Category Archives: Feste

Sanremo 2023

30 Monday Jan 2023

Posted by in Culture, Feste, Italian life

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The 73rd edition of Festa della Canzone Italiana di Sanremo is February 7-11, 2023, broadcast live on RAI.  Once again this year, I have put together a viewing guide to the annual 5 day song competition held in the town of Sanremo, Liguria. The Festival di Sanremo is the world’s longest running national televised music competition.

In 1950. Piero Bussetti of the Sanremo Casino and Giulio Razzi, conductor of the RAI orchestra launched a competition for previously unreleased songs to boost the local economy.  The first edition was broadcast live on RAI radio in January 1951 with 3 artists performing 20 songs.  Since 1955 it is broadcast live on television.

From 1951-1977 the festival was held at the Sanremo Casino.  Since 1977 it has been at the iconic Teatro Ariston. The Festival di Sanremo is a massive media event in Italia and has launched many careers, including Domenico Modugno, Zucchero, Mina, Andrea Bocelli, Il Volo, Giorgia, Laura Pausini, Eros Ramazzotti, Mahmood and most recently Måneskin. I love to watch Sanremo every year with Mamma!

The winner has the option to represent Italia at the annual Eurovision Song Contest.  Eurovision is huge in Europe with 39 countries participating, but hardly known at all in North America.  2021 Sanremo winners, Måneskin won Eurovision with their brilliant song ‘Zitti e Buoni’.  As the reigning country, Italia hosted Eurovision 2022- in Torino. Mahmood and Blanco represented Italia with the 2022 winner ‘Brividi‘.

The 73rd edition of the Festival di Sanremo is February 7-11, 2023, broadcast live on RAI (RAI International for the rest of us).  It will be hosted for the fourth time by Amedeus, with cohost Gianni Morandi. Chiara Ferragni will also cohost the first and final nights. Former winners, Italian and international guest artists will perform.

Feb 7th, Mahmoud and Blanco will perform ‘Brividi‘, and 1990 winners I Pooh will sing together for the first time in 6 years.  Al Bano and Massimo Ranieri perform with Gianni Morandi Feb 8th, as well as the Black Eyed Peas.  Måneskin performs on Thursday Feb 9th.  Other performers include Salmo, Fedez, Takagi, Piero Pelù, Nik, Francesco Renga, Achille Lauro, Annalisa and La Rappresentante di Lista. There are rumours Lady Gaga and Britney Spears will perform, but there is no confirmation at this point.

The award goes to the winning song, although in most cases the performers are involved in the songwriting.  This year, there are 28 contestants, including the top 6 winners from the junior contest, ‘Sanremo Giovani’.  Judging is complex and contestants perform with the full RAI orchestra-complete with maestro.

A summary of what happens each night:

Night #1 and #2 February 7 and 8.  14 of the contestants perform each night and there are no eliminations.  Voting is 33% TV and print media jury, 33% web media jury and 33% radio jury.

Night #3 February 9.  All 28 contestants perform, with no eliminations.  Voting is 50% demoscopic jury* and 50% televoting.

Night #4 February 10 is ‘Covers night’.  Each artist/group performs a cover song of their choice from 1960-1999  They can perform solo or invite an Italian or international artist as a guest.  Voting is 33% televoting, 33% press jury and 33% demoscopic jury.

Final night #5 February 11th.  There are 2 rounds the final night.  In round 1 all 28 acts perform.  Voting is 100% from televoting.  The top 5 proceed to round 2, the Superfinale.  Voting is reset and all 5 superfinalists perform again.  The winner is decided by 33% televoting, 33% press jury and 33% demoscopic jury.

*Demoscopic jury=made up of a sample of the population.  Jurors are selected by statistical criteria to represent the country at large.

The lineup of concorrenti /contestants includes 3 former Sanremo winners, 2 who have represented Italia at Eurovision, many former contestants, and some first time acts.  Below is a list of the 28 performers, the song titles and a few other details to help you watch and enjoy the festival:

