My Traveller’s Experience during Fashion Week

Hello again everyone! Hope you are having a good start to October. We are all back to work and back to school in full swing and I’ve been busy creating lots of content for the blog and for our Malta TV Channel. To view the latest episode CLICK HERE > Malta TV Episode about InterContinental Malta.

Dress: Dolce e Gabbana @ Luxury Outlet
Eyewear: Versace @ Vision Opticians
Photography: Justin Ciappara

Anyway, here’s a lovely throwback to two weeks ago from my recent visit to Milan Italy during Women’s Fashion Week with some photos I have not yet shared with you from Day 4. Apart from the shows, I couldn’t visit Milan without enjoying some of the travel element – the cuisine, the architecture and some sightseeing! In between the shows and popping into the beautiful shops, here are a few travel highlights during this trip.

Hotel I Stayed At – Star Hotels Ritz, Milan

For this trip, I booked everything through Andrea at Touring Mediterraneo Ltd. I stayed at the Star Hotels Ritz in Via Spalazzani, which was very central to all the shows and about 10 minutes by taxi to Piazza Duomo. I found it to be an excellent hotel. Service upon arrival, during my stay and upon departure was superb with friendly, with English speaking staff who had such a pleasant demeanour. The breakfast and the restaurant in the hotel and the room service, all tried and tested, and have certainly passed my tests with flying colours.

The hotel features elegantly decorated interiors and spacious rooms, equipped with all modern comforts. La Loggia Restaurant offers you a wide range of foods while the Old Ascot Bar, recalling the ambience of an English pub, is a relaxing place to enjoy a drink after a hectic day. For exercise lovers, no need to worry. You can have free access to the fitness centre. Most importantly the access to the hotel Internet and WiFI is available free of charge. Excellent value for money I would say and I highly recommend this hotel.

Granaio Duomo Restaurant in Milan

On Day 3 during Milan Fashion Week, I had 2 free hours in between shows, and I was in the mood for Milanese cuisine so I stopped for lunch, upon a friend’s recommendation, a a restaurant located in Via Giuseppe Mengoni – Granaio Duomo

All of their dishes are made with great passion, you can tell. Their raw materials including olive oil (made from olives harvested and pressed on the same day to ensure freshness with a confident but not aggressive flavour). This establishment is here not only to provide you with healthy and well-presented food, but they make sure that every dish is a pleasure for your palate, involving you in sensory and organoleptic delights for a truly unique experience!

I ordered the Beef “ossobuco” with tomato and mashed potatoes (26 Euros) and a glass of wine which came served by the very friendly waiter at hand together with some complimentary bread and butter. They also had a charging station for my mobile which won them a few extra points. I must say that this was one of the culinary highlights of this trip in Milan and I enjoyed it so much. Yepp! So please take note if you are visiting some time soon as this place is a gold mine in this Duomo Piazza area. Visit their website here > Granaio Duomo.

The Duomo

When here, we just had to visit the Milan Cathedral, the majestic 3rd largest cathedral in the world, the 2nd largest cathedral in Italy. It took over 500 years to complete construction and changes have been made as recently as the 1900’s. It is breathtaking to look at. The Cathedral, the Baptistery, and the Treasury can all be visited, but the best part of visiting the Duomo is getting a chance to walk on the rooftop. From here you can see the flying structures, spires, and have some gorgeous views over Milan.

Many Coffees at the trendy cafes in Piazza Duomo

From my previous visits to Italy to Florence for example, I have told you how much I love my coffee especially the first one in the morning. So when in Milan, you have to stop for a cappuccino or espresso as the Milanese locals enjoy it – standing up by the bar – in between shopping sprees or meetings. A few of the best places for coffee include the food hall on top of Rinascente department store, for breathtaking views of the Duomo, Giacomo Caffe in Piazza Duomo and Camparino in Galleria Vittorio Emanuele. For a typical snack alongside a coffee, try to grab a “Panzerotto” a delicious fried pastry triangle stuffed with tomato and oozing mozzarella at Luini via Santa Radegonda 16, just behind Rinascente. Simple yet perfect!

Aperol Bar in Milan

If you love your Aperol Spritz cocktails, and you are never satisfied with how you are served them and are looking for a trendy hangout place in central Milan then you have to stop at the place that serves this as their speciality drink, with beautiful views of Piazza Duomo. My friend and photographer Justin and I scored the best seats in the house at the Aperol Bar on a Sunday afternoon. Lucky us! Terrazza Aperol has indoor and alfresco seating, and packs out from lunchtime onward. We both ordered a chicken Caesar salad and a drink to enjoy on that warm, sunfilled day.

The drinks were not too expensive. €8 for a good, strong Aperol Spritz in a location like this was great. We’ve heard of bars and cafes overlooking the bustle of the piazza charging €24 for a glass of wine, €16 for a beer and a terrible €9 for a Coke… and that’s not including the €2.50 cover charge. So, in my opinion, this is an excellent venue, which has put effort into making itself that little bit different yet still accessible.

How To Get Around Milan

Milan has an excellent public transportation network. To get between the train station and Milan’s top sights the metro is pretty sufficient. However, I preferred using taxis which are so more convenient and extremely proficient, and to be honest I found them to be inexpensive and very practical.

Unfortunately I did not have too much free time on this trip as it was jam-packed with fashionable visits to all the fashion shows which you can read about in my other blog posts.