Milan's Duomo

The second largest cathedral in Italy only St. Peter's is larger.  

And then the view from on top!!!!!

Warding off bad spirits!

One of the strangest traditions in Milan is spinning on the bull’s balls in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. 

It is known locally as ‘il salotto buono’, the fine drawing room, because it is where everyone goes for the main evening passeggiata (strolling) route. Built in 1877 by Giuseppe Mengoni, its humongous iron and and glass structure, cross plan and churchlike proportions were designed to celebrate the new industrial Italy, one with more secular concerns such as business, fashion and high finance.

Unfortunately, Mengoni fell to his death from the scaffolding just weeks before the 14-year project was completed. So, to avoid similar bad luck tourists and Milanese alike head for the mosaic of the dancing bull (said to mark the spot where he fell) to grind their heels firmly into its testicles.

Boy if you guys didn't get lucky!

On the last 2 days I discovered a self timer camera free app for my iPad!  You would have seen much more of me rather than stuff had I found it earlier!!!

Codex Atlanticus--Leonardo da Vinci's drawings!

 He wrote from right to left and his letters were mirrored because he did not want people to be able to easily understand his work.

 When he ran out of paper, he would go back and start writing in the opposite direction on pages already used, in the free space.

 Gears and linear motion

 Do you see a face...if not, check out the next picture!

 The bicycle!

These works were located in 2 different museums....you can tell security was tighter in the second one!

 Drawings of birds in right hand margin

The Codex Atlanticus, dating from 1478 to 1519, covers a great array of subjects, from flight to weaponry to musical instruments and from mathematics to botnay.