Hi, my dearest readers,
If you already saw my other post, you would’ve known that I travelled to Italy just before summer.
My first stop was Milan as my plane landed and I was here only for one day. In my opinion, if you are just visiting Milan, the city alone, one day is more than sufficient. However, if you’re looking at visiting the nearby cities and the beautiful Lake Como, you can always extend this trip.
The objective of the trip was to visit as many places as possible and admire its architecture. It’s less of a trip whereby we visited each individual cathedral and museum (there are way too many of them!). So you’ll need to cater more time than we have if you’re planning on visiting the inside of these landmarks.
GETTING TO MILAN
I got to Milan around 6 am local time (with a 6 hours time difference). Mostly without jetlag as I set off to tour the whole of Milan.
The airport was relatively quiet when I arrived. There were 3 types of queues in total at the customs. The first, those with EU passports, the Third Country Nationals (which included countries such as Singapore, Japan, and the UK). The former two will share the same automated gantry for custom clearance. While the other passports will form a queue that would snake around. I was not able to get through via the automated gantry clearance and thus was directed to cut the other passport queue. Surprisingly, the queue was really fast and I cleared the customs within one hour of landing. Even before I cut the “other passport” queue, I noticed the girl ahead of me (part of the other passport queue), was ahead of me.
TRAVELLING FROM THE AIRPORT TO THE CITY
I prebooked the airport transfer on the bus via Klook for 6 Euros. The company that is managing the transfer is Terravision, so all I had to do was to follow the tickets and head to the exit (“Uscita” which is Italian for Exit and the first word I learned in Italy). The bus should be lined up outside Exit 4 (Not exit 3 nor Exit 5 as the ticket said). If you didn’t get the tickets, you can also opt to get them directly from the people managing the bus. At the stop, the ticket cost 10 Euros.
I was there around 7:20 am and the bus departed at 7:33 am. The total time to the city centre took longer than expected, which I suspected is due to the morning rush hour traffic, and ended up being roughly 1.5 hours. My hotel was a short walk away and we cut through the Milano Centrale Stazione. The floors are cobbled on the streets so there’s a need to exercise care when dragging your luggage.
GETTING AROUND MILAN
Car: We had the car towards the end of our Milan trip. We then drove to Florence on the second day and took day trips out to the Firenze Mall, Siena, Venice, and Pisa.
Local trains and trams: On the local trains, I’ll suggest being more vigilant of your surroundings. There are lots of petty pickpockets around and you can read about my experience with one here.
Walk (a lot): Predominately, be it after train travel or a car ride, we walked around the cities. Their cities are very walkable and you’ll be pleasantly surprised by what you’ll see in each corner. There’s no better way to explore the city!
Taxi: This was a lifesaver for us when we were moving in between the cities and had to lug our hefty luggage to the main train stations. We got an app called Freenow (which works like Uber or Grab). Within minutes, I was able to get a taxi. But a trip from my hotel/ Airbnb (less than 5 minutes away), costs at least €15 so this is a pricy option. For taxis to the airports, there is a flat rate of €40 to €50, depending on the location of each airport.
Airport Transfers: Airports in Italy were pretty far away from their main cities. While there was the option of taking the trains, the comfort of the Airport Transfer buses outweighed the pros on cons. I got mine off Klook under Terravision which cost me €6 instead of the €10 that I saw people paying on the spot. So, if you don’t want to miss the bus to the airport and you want a cheaper yet affordable alternative, this will be it!
WHERE WE STAYED
We stayed at the Spice Hotel Milano and this was its gorgeous view.
You can read about my stay in Italy here.
Where we VISITED
Duomo do Milano | A Vittorio Emanuele II | Starbucks Reserve Milano | Castillo Sforzesco di Milano | Parco Sempione | Pizzeria Starita Milano | Naviglio Grande | Alzaia Naviglio Grande
Duomo do Milano
My day officially began when we headed to the Duomo di Milano.
You haven’t visited Milan if you have not seen their cathedral there. The place was packed with heaps of people from all over the world. From our hotel, we took the Subway to Station:
This was definitely one of the most Beautiful Architecture that I’ve seen across the world.
Address: P.za del Duomo, 20122 Milano MI, Italy
Note: There are definitely a lot of street peddlers with bracelets, selfie sticks, and cold water. If you don’t want them, just politely refuse. They typically don’t persist and will move on.
Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II
Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is just beside all the luxury brands that you can shop to your heart’s desire. The photo spot is right in the middle of the area but there were so many people that you might need to be patient.
Address: Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II P.za del Duomo, 20123 Milano MI, Italy
Tip: Do remember to keep an eye on your own belongings especially when you are in crowded areas. Pickpockets are very sneaky and quick with your belongings if you aren’t careful.
Around the area are also the Teatro allo Scala and the Park. We didn’t enter them as we were on a tight itinerary. Plus, they weren’t that grand anymore after seeing the Milan Cathedral.
