All cities have their “going out nights,” and in Milan, there is a reason to go out almost every night. Most of the nightclubs participate in “International Week,” which features aperitivo (the Italian happy-hour) cuisine of a different country each week.

Discovering the ins and outs of a new city is always exciting, especially in one with such a fast-paced environment as Milan. As with any major city, there are niches for every sort of person from the art, fashion and literary-types. Depending on which café you step into, the conversation, and especially the attire, may vary drastically.

One of the places to be at the moment is Armani Prive. In Milan, the boutique is almost as important as the merchandise, and as such, Armani has certainly cornered the market. There is a virtual Armani department store ready to cater to any of your needs. Flowers? Candy? Food? Books? Bar? Dancing? The Armani boutique is a one-stop shop.

In fact, many of the well known Italian designers have moved into the entertainment industry with the opening of cafes and night clubs. The Just Cavalli Cafe is also a place to see and be seen, and Roberto Cavalli himself is said to frequent the cafe-resto-nightclub.

Additionally, Dolce and Gabbana has the Gold Restaurant, to compliment its barber shop, spa, bar and four Dolce and Gabbana boutiques.

An interesting cultural factoid is that multi-brand boutiques are almost non-existent in Milan. Most shops carry only one brand, and while department stores exist, they are not as well received as in other countries and are not nearly as numerous.

Back to the scene. All cities have their “going out nights,” and in Milan, there is a reason to go out almost every night. Most of the nightclubs participate in “International Week,” which features aperitivo (the Italian happy-hour) cuisine of a different country each week.

The clubs take turns hosting the event, and certain clubs are better to go to on certain nights. As a rule, however, the night clubs are taken over by high school students on Saturday evenings, so anyone over the age of 18 tends to avoid the clubs that night. Hollywood is best on Sundays, Armani Prive on Wednesday, and Old Fashion Café on Thursday. Who knows how these things are decided, they just are.

Whether or not as many people will be out partying this upcoming week remains to be seen, as fashion week is fast approaching, and there is certainly a lot of work to be done. As the shows come and go, however, more and more people will certainly be joining in the festivities of another fashion week come and gone.

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