  • Anna Oxa – ‘Sale (Canto dell’anima)‘.  Anna released her first album in 1978 and was runner up at the Festival di Sanremo.  She is a 2 time winner; in 1989 with duet ‘Ti Lascerò’ and in 1999 with ‘Senza Pietà’. She and Fausto Leali represented Italia at Eurovision 1989 in Lausanne with ‘Avrei voluto‘, placing 9th.  This will be Anna’s 14th time at Sanremo across 5 decades!
  • Ariete – ‘Mare di Guai’.  Roman singer Arianna Del Giaccio was an X Factor Italia contestant in 2019.  In 2022 she released the album ‘Specchio‘ which 1,000,000 streams in 24 hours. For covers night she will perform with Sangiovanni
  • Articolo 31– ‘Un bel Viaggio’. This hip hop duo from Milano formed in 1990 consists of Alessandro Aleotti (aka rapper J-Ax) and Vito Luca Perrini (DJ Jad). They are together again to compete in Sanremo for the first time and are working on their 8th album.  For covers night, Fedez will join them for a medley.
  • Colapesce e Dimartini – ‘Splash’ Sicilian duo Lorenzo Urciullo and Antonio Dimartino competed in 2021 with the hit song ‘Musica Leggerissima‘. This is their second time at Sanremo. For covers night, they perform Adriano Celentano’s ‘Azzurro‘ with Carla Bruni.
  • Colla Zio – ‘Non mi va’. This quintet of 21-25 years olds from Milano released ‘Zafferano’ in 2021.  They place in the top 6 in Sanremo Giovani.
  • Coma-cose – ‘L’addio’. Milanese indie duo consisting of life and music partners since 2016 Fausto Zanardelli (aka Fausto Lama) and Francesca Mesiano (aka California).  They participated in Sanremo 2021 with the song ‘Fiamme negli occhi’ which went gold in 3 weeks.  This is their second time at Sanremo.
  • Elodie – ‘Due’.  The Roman singer participated in Amici* in 2016, and Sanremo in 2017 with ‘Tutta colpa mia‘ and in 2020 with ‘Andromeda‘.  In 2020 Elodie was the most listened to female artist on Spotify Italia.  In 2021 she was the cohost for night #2 of Sanremo.  She is competing for the 3rd time and has an album due out February 10th.
  • Gianluca Grignani – ‘Quando ti manca il fiato’.  This is Gianluca’s 7th time competing at Sanremo.  The first time was in 1994 for Sanremo Giovani.  He was also a guest in 2022 on covers night, singing with Irama. For covers night he will be singing with Arisa.
  • gIANMARIA – ‘Mostro’. The singer from Vicenza is the winner of Sanremo Giovani. On covers night he will sing with Manuel Agnelli who sang with Måneskin in 2021.
  • Giorgia- ‘Parole dette male’. Giorgia Todrani has 12 top 10 albums, 24 top 10 singles, and a vocal range that spans 4 octaves.  In 1994 she placed second in the Nuovi Proposti (newcomers category), losing to Andrea Bocelli!  Giorgia won Sanremo 1995 with ‘Come Saprei’, came in 3rd place in 1996, and 2nd in 2001. She even won a Davide di Donatello (the Italian version of an Oscar) in 2004 for original movie song. She has performed with Pavarotti, Mina, Eros Ramazzotti, Elton John, Alicia Keys, Jovanotti, Ray Charles, and Andrea Bocelli (‘Vivo per Lei‘). Giorgia was a musical guest at Sanremo 2017. She has a new album ‘Blu’ coming out on February 27th.  This is her 4th time in the competion. She duets with Elisa on covers night.
  • I Cugini di Campagna – ‘Lettera 22’. This quartet of Silvano and Ivano Michetti, Tiziano Leonardi and Nick Luciani formed in 1970 and started by busking near the Fontana di Trevi.  This is their first time at Sanremo and their song was written by La Rapresentante di Lista, of 2022’s ‘Ciao Ciao‘.
  • Lazza – ‘Cenere’.  This is Jacopo Lazzarini’s first time competing at Sanremo.
  • LDA – ‘Se poi domani’. 19 year old rapper Luca D’Alessio, is an Amici 2021 participant and son of Napoletano singer Gigi D’Alessio. He started doing covers on YouTube at age 13.  This is his first Sanremo competition. He performs with Alex Britti on covers night.
  • Leo Gassmann – ‘Terzo Cuore’. The son of Alessandro Gassman and grandson of Vittorio Gassman was a semi-finalist in the 2018 edition of X factor.  in 2020 he won the ‘newcomers’ category of Sanremo with ‘Vai bene cost‘ and this is his first time as a regular contestant.
  • Levante– ‘Vivo’.  Sicilian singer Claudia Lagona released her first album in 2014 and competed in Sanremo in 2019 with ‘Tikibombom’. She was an X Factor judge in 2017 and has collaborated with Max Gazzè, Negramaro, J-Ax and Fedez.  She has also published 3 romance novels.  This is her second time at Sanremo.
