Milan

The Devil Loves Prada 2

/ edebock / 2 Comments

Since we don’t live close to our grown children and their families and weren’t going to be seeing any of them yesterday, hubby suggested earlier in the week that we should go out for dinner and a movie on Mother’s Day. I chose The Devil Wears Prada 2. Considering the fact that it’s been 20 years since the original movie was released and close to that long since we had seen it, we decided to watch it on Disney+ on Friday evening to refresh our memories. I’m glad we did. While the sequel, with its return of the original cast, could be enjoyed as a stand alone, it definitely features character callbacks and references to the original.

I wasn’t sure what to expect as sequels are often disappointing, but in this case, I was pleasantly surprised. We both thoroughly enjoyed the movie. The script writers did an admirable job of handling the 20-year time span and I loved seeing 76-year-old Meryl Streep still rocking the big screen. The movie also showed very clearly the major changes that have taken place in the world of journalism and the magazine industry over the past two decades.

Of course, how could I not enjoy a movie about fashion and writing? The often flamboyant outfits were a sight to behold, but one piece especially captured my attention. I absolutely loved Miranda Priestly’s (Meryl Streep) cropped and tasseled Dries Van Noten jacket!

It’s interesting to note that the jacket almost didn’t make it into the movie. Apparently, it sparked quite a controversy with some in the studio wanting to axe it, but Meryl Streep herself convinced them that it was an important addition that fit the scene very well. It has rightfully become a fan favourite and I foresee similarly embellished jackets becoming a trend!

I also enjoyed the portions of the movie that were filmed on location in Milan, Italy as they brought back wonderful memories of our very brief time there in 2019. Glimpses of the magnificent Duomo reminded me of our astounding time on its very ornate rooftop and watching Meryl Streep walk the length of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, a very high end shopping mall that we also walked, was definitely a fun moment. You can read about our afternoon in Milan and see more photos here.

At one point in the movie, Stanley Tucci’s character, Nigel makes the rather disparaging comment, “Look what TJ Maxx dragged in.” For those of you, especially amongst my Canadian readers, who aren’t familiar with TJ Maxx, it is similar to our Winners and is, in fact, owned by the same parent company. Obviously, the off-price retailer wasn’t impressed with the snarky line in the movie, but rather than respond in a negative way, they saw it as a “can’t miss” opportunity. Flipping the script, they hired Tucci and came out with this absolutely brilliant ad.

So, if you’re wondering if The Devil Wears Prada 2 is worth seeing, I say yes!

Afternoon in Milan

/ edebock / 6 Comments

It wasn’t originally part of my plan for us to visit Milan while we were in Italy. I had hoped to book a day of train travel all the way from Florence to Paris, but since that wasn’t possible, we had to overnight somewhere along the way. We didn’t want to take an overnight train as our main reason for choosing to travel by train instead of flying was to see a bit of the countryside.

We arrived in Milan early in the afternoon the day before yesterday and had the rest of the day to experience a bit of the city. Milan is a financial hub as well as a global capital of fashion and design. At first glance, it looks much like any other modern city, but it has a historical side as well.

As soon as we were settled into our guest house near the train station, we jumped on the metro and headed for the Duomo, the Milan Cathedral. Dedicated to the Nativity of St Mary, it is the seat of the Archbishop of Milan. We’ve seen a lot of amazing churches on this trip, but emerging from the metro right in front of the Duomo was definitely another breathtaking moment!

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The sheer immensity of the cavernous interior was amazing. Look at the size of that pillar!

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It was the stained glass windows that most astounded me though. There was no way to truly capture them in photographs. This shows just two of the three enormous panels at the front of the building and there were many more narrower ones along its sides.

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Each section depicts a scene from the Old or New Testament. The ones toward the top are so high up that we couldn’t even see the details in them.

After visiting the interior of the church, we took an elevator to the rooftop which was without question the highlight of our short stay in Milan. We could have saved the price of a ticket and climbed the approximately 250 stairs, but our old knees have had a major workout on this trip and the elevator was worth every cent. It also saved us time which we didn’t have a lot of.

After leaving the Duomo, we walked through the gorgeous and glitzy Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, a very high end shopping mall. With it’s glass ceiling, the whole place has a light, airy feel.

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The entire floor of the gallery is mosaic and near the centre is the image of a bull. Tradition has it that good luck will come to anyone who places their heel on the bull’s testicles and spins in a circle three times. Of course, I had to place my heel in the indentation that has been worn into the floor in that spot and spin myself around!

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Our final stop in Milan was Castello Sforzesco, a medieval castle in the middle of a mostly modern city. Built first as a fortress in 1368 and later transformed into a magnificent palace, it now houses many museums. We didn’t have time to enter any of those, but we enjoyed a quick exploration of the grounds.

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The next morning, we were back on the train on our way to Paris but very glad that we’d had to stop in Milan!