MILANO DA BERE

Forge of ideas and talents, from the Fuorisalone to the Design week, up to the Expo 2015 that consecrated it as the capital of food, Milan city began a slow but radical transformation by reconverting and regenerating entire spaces and abandoned or peripheral neighbourhoods, redesigning the urban fabric: from the City Life and Porta Nuova neighbourhood, to the new Metropolitan Markets, from the old hangars converted into futuristic spaces in the Bicocca area, to the exhibition spaces of the Prada Foundation created in an old distillery, from the Vertical Forest to Piazza Gae Aulenti.

Active from an economic point of view, it is characterized by the invaluable cultural and historical heritage testified by imposing Gothic and Romanesque buildings up to the poetic views of the railing houses, the typical Milanese buildings characterized by pictorial balconies. Milan is a city that always reinvents itself, chameleonic by nature, fast and elusive, full of faces and dreams, a true laboratory of society.

Activities & Sights

Milan of the Sforza and Municipalities

The heart of Milanese spirituality, the Duomo, represents the highest testimony of Gothic architecture in Lombardy: inside the famous Relic of the Sacred Nail and on its largest spire, the famous Madonnina, symbol of the city. A short distance away, the Castello Sforzesco, one of the largest castles in Europe, a mighty fortress surrounded by a moat and a magnificent park. Inside there are numerous museums including the Pinacoteca, the Museum of Decorative Arts, the Museum of Art Ancient that houses Michelangelo's Pietà Rondanini, the Museum of Musical Instruments, the Prehistoric Museum and the Egyptian one.

Behind it, the Sempione Park, an oasis of peace and a green lung of the city where you can visit the Arco della Pace, the Civic Aquarium, the Fountain designed by Giorgio De Chirico and the Branca Tower of Gio Ponti from which you can enjoy of a beautiful view of the city.

Milan of spirituality

Worth visiting are the Renaissance church of San Maurizio annexed to the Major Monastery of the Benedictine order, the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio, named after the patron saint of the city, built according to the canons of Romanesque architecture, inside which the University is located. Catholic of the Sacred Heart.

Among the symbols of the city and place of collective memory, the Monumental Cemetery of the Church of Santo Stefano Maggiore and the wonderful University of Ca 'Granda, better known as "La Statale", is also worth a visit.

Leonardo Da Vinci's Milan

The famous "Last Supper", a masterpiece of surprising beauty painted by Leonardo da Vinci during the lordship of Ludovico il Moro, is jealously kept inside the refectory of the Dominican convent of Santa Maria delle Grazie in Milan created by Bramante.

The famous altarpiece of "The Virgin of the Rocks" is also from the Milanese period. Engineering and mechanical projects and prototypes are exhibited in the National Museum of Science and Technology.

The Milan of art, culture and museums

A few steps from the Duomo, a must for lovers of 20th century art, the Museo del Novecento, inside Palazzo dell'Argenario, inside the lush Public Gardens, the Natural History Museum dedicated to mineralogy and zoology and the GAM, the Modern Art Gallery, an immense exhibition space inside the wonderful Villa Reale, one of the masterpieces of Milanese Neoclassicism.

The Pinacoteca di Brera, which represents the artistic centre of the city: the greatest masterpieces of Renaissance art are kept inside as well as numerous contributions from Flemish art and works from the 1900s.

Seat of the ancient Academy of Art of painting, sculpture, scenography, sculpture and restoration, it also houses a wonderful botanical garden whose path includes a section of officinal plants, spring bulbs and numerous specimens of rare tree species.

Furthermore, a visit to the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, the oldest museum in Milan, to the Poldi Pezzoli Museum, and to the MUDEC - Museum of Cultures of Milan, an important cultural centre of the city, is a must.

The Milan of the fashion district

Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, Via Montenapoleone, Via della Spiga, Via Manzoni and Via Sant’Andrea, represents the Milanese shopping temple. Milan has always been the capital of fashion: impossible to resist the temptation of shopping during the Christmas holidays, when all the shop windows are beautifully decorated and the streets of the centre, richly decorated, are illuminated by elegant lights! In addition, during the Fashion Week, an event better known as "Milan fashion week", the city is filled with workmen and enthusiasts from all over the world to attend the numerous fashion shows of P.zza San Babila.

The Milan of design and innovation

Piazza Gae Aulenti, is the symbol of Milan that renews itself by dictating architectural styles and trends, a futuristic urban complex designed by Cesar Pelli surrounded by modern buildings such as the Bosco Verticale and the Unicredit Tower, the tallest skyscraper in Italy. great impact the spectacle of water, lights and sounds of the Solar Tree that lights up the square during the night hours. District born in the area of the ex-Fiera, City Life, includes an immense park on which three gigantic skyscrapers stand out - the Straight, the Crooked and the Curved.

Guided visits to the Hoepli Civic Planetarium, near the Gardens of Porta Venezia, inside which also observations of the sky are organized, are available for science lovers. The Navigli, a navigable canal, is one of the most popular neighborhoods in Milan: boats, relaxation areas, clubs with live music, bars, trendy clubs, typical taverns, boutiques and art galleries dot the Naviglio Grande and Naviglio Pavese. The Naviglio Grande approaches the dock by sliding next to the Church of San Cristoforo sul Naviglio, known as the Lighthouse of Milan, reaching the famous Vicolo delle Lavandaie. The Naviglio Pavese, however, leads to the Conca del Naviglio, the oldest lock in Europe.

Accommodation

If there are no budget limits, the hotels in the Duomo area, Scala and in the Quadrilatero della Moda, are a perfect starting point for discovering Milan.

If you are planning a short stay, choosing a hotel in the central area will allow you to visit the city on foot without the need for major travel; on the contrary, if you want a less expensive accommodation, you can choose an accommodation in the Porta Romana or Loreto area, being able to choose between metro, tram, taxi and bike sharing for your city trips. Finally, for lovers of nightlife, the hotels with a retro taste that characterize the old Navigli district are ideal, where the offer is expanded by adding nice B & Bs at a more advantageous cost.

Culinary & Culture

Meneghina cuisine

The main ingredient of the Milanese cuisine is butter, used in most dishes: from risotto to Milanese with saffron, to Milanese cutlet, from polenta, to ossobuco, from shin stewed, to panettone and colomba both to be savored with a soft mascarpone cream. The "cassoeula" cooked with the cabbage and the "poor" parts of the pig to be enjoyed with a slice of crunchy bread spread with stracchino cheese or sweet and creamy gorgonzola is a rich dish on holidays. In addition, a rich platter of cold cuts cannot be missing from every table, including the famous Milan salami. And to finish, a tasty morsel of Lodi grain accompanied by a glass of San Colombano DOC.