chance to catch up with an old friend in a new city, and provided some much needed reprieve from the group at large.

Milan was definitely worth the long ride. I know we didn't get to spend a whole lot of time there but the hotel and location was by far my favorite. The hotel was right in the middle of a little shopping center, and neighbors to some seemingly popular nightclubs. The first day we were there we explored our surroundings and did a little bit of shopping. We took the train to a shopping district where they had some pretty reasonably priced stores with some very cute clothes! After doing a little bit of damage, my roommates and I took the train back home to get ready for the night. I'm not really much of a party girl, but I must say Milan does clubbing right. A cover fee of 15 euros gets you into the club, and a drink of your choice; if this happened in Utah I may go out a lot more often! Not only that, but drinks are significantly stronger than Salt Lake City ones, not a big surprise but still I was not prepared. Another surprise I encountered was the amount of American music played, I knew every song that came on which I didn't expect. I always figured every country had there own pop stars, but American music is much more wide spread than I had assumed. I hadn't even planned on going out this night, but I am so glad I did since it ended up being one of my favorites.

Our next day in Milan, Kirsten and I woke up pretty early and headed downstairs for coffee and much missed eggs and bacon. Once fed we headed out to meet the rest of the group in the lobby to head to the Duomo in Milan. This was by far my favorite church we visited, the gothic architecture on the outside was one of the most detailed I have ever seen in person. I also liked how the city was not as touristy as the rest, at this point in the trip I was feeling beyond sick of crowds. The elevator to the top was also a plus, no more climbing stairs for us! The top was a lot different than the others, you could see more fixtures up close like statues and gargoyle gutters. I liked the layout a lot and it gave you a much more personal experience with the building details. After the Duomo, a couple of us stayed and shopped at some of the less expensive stores most notably Berkhe where everyone seemed to find something. After wasting a couple hours at this particular store, we headed to window shopping at the designer stores one day I'll be able to shop at! For the ladies, the handbag section was like a candy store; everything from Louis Vuitton, Fendi, Gucci and Burberry was in one beautiful place.

After the bank was broke, we all headed home happily with our purchases. While everyone else headed to the opera I decided to take a long wonderful bath in our very clean warm bathtub. This was the first time I felt relaxed and at ease on the trip, and it was much needed. We were always so busy and stimulated I never realized how fast time was flying and that we were heading tomorrow. I reflected on how much I had gotten to see and do in such a little amount of time and felt content. Next, my room mate Claire came in and said we should look for a Mexican restaurant which sounded like the best thing in the world as I quickly dressed. This mission unfortunately proved unsuccessful since the closest one was about 15 minutes away according to the concierge. A steak house close by soon became our target and I have never been more excited for a cheeseburger in my life. I realized that this really was the end of our trip and my last dinner in Italy. I was excited to go home and see my family and friends but also bummed my adventure abroad was over. I'm so thankful that I had to take this class to graduate, otherwise I would have been to scared to have gone. The people on this trip really made it worthwhile and I'm happy to have been blessed with the opportunity and new friends!

Milan

Milan:

I love Milan! It’s Europe’s New York City. It was so young and thriving. The shopping was so fun and epic. We found so many cool little boutiques and stores to shop in. I’m excited to brag about the fact that my clothes are from Milan. The first night all the ladies went out to the club across from our hotel and it was so much fun. There were hot European men everywhere! It was a great night. On our way to Alla Scalla, we started walking up the Metro station stairs and this huge plaza opened up with this incredible view to Milan’s cathedral duomo. It was a huge beautiful plaza with a very famous statue in the middle. (I have no idea what it was called, but I’ve totally seen pictures of it.) The Alla Scalla opera house was pretty cool. I definitely liked La Fenice better however, but the music was still incredible. I admit I fell asleep quite a bit but it was 5 hours long! So who wouldn’t?! Those singers are pretty f***ing talented to be able to sing such difficult music for so long! It was beautiful music and the story was dramatic and great. I could definitely spend more time in Milan, I am sad we had to leave.