The Navigli, car parking, shops, trams and food in Milan

It is a little known fact (at least it was little known to us) that Milan used to be Italy’s fourth largest sea port. This was made possible by the Navigli which were five interconnected canals going around and through the city and also connecting the city to some the lakes and rivers in the region (and hence to the sea). Construction started

in 1179 (Naviglio Grande) and continued until the 16th Century when the Naviglio Martesana

was finished. Milan then had a canal ring around it. Leonardo had a hand in their design and development and his role is detailed here and a good history of the canals can be found here.

In the Brera section of Milan, you can see

some of the original lock gates which were

used to control the water flow. In theory, these are being restored

although they have some way to go before the restoration is completed.

 

The original line of this canal can be seen

even though it was filled in some while ago.

The canals started to decline in the mid 1850s and during the 1900s, some were filled in or covered over to be used as roads. Three canals still survive and as in many cities, these canals now have a new lease of life due to their character and history.

We visited one at night and the area was packed with people sitting at cafes enjoying a meal or an aperitif or simply taking a stroll.

Public transport in Milan

We found that the best way to get around Milan (other than walking) was to use public transport. The Metro and bus / tram system is cheap and fast – we purchased a two day ticket for €8.25 each which becomes a bargain if you make more than two separate journeys costing €1.50 each in a day. There is also an extensive tram system, some modern

and some older (with far more character).

We also used the train system when we went to Monza for the afternoon / evening. Monza is about 12 kms from Milan and the train got us there in 18 minutes at a cost of only €2.10. In comparison, we were driven back to Milan and it took about an hour because of the traffic.

Parking a car in Milan

Car Parking is difficult in most Italian cities and the Milan solution seems to be to

park as close as possible to the person in front (and hence get wedged in yourself eventually)

and also to park across the pavement

if you cannot park parallel to it!

Shop Windows in Milan

As one might expect in a city known for its fashion, many of the shop windows are superbly laid out and examples of great display.

 

This quality of presentation extends to other areas and we were particularly taken by the

displays in food shops, be they simple displays

of mouth watering food

or complete shop windows.

 

One thing we noticed as we walked around is that the concept of the small shop focusing on

a specialist range of goods still exists in Milan. Sadly in England, this is now the rarity.

 

When we ate out, most of the food presented

to us resembled works of art

and it seemed a pity to destroy this art by

eating it

We had no such problems however with ice cream and our waist lines now reflect an over indulgence.

Food even appeared in lots of the paintings

we saw in the art galleries – this one in the Pinocoteca di Brera.

Art Galleries and Castles

Milan has many high quality art galleries and the Milanese seem to get quite cross if you do not realise that you can see just as much art here as you can in Florence or other Italian cities famous for their art.

Pinocoteca Ambrosiana

The Pinacoteca Ambrosiana is one of the

oldest museums in the world and contains works by Leonardo da Vinci (The Musician) , Raphael (School of Athens' cartoon), Caravaggio (Basket of Fruits) and others  

As with many galleries, photographs (without using a flash) are not allowed and so here there are only a few images grabbed when no one was looking. Click on the link (shown in bold red) to the gallery website if you want to see what is on offer.

This elaborate staircase was in the original buildings and is quite a work of art in itself as also is the marble floor.

Upstairs is a very ornate ceiling and the lighting behind the stained glass is a nice touch.

This mouse is by Breugel and a quick picture was snatched for Luisa (because she wanted the original but could not have it).

In the same building is the Ambrosiana Library which houses (amongst other things),

a manuscript of the Aeneid, an Iliad from the 4^thcentury AD, the Perspectiva Pingendi (a Renaissance mathematical book about perspective in painting written by Piero della Francesca) and the Divina Proportione by Luca Pacioli with illustrations by Leonardo da Vinci (about the mathematics of the golden ratio and its application in architecture). Many pages from the Codex Atlantica are on display and these are routinely changed so that all of it eventually is displayed.

When looking at the Codex, you can get very close to the pages on display even though they are very well protected.

As with many Italian Galleries, all of the works are very well displayed and the museum was not crowded at all.

The Pinacoteca di Brera

The entrance to this gallery is through an imposing arch across a large square with an imposing statue and then up a long flight of grand steps. The first time we went there, the staff were out on a suddenly called strike

but the next day when we tried again, we were let in free of charge. Not that it is expensive in any case and anyone who looks over 65 gets in at half price. The tickets are works of art in themselves.

Everything is on one level and the museum provide a “top exhibits” map showing the location of the most famous paintings.

We particularly liked Bellini’s “Predica di san Marco ad Alessandria d'Egitto” (St Mark preaching in Alexandria) and particualrly liked the Giraffe on a lead in the middle of the right hand side of the painting,

 

and of course “The Kiss” by Francesco Hayes.

and “Il Quarto Stato” ("The Fourth Estate") also known as Il Fiumana (The Strike) by Giuseppe Pellizza da Volpedos;

and “Figura femminile in un interno” by Gerolamo Induno - even though it looks like she is using her mobile to access Facebook (note the picture of “The Kiss” on the wall in the painting)

 

and Caravaggio’s “Cena in Emmaus”

 

Elsewhere in the gallery there are complete chapels which somehow have been reconstructed onsite and are beautifully lit

 

and you can also see the painting restoration workshop where, when we were there, they were working on Giovanni Bellini’s Pietà.

Although not on the “most popular” list, we were particularly impressed with “Madonna della Candeletta” by Crivelli which was painted in the late 1400s. We were impressed by the fine attention to detail in the rich cloth of her skirt and the shadow cast by the taper (the candle or candeletta) in the bottom left and the shadow cast by the Rose in the bottom right of the painting.

Castello Sforzesco

Leonardo also has a number of links with the Castello Sforzesco. The most well known one is because here he painted the frescoed ceiling of the "Sala delle Asse" (‘room of the wooden panels’) and the best lesser known

link is that the Trivulziana library within the Castle houses another important work, the

Codex Trivulzianus, which is a manuscript

containing notes and drawings dealing mainly with military and religious architecture.

Tickets for the museums are remarkably cheap (this is the “you look like you are over 65 half price special”) and cover entrance to about five different museums within the Castle. We managed three of them before we ran out of energy.

Within the Castle are numerous important works of art including various original painted

ceilings,

the “Funeral Monument of Franchino Rusca” which was made around 1340,

stained glass; the Portal of the Medici Bank constructed in the late 1400s

and Michelangelo’s the Rondanini Pietà which you are allowed to get very close up to, to walk around and also to take non-flash pictures.

Unusually for an art gallery in Italy, every gallery had well translated explanatory sheets about the exhibits in English.

The Museum containing paintings and furniture was amazing in terms of the quality of the work, how they were displayed, how easily you could view them and the lack of visitors.

The Castle probably needs at least two days to properly tour without feeling that you are getting museum overload – it was well worth the visit (as was the ice cream we had afterwards)