For The Love of Travel

My last day in Milan reserved for visiting Sforzesco Castle in the green expanse of Sempione Park – an imposing military citadel built by Francesco Sforza, Duke of Milan in the 15th century, is one of the most important monuments in Milan and throughout history, this imposing complex has played many roles: defensive fortress, ducal residence and military barracks. At different times, the Venetians, French, Spanish and Austrians took control of the castle, but the Milanese finally wrested control in 1859.

Nowadays, its magnificent interior hosts Milano’s Municipal museums and other cultural institutions, and the castle grounds are fascinating in themselves, with large courtyards, massive walls, moat, towers, and crenulated battlements. Hard to photo but amazing to walk around.

At the end of the 15th century, the then Duke, Ludovico il Moro, had the castle interiors completely restyled from defensive architecture to stylish, elegant solutions. He gave instructions on decoration and dictated the dress code of his lavishly elegant court. He also filled his calendar with musical events and experimented with new crops in the castle park, where he took visiting aristocrats and ambassadors on hunting trips. 

Leonardo da Vinci – artist, futuristic engineer and master of ceremonies, an accomplished painter, architect and musician, spent the longest and most prolific part of his life Milan, adopting it as his home. He planned parties for the Duke, like a luxury wedding planner!

Since the Duke loved art at least as much as he loved parties, in 1498, he asked Leonardo to decorate his “Sala delle Asse”. Leonardo painted the walls and ceiling to resemble a pergola of mulberry trees as a tribute to Ludovico Sforza – the tree a reference to his nickname, “il Moro”. It also brought to mind the silk industry that was developing quickly in northern Italy. 

Beautiful 17th Century German stain-glass windows, with entire scenes painted in coloured enamels and fused onto clear glass are displayed in one area of the museum.

The ‘gonfalon’ display gets your attention as soon as you walk into the room. A 16thC city decoration, embroidered, painted and encrusted with precious stones, its 5 metres x 3 metres and was carried in processions. It depicts St Ambrose brandishing a whip. At his feet, two soldiers symbolising the episode of the saint driving out the Aryans.

Also, a beautifully intricate full stained glass window, carefully transported from the Villa Mosterts in Lombardy…

As I exited the castle, noticed photos hanging in walkways surrounding a castle square. Discovered a beautiful tradition since 2016…. on Valentine’s day, a local photographer and journo, Silvio Amodio, invites people to have their picture taken with their fur baby: for years, the Sforza Castle hosting this event with a free exhibition that has been visited by over a million visitors, like me!  All the photographic portraits are collected in a catalog, the proceeds of which are donated to a dog kennel in Milan. So delightful! Here are Daniele Mazzini, a superintendent of local police and manager of a dog training school; and Mr Wilson with his owner Francesca.

Meet Minny, Gipsy and Chicco with their owners Stefano and Roberto.

Often overlooked in favour of other cities like Rome, Florence and Venice, Milan is a cosmopolitan city which effortlessly blends history and modernity with elegance. Art and culture thrive here, and you’ll find everything from grand cathedrals and world-class museums to fashion boutiques and cutting-edge design stores. Milan was tremendous to visit.

Walking around the Ticinese neighbourhood, I noticed a billboard advertising an exhibition ‘Obey- the art of Shepard Fairey’’! Woo hoo, one of the world’s most influential and internationally recognized street artists, exhibiting in Milan. So that was my first stop for the day. An amazing visual and conceptual journey through the artist’s 35-year career, featuring a rich collection of works personally selected, featuring iconic themes in his art: propaganda, peace and justice, music, and environment.

“Through my art, I want to remind people of the equal humanity of all people, regardless of their race, religion, nation, or culture. There is no us versus them; there is only us.” 

Best known for the “HOPE” poster, a portrait of Barack Obama and an emblem of the 2008 presidential campaign, Obey’s style has a minimalist palette, influenced by the hip-hop and punk cultures, challenging social conventions – inviting the audience to question and take a stance on current issues.

Ready for more art, caught a couple of trams to check out the “Gucci mural”. Since 2017, in Largo La Foppa, the Gucci Art Wall boasts 176 square metres available for mural art. Just opposite the Radetzky Café/Bar, looms this huge urban canvas – this month dedicated to Debra Harry, ex Blondie and Gucci campaign-ista pictured with an adorable Yorkie.

And then, inquisitively popping by head through a gate leading to a secluded apartment block… saw another mural ….of a portico with a real garden in the foreground.

Radetsky Bar, with iconic outdoor sofas and elegant architecture, has been a hangout for socialites since 1988. Perfect for brekkie, brunch, aperitif (with nibbles), or dinner.  I had a refreshing passionfruit cocktail.

Took an Uber to see the “Vertical Forest”, Bosco Verticale, a prototype for a new building with large and small trees, shrubs, and ground covering plants providing 30,000 square metres of vegetation of woodland and undergrowth, concentrated on 3,000 square metres of urban surface. The greenery filters light creating a welcoming microclimate, regulates humidity, produces oxygen and absorbs CO2. A specialist team of ‘flying gardeners’ (arborist-climbers), who use mountaineering techniques once a year to descend the building, pruning and checking plants for removal and substitution. Irrigation is centralised, monitored remotely. AND….the Forest has given birth to a habitat colonised by numerous animal species (including 1600 specimens of birds and butterflies), establishing an outpost of spontaneous flora and fauna recolonisation in the city. AMAZING!

Ratana was my lunch spot over the road from the Vertical Forest, with lots of seafood options and a very cute menu presentation, these fish images dotted throughout the food descriptions.

A visit to the Casa Museo Boschi di Stefano art deco building offers not just the chance to wander through 50 years of Italian twentieth-century art history, but also to go on a journey into the lives of the collectors who lived in the apartment.  Spent my morning there. At the beginning of the 1930s, the married couple Marieda di Stefano and Antonio Boschi (see portrait of them below with their puddy tats), opened the doors of their residence to some of the most influential artists ever, including Mario Sironi, Alberto Savinio, Lucio Fontana, Carlo Carrà and Arturo Martini, with whom they were to forge genuine friendships over the years. A little jewel of a place in the heart of Milan, free to visit and just a hop step and jump from the hustle of Corso Buenos Aires.

Then back to my ‘hood by a couple of interlinking trams and just a few minutes walk through back streets, was my (late) lunch spot, Alla Collina Pistoiese, a traditional Tuscan restaurant since 1938. Another saffron risotto (this one was my fave from all the restaurants), followed by lemon and vodka sorbet, yum!