As we prepare for our trip to Milan, looking up all of the tourist websites and reviewing the blogs of world travelers, everyone points to one spot as the number one tourist destination for Milan: il Duomo. Funny I thought it would be the Armani factory outlet. What the hell, half of my shirts are Formula One race T-shirts. So much for my fashion statement!

So it’s Thursday and we are going to head over to check it all out.  We hop on the #12 trolley from our hotel, and 15 minutes later we stop to hop off a block away from il Duomo. We take a few steps, turn the corner and there it is, il Duomo! OMG!   Look at all the people here, there’s got to be 10 or 15,000 people out here. And everybody just taking selfie’s with il Duomo in the background. Reminiscent of everyone taking pics and selfies of Mona Lisa in the Louvre back in 2016. The rest are just milling about, either heading to or just coming from il Duomo. We take a couple selfie’s ourselves, stop at the Vittorio Emmanuelle II statue. He’s the first King of Italy, back in only 1861. And then we head over to buy tour tickets. A word of advice, by the full package that includes both the Duomo, the Duomo museum, and the underground museum.

I’m not Catholic, so I really don’t know much about cathedrals such as il Duomo, or Notre Dame, or Sacré Coeur, but one thing I do know, is incredible dedication to workmanship and craftsmanship. Unlike any other Cathedral and I have ever seen, including those mentioned above, the exterior is absolutely filled with tens if not hundreds of thousands of human sculptures, small and large. They seem to cover a full spectrum of humanity, people crouched in suffering positions, people stretched in elation, praying, eating, and even beheading. Yikes! Some as small as maybe 12 inches, all the way up to full size and then some. And this is carried all the way up to, what I would estimate to be somewhere in the range of 70 feet high in the main area, up to 100 feet or so towards the back of the cathedral. And that’s just on the wall, as I look up, I see spires at the top of the building with statues on top of the spires. Wow, that is trippy.  Thank about it, I mean these life-size statues on top of spires, the support that is needed to maintain that at the top of a building with winds gusting about, how these things simply do not blow off the top must be absolute divine intervention. And then as if that weren’t intricate and detailed enough, when we come back downstairs I noticed the front doors. Each door which stand some 15 feet high and probably 8 feet wide, inlay carved with thousands of bronze figurines depicting scenes from the Bible. This is absolutely fascinating.

il Duomo, incredibly, was finished in 1965. Wait…1965? Well when did it begin? How about 1386. Wait..wha…are you kidding me? That’s like 500…and something…carry the 7, 579 years in the making. Yes, the final gate was finished in 1965, and there are actually some statues still under construction! Whoa, some people just need to know when to quit.

The interior is like any other large Cathedral.  Full of sexpartite vaulted buttresses, massive columns for support and benches for praying. We walk through and admire it all and say a prayer. We head downstairs to see the underground museum, and then head up the steps to tour the rooftop. Rooftop? Yes the rooftop! What cathedral has tours of the roof top? il Duomo! When you’re the largest Cathedral in Italy, and #5 in the world, you can do whatever you want. The rooftop is just as fascinating as the steps to get up to it are not something a vertical sufferer would want to deal with. But it allows you to see architecture that extends literally to the heavens. Why would anybody even build this atop of the cathedral? Literally, only Heaven knows. Narrow walk ways, in marble which is very slippery in the rain, and even more narrow stairways allow you to see the rooftop guardians up close and the view over Milan is incredible.

Once you see these statues, above the city, something immediately comes to mind. Has it? Wait for it…think…The Dark Knight…Batman…comics in general. It is scary, seeing these statues in person, you see exactly where the idea for these comics came from. The Saviors. The Guardians. The Watchers. They’re all here, standing 100 feet above the city, watching over the citizens below.

The visit is exquisite, mesmerizing and even transforming. Seeing this in person makes you believe so much more, in the human spirit. What man is able to imagine, he can create. Ironically, for this Formula 1 weekend, is the Formula 1 of churches. Thank you, for this, I am eternally grateful to Milan. Grazie e arrivederla!

If you have the chance to make it to Milan, definitely make plans to see il Duomo. And if you make it to il Duomo, then definitely plan on getting the entire tour package which includes going up to the rooftop of il Duomo, going to the basement of il Duomo to see some of the excavated area, and going over to the museum. The Museo del Duomo is a remarkable display of Catholic statuettes. The museum isn’t heavy on historical Catholicism itself, few and far between are the trinkets and coins, and other artifacts from Jesus’ time. There’s a couple of golden crosses from the middle ages, some gold statuettes of Mary and the Holy Child, and even some antiquity wood carvings. More so it is a museum dedicated to the construction of il Duomo and the thousands of statues that make up the il Duomo. So what you have are lots of paintings of catholic martyrs, and lots and lots of statues of historical Christianity. These are done in plaster, and marble, and feature some really dramatic scenes. John the Baptist, Peter, Paul and many of the Apostles. Of course Mary makes several appearances with the Baby Jesus. There are other lesser known biblical members as well, such as a large relief of Judith and Holofernes, as she is cutting off his head. And it’s pretty detailed, and classic Italian.  Yikes! #MeToo!

The cool thing is that many of the statues are life-size. This gives you an incredible feeling as if you were walking back in time with these historical figures.  There’s nothing that puts the faith in you like standing next to a life-size statue of John the Baptist. He looks so peaceful, such a cool guy. The statues, of course, are played up for Catholicism, but they are fun nonetheless and the museum is a real joy to walk through. Also included for display are the rain spout that top il Duomo. These spouts are very intricate in their detailing. Interesting, since these spouts are located a hundred or so above the ground and are far out of eye sight. Even taking the rooftop tour, many people were not noticing them as they are out of the normal line of sight, but very intriguing to see from a view above the crowds below.

