Milan Days 4 and 5

One of Milan's finest.
We need identification of this Milanese bird -- a magpie?

One of our signature "stupid" pictures taken in the beautiful little park near the Principe.

Our walk in the park near the Principe on Tuesday, October 5.

T The program for L'elisir d'amore on October 5.

JoyJoycee at Teatro alla Scala for L'elisir.

J and J at Teatro alla Scalla at L'elisir.

Monday was our first rainy day from beginning to end. It did not stop us from having dinner with Patrizia Piacentini, an Egyptologist we met in Milan in 2008 at the end of our round the world trip, through our friend Elmar Seibel. Patrizia is delightful company, and we so enjoyed her visit to Martha's Vineyard last summer with her family.

Tuesday was our last day in Milan, with high expectations for the Donizetti opera this evening, L'elisir d'amore, featuring Rolando Villazon as Nemorino. We were curious about whether Villazon had fully recovered from his operation, and we concluded at the end of the performance that he is not the same singer he was two or three years ago. However, his furtiva lagrima brought bravos galore, and the cast received a wild ovation at the end. We were not overwhelmed by Nino Machaidze as Adina but it was a splendid evening.

Milan Day 3

The musicians at work.

The cover of the program.

The highlight of Sunday was a program of Bach flute sonatas at Chiesa di San Marco. The flautist was Stefanao Canzi, a gifted musician, the clavicembalo was played by Carlo Mascheroni, and Annamaria Bernadette Cristian was the cellist. The church was packed (ingresso libero) and we were not disappointed by the musicians, who drew so much applause that they returned for an encore.

Milan Day 2

Versace's home furnishings set a new standard.

A magnificent sculpture near the Duomo.
One of the New York fashionistas visits Milan, complete with Trussardi jeans and black leather.


And another New York fashionista on the streets of Milan.

Pregnancy is no bar to performance art.

One of the innumerable window mannequins on display.

Any votes for this chair to be included in the lobby at 15 West 81st Street?

They will see you coming on the beach at the Hamptons.

When planning a trip to Milan, disregard the published weather reports. Before we left Venice the weather reports for Milan were uniformly predicting five straight days of rain, i.e. rain for our entire visit. In fact, we experienced rain on exactly one day, the other four days sunny and mild. Today, Saturday, October 2, on our way to the Via Spiga/Monte Napoleone we stopped in an old master drawing and print shop, Stanza Del Borgo, on Via Turati, and discovered that the owner, Silvana Boreggi, is acquainted with my bookseller/print dealer friend Elmar Seibel in Boston. If you are a collector of old master drawings and prints, be sure to visit Ms. Boreggi: she has an exquisite collection on display.

The shops in the prime fashion district of Milan are a visual delight. We New Yorkers felt so drab by comparison.

We had dinner at an old favorite not far from the Principe: Cafe Solferino, a family owned restaurant with an amazing wine list. Be sure to order the risotto.

Milan Day 1

The Duomo is one of the visual pleasures of Milan, and never ceases to thrill.
Our Teatro alla Scala tickets for L'occasione fa il ladro

Don't be misled by this billboard: there is no shortage of clothing in Milan.

This is our third visit to Milan so we feel very comfortable here (who wouldn't at the Principe di Savoia?). The train ride from Venice to Milan was less than thrilling: dirty and smelly coaches, too many stops (the express train left too early in the morning), and no cafe/dining car. How can a person expect to survive in Italy without at least one capuccino at the mid-morning break? The Stazione Centrale in Milan is very close to the Principe, and we were quickly settled. I had purchased tickets online for Rossini's L'occasione fa il ladro but thought that I might improve the location of the seats by visiting the box office. The ticket agent was most helpful, yellow frame glasses notwithstanding, and we were assigned seats in Row M in the orchestra: a perfect row because it is a cross-theatre aisle with extra leg room but not too wide to impair the view of the translation display on the back of the seats in Row L. The opera was very well done; I did not recognize any of the singers but they were quite young, nimble, and in fine voice. What more could one ask?

