Ciao tutti, it’s time to get serious about blogging my experience in Milan and around the world.

For me, Milan has always remained to be a city full of auras and dreams – waves and generations of artists, designers, writers have lived, written, wandered, and produced wonderful works in this city. There must be something about this land of creative minds. As a student studying Art History and Studio Art, I have been fascinated at the idea of living in Milan. Now the chance has come. Here are the ten things you need to know about the sparks between Milan and me.

1. I am not looking for la dolce vita. At least not the cliché Italian cinema version: I didn’t choose Milan to just unwind in a café for all afternoons and consume all weekends eating gelatos. There are many other idyllic places to do that sort of activities. Word of mouth has educated me that Milan is something different. It probably shares more characters in common with London or Paris than anywhere in Italy. Cosmopolitan, busy, glossy, Milan has every aspect ready for my ideal future.
2. I love exploring off the beaten paths. Travel has been part of my life in such a way that I find it lame to describe it as my passion. My passion, instead, is to connect cultures and different people. Over the summer, I had an amazing time interning at Absolute Travel in the Marketing department. Through the internship with this premium luxury travel brand, I’ve learned so much knowledge about independent, in-depth travel like I never had before. Meeting travel professionals and having long conversations with destination experts has intrigued me even more about uncommon discoveries in new countries.
3. I am an art enthusiast and design aficionado. Getting lost in a museum, having my breath taken away by a brightly colored and vaguely contoured painting sounds 1000 times more appealing than snapping a photo of the Duomo to me. Long before departing for Milano, I researched lists of must-see spots in every up-and-coming neighborhood. Fondazione Prada, Milan Fashion Week are of course on top of everything, while galleries on a smaller scale around the artsy Brera district seem to be fascinating as well.
4. Outdoor trips can never go wrong. Although growing up around an overwhelmingly busy metropolis in Asia, I am an urban soul with a real country heart. Camping, hiking, trekking, or simply walking along the seashores excite me more than window-shopping. In June, I went to the Greater Smoky Mountains for a camping weekend and many small botanical garden explorations every once in a while.
5. Speaking Italian inspires the romantic part of me. A polyglot in progress, I am fluent in Cantonese, Mandarin, English, and Spanish, and can make friends in Italian. It’s true that speaking different languages reflects the distinct characters of me. When I am speaking Italian, I feel myself becoming more emotional, romantic, and interesting than ever. With this enthusiasm for Italian language, a semester immersing in Milan sounds just right.

Having just landed in Milan, I have already fallen in love with the creative vibe along every street corner and of course, those the Milanese glamorous street styles. Tune in next week to see more romantic stories between Milan and me!

A leisure weekend in upstate New York in July.

Summer in New York

Vacation in Hong Kong

Discovering hidden gems in busy Hong Kong

Ciao Milano!

This entry was posted on Thursday, September 10th, 2015 at 3:11 pm and is filed under Fall 2015, Jiaqi in Italy. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.