Milan - Celebrating Christmas In Milan

Christmas lights are another classic and in recent years Milan has started to develop this tradition creatively and with an artistic bent. Right at the heart of the city the great Christmas tree in Piazza del Duomo, selected every year with an eye to sustainability, is lit up during an opening event. Not only Piazza del Duomo, but the whole city brightens with light installations, from the Galleria’s spectacular vault to the street illuminations far from the city center, to the locations included in the Luci a Milano (Lights in Milan) project, which will transform a significant number of squares in a great artistic Christmas Lights Show.

Christmas in Milan means panettone, the not-to-be-missed typical cake well-liked all over the world. Legend has it that this currant and candied orange-stuffed cake was invented in the 15th Century by a kitchen apprentice at the court of the Duke of Milan, Ludovico il Moro, and was actually a last-minute solution in place of a mismanaged and more complex dessert. It has been reserved a special celebration, and in 2017 the largest handmade panettone ever (2 meters high and 140 kilos) was portioned out to 1200 persons in the Galleria. Shall we have an even bigger one in 2018?