  • Madame – ‘Il Bene nel male’. 18 year old rapper from Vicenza Francesca Calearo known as Madame participated in Sanremo 2021 with the song ‘Voce’. She recently collaborated with Negramaro on ‘Non è vero niente‘.  This is her second time competing in Sanremo and she is once again the youngest contestant.
  • Mara Sattei – ‘Duemilaminuti’ Roman singer Sara Mattei was a previous contestant on Amici and guest on X factor.  She became known for making YouTube videos with her brother Davide (known as thasup) starting in 2017 and released her first album in 2022.  Her catchy quadruple platinum single with Fedez and Tananai ‘La Dolce Vita‘ was the song most played last summer. In this competition, she is singing a song written by Damiano David of Måneskin!!!  Mara performs with Noemi on covers night.
  • Marco Mengoni – ‘Due vite’. Marco is back competing at Sanremo on the 10 year anniversary of his 2013 win with ‘L’essenziale‘.  He also represented Italia at Eurovision that year in Sweden, coming in 7th.  Marco is also the winner of 2009 season 3 of X factor, a 2 time winner of the MTV Europe Music Award for Best European act and an ambassador for National Geographic’s international campaign ‘Planet or plastic?’.
  • Modà – ‘Lasciami’. One of my favourite bands, Modà was started in Milano in 2000 by Francesco ‘Kekko’ Silvestre.  This is their 3rd time competing at Sanremo.  In 2011 their song ‘Arriverà’ with Emma Marrone came in 2nd place and in 2013 ‘Se si potesse non morire’ came in 3rd place. 2023 is the 20th anniversary of the release of their first album. On covers night they perform with Le Vibrazioni.
  • Mr Rain-‘Supereroi‘.  Rapper and ex Amici participant Mattia Balardi from Brescia is known as ‘Mr Rain’.  He will be duetting with 2022 contestants Highsnob & Hu for covers night.
  • Olly  – ‘Polvere’. The Genovese rapper has collaborated with singer Arisa and earned a spot in the competition via Sanremo Giovani
  • Paola e Chiara – ‘Furore’.  The sisters from Milano were in Sanremo Giovani in 1996 and 1997.  They competed in 1998 and in 2005 with the international hit of the summer ‘Vamos a Bailar’.  In 2013, they each went solo, Chiara Iezzi to acting and Paola Iezzi dj, producing and singing.  Last year they joined Jovanotti’s Beach party 2022 and they are back to Sanremo for the 3rd time.
  • Rosa Chemical – ‘Made in Italy’ Rosa Chemical is 24 year old rapper Manuel Franco from Torino, who has also been a Gucci Italia model since 2018.  He was a guest performer at Sanremo 2022 covers night with Tananai.
  • Sethu – ‘Cause perse’. Marco De Lauri released his first EP in 2018.  In 2020 he had 3 singles on Spotify’s Raptopia, Gen Z, and Novità Rap Italiano playlists.  Sethu has opened for Pinguini Tattici Nucleari and was named MTV artist of the month September 2022.  He is a top 6 finalist in Sanremo Giovani.  Sethu claims to be ‘fundamentally an incurable doomer’.  His song is dedicated to inseparable twin Jiz.
  • Shari-‘Egoista‘.  Shari was in Sanremo Giovani in 2019.  She recently released her first EP, ‘Fake Music‘ and is one of the top 6 Sanremo Giovani finalists.
  • Tananai – ‘Tango’.  27 year old Alberto Ramusino from Brescia participated last year with his single ‘Sesso Occasionale’ and placed second in Sanremo Giovani. Last summer he collaborated with Fedez and Mara Sattei on the catchy quadruple platinum hit ‘La Dolce Vita‘. He performs with Biagio Antonacci on covers night.
  • Ultimo – ‘Alba’. Niccolò Moriconi’s first album in 2017 was 3X platinum and his second album in 2018 5X platinum.  He won the ‘newcomers’ category in 2018 and came in second place at Sanremo 2019 with ‘I tuoi particulari’.  That same year, Ultimo became the youngest Italian artist to play stadium tours.  In 2021 he had a record 4 simultaneous albums in the annual chart-according to the Italian music federation.  He also collaborated with Ed Sheeran on ‘2Step‘. On covers night, he performs a medley with Eros Ramazzotti.
  • Will– ‘Stupido‘.  William Busetti released his first music on YouTube in 2019.  In 2020 ‘Estate’ had over 40 million streams on Spotify and went platinum.  He released his first EP in June and is one of the Sanremo Giovani top 6 finalists.