The museum was dedicated back in 1953, no doubt it has been updated since then. As you leave the main museum, there is a replica of il Duomo, which allows you to take in the enormity of the build in one view. And amazingly enough, the complexity and intricacy of this replica does not match that of the full building, which is amazing. As you leave, you see that there are actually 2 sections of the museum. The traditional depicted here, and then there is a museum temple outside, that contains a church with a beautiful sanctuary for prayer. This area is very reserved, very quiet with an attendant to remind people of the holiness and to keep it quiet. Outside of this church sanctuary section is a courtyard with the remnant of an ancient Roman trestle.  It is definitely worth the time and money to visit, especially if you are a statu-ista and really want to take in the full force of il Duomo and it’s thousands of statues. Not going to the museum is like getting a hamburger with no lettuce  or tomato. It’s still a hamburger, but it’s just not as good.

Underneath the 2nd largest cathedral in Italy, second only to the holy St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome, and the 5th largest in the world, according to some records, lies truly historical ruins. Underneath il Duomo in Milan, Italy, lies the ruins of an original baptismal that contains fragments dating back to 355 A.D. This is by far, the oldest piece of land I’ve ever visited, and most interesting ancient site I’ve ever seen. What is so amazing, is that this is everything I’ve ever seen on the History Channel or any other ancient world show, and yet how ordinary and modern day normal it looks. Bricks are stacked orderly, atop dirt foundation, and support channels, drains and other modern day architecture. Amazing that old world building is still followed to the day. This area could date back to 355, or 1355, or even 1955. I makes me acutely aware of how limited I am in my “thinking” of the old world. They had drainage, water systems, architectural designs and so much more. The idea of everyone living in mud huts and dirt floors is blown away by a more modern approach to urban planning. So here are a few shots of the area beneath il Duomo. Enjoy and I hope this encourages you to visit Milan and see this on your own. Or to even explore architectural ruins local to you.

For our first couple of nights in Milan, we we stayed at the Hilton Doubletree in the Certosa neighborhood. After our rumbling drive-through the streets of Milan, I was surprised to see the industrial neighborhood that this particular hotel is located in. I was expecting to do some shopping here, but this is a pretty quiet neighborhood of what seems to be mid-sized auto parts manufacturers.

Pulling up to the hotel I noticed the design was a little more like the Milan I expected. Lean, clean,  modern design, that surround an interesting walkway into the hotel lobby. At the front desk is Stefano and he’s great to us with a warm smile and I happy disposition. We chat a bit, and I am amazed at how much English everyone is speaking. Understanding that this is an a high tourist area, But here, as in Brussels, and Nice and Paris last year, everybody speaks crystal clear English. On the one hand you appreciate it because the language differences do not exist. On the other hand, like our hotel Lu Feye Boigelot, you expect to have a little language discrepancy and struggle with your high school Italian.

We check in and head up to the room which is again Euro-modern. It’s a good size, comfortable enough as a traveler hotel. Not full on luxury like Hotel Metropole earlier, but we are happy with the accommodations. Again, a bidet, smallish shower, little vanity area, but outside large closet space, fully functional TV, and a view looking back over northern Milan towards the mountains.

We head down to the lobby, and the lobby is spacious, and then we looked around the corner we realize it’s huge. Plenty of seating, a couple of communal bar tables with outlets for laptop work. Around the other corner there’s actually a men’s store in the lobby!

Alright, my first introduction to Milan fashion! Suits, jackets, shirts, ties, shoes and  a few accessories. I actually try on a couple of jackets, really nice fabric both in feel and fabric design, but unfortunately not quite my size. I ask the attendant if he had any others in the back, and unfortunately, no. Oh well, just the first night and I’m sure I’m going to find much more fashion once I get into Milan proper. We walk over to the area next to the men’s store which is a long bar, a great looking spot to have a Campari  or a pre-dinner Asti. There’s a good size restaurant where they serve the breakfast in the morning and dinner in the evening. We managed to have dinner here Friday night. I don’t know what I was thinking, but I left my phone in the room, and missed out taking photos of one of the better steaks I had this trip. Nancy had a salmon dish that was perfect, so thumbs up to the hotel for a wonderful dinner.

The hotel is located close enough to trolleys so it’s easily accessible to Milano Centro and other areas of Milan. One block to the east is the trolley stop for the Trolley Number 12 which takes you to Milano Centro and il Duomo. About a quarter-mile north is the stop for Trolley 14, which takes you to southwest Milan, Porta Volta park, which is pretty cool and Girabaldi train station. The Certosa Train station is half a mile or so, which equates to a 15 to 20 minute walk, or DoubleTree will provide a shuttle to the station. Although the area is a little dated, and not the glam house of Vogue and Elle magazine, the location is still quite comfortable and of very supportive of tourist travel. In the afternoon, and possibly perfect breakfast, if you want some local Milan faire, café Tom and Jerry is just a couple of steps up the block. Also, there is a small market about a five minute walk up Viale Carlo Espinasse. If you want to pick up local goods, you can get things such as cheese, crackers, fruit, wine and other goodies. Depending on your length of stay, I highly recommend heading over to the shop to grab some local goodies for the room.

By the time we check-out, we have grown quite found of our front desk staff. Stefano, Victoria, Gianni and the gang are so polite, so wonderful, and so helpful, it enhanced our experience to no end. We always felt safe and taken care, not like we were on our own in a strange land, but like we were hanging out with friends. I can’t thank them all enough for making this an unforgettable experience.