Friday, March 2, 2018

A Snowy Friday in Milan and an Ossuary


Friday, 2 March, 2018

Before starting on today's agenda, I need to update you on my continuing European diet's success.

I bought a digital scale yesterday at a small electronics store in Venegono Superiore, I do like to support our local business people.

Today was my first weigh-in since leaving California 46 days ago and I am happy to report that I have lost 4.9 kilos, which translates into 10.8 lbs., since moving to Italy.

Good times indeed!

But let's be clear, I can still be a body double if needed for the star in a remake of Free Willy.

At least it is a start in the right direction.

Snow predicted all day in Milan

Undaunted, I boarded the 10:35 a.m. train to Milano but only after a café and brioche at Le Due Isole Bar next to the Venegono Inferiore train station.

A mysterious woman was on board

I'm pretty sure that she was that famous Cold War spy from Pottsylvania, Natasha Fatale.

 Not many were taking advantage
of Milan's community bike program today

Snowy knot near the
Cadorna Train Station

The Sforza Castle looked good in white

So did this priest

The huge fountain in front of the
Sforza Castle was partially
FROZEN!

Only the moving water halted
the freezing

No dining al fresco today

Calcio Bobble Head Dolls

Looks like no one is
buying gelato today

Snow on palm trees looked
out of kilter to me

The Lion in Winter

Good movie.

The Duomo still looked good to me

Cold?
We're not cold, it's . . .
 SKORPION WEATHER!

Snow, Tree, Duomo

Icing down her pitching arm?

I decided to try to find another one of the hidden gems of Milan from my book 111 Places in Milan That You Must Not Miss.

My goal was a church.

I had to find the Piazza Santo Stefano first which is just a short walk from the Duomo.

Right Piazza

I entered the big church that you see here . . .

. . . but it was the wrong church

It was the Chiesa of Santo Stefano which made sense but it was not my goal church.

#77 San Bernardino
The house of bones

Just to the left of the grand looking Chiesa Santo Stefano was the plain Chiesa San Bernardino.

Nothing special so far

Padre Pio

A great 20th-century saint to be sure but still not why I was here.

 Follow the arrow . . .

. . . EUREKA!

There used to be a leper hospital nearby and something had to be done about all of the bones.

Up stepped the priests in charge of Chiesa San Bernardino who decided to use the wall niches as frames for artsy pictures made from human skulls, tibias and femurs.

As well as the lepers, the plague also contributed victims for the grisly displays over the centuries.

Bizarre

Lots of bones to be sure

Eventually the bones of the sick and poor
people, of prisoners and of murder victims
were added to the mix

 Even a few nobles who couldn't
find a more dignified burial
place wound up here

A bit ghoulish but interesting too.

 The Tower of the Chiesa di
San Gottardo in Corte

It is now part of the Duomo Museum complex thus I did not enter as I am avoiding all Duomo related explorations until Laurie arrives next month.

 Art . . .
I can't explain it but I liked it

Still no dining al fresco

The Duomo through the arches

A rare selfie

I think that the cold and snow was getting to me.

The Piazza del Duomo

The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
did indeed give me shelter

The lighting was eerily different with the accumulated snow on the glass roof.

The roof won't give under the weight of the snow, will it?

Leonardo and his minions
surveying the beauty of
SKORPION WEATHER!

I was cold, I was damp so it was definitely time to head home to stay dry and, most of all, healthy.

After all, Game Day was now less the 48 hours away.

BEAT THE CRUSADERS!

2 comments:

David said...

Good to see you taking the train in this weather. Having seen Italian driving in good weather, I don't really want to know how they drive in snow.

George said...

David,

I use the car as little as possible due to gas prices and difficulty/cost of parking in bigger cities.

Trains to big cities followed by bus, tram, metro and walking work best for me.