I did not originally mean to only spend an afternoon in Milan, but because I went too late to the train station to buy my ticket AND catch the 10:03 train I had to wait 2 hours for the next one (the trains run every hour except at 11:03…brilliant).
Milan is 40 minutes away, so it is easy to go there and back from Novara. I arrived in Milan a little after noon. Since I already visited Milan 2 years ago, I only had two particular things in mind: the Pinacoteca of Brera and the Church of Sant’Ambrosio. I accomplished my goals by getting very very lost (this seems to be a common theme in my travels!).
Read More: Christmas in Italy: Milan
The two objects of my desire were on opposite sides of the city, which is easily traversed via an excellent metro system, but I’m cheap and my legs are free so I decided to walk. The Pinacoteca was top of my list for a few select art history pieces (see below), so that is where I headed first. Between you and me, I thought €10 was a bit much but I paid it, just like everyone else, because I really wanted to see my art.
I walked back towards the center and sort of in the direction of the church when I got hungry so I walked into a really cool-looking bar and the best surprise happened next! AUGURI! It was the restaurant owner’s daughter’s 9th birthday and we all sang, there were balloons and confetti, and the best part was we all ate free Nutella cake and drank champagne. I made the right choice for a sandwich shop for lunch!
After many, many hours of walking I made it to the church of Sant’Ambrosio. Sadly, it was under major construction, perhaps even sadder is that I know this church is important but I’m not sure why. I’ve got some reading to do!
I left the church a little before 5 pm and 2 hours later of walking I made it to the main train station, happy and tired. A Perfect day!
JMO
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