In Milan for the weekend!

One weekend in Milan.
#BlackAndAbroad

One of the (many) advantages of living in Geneva is the possibility of just taking the car and  going to Italy for the weekend. And that’s what we did in the end of June. Sales season in Milan (lots of bargains) I was looking for a blazer to wear to work and maybe shoes. Hubby needed a pair of pants for work also.

We left Geneva around 5:30am (early bird gets the worm) to avoid traffic. Always avoid traffic! AT the border between France and Italy is the Tunnel du Mont-Blanc. That tunnel is extremely fiscalized due to a tragic accident years ago. It is only allowed for a few cars to pass at the same time, that results in long lines at the tunnel. Conclusion: leave early!

After three and a half hours of driving we arrived! It was a my second time in the city and we got there under pouring rain. I got so sad thinking our weekend would be ruined. Luckily, the rain stopped 30 minutes after our arrival leaving the skies to the summer sun. The weather got amazing and we enjoyed every moment of our stay.

We picked a hotel close from the Duomo, the touristic area where you have all the shops. We did not get disappointed, the hotel (the NH President) was pretty, the staff was nice, polite and attentive, on top of that only a 3-minute walk to the Duomo! AMAZING!

(Duomo)

We hung out for a while, checking out some shops, enjoying the sun and checking out some deals. After walking a bit we decided to stop at the Martini Bar. What a nice atmosphere.

Some tables in a little garden separated from the street. You feel like you’re not even downtown. They brought us some nice snacks such as sun dried tomatoes, olives and even a amuse-bouche with smoked salmon. I ordered a much deserved glass of prosecco and a water (shout out to day drinking lol In my defence, was up since 5am!) my hubby got a coke zero (wise man). Perfect service from them!

After our little before lunch aperitif we went to Tory Burch. Tory Burch makes the most comfortable ballerina flats that I’ve ever worn in my life. I got a pair (simple black ones) in the US and used until the end of its life lol since there are no TB stores in Switzerland I knew it was there and then that I’d have to buy a new pair. Got in, tried them on, bought them. No time wasted!

(Tory Burch store in Milan)

Next step: Lunch at La Rinascente. La Rinascente is a huge, HUGE Italian department store. They have two restaurants on top of the building and you can even eat facing the Duomo. So cool!
I ordered a classic risotto à Milanese and hubby got pasta à la vongole and we paired that with some Italian white wine.

Both dishes were good, not really good, just good.

(Risotto)

Following our lunch time we took a stroll inside La Rinascente. So much stuff to see and so crowded. My husband was able to find a great pair of pants for 50% off! His part of the shopping was done. I still needed to find my blazer.

After going in and out a few more stores, whether I wanted to check something out or he did, I finally went in MaxMara and found my dream blazer. Basic, dark grey, classic, exactly what I was looking for.

(The blazer)

As a reward for our great findings we got ourselves some Italian gelatto. Delicious.

(Coconut and lemon - Love the flavours, the colors aren't really exciting though)

Back to the hotel for siesta time!

I’m not a fan of napping. Napping is not for me. I wake up thinking what day is today, with a funny feeling in my stomach and more tired than before the nap. But that day I was able to sleep for 20 min and not feel (so) weird after that. Monsieur was able to sleep for a bit more than an hour.

One thing about me is: I travel to eat. I plan things around meal time! So of course it was our time to shower and head out for our aperitif before proper dinner.

There we went again to Martini Bar. This time the other patio had music, some electro-music-that-pleases-everyone, great for groups and party people. We decided to stay on the non-musical patio haha. He got a martini (when in Martini bar, get yourself a martini) and I got some drink with strawberries, passion fruit and prosecco (I love me some prosecco hehe). Again we were given sun dried tomatoes, olives and almonds. This time as it was evening we also got a little quinoa salad and some kind of meat roll with quail hard boiled egg inside. Very tasty. Nothing is charge, it is all complimentary. Gotta love some Italian service. Not even expensive, around 10 euros a drink. We made sure to leave a nice tip since we got so many free snacks.

After having a great time at the bar it was time to head to the restaurant for our much longed for Italian dinner. We went on foot (I always wear comfortable shoes because I love to walk) and arrive after an almost 15-minute walk.

Nabucco is a classic Italian restaurant. Great menu, good service, great wine list etc.

We ordered a bottle of Chianti and ordered our food. I got burrata and an appetizer and linguini with lobster as a main dish. He got bruschettas and the same linguini with lobster. It was one of the most delicious meals I’ve ever had. That pasta was so good omg! I broke my own rules after that and didn’t get dessert. No more stomach space lol.

Sunday, we had our breakfast and left Milan (again trying to avoid traffic at the Mont-Blanc). On the way we stopped by a very nice family restaurant for lunch. Extremely simple and extremely delicious. There I had what was the best pasta with mushrooms (cèpes) I’ve ever tried. No joke. The thing was not from this world. (Sorry, no pictures from there!)

But here is the view from the restaurant:

 That was how my weekend in Milan went!

Where do you guys go for the weekend?