JAYNE'S BLOG: Postcards From Milan

Sunday 25 August 2013

Postcards From Milan

Date : 27th May 2013
Arrival : Milano Centrale by Trenitalia
Time : 3:30PM

Quick Look at the Station. Enjoy your trip!

interior view of the station before the requalification - the main concourse

Milano Centrale Station

Milano Centrale is Italy’s second-largest station in terms of size and traffic volume, with around 600 trains per day, two metro lines, the nearby Railway Link, the terminus of a number of urban bus and tram lines and shuttle buses to the airports; located in piazza Duca d'Aosta, in the centre of the city, it is used by over 320 thousand persons per day, around 120 million per year.

For better understanding, click play!

To get a taxi you must go 1 floor down using the escalator. When you were outside the station, turn left and just walk behind the terminal until you found the taxi waiting terminal. If you are not familiar with Milan, its advisable to print your hotel voucher to assist the taxi driver to find your hotel.

I stay at Buenos Aires Hotel.

My hotel here ~ Along Buenos Aires Road ~ famous for middle range prices shopping street.

Cosy cornerer at breakfast area ~ conveniently just outside my room

After check-in, we go out to look for something "halal" food to bite. Ok...from the hotel front, turn left and just walk..walk...walk and walk until you saw a sign of any restaurant with the sign of "halal" food. After 100m from the hotel we saw a sign board about Indian Restaurant. Just follow the sign. Apparently it was situated behind the building of the hotel. I forgot the name of the restaurant but we are so happy to eats curry chicken, mixed vegetables and rice again!

After lunch we continue our mission to Del Duomo which the hotel reception said about 10 - 20 minutes walk from our hotel....hmmmm.. don't take their words literally! better hop to a taxi :)

Finally we reach Piazza Del Duomo. The largest Cathedral.

PIAZZA DEL DUOMO

The Piazza del Duomo is Milan's most beautiful square. It is dominated by the magnificent front facade of the Duomo (cathedral). At the center of the square stands a monument honoring the first king of a unified Italy. As early as during the Roman Era this was the heart of Milan. Later, during the Middle Ages, this was the center of religious life in the city when there were several churches clustered together. Today the expansive Piazza del Duomo is a popular meeting place and it is constantly crowded with tourists and locals alike.

Creation of the piazza

In 1859, when the cathedral was close to completion after a construction period of almost 500 years, the city of Milan decided it was time to create a large square at the foot of the cathedral.

Piazza del Duomo,

view from the Duomo

It launched a competition for the design which attracted 176 participants. The Italian architect Giuseppe Mengoni was selected as the winner.

He designed a wide open square flanked by grand buildings to offset the dominance of the enormous Duomo. At the same time he also designed a monumental glass-covered arcade to connect the new square with the just completed Piazza della Scala, the square in front of Milan's most famous theatre, the Teatro alla Scala.

To create the square and surrounding buildings, a whole neighborhood right in the heart of historic Milan had to be demolished. Construction started in 1862 and the project took about 20 years before it was finally completed.

Palazzo Settentrionale

It is now. Look below what inside it. Posh shopping Mall!

Buildings

Attracting all the attention is the Duomo's magnificent Gothic facade of white marble decorated with numerous statues. One gets the best view of the square from the roof of the cathedral where the geometric pavement pattern becomes visible.

Magnificient! Beautiful beyond words indeed.

If it weren't for the Duomo, the piazza's north side would be the square's highlight. Here the square is defined by the arcade of the Palazzo Settentrionale which is interrupted by the monumental triumphal arch that marks the entrance of the equally monumental Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, a five story high glass-vaulted arcade which was completed in 1877

Propylaea

Opposite the Galleria is the Palazzo Meridionale - similar in style to the Palazzo Settentrionale - which is flanked by two symmetrical, three storey high modernist structures known as the propylaea. The two buildings, with stark unornamented loggias, seem out of place here. The modernist structures replaced the Manica Lunga, a historic building that was demolished in 1937.

Hehehehehe....

Statue of Vittorio Emanuele II

In 1896 an impressive monument was installed at the center of the Piazza del Duomo in honor of Victor Emmanuel II, who in 1861 became the first king of Italy.

An equestrian statue set on a marble pedestal shows the king leading his troops to battle, flanked on either side by a large lion. Reliefs on the sides of the pedestal show the soldiers ready for combat. The monument, which is set on a massive platform, was created by Ercole Rosa, an Italian sculptor.