Dear friends, see you in Milan next May!
“Para dos” is a small Encuentro that we have organized by choosing former churches in the historic centers of art cities, since the first edition in 2018. But this year there is something new! Big news: Para Dos enters the milongas de barrio! So, we'll move from the historic centers of Verona and Bologna to Milan in two metropolitan neighborhoods. Of our tango, however, we preserve the intimate setting, the warm atmosphere, mutual respect and the sharing.
So, let's come together for this new adventure! As always, we will welcome old and new friends, exchange hugs and smiles, and in convivial moments we will toast to tango and beauty!
Where
As you already know, we live in Milan, "la bella Milano"!
Here we already host a milonga, fixed on Tuesdays, 'La Milonga del Martes', and another one on Sundays, 'La Matinée', every two weeks. We love to have these events and we love to share with everyone, so here we are with a new proposal for 2024, Para Dos en las milongas de barrio! The venues of our two milongas are not in historic buildings –in the architecture and art history books sense– however, they are historic in the sense that they have a story to tell. They kept their own soul alive, and you can feel it in all its beauty –I assure you– since the very first moment you step in.
Want to know more?
La Milonga del Martes is in Bovisa, a neighborhood north of downtown Milan with centuries of history behind it: In the 1800s it used to be an agricultural area (it owes its name precisely to Milan's cattle market), in 1905 it housed the "Milano Films" site until 1926, and later became an industrial area. Today, the former industrial area includes one of the poles of the Politecnico di Milano.
Our milonga takes place in a neighborhood club, Circolo Bovisa, which in 1907 was founded as "Il Circolino". In the post-war period, it became the headquarters of the cooperative "Circolo Unità", which had a very intense relationship with the various realities of the neighborhood and became a cultural center and a meeting point for the modern everyday life in Bovisa over the years.
The milonga is not really big, but it's very cozy with its vintage furnishings and street-facing windows. There is also a small indoor garden furnished with chairs, small tables and sofas. A little green space in the heart of Milan!
In the ballroom, in addition to the dance floor, you can find the American Bar counter and a dedicated buffet space for our brunch and the dinner of Saturday. The cuisine is both traditional and very good, the staff guys are real professionals, friendly and welcoming.
La Matinée, not far from Bovisa, takes place in the Cagnola neighborhood. Founded as an agricultural suburb, already mentioned in the 16th century in a notarial document, it remained so until the early 20th century when the intensive building of the industrial period almost completely erased its rural origins.
This milonga is also on the ground floor, but it is not visible from the street: You can only see the front door of a building, then you enter a short driveway gallery, and… Yes, that’s right, our milonga used to be an auto workshop!
The old garage has been renovated with love, the same love you'll breathe as you enter what is now the Mou, a jazz club: The gabled roof, a large skylight, wicker chairs, a piano, lots of plants, two small mezzanines over the dance floor with large windows on the green courtyard…
The American Bar counter is pretty small, there's an open kitchen, and the staff guys, they are just as young and fun as nice and caring. The atmosphere is at once intimate and informal, lively and sophisticated. An ideal milonga for those who enjoy sharing, at the table as well as on the dance floor: Think of a Sunday lunch with close friends, dancing tango!
Notes
New features of this edition include the formula and the set-up.
The formula: Two days -Saturday and Sunday- instead of three, so you can also visit the other fixed milongas of our regular Milanese milonguero weekends.
The set-up: always with chairs and tables but with different 'flavors'. If on Saturday at Circolo we will have the leader/follower sectors, on Sunday at Mou we will have mixed tables for those who will have lunch and free seats for those who just want to dance.
Moreover, the tradition of Italian musicalizador that we love to share with our guests remains unchanged (it's not parochialism but at an event in Italy we like to propose also… Italian music! Don't reproach us, it's our long-established policy).
…ah, I almost forgot! There is no parquet, in either ballrooms, but the dance floors are always packed, I don't know why!!!
The Table
We love friends, good food and conviviality: so we will share the table, as well as a glass of fine wine!
Saturday at Circolo we will start the day with a brunch in the garden, then a delicious dinner will accompany us all the way to La Milonga del Sabado. On Sunday at Mou, before the milonga, those who want to can have lunch with friends. We will offer a menu of traditional cuisine. Plus, American Bars for your extra needs throughout the encuentro (great cocktails!).
Event schedule
Saturday 18 at Circolo Bovisa
- 12:00-13:00 Buffet brunch
- 13:00-17:00 La Bienvenida, at console Patrizio Buscemi (Treviso, Italia)
- 18:00-19:00 Buffet dinner
- 19:00-23:30 La Milonga del Sabado, at console Emilia Patruno (Milano, Italia)
Sunday 19 at Mou
- 12:00-13:00 Placè light lunch
- 13:00-18:30 La Despedida, at console Paolo Persiani (Verona, Italia)
Participation fees
Baile / pers
- PASS BAILE > sat18&sun19 - 3 milongas (14hr): € 85;
- Little Pass1 > sat 18 - 2 milongas (9hr) € 60;
- Little Pass2 > sun19- 1 milonga (6hr) € 30.
Risto / pers
Booking Risto is NOT REQUIRED to participate in Para Dos.
2 Venues
SATURDAY – Circolo Bovisa
via Luigi Mercantini 11, 20158 Milano
RTZ Historical City Center NO, Area B NO.
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
- From Central Train Station
- Bus n.92 Bovisa.FN (stop Bausan, mt 150);
- Filobus n.91 (stop Lugano, mt 620);
- Metro2-verde (stop P.ta Genova) + Tram n.2 (stop Bausan, mt 100)
- Metro3-gialla (stop Maciachini) + Bus n.82 (stop Bausan, mt 30).
- From the city
- Tram n.2 (stop Bausan, mt 100)
- Bus n.82 (stop Bausan, mt 30), n.92 (stop Bausan, mt 150);
- Metro3-gialla (stop Dergano, mt 1300).
SUNDAY – Mou
via Antonio Pacinotti 4, 20155 Milano
RTZ Historical City Center NO, Area B NO.
PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
- - From Central Train Station
- Filobus: n.91 (stop V.le Certosa-V.le Serra, mt 230);
- Metro: M3 verde (stop Moscova) + bus n.57 (stop Gassendi, mt 80);
- Tram: n.1 from Via Settembrini (stop V.le Certosa-V.le Serra, mt 230).
- From the city
- Tram: n.1 e n.14 (stop V.le Certosa-V.le Serra); n.19 (stop via Da Panicale)
- Bus 57 (stop via Da Panicale);
- Filobus 90-91 (stop via Bartolini; V.le M.te Ceneri).