Address: Teatro alla Scala Via Filodrammatici, 2, 20121 Milano MI, Italy
Starbucks Reserve Roastery
Along the way to visiting the Sforcesco Castle, we saw the famous Starbucks Reserve and had to go in. We wanted to grab a drink but decided otherwise due to the queue. It was a beautiful place whereby you can see the full production of the coffee beans. Outside the Starbucks were areas where you can rest when the weather is good.
Address: Starbucks Reserve Roastery Piazza Cordusio, 3, 20123 Milano MI, Italy
Sforzesco Castle
Sforzesco Castle was a sight to behold, this fortress was built in the 15th hundreds from the medieval times.
Address: Sforzesco Castle Piazza Castello, 20121 Milano MI, Italy
Parco Sempione
Parco Sempione was a cute park with streams running through it. There were ducks and terrapins just resting alongside the stream. This is a great place for families to enjoy. We stumbled across this “ruins” area which had chairs embedded into the stone structure. It was so peculiar that we had to stop for a photo.
We exited the park through the other entrance with a beautiful arch. We, of course, had to pose for even more photos.
Address: Parco Sempione Piazza Sempione, 20154 Milano MI, Italy
Pizzeria Starita Milano
We were getting hungry by then and headed to the nearby pizzeria, Pizzeria Starita Milano, for the first of many pizzas in Italy.
Italian pizza definitely hits differently as we devoured it. We did in the end get a pizza which is way too similar to the salad we got, sans one or two ingredients. it would have been nicer if the waiters pre-empt us on that. Overall, it was still an enjoyable experience.
Address: Pizzeria Starita Milano Via Giovanni Gherardini, 1, 20145 Milano MI, Italy
Note: The second thing we noticed about Italy is that their restaurants had a Coperto charge which differs across restaurants. They are normally priced per person, so if you’re on a tighter budget, do keep an eye out for that extra cost on the menu.
SUGAR
Along the way, the bakery, Sugar, caught our eye with such beautifully decorated cakes. And so we stopped for a quick dessert, ordering the Tiramisu and Raspberry Tart. Their Tiramisu was light and fluffy, whilst their tart was pretty strong tasting and can get jelak [‘Sick of eating’].
Address: Sugar Via Vincenzo Monti, 26, 20123 Milano MI, Italy
The Last Supper Museum
We weren’t expecting to end so early so we wanted to head to see the Last Supper housed at the Convent of Santa Maria delle Grazi. You need tickets to this and we just wanted to see if we could get tickets on the spot which we didn’t manage to get. We did however go inside the church and stayed there for a while to recharge.
Address: The Last Supper Museum Piazza di Santa Maria delle Grazie, 2, 20123 Milano MI, Italy
Palazzo Mezzanotte
The middle finger statue is an iconic structure right in front of the Stock Exchange.
Address: Palazzo Mezzanotte P.zadegli Affari, 6, 20123 Milano MI, Italy
Finally, we walked over to a nearby Primark to get some necessities.
By 6 pm, we opted to take the tram to our final destination of the day which was the interesting part of the day. the trams were extra squeezy which again I suspected was due to the rush hour. I think we were supposed to tap in but no one seemed to have done that while I was on the tram (we were packed like sardines too).
Naviglio Grande
Naviglio Grande was the place to be if you wanted to see some sunset and wind down for the day. Translated to “big Canal”, this place is notable for the trade that happened in the past. There were so many restaurants along the canal and the Italians are just chilling in them while overseeing the canals.
We decided to have dinner along Alzaia Naviglio Grande. The food here was amazing, we loved their risotto and their steak which was served sliced up. We got ourselves a cold-cut platter as an appetizer. Yum! I can’t seem to find the address, so I’ll include it here when I find it.
TIPS WHEN NAVIGATING ITALY
- No COVID regulations as of 17 May 2023. Although you should constantly check on travel advisories as the governments are changing as and when the situation develops.
- If it’s a takeaway, pay for your food first before you collect them.
- Italians bring their dogs everywhere. This was so different everywhere else because, in Singapore, you can’t do that unless they are guide dogs.
- They smoke everywhere, although most don’t smoke while they are indoors.
- If there’s no traffic light, just walk across the road confidently. Don’t hesitate, the cars will stop naturally. If you’re afraid, then walk with the locals there.
- Italians eat one pizza each. We were quite shocked to see this, seeing that all of us can barely finish one, let alone one each. To save some cost, we often ordered two mains as we also didn’t have a big appetite.
- Toilets are hard to find and if you do need one, pop by the hotel or ask the restaurants. They are typically okay with it. If you’re near a hotel, just walk in confidently, they never stopped us
There you have it, the first part of the itinerary for my wonderful Italian trip. Do keep a look out for the next as I navigate Florence, Naples, Rome and the day trips out of these cities to Siena, Venice, Pisa, Amalfi, and Pompeii.
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