*Amici is an Italian talent show on television since 2001.  20 ‘students’ aged 16-30 years who are interested in being professional singers, songwriters and dancers participate.  Nuovi proposti was a previous ‘newcomers’ category.  Now there is Sanremo Giovani, the junior category and the top 6 go on to the regular competition.

Read the contestants’ full bios on the Festival di Sanremo website.  RAI International usually airs the shows twice-once live at 1900 -0100ish Italian time, and a replay later.  Check the local listings for your country.  The RaiPlay app is another way to watch -and it will not be Geoblocked!

Will you be watching the Festival di Sanremo?  Let me know which performances you are looking forward to or which ones were your favourites!

Ciao, Cristina

Un Matrimonio in Puglia

08 Thursday Sep 2022

Posted by in Amici e Famiglia, Feste, Italia, Italian life, Puglia

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Viva gli sposi!  After a 3 year ‘pandemic hiatus’ I finally made it back to Puglia. My trip was earlier than usual to attend un matrimonio in famiglia -a family wedding in June.  Gli sposi were Federica and Antonio. The wedding was held at the 900 year old Santa Maria di Siponto. The church is in the architectural style Romanica Pugliese, Pugliese Romanesque. Byzantine and Islamic influences are evident in the pure, simple lines and geometric patterns. The building is square, which is unusual for a church.

Our day started out with heavy rain.  My parents, sister, nieces and I ran to the car with our umbrellas for the 1½ hour drive from Orsara di Puglia. Luckily it was sunny by the time we arrived. The ceremony was held at 11 am and the stark white interior of the church was bathed in light!The look on Antonio’s face when he sees Federica at the altar is priceless. 

The 4 witnesses, called compari, and the parents of the bride and groom also take part in the ceremony.Federica looked stunning.  The wedding dress was handmade by her 91 year old nonna!  Nonna Celestina made it with fabric she had kept from the time when she owned a fabric store in Foggia many years ago. The dress is ‘a portafoglio‘ which means that it had a short skirt underneath, visible only when the slit opened. Nonna even made a spare dress, just in case!

Since we were in Puglia, we were surrounded by olive trees. I fit right into the floral arrangements with my olive coloured dress with pink and silver flowers.The reception was held at Tenimento San Giuseppe, 4 km from Foggia. We started out with aperitivo in the main building, then moved to another section for the main meal.

There was un mastro casaro-a master cheesemaker-making nodini, knots of fresh mozzarella.

Later we moved into the cantina for degustazione di vino, where I found a tasty Susumaniello that was too good! Dessert was back in the main building.  All of this moving around really helps with digestion!

The dish in the photo above is ‘mezzi paccheri rigate con salsa di gamberl e astice’, pasta with shrimp and lobster sauce.  The black smudge on the plate is squid ink. I was too busy socializing and eating to take many food photos, so read the menu and imagine it yourself!Dancing was everywhere.  Instead of having to sit through the entire meal and a bunch of speeches and wait for the end of the night to dance, dancing happens throughout the reception. Also good for digestion!One course is served…then dancing, more food, then more dancing, etc.  Since the wedding was in Puglia, there was also dancing outside under the olive trees.

Federica likes swing dancing, so there was a swing band and later in the evening, my cousin (father of the bride) and his band played their funky music.

Cake cutting was held outside, at the bottom of the dramatic staircase.  In the photo, you can see a bit of Federica’s ‘spare’ dress, while Antonio gestures for us to move out of the way.  He probably said ‘livt da nanz’.

Guests take home a little bag of confetti for good luck.  These are not what you throw at the bride and groom.  They are sugared roasted almonds, sometimes with a chocolate filling.  Traditionally there are 5 almonds that represent health, wealth, happiness, fertility and long life. Bomboniere are also handed out at the end of the night.  These are a small gift from the bride and groom to thank the guests for celebrating their special day with them.

I hope you enjoyed this peak at a wedding in Puglia!  Auguri Federica e Antonio! Ciao, Cristina

Festival di Sanremo

30 Sunday Jan 2022

Posted by in Culture, Feste, Italian life

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February is almost here, and so is the Festival di Sanremo, an annual 5 day song competition held in the Ligurian seaside town of Sanremo.  The full name is Festa della Canzone Italiana di Sanremo, and it is the longest running national televised music competition in the world.

In 1950. Piero Bussetti of the Sanremo Casino and Giulio Razzi, conductor of the RAI orchestra decided to launch a competition for previously unreleased songs to boost the local economy.  The first edition was broadcast live on RAI radio in January 1951 with 3 participants performing 20 songs.  Since 1955 it has been broadcast live on television.

