It was still raining in the morning. Since we had a reservation of “The Last Supper" at 11AM, we decided to visit the Milan Cathedral (Duomo) first. When we got there, we noticed a tighter security around this famous attraction. Not only they have armed soldiers at entrance security checkpoint, they also have armed soldiers patrol around the building. Since we were early visitors, it was nice to see the interior of the Cathedral without too much crowd. This Gothic cathedral took nearly six centuries to complete. It is the second largest church in Italy after St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City and the third in the world. Until a few years ago it was the tallest building in Milan. It is so grand and so immense, we took the opportunity to take many photos.
Then, we rushed to Santa Maria delle Grazie to see “the Last Supper”. When we got there trying to exchange the voucher to actual tickets, then we realized that I made a terrible mistake. I booked these tickets in February, however, I made mistake of booking it for April 12 instead of May 12. After trying to get help to secure additional tickets without success, we had to skip this famous attraction. One thing I do have to say is that the staff at 'The Last Supper' ticket office in Santa Maria delle Grazie had the most unfriendly attitude in response to our request for assistance. It gave us a bad taste of Italian’s tourist industry.
Then we walked to the nearby Castello Sforzesco which was our next attraction. Castello Sforzesco was built in the 15th century. Later renovated and enlarged in the 16th and 17th centuries, it was one of the largest fortress in Europe. Extensively rebuilt in 1891–1905, it now houses several of the city's museums. One of the famous museum is Peita Rondanini - Michelangelo Museum which houses the Michelangelo’s final sculpture. We visited the Michelangelo Museum first and then visited the Museum of Ancient Art, the Museum of Furniture and Wooden Sculpture, and the Museum of Archaeology Egypt Section, The castle itself is hugh and it also has a hugh garden and park area next to it. We did a little bit of walking in the park and eventually got back to the castle itself.
After the visit of Castello Sforzesco, we went back to Duomo to see the Duomo Museum. The collections of this museum centers purely on this single grand and symbolic monument – the Duomo. It houses around 200 art pieces, including statues, textile arts, overhangs, strong brownish-red or brownish-orange color models, graphics materials, paintings, wooden models and stained-glass windows.
Then we walked to the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II which is the 19th-centruy glass-topped, barrel-vaulted tunnel serves as a lively and colorful shopping mall. It is a prefect place to stroll around during the rain. The architecture is just amazing with natural light coming from the glass top and it has beautiful mosaic floors. It houses stores of many world known luxury brands.
The La Scala Opera House is located at the north entrance of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. The theatre is regarded as one of the leading opera and ballet theaters in the world. Many composers wrote and conducted works at this theatre, it includes such great musicians such as Rossini, Puccini, Verdi and Toscanini. You can purchase tickets to see the interior. When we were there, there was a rehearsal going on and the lighting was shut, we did not get a chance to see the grand interior with proper lighting. However, we did have an opportunity to see a live rehearsal.
After La Scala Opera House, we took the Metro back to our hotel to get ready to venture out to Tuscany the next day.
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