Rest in Milano
A Return to Rest
It’s been quite the intoxicating amount of sightseeing and an enormous amount of distance covered so far in Piedmont Italy. It was time that we returned home to our Airbnb in Milan where we were able to rest and catch up on some good sleep.
During this time, we also got a chance to take a deeper dive into Milan’s culture and explore some of the beauty in the city which we didn't truly get a chance to do before leaving for Lago Maggiore.
Real Estate
One of my father’s ultimate missions is always to peruse the real estate market in every country to see what the going rate of their homes are currently. He had been researching cities and towns in the north of Italy for months before our trip and so finally we were able to come across a real estate agency, IMI Immobiliare Milano, right next to our AirBnb whom where incredibly hospitable and gracious enough to guide us through all our questions.
There are many differences in the Italian real estate market versus the American market, of which even having a realtor is drastically different. Most of their agencies represent listed properties, not clients. I'm sure the amount of paperwork is drastically less and so are the difficulties. The thing that you need to be sure of is infrastructure of the building and quality of utilities in your area as even agents only work area by area, not even the whole town.
We will be back, with many more questions and hopefully more opportunity to buy!
Happy Accident Finding Al Puerto
Turns out, there was a really interesting area near our AirBnb that had loads of great restaurants called Darsena del Naviglio, the gateway to Naviglio Grande & Naviglio Pavese - two of the five canals of Milan.
I set our sites on one destination as we spontaneously choose the first restaurant we encountered: Al Puerto! This was a wonderful chance for dad and I to enjoy some amazing seafood in a creative and traditional fashion. Everything was meticulous, and I’ve never seen waiters work so, so, so hard! We were on as second story mezzanine of the restaurant and every turn of food was brought up and down those stairs. One of the most impressive displays of service I’ve ever seen, hands down!
This phenomenal dinner is owed mainly in part to our server Luigi (in photos with my father and I) as he ensured the best service, quality, and flavors in all of Italy. He went above and beyond what I would ask any waiter for, and yet, his service kept surprising my father and I as he also brought out fun treats and special flavors that we wouldn’t even know to ask for. In addition of this, the aesthetic of the restaurant was beautiful, rustic, and thematic from all angles.
You easily saw, smelled, and tasted every flavor!
Go, book a reservation, & explore with an open palate!
Italian Breakfast
Without skipping a beat, you would find us every morning, downstairs from our AirBnb, at our favorite neighborhood cafe: So Natural.
Mom and Dad were hunting for the true Italian experience: un cornetto e cappuccino. They also dabbled in other interesting pastries from morning to morning. I found all their sandwiches to be a refreshing change from many of the sandwiches I’ve had across Europe. Something about them were incredibly balanced, with each one being gently pressed by a panini and the ingredients complementing each other so it was crisp, refreshing, hearty, buttery and crunchy.
The whole neighborhood likes to eat a quick bite by the counter, as it is the true in-and-out experience, and slightly cheaper when you eat & drink at the bar/counter.
La Gallería Vittorio Emanuele II & Duomo di Milano
What an intensely packed area for tourism and sight seeing. Come with patience and lots of awareness. This area has so many tourists that one may easily fall victim of pick pocketing. I would recommend going to this area with a group of friends and family so as to be vigilant! It’s so worth it though, to see the beauty of the architecture, sculptures and sheer size of this space.
I wish our home had something so culturally endowed like this. It’s invaluable that humanity has such a special place like this! I loved to see the articulation of each and every corner, nook, and fountain that we came across. It shows how special this place was to it’s residents, how important it was for Italians to build this town up into a real marvel, generation after generation.
Piazza del Duomo, of Milan and not Florence, is a miracle on so many levels, so take in all the sites and soak in the luxury and fun you see in each photo!
Libreria Bocca
Hands down, this is personally the most interesting store in all of the Galleria! A gorgeous collection of books, design, and the arrangement is better than most museums.
Be prepared to add a good 20 - 50 lbs to your luggage!
La Gallería Vittorio Emanuele II
This architectural marvel is quintessentially the idol of all other nations, a safe haven of design, fashion, and the avante garde all converging in one grand place.
It is the epitome of tourist destinations, one could only imagine what it was once like when they build this space, how people must have lived or worked in the upper flats while coming downstairs to work and enjoy the enclosed courtyards.
Teatro Alla Scala
From Il Duomo, all you have to do is travel north, through the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, past a beautiful piazza with a statue of Leonardo da Vinci, and across the street, subtly tucked in on the left, is Il Teatro Alla Scala.
This was a relatively quick tour, but the sights we beheld were breathtaking. From the busts of many famous musicians, to the iconic paintings of the times, and the incredible wardrobes of the opera singers - you will have soooooo much to see! We could have easily spent three hours analyzing everything, and someday, we will return to watch a true opera in this epic theatre.
This was a beautiful destination from the aspirations of my mom’s itinerary goals, and she was not wrong, as we will plan to return here over and over again! Inside and out, this is a national gem, a hidden beauty, and an honor to see such a magnificent architectural phenomenon!
Mi mi mi miiiiiiii
Can you imagine being the one responsible for tuning this piano? Practicing, playing, performing - enchanting the audience with an auditory overload with an organized selection of metallic strings.
Castello Sforzesco
More time, we needed more time!
There was so much we could see, explore, and plan in Milan. One of the things we got a brief glimpse of was Castello Sforzesco, this majestic backdrop to our sunset photos. I would love to walk the gardens and explore the castle upon our return.
It’s not every day that we get to enjoy dinner at the gates of a castle, but this nice we did with lots of pasta, porkchops, polpo and potatoes.
A splash of Sicilian wine, along with this restaurant’s theme as more Napolitano cuisine, it ended as a quite delightful and hearty end to a long day of adventuring around Milan.
La Stazione Centrale di Milano
The next morning we were back at the racetrack, a familiar sight to this iconic gateway to Milan. Our next destination: Torino!
New unknown lands, with low expectations and great rewards ahead!
For Torino, I will split our adventure into two parts:
Architecture, food, and fashion
Egyptian Museum
Reason being that the Egyptian Museum was epic. This is the second largest museum of ancient Egyptian artifacts in the the world, only after the one in Egypt itself. There is much to cover for our next adventure in Italy!