From 1951-1977 it was held at the Sanremo Casino.  Since 1977 it has been at the iconic Teatro Ariston. The Festival di Sanremo is a huge media event in Italia and has launched many careers, including Domenico Modugno, Mina, Zucchero, Andrea Bocelli, Il Volo, Giorgia, Laura Pausini, Eros Ramazzotti, Mahmood and most recently Måneskin. I love to watch Sanremo every year with mamma!  The winner has the first option to represent Italia at the annual Eurovision Song Contest.  Eurovision is huge in Europe with 39 countries participating, but hardly known at all in North America.  Last year’s Sanremo winners, Måneskin also won Eurovision with their brilliant song ‘Zitti e Buoni’.  As the reigning country, Italia hosts Eurovision in 2022- May 10-14 in Torino.

The 72nd edition of the Festival di Sanremo is February 1-5, 2022, broadcast live on RAI (RAI International for the rest of us).  It will be hosted for the third time by Amedeus, with different cohosts. There will be performances by former winners, Italian, international guest artists and the hilarious comic Fiorello.  Superospite (superguests) include Mäneskin February 1 and Golden Globe winner/Oscar nominee Laura Pausini February 2! The rest are a surprise! It is not confirmed yet, but there will likely be a decreased capacity audience.

The award goes to the winning song, although in most cases the performers are also the songwriters and/ or composers.  This year, there are 25 contestants, including  the top 3 winners from the junior contest, ‘Sanremo Giovani’.  Judging is complex and contestants perform with the backing of the full RAI orchestra-complete with maestro.

Here is a summary of what happens each night:

Night #1 and #2 February 1 and 2 -12-13 of the contestants perform each night and there are no eliminations.  Voting is 33% TV and print media jury, 33% web media jury and 33% radio jury.

Night #3 February 3 – All 25 contestants perform, no eliminations.  Voting is 50% demoscopic jury* and 50% televoting.

Night #4 February 4 ‘Covers night’.  Each artist/group performs a song from the 60’s, 70’s or 80’s.  They can perform solo or invite an acclaimed Italian or international artist as a guest.  Voting is 33% televoting, 33% press jury and 33% demoscopic jury.

Final night #5 February 5.  There are 2 rounds the final night.  In round 1 all 25 acts perform.  Voting is 100% from televoting.  The top 3 proceed to round 2, the Superfinale.  Voting is reset and all 3 superfinalists perform again.  The winner is decided by 33% televoting, 33% press jury and 33% demoscopic jury.

*Demoscopic jury=made up of a sample of the population.  Jurors are selected by statistical criteria to represent the country at large.

The lineup of contestants includes 3 icons, 7 former winners and many former contestants, 6 who have represented Italia at Eurovision and a few debut acts.  Here is a list of the 25 performers, the song titles and a few other details to help you watch and enjoy the festival:

  • Achille Lauro – ‘Domenica’. Achille gave 4 stunning ‘shock glam’ performances as a guest last year.  This is his 3rd time as a participant. He will be teaming up with Loredana Bertè for covers night.
  • Aka7even – ‘Perfetta cosi’ Luca Marzano won Best Italian act at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 2021. He released his first album in May.
  • Ana Mena – ‘Duecentomila ore’. Ana is a Spanish singer and actress and was a guest for cover night in 2020.
  • Dargen D’Amico – ‘Dove si balla’
  • Elisa – ‘O forse sei tu’. 2001 Sanremo winner for ‘Luce’ and 4 guest appearances. She performed at the closing ceremonies of the Torino Olympics.
  • Emma – ‘Ogni volta è cosi’. Emma Marrone is the 2012 Sanremo winner for ‘Non è l’inferno’. She has made guest appearances, co-hosted, and is now back performing 10 years later. Emma represented Italia at Eurovision 2014. For covers night, she is performing Britney Spears’ ‘Baby hit me one more time’ with Francesca Michielin.
  • Fabrizio Moro – ‘Sei tu’. 2018 Sanremo winner with Ermal Meta for ‘Non mi avete fatto niente’ and represented Italia at Eurovision.  This is Fabrizio’s 6th time performing. He also won the Giovani category in 2007.
  • Gianni Morandi – ‘Apri tutte le porte’. An Italian legend, 77 year old Gianni is a former host, 5 time participant and 1987 winner with Enrico Ruggeri and Umberto Tozzi for ‘Si puo dare di più’.  He represented Italia at Eurovision in 1970.
  • Giovanni Truppi – ‘Tuo padre, mia madre, Lucia’
  • Giusy Ferreri – ‘Miele’. Giusy placed 2nd in the 1st edition of X Factor Italia in 2008.  She is the most successful Italian artist to emerge from a talent show. This is her 4th time at Sanremo.
  • Highsnob & Hu – ‘Abbi cura di te’
  • Irama – ‘Ovunque sarai’ Irama was not able to perform live last year due one of his staff testing COVID positive. He placed 5th based on his pre-recorded rehearsal performance!
  • Iva Zanicchi – ‘Voglio amarti’. The 82 year old singer and politician won Sanremo 3 times (1967, 1969, 1974) during her 60 year career and has been a guest and juror. She represented Italia at Eurovision in 1969.
  • La Rappresentante di Lista (LRDL) – ‘Ciao Ciao’. This is duo Veronica Lucchesi and Dario Mangiaracina’s second time at Sanremo, including a cover night guest performance.
  • Le Vibrazioni – ‘Tantissimo’ This is the group’s 4th time at Sanremo.
  • Mahmood e Blanco – ‘Brividi’. Mahmood (Alessandro Mahmoud) is the 2019 Sanremo winner and 2ndplace Eurovision winner with the catchy ‘Soldi’. He was a guest performer the past 2 years and wrote or cowrote several of the competing songs in 2021. He is performing with 18 year old Blanco Fabbriconi who recently released his first album.
  • Massimo Ranieri – ‘Lettera al di là del mare’. 1988 Sanremo winner for ‘Perdere l’amore’. This is his 6th time participating as well as guest appearances and judging Sanremo Giovani in 2016. Massimo represented Italia at Eurovision in 1971 and 1973. For Covers night, he will be performing a Pino Daniele song with Nek!
  • Matteo Romano – ‘Virale’ (Sanremo Giovani 3rd place)
  • Michele Bravi – ‘Inverno dei Fiori’. Michele is the winner of the 7th edition of X Factor Italia in 2013. This is his 2nd time at Sanremo.
  • Noemi – ‘Ti amo non lo so dire’. 4th time in competition. Noemi was on X Factor in 2009 and a judge for The Voice of Italy 2013-15.
  • Rettore e Ditonellapiaga – ‘Chimica’ Donatella Rettore is an 80’s icon best known for ‘Kobra’. This is her 5th time at Sanremo and she was a guest last year on Covers night. She is performing with first timer Ditonellapiaga.
  • Rkomi – ‘Insuperabile’ The successful Italian rapper makes his Sanremo debut.
  • Sangiovanni – ‘Farfalle’. Making his Sanremo debut, the 18 year old released his first album in May.  His song ‘Malibu’ had the most listens on Spotify Italy in 2021.
  • Tananai – ‘Sesso occasionale’ (Sanremo Giovani 2nd place)
  • Yuman – ‘Ora e qui’ (Sanremo Giovani winner)

Read the contestants’ full bios on the Festival di Sanremo website.  RAI International usually airs the shows twice-once live at 1900 Italian time, and a replay later.  Check the local listings for your country.  The RaiPlay app is another way to watch -and it will not be Geoblocked this year!

If you have not seen the winning performance of ‘Zitti e Buoni‘ and the awards presentation from Sanremo 2021 here is the video.  Zitti e buoni literally means ‘quiet and good’, but in this context means ‘shut up and behave’.  The lyrics are brilliant.  They are about being yourself and not conforming or worrying about gossip.  Read more about the lyrics here.

Will you be watching the Festival di Sanremo?  Let me know which performances you are looking forward to or which ones were your favourites!

Ciao, Cristina

Italian Christmas Vocabulary

19 Sunday Dec 2021

Posted by in Feste, Italian language, Parole piacevoli

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Need to brush up on the Italian Christmas vocabulary? Any excuse to improve vocabulary and language skills is a good one. Try using these Italian Christmas season related words, greetings and phrases to impress friends and relatives at events and in Whatsapp/text messages or Christmas cards.  It may be too late this year for cards, but get a head start for next year! For a review of how to pronounce Italian words, and my own funky way of showing pronunciation, check out the post Italiano per Ristoranti-How to pronounce your restaurant menu.

In Italia, le Feste Natalizie-the Christmas Festivities/Holidays officially start on December 8th, which is la festa dell’Immacolata Concezione, the feast day of the Immaculate Conception.  This is a national holiday and the day most families put up their presepio and tree.  Le Feste Natalizie end on January 6th, l’Epifania or the Epiphany, which is also a national holiday.  January 6th the tree and decorations come down.  As the expression goes ‘L’Epifania tutte le feste porta via’-the Epiphany carries away all of the festivities.

Buon Natale (BWON na·TA·leh) is how Merry Christmas is expressed in Italiano.  Natale comes from the Latin ‘dies Natalis’ which means ‘day of birth’, so Buon Natale literally means ‘good day of birth’.  Buone Feste(BWON·eh FES·teh) which is ‘good festivities’ is also common.  This refers to the whole season, from December 8th to January 6th.

