Orchestra Italiano | Part 11, Weary in Milano

April 6, 2024: From Cremona to Milan

We reached Milan in the late morning as a weary group. A week of full days and living out of suitcases affected everyone. Fortunately, the hard work for the musicians was over after playing two very different public performances in Cremona the day before. However, there would be no rest for the weary in Milan. I logged over 15,000 steps during our one day visit and there were unexpected challenges to manage for the remainder of the trip. (Gasp...foreshadowing.)

Our visit to Milan formally began in the Piazza del Duomo. Milan's stunning gothic cathedral required 579 years to fully realize. Started in 1386, the jaw-droppingly ornate structure was not completed until 1965.

As we saw consistently throughout Italy, the duomo anchors a bustling square. After the comparative respite from crowds that we enjoyed in Cremona, Italy's second largest city returned us to crowded streets and throngs of tourists. Please don't misunderstand my point; Milan is an amazingly beautiful city and I am grateful to have visited. But I was definitely ready for some quiet time away from people at this point in the trip.

A common theme in Italy appears to be a preference for imposing and elaborately fashioned bronze cathedral portals. Milan did not disappoint in that regard.

Kristy, me, and The Bear on the Piazza del Duomo.

This might be our sole family photo from the Italian tour and I am embarrassed that I do not remember who took it!

Piazza del Duomo.

Amuck in Milan

Luke, Izzy, and The Bear (above) went off on their own for lunch, leaving me, Kristy, Dena, and Mark to our own devices. Still somewhat stupefied by the press of humanity on Milan's streets and already pining for the quieter public spaces of Cremona, we resolved to find dining off the beaten path.

Dena and Kristy photographed during our quest for a quiet lunch.

Milan is quite far north in Italy and the vibe of the place reminded me more of central European cities than previous Italian cities. Part of this was the prevalence of electric trolleys and their ubiquitous overhead wires that reminded me so much of Leipzig, Germany. But that huge "GUCCI" sign left little doubt of where we were.

As we increased our distance from the Piazza del Duomo, the crowds abated. We followed the narrow street to the left and found the perfect place for lunch.

A Special Treat

We found this gem: Pasto - Laboratorio di Pasta  con Cucina (or "Pasta Laboratory"). It was tiny, tidy, and gloriously reviewed; we joined a small crowd eagerly waiting for this wonderful restaurant to open for the day. Featuring fresh pasta and daily specials, we knew that we had found a unique and delicious spot away from the tourists crowding other parts of Milan.

I ordered one of the daily specials that came sprinkled with ground pine nuts. Our meals were delicious! Unfortunately, lunch was cut short for Mark and Dena owing to a frightening health issue; they received a text indicating that Izzy was experiencing an allergic reaction to something she ate at lunch. Like The Bear, Izzy also has a peanut allergy.

Scary

Mark and Dena made a hasty departure while Kristy and I finished our lunches, paid the bill, and hurried to catch up. We met them at the Pizzeria con Cucina (above). Our best guess is that the pesto Izzy had for lunch was cross contaminated with peanuts. Interestingly, The Bear had the same meal with no ill effects. This seemed to validate all of the challenges that the 2022 tour presented to maintaining The Bear on her peanut oral immunotherapy regimen; it appears that the treatment safeguarded her in Milan. Though scary, Izzy was ultimately fine, but wisely spent a low key afternoon with her parents that did not involve hiking all over Milan with the rest of us.

We made a low-key exploration of Milan with Izzy, Mark, and Dena until it was time to meet the group back at the Duomo Milano.

Interesting name for a restaurant. It...is...a restaurant, right?

Galleria Vittorio Emanuel II

Duomo Milano...and...are those people up on the roof? How do we get on that tour?!

Galleria Vittorio Emanuel II (left) and the Duomo Milano (right).

We convened with a new tour guide at the entrance to the Galleria Vittorio Emanuel II, a famous "mall" (the word "mall" really fails to capture the elegance of this place) dating back to 1877. Built as a four level arcade, it is Milan's oldest active shopping complex and named for the first king of united Italy who reigned from 1861 to 1878.

