Mamma Mia, Milano!! By Uncle Monty.

Mamma Mia, Milano!!

Story By Uncle Monty.

Milano Photos By Alex Albion.

Part 1 of 3.

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Italy’s Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi, Catholic Metropolitan-
Archbishop of Milan, was surrounded by high church officials

and armed security agents as he walked from his archbishopic

office to Duomo di Milano – Milan Cathedral - to officiate at the

Order of Deacons. Bishops upon bishops and monsignors upon

monsignors from the various dioceses of Lombardia folked in

almost angelic-style to what has been called one of the world’s

most striking cathedrals before the arrival of himself the

eminent cardinal. It was at this same Duomo that

Napoleon Bonaparte was crowned King of Italy.

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Arrival of Cardinal Dionigi Tettamanzi

of Archidiocesis Mediolanensis.

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After the service, the young deacons were then tossed up

into the air by their family and well-wishers upon their success

to the Italian diaconate. Many of them will also be ordained later

as full-fledged Catholic priests. As the congregational crowds

thickly gathered, I found myself right in the middle of them

with several bishops wading thru the crowds to get back to

their own bishops' office after the end of the cathedral service.
Fortunately for me and my cameras, some bishops even walked

straight into my photo lens that enabled me to get several upclose

photoshots of them in their full scarlet episcopate vestments.

I also chatted with a number of them, who spoke good plain

English, thankfully. When I told one of the bishops that I was

an English Anglican, he looked at first distrainfully at me and

then warmly shaked my hand with a broad open smile with

then a slight pat on my back. The day a Catholic bishop

should ever become a converted Anglican, then such

will undoubtedly create some kind of resounding
church history and perhaps ecclesiastical furor.

In any event, I was so glad to be present, and by

pure chance to also encounter so many Italian

bishops, at the close of the Order of Deacons.
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Straight Into My Camera

Did His Excellency Walk!!

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Such couldn’t have been any more different than the earlier news conference held at the 600-year old Sala dell’Orologio - Milan Town Hall - just two days before to mark the international event of the 7th Homeless World Cup that saw important national sports figures and local politicans, and even Italian army generals in charge of security matters, all proclaiming their unfailing support for the world’s homeless football players. Most of the players from the 48 nations had already arrived at the host city to kick off the world games starting at the very next day. HWC co-founder Mel Young, 56, without any shade of artifice and with his Italian lady interpreter, thanked the City of Milan inside the ornate and packed news conference room for graciously supporting and hosting the World Cup.