Auguri means best wishes

Tanti auguri di Buon Natale (TAN·tee ow·GOO·ree dee BWON na·TA·leh) = Lots of good wishes for a Merry Christmas

Ti/vi auguro un Buon Natale (tee ow·GOO·roh oon BWON na·TA·leh) = I wish you a Merry Christmas

Buone Feste can be used interchangeably in both of these phrases.

Auguri per le Feste Natalizie (ow·GOO·ree per leh FES ·teh na·tah·LEEZ·yeh) = Best wishes for the Christmas festivities/season

Auguri per un Natale sereno (ow·GOO·ree per oon na·TA·leh seh·REY·noh) = Best wishes for a serene/peaceful Christmas

I miei migliori auguri per un Buon Natale (ee MEE·ay mee·LYOH·ree ow·GOO·ree per oon BWON na·TA·leh) = My best wishes/greetings for a Merry Christmas.  ‘Per un Buon Natale’ can also be replaced with ‘per le Feste’.Panforte di Siena

Felice Anno Nuovo (feh·LEE·cheh anno NWOH·voh) = Happy New Year!

Cosa farai a Capodanno? (CO·sah FA·rahee a capoh·DAN·noh) = What are you doing New Year’s?

If someone wishes you well, reply with:

Grazie, altrettanto (GRA·zyeh al·tret·TANtoh) = Thank you!  Same to you! or with

Grazie, anche a te/voi (GRA·zyeh AN·kay a teh/voey) = Thank you, also to you.

What do I write in my cartoline di Natale? I tend to be extremely thorough in my positive greetings so I usually write something like this mini-essay:

Auguro a te e alla tua famiglia un Buonissimo Natale e un nuovo anno pieno di salute, pace, amore e gioia (ow·GOO·roh a teh eh AL·lah tooah fah·MEE·lyah oon bwon·ees·SEE·moh na·TA·leh eh oon noo·OH·voh AN·noh PYEH·noh dee sal·OO·teh, PAH·chay, am·OH·reh eh gee·OH·yah) = Wishing you and your family an extremely good Christmas and a new year filled with health, peace, love and joy.

Luci Natalizie di Mamma e Papa/ My parents’ Christmas lights

Vocabolario di Natale:

Addobbo/addobbi di Natale (ad·DOHB·boh/ ad·DOHB·bee) = Decorations and ornaments

Agrifoglio (ag·ree·FOH·lyoh) = Holly

Albero di Natale (al·BEHR·oh) =Christmas tree

Babbo Natale (BAB·boh na·TA·leh) = Father Christmas/Santa Claus

La Befana (beh·FAH·nah) = January 6th female gift-bringer

Calze (CAL·zeh) =socks/stockings

Capodanno (capoh·DAN·noh) = New Year’s -literally ‘top of the year’

Cartolina di Natale/d’auguri (car·toh·LEE·nah di na·TA·leh) = Greeting card

Ceppo (CHEP·poh) = yule log

Dolci di Natale (DOL·chee dee na·TA·leh) = Christmas sweets

Elfi (EL·fee) =elves

Gesù Bambino (JEH·suh bam·BEE·noh) = Baby Jesus

Luci (LOO·chee) = lights

Presepio or Presepe (pre·sep·PEE·oh) = Nativity scene, creche

Pupazzo di neve (poo·PATZ·zoh dee NEH·veh) = Snow person

Regalo/regali (reh·GAL·oh/ reh·GAL·lee) = present/presents

Renne (REN•neh) = reindeer

Santo Stefano = December 26th Boxing Day

San Silvestro = New Year’s Eve

Slitta (SLEET·tah) = sleigh

La vigilia di Natale (vee·gee·lyah dee na·TA·leh) = Christmas Eve

Zampognaro (zam·poh·NYAR·oh) Abbruzzese bagpiping shepherd

Click on the links to read more about some of these vocabolario items!  Let me know in the comments if you get to use any new words this Natale!

Cari Lettori di Un po’ di pepe…..Auguro a voi e alle vostre famiglie un Buonissimo Natale e un nuovo anno pieno di salute, pace, amore e gioia!  Baci e abbracci, Cristina

Marostica~Partita a Scacchi

20 Monday Sep 2021

Posted by in Feste, Italia, Photography, Travel

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On one of my trips to Italia many years ago… before digital photography…I visited a friend in Castelfranco Veneto, near Treviso.  As soon as I got off the train, I found out that she was able to get us tickets to Marostica’s Partita a Scacchi in Costume a Personaggi Viventi -a live chess game in costume.   