Venice Day 5

The houses on Burano

A Torcello garden on our way from Locanda Cipriani to the ferry landing

The garden at Locanda Cipriani from our table

Joycee enjoying an aperitif at Locanda Cipriani

Seated on my throne in front of the Basilica

The Basilica on Torcello

For our last day in Venice we visited Torcello, an outlying island about 30 via water taxi minutes from our hotel, Bauer Palladio, on Giudecca. It is well worth the trip. First and foremost, the Last Judgment mosaic in the Basilica di Santa Maria Assunta rivals the Ravenna mosaics in both beauty and size. Whatever else has been done to the interior of the Basilica, the Last Judgment is truly awe-inspiring, whatever the religious beliefs or non-beliefs of the viewer. By all means take with you the detailed description found in the Michelin guide to Venice: I would not have known without it that the fair skinned child seated in the lap of Lucifer is the Antichrist. I could not help but be impressed with the punishments meted out for the Seven Deadly Sins; in case you were wondering about the punishment for the Covetous, the mosaic shows skulls whose eyesockets are filled with worms!

The adjoining museum is very small but filled with artifacts from as long ago as the 7th century B.C., including instruments for applying leeches to the skin.

On the grounds outside of the church there is a white (alabaster?) throne-like chair, which so reminded me of the Pope's throne in Avignon that I knew I had to be photographed seated on it.

We had a most delightful pranzo at Locanda Cipriani; Locanda would be a perfect place for a honeymoon (as one of my friends did many years ago), but book well ahead of time: there are only a few rooms.

We walked from Locanda to the ferry dock after lunch and were overwhelmed by the physical beauty of Torcello. We returned to Giudecca via Burano, the lace-making island, and spent a few minutes strolling the colorful streets while waiting for the ferry back to San Marco. All in all a splendid day!

Venice Day 4

Venetian vaporetto skipper

It is not easy to be at this altitude in Venice, day in and day out.

The Venice city fathers pay for restoration with billboard advertising! How American!

Piazza San Marco from the top of the San Giorgio Maggiore campanile

The magnificent floor of San Giorgio -- copied in Tarnowska's American Bar

The classic facade of San Giorgio Maggiore

San Giorgio Maggiore is one of the prime places to visit, not only because of its Tintorettos and Palladian architecture, but also because of its campanile and the unsurpassed views from the top (accessible by elevator). On our way to San Giorgio Maggiore we stopped at the Navale museum, which has many relics of Venice's maritime history, including such splendid items as a model of the Bucintoro, the floating palace for Venetian nobility, and a Doge's chair. The day concluded with our meeting a friend of Jane Scovell's (one of the residents of 15 West 81), Marie Louse Brulatour Mills, who has an apartment on one of Venice's canals, where we enjoyed an aperitif on the terrazzo of Marie Louise's apartment.

Venice Day 3

The Venetians want everyone to know where the giudei live(d)

Casa Israelitica di Riposo in the Venice ghetto

The campo of the Venice ghetto

Gam Gam restaurant in the Venice ghetto - the images on the wall are Torah excerpts

I Musici Venezia recital at Scuola Grande di San Teodoro
Today we revisited the Venice ghetto. We first enjoyed il pranzo at Gam Gam, with an assortment of Israeli mezes. There seems to be more life in the ghetto than on our last visit; certainly more shops selling the usual tourist mementos. We walked from the ghetto to the Rialto, where we boarded the vaporetto for the hotel to change for the evening recital at I Musici Veneziani. The venue for the recital was Scuola Grande di San Teodoro, a short walk from the San Marco landing. Of course, we stopped for our usual pre-recital booster; this time it was a Bellini and a dolci. What a Bellini! Frothy and beautifully colored.
The recital was in a large auditorium, with a stage on which the musicians and singers performed in 18th century costumes. There was a variety of arias and orchestral pieces, one of which was a beautiful sinfonia from La Diavolessa, an 18th century opera composed by B. Galuppi, a native of Torcello which we will visit on Thursday (Day 5). The baritone was first rate, singing the factotum aria from Il Barbiere, and a duet with a soprano singing Brindisi from La Traviata. All in all, a swell evening.