I was also asked at least three times if I was the media representative at the World Cup for UK's The Big Issue. I said "No, No, No!!" Regrettably John Bird, I told them, is after all just another "dead bird" among those who live off the plight and condition of the homeless. Oftentimes the hapless street paper vendors of his get the worst end of the ecomonic stick not only from the state of the economy, but even more so from The Big Issue itself. Its bottom line is pure profit, not the true welfare of Bird's own street vendors. Such vendors are today confronted with an unkind and more dismissive Britain toward them due to them being seen as socially-crippled by their own homelessness. And, the ignorant masses of the present bitter British society toward the homeless and marginalized is growing daily. I see it every day from my own Big Issue pitch at Covent Garden with hundreds of thousands who never give even a glance let alone a dime to you. Some folkz I've seen now for almost 5 years and they've never even once said "hello" to me as a Big Issue vendor no matter even if it's Christmas or the dead of winter or a boiling hot summer day or any other time of the year ... We seem to have so many more cold cads now of one sort or another than we did of years past. Dead of heart and dead of mind and dead of spirit and dead toward others is what I see in so many bland faces that always walk on by day in and day out. No wonder they don't care or give a damn thesedays from what I see at first hand on the crowded and careless streets of Olde London Towne ... Will it eventually get better? Hell, NO!! It can only get bloody worse from what I see and hear on the streets from many of my so poorly treated fellow Big Issue vendors. Dead birds are dead to the vendors, too. But please don't tell Dr. John Bird, MBE. The harsh truth is always upsetting, isn't it? Ubetcha!!
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Mel Young At Milan News Conference.+
At the close of the news conference, a number of the 500 homeless players quickly gathered to be photographed and seen with Mel himself. To many of them, he is seen as a living idol! Yes, he is indeed. For me personally, I admire more and more of Mel Young with each time I have spent with him just like I happily did yet again at Milano. While there, I also spent time with National Army General C. A. Marioli, Sports Minister Christian Rizzi, and the Mayor of Milan Letizia Moratti. We even got ourselves photographed together, minus the general, by some German, Italian, Czech Republic, and French mass circulation newspaper photographers. The Homeless World Cup, I might add, provides a perfect field day for any news photographer worth his or her own salt. As a retired news photographer myself, I took close to 400 digital photoimages just between the news conference, the Opening Parade, and the Opening Ceremony of the 7th Homeless World Cup. That's what I call "a good field day," both photographically and journalistically.
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HWC Poster at the Arena Civica, Sempione Park. +
And if that wasn’t enough to make you sit up, then throw in an amazing experience at Milano’s 15,000-member Heichal David u-Mordechai Centrale Sinagoga, which was among the host of the 59-venue Giornata Europea della Cultura Ebraica -or The European Day of Jewish Culture. Security surrounding the event was tight with army soldiers with submachine guns patrolling the semi-closed streets adjacent to the 160-year old Rabbinical House of Worship. Inside the huge Old Synagogue, all was alive and well with hundreds of Jews and Gentiles of every kind exploring the various free lectures being held for one and all to enjoy with rabbis and professors discussing the Hebrew life and history of the Italian Jewry. Pity such lectures were only given in Italian, but the under-18 year olds and well-educated Jews spoke easily in English with me. They answered my queries with warmth and politeness. They welcomed me as a Gentile and I enjoyed sitting down with them to discuss our views on Zionism and Christianity and how we view each other. One 17 year-old - who I call "Moshe" - was impressive and articulate almost beyond words. As I listened to him, I realised he had many qualities of a future leader in whatever profession he may decide to choose for his lifetime endeavour. He spoke English far better than many of my fellow compatriots. I was also free to photograph inside the Milano synagogue and that I eagerly did so with delight and respect.

+^ Inside Milano's Sinagoga Centrale.
+ ^ Italian army submachine guns outside the Synagogue.
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Thus, those three entirely unusual and differnet events that I have herein briefly described stood to suddenly converge in my open mind with words of joyous explanation that shouted out loud - “Mamma Mia, Milano!!” Indeed, Mamma Mia, Milano!!

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Due to time constraints, I was unable and unhappy not to be able to also attend the planned Anglican Evensong with Contessa Maria at Chiesa Inglese Anglicana-Episcopale of the Diocesi di Europa at Milano’s Via Solferino. Of course, our human condition prevents us from being at two separate places at the same time! I was also unable to attend the news event of Formula 1's appearance of Lewis Hamiliton and his pep talk at the Milano Homeless World Cup that just helped to boost the good aim of the games much like the now acclaimed United Nations open "Message of Support" from Wilfried Lemke, who is the UN Under-Secretary General on Sport for Development and Peace. The UN support can only bring further good, too, for the future of HWC. Yes, yes, yes, "A Ball Can (And Indeed Does) Change The World." Bravo!!!!

I was glad, incidentally, to have a fine Milanese dinner with Maria and four or five of her other close Italian Grimaldi-related friends at Santamarta’s in the heart of Old Milan on Via Santa Marta after missing Evensong together. That made up abit for me missing such that made me so peeved at myself due to my own overloaded schedule while in Milano over the past 10 days. Whatever, my trip here has been a wonderful all around experience ... including some yacht sailing that I certainly didn't want to miss and I didn't! Geneva was the next stop, but instead I'll now spend a few days at Russia's Moscow like Maria and I have done before. She'll then head back to the States again and me back to my home base. Two more related stories are in store soon for my loyal blog readers. Oh, and whoever you are, who keeps sending folkz stupid spam that declares the stupid story that I am already dead, NEEDZ TO GET A LIFE!! It's no longer funny, FUNNY!!
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Upcoming Next:
Part 2 – Inside The 7th Homeless World Cup.
Part 3: Sights and Sounds of Italian Jewish Culture.
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^ Uncle Monty At Milano Homeless World Cup.

Greetings again from Italy's Milano, Uncle Monty.
+Eighth Anniversary of America's 9/11.

{Click on any image to Enlarge}
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