Main entrance Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II.

At the center of the Piazza del Duomo stands a massive bronze statue of Vittorio Emanuel II, namesake of the Galleria.

When I grew up in metropolitan Detroit, a hierarchy of malls existed, some fancier than others. This one is way off the charts where "fancy" is concerned.

Given the shop names on the windows, it was clear that just about anything for sale in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuel II was out of our price range.

But the place itself was absolutely stunning. I suspect that rent for a storefront here might be a bit more than in Rochester's Eastview Mall. (Which has skylights also, but...come on.)

Some interesting angles on the rear entrance to the Galleria.

Piazza della Scala

We emerged from the Galleria Vittorio Emanuel II onto the Piazza della Scala, the square adjacent to Milan's famous La Scala opera house. At the center of the square stands sculptor Pietro Magni's 1872 marble monument to Leonardo da Vinci who stands proudly in a perfect "Run DMC" pose.

Teatro alla Scala, known colloquially as La Scala, opened in 1778 and is considered one of the premier opera venues in the world. As a theater, it has debuted many important operas and hosted internationally acclaimed performers.

Kristy and The Bear look super happy (?) to be in one of the world's most famous performance venues.

Once we stepped inside, the inspiration for Cremona's Teatro Amilcare Ponchielli was obvious.

Brera District

From La Scala, we walked through Milan's artsy Brera district.

"Impressive, But Not Welcoming"

We emerged from narrow city streets before the stark red brick walls of Castello Sfozesco. The medieval fortress was built in the 14th century to gatekeep entrance to Milan. It is no gilded French palace and lacks the fairy tale mystique of Neuschwanstein. Instead it is utilitarian and imposing, a fortress like the one atop the crag in Edinburgh. Our guide paused and gestured to the castle, summarizing its purpose in simple terms. "This was built to be impressive, but not welcoming."

Now dry, a flooded moat once encircled the castle.

Photo by The Bear.

In lieu of water, the moat is now mostly home to feral cats that do not present much deterrent to attackers.

From the northeast face of the castle, we walked clockwise around the former moat to reach the northwest wall. The many holes in the castle wall are intended as anchor points for scaffolding used during the original construction and subsequent maintenance.

No one appeared to be watching the northwest portal, so we slipped subtlety into the castle without any witnesses.

Is that Gabe? I think I'm behind Gabe. I saw much less of Gabe than on the 2022 tour. I think this is true for his parents, too!

Within the northwest corner of the fortress is the Cortile della Rocchetta or "courtyard of the little fortress". It was intended as an inner sanctum of the castle, a place of refuge if the outer walls of Castello Sfozesco were ever breached.

The radiant sun motif visible under porticos encircling the Rocchetta Courtyard represent the Sforza coat of arms.

The Cortile delle Armi (Ducal Courtyard) occupies the southeast half of the fortress.

It is dominated by the Torre del Filarete (Filarete Tower). The original tower that stood here was designed by Antonio Averulino -- also known as il Filarete -- in 1452, but collapsed in 1521 after conversion to a gunpowder magazine. (I would love to understand the logic behind filling such a historical structure with stuff designed to go boom.) The existing tower is a modern attempt to reconstruct the original design and was opened in 1905.

We exited under the Torre del Filarete. Here, Zhenya and Yana pass the Fontana di Piazza Castello.

In keeping with the popular "dead dudes on horses" statue motif, a monument to Giuseppe Garibaldi stands before the Castello Sfozesco. Along with Vittorio Emanuel II, Garibaldi is considered one of the fathers of a unified Italy.

We walked the Via Dante (named for Divine Comedy author Dante Alighieri), a pedestrian street through a purportedly chic part of town. Despite this, the only comment I recall our guide making about any of the shops we passed was bafflingly in praise of McDonald's.

Bank of Italy.

Per our guide, this is the best place for gelato in all of Milan. The line of waiting patrons seemed to validate her assertion.

Foot Locker? Really? In the home of Prada?

