05/10/2025 – Firsts and Lasts
Today was the start of some of our firsts and lasts. First of all, breakfast included. How novel here in Italy! Usually you have to purchase breakfast separately and, as a first, it was pretty good. Dave got granola with lots of nuts and some juice. What a first! Kathy, for her first, found some marmalade jam. How awesome is that! What a first. That was our last free meal of the day, as now we headed out to explore Milan before heading on our Tour of the City of Milan with the highlight of seeing the original painting of the The Last Supper by Leonardo Da Vinci. Arriving at Santa Maria Delle Grazie an hour and a half prior to the start of the tour, we decided to first figure out a light lunch and a bathroom. Finding a place close by, Kathy tried a pastry and cappuccino while Dave had a sandwich. This stop was “first lunch”, since we ate so early. “Second Lunch” was a stop for another pastry right before the tour and, more importantly, a bathroom.
Soon we were off on our City Tour of Milan, which had some unknowns and knowns. The first known was a stop for 15 minutes to see the painting done by Da Vinci of The Last Supper. The artwork has so many hidden meanings is hard to know where to begin and where to end, so instead of trying to explain it from the first to the end here is a link to a guide. “The Last Supper” Facts – Insights Into Da Vinci’s Masterpiece We stood in awe of the painting and were impressed with the guides explanations and answers to our questions. One question Dave had was, since the painting was slated to take 6-10 months to complete, yet took 4 years, how was Da Vinci paid, by the hour??
The next stop was a stroll through the Castello Sforzesco where we got an explanation of what the first initial beginnings of the castle were meant to be, the changes in-between that included conquest, bombings, and multiple re-buildings, until at last we have a historical structure meant to be enjoyed by the people of Milan.
Next, we were on our way again and we were soon dodging people, scrambling in and out of narrow paths, and carefully negotiating the uneven steps of the shopping quarter of Milan. This is a place where the rich and famous come spend their pocket change and where for most of us their trifles would pay off a typical mortgage. It has all the rich and famous brands that is seems like a fairy tale to most of us who live down to earth lives. Kathy did say if we came back she would stop by the Rolex store and buy Dave one, but he could not resist and asked for two. Guess it is one of those all or nothing things, so Kathy had to say at last, “I guess you will have to be happy with your Casio.”
Last stop of the day was the Milan Cathedral which is considered the 3rd largest church in the world and was started to be built in the year 1386. We wandered around looking at the marvelous granite and marble sculptures and were awed by the amazing frescos. We also sat and gazed upwards with solemnity as we saw where one of the nails used to crucify Jesus Cross was hung high above the church. The nail, found by St. Helena on her travels between the years 326 and 328, was identified by St. Ambrose as one of the nails used! All in all, the last stop was just as good as the first stop.
Deciding this would be an excellent place to go to the Saturday vigil mass, we decided to just hang out and wait for the last mass of Saturday to start. While it was an 1.5 hour wait, it was quiet and peaceful and had so many beautiful things to see we didn’t notice the time pass by. It was helped by a beautiful concert by a skilled organist who played for us for about 30 minutes. Mass was soon over and it will be our last mass in Italy unless we come back to visit at some point. What a nice finish to a beautiful day. We have now been to mass in 3 of the 4 largest churches in the world!
Wait, it is not over yet. Last, but not least, dinner on the way back was in the extravagant outdoor covered mall we had toured through earlier. Kathy ate something “safe” – a burger – and Dave opted to try a local Ossabucca dish. Both were excellent and the meal was hearty enough to last us until morning.
