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**Christmas in Milan is a memorable experience, not only because it is the capital of fashion shopping, but also because the festive decorations are truly amazing. As the sun goes down, colorful lights dazzle the city’s architecture and piazzas.
To begin with, the 800 square meters of the dome covering Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, the exclusive heart of the city, are lit by a delightful cascade of over fifty thousand white LEDs suspended at a height of 47 meters. This is the first time that this particular decoration is set up, thanks to a renewed partnership between the Municipality of Milan and the association of the local merchants. It will be right is right, in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele, that showwoman Belén Rodriguez will inaugurate the 12-meter Christmas tree set up in front of the Galleria, in Piazza Duomo. The big tree, donated to the city by the Swarovski jewelry, will be decorated with ten thousand decorations and more than thirty-five thousand lights.
One of the most impressive decorations is the one on the Galfa tower designed by the architect Melchiorre Bega in 1956. Thirteen rows of lights, each about eighty meters long, that go up to the thirtieth floor of the skyscraper to draw the tallest Christmas tree in the city. The festive allure of Milan is furthermore increased by the ice skating rings, like the one among the bastions of Piazza XXV Aprile, which will be available throughout the holiday season.
(Ilona Catani Scarlett)