Last stop Milano
When planning our 2019 trip to Italy, we knew Milan would be our final stop. It’s been a while since we last visited and we needed a Duomo di Milano fix! The biggest problem for us getting to Milano was… well… it signaled the end of our vacation. It’s pretty hard to live in the moment knowing the plane ride home is only hours away and this is the end of us being in our happy place.
That said, time to make the best of things. Andiamo!
What to see, what to see?
With only two days allotted for exploring Milan (with part of that time being lost to fixing a return flight issue), we wanted to prioritise what we needed to see. It was narrowed down to the Duomo, the Vittorio Emaneule II, the Navigli canal and… I’ll wait to tell you the forth one for now. I don’t want to lose you too early!
First stop, The Duomo of course
We found a hotel which was one hundred feet around the corner from the Piazza del Duomo. The Duomo and Italy’s oldest mall Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II (1877) both look onto the piazza.
An incredible sight to behold, the Duomo looks like a castle in a medieval fantasy movie. I half expected to see 3 dragons do a flyby while we stood there gawking. Even though we have seen the Duomo several times before, it is still mesmerizing!
The amount of detail put into its design is staggering. You could spend days trying to photograph every statue, every gargoyle and every ornate trim piece and still miss parts of it. Walking into the Nave is like entering an old redwood forest with its massive support columns reaching high up into its canopy. Fantastico!
Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II consists of identical quadrants connected in the center with an amazing domed glass and steel ceiling. The high-end shops, restaurants and beautiful mosaic floors make it a can’t miss stop.
The large open piazza welcomes thousands of visitors every day and is a great place to make new friends. I can’t tell you how many guys came up to us and offered us colorful string bracelets of friendship as gifts… They were so enthusiastic, they even tried to tie them on our wrist themselves…
How could we not mention the other guys with the bundles of roses? These flower toting romantics were keenly perceptive and picked up on the lovebird vibe we must have been giving off.
Next up… the Navigli Canal
On our first trip to Milan, we missed seeing this very popular attraction. The reason this happened was, we had no clue it existed! In fact, we walked within a stones throw of it, but stopped a few steps short of discovering the canal. You can imagine the smacking sound of hand on forehead when we realized, there are canals in Milan!
Navigli Canal has inviting bars and ristoranti lining both sides of the waterway which proved too hard to resist. The canal itself was clean and the water was clear. So clear in fact, you can easily spot fish swimming in it.
We went in the afternoon, but it’s far more active in the evening hours, but it was perfect for us.
Last but not least we went to… the FIRST Starbucks in Italy!
I know, I know. You can stop screaming at your screen now. We heard and read the good and bad views about it’s opening in Milan, but we thought we’d check out what all the ruckus was about for ourselves.
As a rule, we’re not regulars at Starbucks back home. The coffee is fine, but we wouldn’t go out of our way to visit one. This Starbucks is hugely different than any one you would have visited. As luck would have it, the Milano Starbucks Reserve Roastery was only a few hundred yards from our hotel room. I know, right?
The facade of the former post office building remains intact and the Starbucks signage is respectfully discreet. So much so that we almost walked by it altogether. The outdoor seating area consists of multiple trellised units covered in wonderful shade giving vines.
More than just another coffee shop in Milano
The stores 25,000 square foot layout is in a word, AMAZING. It’s big and it’s visually pleasing. From the bean conveying system to its center piece roaster, the store is beautiful and has an undeniable Italian flair to it. You can indulge in pastries, baked goods, pizza, fresh bread or have a drink in the 2nd floor lounge.
Of course they also specialize in coffee and tea! The staff were very friendly and busy filling orders from eager customers. The line ups were nowhere as long as we had heard. It was quick to place an order, easy to find seating and the food was molto bene.
If coffee flavored gelato sounds good to you, try their speciality treat, Affogato. It’s more than just a delicious coffee gelato treat, it’s a dramatic show, handcrafted right in front of you. The process uses milk which is flash chilled using their nitrogen infusion system.
The nitrogen fusion process briefly creates a heavy fog which envelops the affogato station. It’s like watching a mad scientist at work! The gelato created has an ultra smooth texture to it which is very pleasing to the tongue.
To add to the experience, a shot of espresso is given to you to pour over the gelato yourself. It is unique to be given a part in the creation of this dolce treat. All in all, it was a great experience.
So here we are again!
We are now done with our 2019 trip to the beautiful country of Italia. Once again, Italy did not disappoint. We didn’t see everything we planned to see, but we saw more than enough to keep us happy until we return.
Thank you for joining us on the trip via our blog posts. Thanks for all your positive comments. We are very happy that you enjoyed the photos we shared.
Stay tuned for upcoming posts where we’ll be sharing more of our best of Italy experiences with you.