For dinner, we enjoyed multiple courses of different pizzas at Ristorante Pizzeria Dogana just a block from the Piazza del Duomo where Kristy and I sat with HYSO director Casey. In a tour comprising mostly high school students, there is something to be said about sitting at the "adult table".

Duomo Milano at dusk.

After dinner, as the setting sun cast long shadows across the ancient city, we bid farewell to Vittorio Emanuel II, the Piazza del Duomo, and the central city of Milan. Though we remained on Italian soil for the night, our Italian odyssey effectively ended when we departed Milan's cathedral square.

April 7, 2024: Epilogue - A Long Journey Home

As in Prague, we were once again part of the "early" group departing Milan. This meant that we were awake around 4:00 am. The Dolce Milan Malpensa Hotel came through with an unexpected surprise by opening their kitchen early for us to enjoy a full buffet breakfast. That beat a box of cold food eaten on the bus to the airport any day!

Soon after waking, we were brought into the latest crisis. Luke contracted a stomach bug and spent most of the night awake managing the consequences. Everyone empathized with his condition, but more concerning was uncertainty about his ability to travel home. Kristy was texting back and forth with Luke's mother who was still awake during -- what was for us -- the previous day. Luke quickly found himself in the care of Terry, who had joined this year's tour as concert logistics master and musician wrangler in the wake of Randy's retirement after the 2022 tour. In addition to being The Bear's oboe teacher and performing the second oboe parts in support of The Bear during HYSO concerts, Terry was also Luke and The Bear's elementary school principal. She was a familiar and comforting presence. Even as student milled about while suitcases were staged in the lobby for departure, we actively speculated about whether she needed to stay behind with Luke until he was fit to travel. 

Miraculously, she fed Luke enough Imodium that he was able to make it through airport security and onto the plane despite evincing the disposition of partially-thawed zombie. Those of us who knew him best did everything we could to support him, which is how I happened to carry a bassoon through portions of London Heathrow and the Toronto airport.

Sunrise at the Milan Airport.

Boarding our British Airways flight for London.

It was a slog, but Luke made it back to Rochester that night along with the rest of us. While assisting Luke in the Toronto airport, I discovered that his supply of Imodium was past expiry, but we kept on with it considering that low potency Imodium was probably doing more good than harm. And when we arrived back at Hochstein in downtown Rochester around 10:00 pm, Luke's parents were there to drive us all home. Thanks, Rachel and Ryan! 

Unlike the 2022 trip to Europe, I emerged from Europe uncontaminated with the latest viral scourge. Unfortunately, this time was The Bear's turn. While it had minimal impact on her Italian adventure, it made for a long flight home.

Reflection

In the end, despite a few trials, it was all a massive success. The Bear and her cohort of talented HYSO musicians played beautifully in amazing Italian venues. We all expanded our knowledge of the world and saw sights that would have otherwise remained abstractions, mere photographs from unvisited parts of the planet. One of the things that attracted us to the Hochstein Youth Symphony in the first place, in addition to consistent high caliber playing, is the strong promotion of community within the ensemble. For these students, traveling and performing around Europe was a bonding experience unlike any other. I also believe that, in addition to fostering internal community, these tours are an incredible opportunity for the students to better understand their places as citizens of the world. I am so happy that The Bear had these opportunities with HYSO, opportunities that I would have never dreamed of when I was her age.

My greatest regret from the tour was being less connected to The Bear and her friends than in 2022. I had fewer opportunities to get photos of them as a cohort after performances. When I reviewed the photos I took and saw how few I had of The Bear, I took it as a personal failing. With time, I realized that they had less need of me than in 2022 and that those missing photographs really exemplified how The Bear was maturing into greater independence. Exercising that autonomy was an essential part of growing up. I am so proud of the capable, clever, and talented person she has become. At least she let us ride her coattails to Italy!

Finally, I want to express my gratitude to the Hochstein Youth Symphony Orchestra for this second chance at once-in-a-lifetime adventure.

Coda

Journeys are all about perspective. For a particularly unique perspective on the HYSO 2024 tour of Italy, check this out from a pair of anonymous Instagram auteurs.