Magnificant Milano!

Move over Kansas City!  Fountain at the Castello Sforenzo

We got along much better on the train to Milan (minus our luggage and a few good night's sleep) and we were ready to explore Milan.  We checked out the meeting spot for our 1:30 tour to see the Last Supper, which was under the clock tower (above) at the gate of the Castello Sforenzo.   We found our way down the trendy Via Dante with its many shops and restaurantes along the way, to the Duomo!  What a magnificent structure.  It was started in 1387 , with the finishing touches added in the 1960s!  

The only way you can see DaVinci's Last Supper is with a tour, since the DaVinci Code created such an interest in the painting.  The tour we signed up for, online, was disappointing but we did get to view the incredible wall mural of the Last Supper for 15 minutes.  One of the incredible things we saw, was the photos of the destruction of the refractory of the Santa Maria Delle Grazie, during WWII.  The entire building was destroyed with the exception of the wall with The Last Supper and the opposite wall with a fresco of the crucification done at the same time as the Last Supper.  Truly a miracle!  There were no cameras allowed but there is a much smaller reproduction just outside the refractory that we couldn't resist standing in front of for a photo op!