Riccardo De Luca
The wonderful steel-and-glass-covered Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II shopping arcade provides a lovely route between the Duomo and La Scala. Watch the flocks of well-dressed Milanese and you'll see why it is sometimes called Il Salotto di Milano (Milan's drawing room).
This magnificent Gothic cathedral, or Duomo, has 135 marble spires, a stunning triangular facade, and around 3,400 statues. Lit by brilliant stained-glass windows, the cavernous interior seats 40,000.
Milan's patron saint, Ambrose, constructed a basilica on this site in the 4th century A.D. when he was bishop of the city. Little remains of Ambrose's church, but the 11th-century structure built in its place (and renovated many times since) is remarkable.
Shop till you drop in Milan. The city is home to the flagship stores of a litany of designers: Armani, Krizia, Versace, Ermenegildo Zegna, Missoni, Moschino, Mila Schön, and Trussardi.