Shopping in Milan’s Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II

So, why the big smile on the face of Carol and her seven travel companions?

Well, they are about to go shopping in Milan’s Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Italy’s oldest active shopping mall.

Here’s this from Wikipedia:

“The Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II is Italy’s oldest active shopping mall and a major landmark of Milan, Italy. Housed within a four-story double arcade in the center of town, the Galleria is named after Victor Emmanuel II, the first king of the Kingdom of Italy. It was designed in 1861 and built by architect Giuseppe Mengoni between 1865 and 1867.

The structure consists of two glass-vaulted arcades intersecting in an octagon covering the street connecting Piazza del Duomo to Piazza della Scala. The street is covered by an arching glass and cast iron roof, a popular design for 19th-century arcades, such as the Burlington Arcade in London, which was the prototype for larger glazed shopping arcades, beginning with the Saint-Hubert Gallery in Brussels (opened in 1847), the Passazh in St Petersburg (opened in 1848), the Galleria Umberto I in Naples (opened in 1890) and the Budapest Galleria.

The central octagonal space is topped with a glass dome. The Milanese Galleria was larger in scale than its predecessors and was an important step in the evolution of the modern glazed and enclosed shopping mall, of which it was the direct progenitor. It has inspired the use of the term galleria for many other shopping arcades and malls.

On the ground of the central octagonal, there are four mosaics portraying the coat of arms of the three capitals of the Kingdom of Italy (Turin, Florence, and Rome) plus Milan’s. Tradition says that if a person spins around three times with a heel on the testicles of the bull from Turin coat of arms, this will bring good luck. 

The Galleria connects two of Milan’s most famous landmarks: The Duomo and the Teatro Alla Scala, but the Galleria is a landmark in its own right.”

Why the evil grin on Carol’s face?  Well, she’s looking for a little good luck with her heel on the private parts of the bull.  As a man, I must say this is a horrible tradition. 

If you would like to visit Milan, Italy, we can help. Take a peek at this link to see all of the options we have available for you in Milan.  Plus, if you prefer, we can make Milan part of a private custom itinerary.

To inquire about a trip to Italy, with a stop in Milan, call Roaming Boomers Travel Services at (480) 550-1235 or use our convenient online information request (click here) and we will reach out to you.

Note: photographs by Christian Michele Michelsanti and the photograph in the middle is a Flickr Creative Commons photograph by mariocutroneo. Carol’s journey to Milan was part of an annual reward trip as we are one of the “elite” travel advisors with Cadence. 

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