duomo

Pietra e Preghiera

/ Anna / Leave a comment

A recurring feature of my posts, seems to be Milan’s Duomo. The Cathedral is very much the centre of the city and is used as a frequent backdrop for concerts and events. You may have read my post Music by Moonlight about the opening night of Expo here in Milan and the wonderful concert featuring Andrea Boccelli and pianist Lang Lang.  Or perhaps the post A Roof with a View! showing some of the stunning views offered from the terraces of the Duomo.

Last week, once again it took to centre stage, this time for Pietra e Preghiera an evening of video-mapping on the façade of the Duomo. Using modern technology they projected lights and both still and moving images onto the building, accompanied by the beautiful music of Giuseppe Verdi.

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It really was quite a magical and mesmerizing evening! Sometimes we stop noticing the things around us and we take for granted historic and amazing buildings.  The Duomo is truly a fantastic piece of architecture and events like this make you stop and appreciate it once again!

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Have a great weekend!

Anna

p.s. Check out my Instagram for a video of the night!

A Roof with a View!

/ Anna / 3 Comments

Hello everyone! I haven’t given up on my little blog…despite not having written anything for a while! I have just been super busy and so musings took a back seat – but I am back!

Last weekend I had some of my dear friends from home come and visit me and so of course I showed them all around the city and we took a little trip to Lake Como (more on this in another post)!  The best thing about having people come and stay is that I get to be a tourist and fall in love with Milan all over again!  I am a little obsessed with taking pictures at the moment and I honestly think I took more than my friends, despite having seen everything before – but that just means that now I can share them with you!

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So, one of my absolute favourite things to do in Milan, is to visit the terraces of the Duomo! Milan’s cathedral, the symbol of the city, lies in Piazza Duomo and is a pivotal and central point of interest for anyone visiting.  The Cathedral, commissioned in 1386, is the largest Gothic Cathedral in the world and took almost 500 years to complete! It features more than 3,500 statues and is a labyrinth of flying buttresses, pinnacles, 96 gargoyles and 135 spires.

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Since 1837 Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo has been responsible for the preservation and restoration of the Cathedral and thanks to its’ founder, Gian Galeazzo Visconti,  the Cathedral even has its own quarry! All the marble used for building and restoration comes from The Candoglia Quarries and has done since 1387 when they were given quarrying and transport rights. Originally the marble was transported by the Naviglio Grande but the boatmen were exempt from paying the tolls, as they used a secret password ‘AUF’ – ‘Ad usum fabricae’, ‘for the use of the Fabbrica’.

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La Madonnina – stood on the central spire of the Duomo and keeping watch over the city since 1774, the copper gilded “Little Madonna”

Inside the Cathedral there are some stunning stain-glass windows, but for me the best thing are the terraces!  You can either take a lift or walk up to the top, but me being slightly lazy and not a fan of spiral church staircases (I get too dizzy!) I took the lift, (it does cost slightly more)! Once at the top you are free to walk around as you please, although I will say that since Expo has started there seems to be a lot more people up there than ever before!

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A contemporary art exhibition: Tony Cragg, dialogue with the Duomo – running as part of EXPO

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I have always been extremely lucky with the weather when I have been up to the terraces and on a very clear day you can see the Alps and Apennines! It is always nice to see things differently and being up high looking out over the city gives you a new perspective! You can see all the streets running off from Piazza Duomo and every time I visit, I always notice something different, either about the city or the Cathedral itself – usually a new gargoyle or statue!

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Having fun in the sun on a roof with a view!

If you haven’t visited yet go now (or put it on your list if you ever visit Milan)…and if you have, what did you think?! I would love to hear!

Anna

 

Music by Moonlight

/ Anna / 4 Comments

Last night in Piazza Duomo under the moonlight, I was serenaded by the amazing vocals of Andrea Bocelli and the phenomenal talent of Chinese pianist Lang Lang! Well in reality, me and around 20,000 other people, along with a live TV audience….but still it was amazing!

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Milan really is beautiful at night and the Duomo looked stunning!

It was the opening night of Expo2015 Milan, a six month World Exposition which starts today and runs until the 31st of October. The theme of which is ‘Nutrire il Pianeta, Energia per la Vita’ – ‘Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life’.  The idea is to bring together countries, ideas, people and cultures from all over the world, to talk about sustainability and providing food resources for everyone world wide, working towards an end in famine and poverty.

There has been speculation as to whether a large scale exposition, where millions has been spent in preparation, not only building an enormous exhibition space, but also on improving the city, is the best way to tackle these issues, but if it raises awareness then surely that is helping?  Still, many people are against the Expo and there have been many protests and I’m sure they will continue throughout the next six months.  And of course, this being Italy there has been talk of corruption and all sorts of questions arising, including would they finish preparation in time? But, we will have to wait and see before anyone can decide if Expo will be a success!

I am personally quite excited about it all, there are 148 countries taking part, many who have had their own pavilions built in order to showcase the best their country has to offer.  The UK’s pavilion for example, features bees (and I love honey!) to show how Britain is a ‘hive’ for business, creativity and science! Also lets not forget as an exposition focused on food, all the countries participating will be offering up some of the best of their cuisine and I for one am excited to try some new food and take a culinary trip around the world!  Plus there are hundreds of other events taking place in Milan’s museums and all over the city under the guise of Expo, even though many take place every year, such as one of my favourites Piano City.

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But back to last night and Andrea Bocelli serenading me…oops sorry ‘millions of people’ in Piazza Duomo! He was joined by not only Lang Lang, but also sopranos Diana Damrau and Maria Luigia Borsi, tenor Francesco Meli (wow what a voice!) and baritone Simone Piazzola. They were accompanied by the Chorus and Orchestra of Teatro alla Scala and the Orchestra of the Teatro alla Scala Academy and played homage to Giuseppe Verdi, Giacomo Puccini and Gioacchino Rossini, amongst others. It really was a magical evening and the musical talent of these people is simply outstanding! Andrea Bocelli’s voice is surreal and for me it was a dream to hear him sing live, as I have always admired him!  Plus I had serious piano envy as Lang Lang played the most beautiful Steinway & Sons Grand Piano!  Maybe one day I will get to play one…..

I have put two short videos on my Instagram page of Andrea and Lang Lang, which you can access from the side bar!

Are you planning on visiting Milan for the Expo?  What is your opinion about it all? I would love to hear from you!

Anna