The last part of our combo ticket is a visit to the terraces on top of the Duomo. It is highly recommended by most guides and there are two ways to get to the top an elevator or stairs. However the elevator is not included in the combo ticket and only the stairs are so that is the way we go up. There are quite a few of them but we given that we are in a queue of people we move at their rhythm and soon we arrive at the first terraces. And the first view is certainly worthwhile, we just can’t enjoy it that much as we get pushed forward by the rest of the visitors.
We try to keep away from the masses that are pushing us forward while enjoying the fact that we are so close to the many spires and gargoyles on the roof.
The only respite is getting closer to the windows on the tilted roof. From here you can see the masses of people passing by or taking selfies and photos, an interesting mix of people.
What we didn’t understand is that this is just the first level of the terraces. At the end of the walkway another set of stairs beckons us up, even higher with some nice views of the central plaza along the way.
And this time we are on the real terrace on top of the actual roof of the Duomo. We can even see the famous Madoninna up close. She was designed and built by Carlo Pellicani in 1774 and by tradition no building in Milan is higher than the Madonnina. All higher buildings built since then had a copy of Madonnina placed on top just to maintain the tradition.
The views are great all around as long as we can get access to the view breaks in the wall through which we can enjoy the views. They are highly valued and as soon as you move away someone will jump in to take photos and selfies (us included).
We really like the lines of saints all around. We are now at their level and can enjoy the craftmanship and have fun trying to count them, there are quite a lot of them.
When it is time to descend we are surprised to observe it is still queue based and we have to wait quite a bit to be able to descend. During this time we finally notice one decoration that we were looking all around for, a sculpture of two boxers fighting that was added by a box addicted sculptor among all the other religious statues.
Descending is on the other side, first to an intermediate terrace and then down to ground level. We are quite surprised that during our visit we never saw the elevators or elevator people for that matter, it might be that they were going to a different level altogether.
Now it is time to say goodbye to Milan and we take one more walk through the major attractions and streets. Starting from the Duomo Plaza we move first towards the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II nearby.
The galleria today is much more empty than last time and we enjoy it a lot more. We have time to admire the decorations and the stores as we make our way through it.
In fact it is that empty that even the bull doesn’t have his balls destroyed by some random tourist, at least temporarily.
We take a slightly different route today and pass by San Fedele Church which looks different from the other churches in the area, at least from the outside. Also there is a little statue on the facade that seems to be Napoleon with wings…or maybe not.
We decide to go to the subway station near the Quadrilatero d’Oro passing by alfresco restaurants and magnificent buildings.
In the fashion district we do a bit of window shopping but the attraction for everyone is a Lamborghini which attracts especially males like flies. And then we return to the hotel and it is time to pack our bags as we have an early flight towards Bucharest, Romania after a very full three days in beautiful Milan.
