Milan: Traditions and Festivals

Traditional Food
Cutlet Milanese
The schnitzel is traditionally a piece of sirloin of
beef with bone (a rib), breaded and fried in butter.
Recipe:
Ingredients (4 servings): 4 slices of breast of veal
(or pork chops on the bone) 1 egg breadcrumbs
butter 1 tablespoon olive oil salt.
Preparation: prepare two bowls, one with the
beaten egg, the other with the breadcrumbs. Dip
the meat slices first in egg and then bread. Heat
the butter and oil in a pan, then dip the slices of
meat. Cook for a few minutes on each side. Once
cooked, set the meat on paper towels to absorb
grease. Serve with slices of lemon to squeeze. The
chops are great either hot or cold.

Oh bej Christmas Fair

This is the most important and traditional Christmas fair in
Milan, Italy. It is held from 7 December (until the following
Sunday. The fair is also informally known as the "Fiera di
Sant'Ambrogio". The Fair has been held in different areas of
Milan. The most typical goods that are sold at Oh bej! Oh
bej! are sweets and Christmas or winter delicacies,
handcrafts such as Christmas decorations, toys, antiques,
souvenirs and more. The fair is usually very crowded; this is
partly because, as Saint Ambrose Day is immediately
followed by the Immaculate Conception Day (an Italian
national holiday), and this in turn might be followed by a
week-end, Milanese usually have several free days in the
fair's days. While celebrations devoted to Ambrose, in Milan,
date back to the late 13th century, the actual Oh bej! Oh
bej! fair is said to have been established in 1510, on the
occasion of Giannetto Castiglione, delegate of Pope Pius IV,
visiting Milan on 7 December. According to the legend,
Giannetto wanted to ingratiate himself with the Milanese,
and thus entered the city carrying boxes full of sweets and
toys for the Milanese children. A cheerful crowd followed
Giannetto to the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio, and thereafter
the fair was established to commemorate that day. The
name "Oh bej! Oh bej!" is supposedly a reference to the
cheerful cries of the Milanese children receiving presents
from Giannetto.

Oh bej! Oh bej!So nice!

The famous Milan Fashion Week

established in 1958, is an event held every six months. It is one of the "Big 4"
meaning the four fashion capitals of Milan, Paris, New York and London. The fashion
shows begin every year in New York, followed by London, then Milan and ending in
Paris. The Milan Fashion Week is owned by the Camera Nazionale della Moda
Italiana (in English The National Chamber for Italian Fashion), an association that
disciplines, co-ordinates and promotes the development of Italian Fashion. The
current president of The Chamber for Italian Fashion is Mario Boselli.

The next Fashion Week will be in 2012, from the 25th of February to the
3rd of March for the spring/summer collections; from the 29th of
September to the 6th of October with the autumn/winter collections.
The fashion shows are not open to the general public, only to journalists,
celebrities and buyers for large stores.