Travels with Kathryn

I feel I have seen a lot in the past 2 weeks, but in many ways, I have done a rather quick spin through some of the cities of Northern Italy. I wanted to start with a clarification, a couple of people asked why I skipped some of the main tourist stops such as Florence, Pisa, Rome, or the lakes. The simple answer is that I have been before and wanted to visit new places instead. However, this being the case, I did make a stop yesterday in Milan which I actually visited earlier this year (with Silpa who attempted to teach me Selfies), but I am returning for a specific reason which shall be revealed later (attempting to create an air of suspense perhaps spoiled by the featured image)…

Yesterday (Friday) after a last wander around Turin which really is delightful, and a purchase of a new jumper – I did buy a sweater for this trip, but back in Kotor in the rain I managed to transfer the blue dye from my little backpack into the front and it won’t wash out. On passing, I saw a selection of nice jumpers at a reasonable price in a shop and have brought one. I suspect it may come in useful in Finland!

I caught my last Italian train (they are so fabulous) for the short 1 hour journey from Turin to Milan. On arrival, after a bit of a wander, I did manage to find the left luggage shop where I deposited my bag for the afternoon and headed (via my previously purchased metro ticket) to the centre of Milan. It was a beautiful day, so I thought we might appreciate some before and after photos:

Now, onto my reason for coming to Milan. I wanted to see The Last Supper. Now, tickets for The Last Supper go on sale 3 months before the date when you want to visit. I tried for every day we were going to be in Milan back in May, and for this trip and failed – I therefore TMaP’d and purchased a guided tour to see it this afternoon. The Last Supper is one of the most recognisable images in the world, but still, I think we would all benefit from a little referesher. The Last Supper is a fresco created by Leonardo di Vinci, who was commissioned by the Duke of Milan Ludovico Sforza in 1494 for the refectory of the Convent of Santa Maria della Grazie. A painting of the Last Supper is traditional for refectories, but this was usually painted showing the moment when the bread is sanctified, however Leonardo di Vinci wanted to capture the moment when Jesus tells his disciples that one of them will betray him (from the Gospel of John). Therefore, he is able to capture 13 different human reactions to such news.

The church was bombed in 1943 but survived due to a double wall of sandbags:

Inside the refectory, you only get 15 minutes in front of the painting, and really, this is not long enough to fully appreciate the fresco. It is an image I have seen many times, but I have never really appreciated the use of light and perspective made more impressive by the fact that you are in a large white walled room – your eyes are drawn to the centre (through lines and the windows at the back of the fresco) and then from left to right.

I had also never really looked at the facial expressions of each of the apostles. Leonardo di Vinci wanted people to really look at the fresco and to read meaning into the expressions, groupings, and items on the table. For example, Judas (group to the immediate left side of Jesus, figure on the far left of this group) is shown not looking that surprised, in shadow, holding a bag of money and knocking over the salt – ominous much? The fresco relatively recently (to 1999) underwent a serious piece of restoration, mostly to clean away humidity (as the refectory kitchens were on the other side of this wall), former restorations, damage done when Napolean stabled horses here(!), and from bomb dust. However, it still looks quite delicate, so I can see why numbers and times are limited. On this, yes it is old, but it also due to Leonardo using a dry fresco technique (which allowed for more flexibility in painting) rather than the more traditional wet technique (where paint was applied to a wet wall and the image dries into the plaster) – maybe he did not know this would become one of his most recognisable images as opposed to just a nice painting for the friars to enjoy over dinner.

Having fulfilled my Last Supper ambitions, I returned to retrieve my bag and head to my airport hotel. This was a tactical stay as I was flying (apologies to the world for another cheating flight) the next day to Helsinki and excitingly I received a text the morning to say that my 11.10am flight would be leaving early – only by 15 minutes, but I am not sure this has ever happened to me before! Milan Linate is an excellent small airport, so all was very easy (I recommend it for your next trip to Milan!), and I am on a small plane, which is almost completely empty:

I am writing most of this on the plane, which gives me a little time to reflect on my time in Italy. I really should come more often – it has an amazing history and culture, fabulous architecture, wonderful food and the people are lovely (you have to enjoy their enthusiasm for everything!). I think that my improvements in French have helped me with Italian (which previously was very much focussed on translating restaurant menus!) and I feel relatively comfortable with basic phrases – even though everyone does seem to speak English. I also feel that i have seen and learnt so much more in the last 2 weeks and would gladly return to everywhere – but a particular shout out must go to Trieste and Turin which are probably the most underrated destinations. I was also pleasantly surprised by Venice, as I was concerned that I it would not live up to my imaginings, but it really did. These should all be on your travel list!

So, that was Stage 4 and really the end of my Silk Road adventure (which has to end in the Roman Empire), and I am now heading into the Baltics and my Acrtic Adventure!