Milan Travel Guide

General

Founded as a Roman military camp Milan (pop. 1 464 000) the most “European” of Italian cities has a brisk pace and cosmopolitan air not unlike that of Paris or Frankfurt. It is considered Italy's commercial, financial and economical capital but it is also a city of art, with many important and wonderful monuments. See the Castello Sforzesco the Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie (which displays Leonardo’s Last Supper) the Brera Museum (Madonna and Child and Pieta by Bellini) and many other museums monuments and churches. Moreover, Milan is a lively city, with several pubs, discos and nightclubs. Being a fashion capital too, you might run into a top model or designer. The best chances are in the area around Brera (the artist zone) or the Navigli area. And if you have money to spend, just make a visit in via Montenapoleone and via della Spiga where you’ll find boutiques by Gucci, Ferragamo, Valentino, Armani, Ferre, Fendi and others. Look for other famous designer labels and items such as shoes, camelhair blankets and leather goods.

Near Milan are two must-sees (both can be visited in a day trip): the Carthusian Monastery at Pavia and the 12th-century Chiaravalle Abbey (founded by St. Bernard of Cistercian). Two hours outside of Milan in Pessione is the museum of the history of wine making which has a fine collection of wine-making equipment Imperial glass receptacles and Etruscan and Apuleian ceramics. 295 mi/470 km northwest of Rome.

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Sights

You thought Milan was only a commercial and industrial city for businessmen? Surprise! Here you can find so many interesting and wonderful masterpieces that it is hardly to imagine! Just begin from the city centre, where the huge Duomo appears in all its magnificence. This is the Cathedral and the symbol of Milan, with its golden statue "La Madonnina", which is inside the heart of every inhabitant. Then, you have the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, a covered and elegant gallery with restaurants and bookstores. If you enter it from Piazza del Duomo, you'll exit in Piazza della Scala where the world known Teatro alla Scala appears. This is the centre of lyric opera and it is not difficult to meet here important artists like Riccardo Muti, who is the conductor of the local orchestra.

You can make a tour in the nearby, from Via Manzoni to Via della Spiga and via Montenapoleone, the heart of the Fashion. When you arrive in the heart of Brera, the place of the artists, full of locals and pubs, visit the Pinacoteca. Along Via Manzoni there is also the Poldi Pezzoli, another very important museum of Milan.

Towards Piazza Sant'Ambrogio, one of the most fascinating places of the whole city, you can admire the Basilica di Sant'Ambrogio in Romanesque style, dedicated to the Saint patron of Milan. In the nearby there is the Catholic University, former monastery of the Abbey. From here you can begin a walking tour along Via San Vittore. On the left of the street, you'll find the Museo della Scienza e della Tecnica - Leonardo Da Vinci, an important museum which collects fundamental signs of the technological progress of humanity and which is dedicated to the genius of Leonardo.

Not far from here, there is the church of Santa Maria delle Grazie where you will find the art of Bramante. In the refectory, the famous Cenacolo (Last Supper) painted by Leonardo appears in all its magnificence. The restoration of this fresco has just finished after many years of hard work due to the fact that Leonardo experimented a new technique when he painted his masterpiece and this has created severe problems of conservation. The Last Supper is part of the Unesco World Heritage.

As you can see, the list of the sights not to miss in Milan seems endless. It is really difficult to list all of them, but certainly you cannot miss the Castello Sforzesco whose central tower (Torre del Filarete) dominates one of the most common and beautiful landscapes in Milan. The castle is situated in the Parco Sempione, opposite to the Arco della Pace dedicated to Napoleon. The construction of this castle was decided under the rule of the Visconti, but it is thanks to the Sforza family if the castle reached the grandiosity you can still admire today.

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