While going through old photos last week, I came across these ones from the event. I decided to scan them so we could viaggiare in pultrona-armchair travel and reenact the spectacle!

In 1454, two young noblemen Rinaldo d’Angarano and Vieri da Vallonara, both wanted to marry Lionora, daughter of Taddeo Parisio, the Castellano (Lord) of Marostica.  They wanted to duel for her hand, which was the thing to do at that time, but her father objected.  He did not want to make an enemy of one of the families.  Instead, he proposed a chess game played with live pieces in the main piazza on a giant chess board.  This way everyone in Marostica could see the game.  The winner would marry Lionora and the runner up her younger sister Oldrada.   The original game was on September 12, 1454 and the event is recreated every other year on the second weekend of September on a 16 metre squared marble scacchiera (chess board)which forms Piazza degli Scacchi in lower Marostica.

Merchants, peasants, gypsies and street entertainers start off the festivities with music and dancing.  

There is even a colourful jousting match as armed foot soldiers, knights and drummers parade from Castello Basso.

Sbandieratori-flag throwers entertain the crowd. Both long-staff and short-staff sbandieratori perform.  These in the photo are from Firenze and at the time, they were the world champions in short staff.  

The main performers then enter the piazza from Castello Basso.  In  the photo below, you can see the raised podium in red velvet, where the actual chess game will be played by the two suitors.

The suitors and their families are the first to enter. The man in the red tights at the front is one of the suitors.

Next in line are the noble families.  Noble families representing Verona, Venezia and Firenze are usually played by family of the sindaco (mayor) of each city.

Some of the elaborate late Medieval costumes are on loan from La Scala in Milano.

Next comes Il Castellano, Lionora in the green and gold dress, her sister Oldrada in the pink and gold dress, and their nursemaid.

Finally, the chess pieces enter.  The black and white king and queen are the most striking pieces.

The game begins with the pawns taking their places on the board.

The game is played on a regular sized chess board on a podium outside the Castello.  When one of the suitors makes a move it is called out by a crier in Dialetto Veneto, then the live piece moves.

The original chess moves have long been forgotten.  Local chess enthusiasts use plays from a more recent match for the performance.

When the game is over, the entire cast parades across the board and they return to Castello Basso.

La Partita a Scacchi in Costume a Personaggi Viventi is held in Marostica every other year (even years) on the second weekend in September.  The next dates are September 9-11, 2022.  There are 4 performances, each with 3600 spectators.  Three performances are at 9pm and one is at 5pm.  Ticket prices vary from €23 to €92.  More information is available on this website.

Have any of you been to the Partita a Scacchi or to Marostica?  Let me know in the comments.

The photos were taken by me and by Nadia Bruschetta, although we aren’t certain who took which photos because they predate digital photography and we shared prints.  I hope you enjoyed this viaggio in pultrona!  Ciao, Cristina

 

Ravioli Rossi

09 Tuesday Feb 2021

Posted by in Feste, Mangiamo!, Recipes

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La festa di San Valentino is coming up.  I love the colour red and any excuse to spread love. I also spent many years on a pediatric heart surgery unit-so hearts are a special shape for me!  My nipotine* and I made ravioli rossi a forma di cuore-heart shaped red ravioli so that the whole family can share a fun meal-even though we will not all be together.

Cutting out heart shaped beet ravioli

The pasta is coloured with beets-not food colouring.  This is something I have always wanted to try, even though the thought of staining myself and everything in the kitchen is scary.  We adapted my Ravioli con ricotta e spinaci recipe published in the fall.  I posted a photo of our ravioli on Facebook and Instagram, and had many requests for the instructions.  The adaptations are reviewed here, but you will need to refer to the original post -unless you are already a ravioli making machine.

Start by roasting 4 small or 2 medium beets with a drizzle of olive oil and salt in aluminum foil for at least an hour.   Before they cool, remove skin with a paper towel or gloved hands.  Chop then puree the beets in a food processor or with an immersion blender.  

We made 2 ‘half’ doses of my usual ravioli dough so we could make 2 different shades of red.  

2 eggs

125 ml (½ cup) roasted beet puree

250g (almost 2 cups) 00 flour, plus extra

For the lighter colour, we used about 60 ml (¼ cup) beet puree and added an extra egg yolk-although just using less flour is also an option.  

Mix the beets and eggs, then add in the middle of the flour, if kneading by hand.  I usually knead my dough by hand, but red stained hands did not sound appealing, so I started with the food processor.  When the dough is partially mixed and a uniform colour, transfer to a well-floured surface.  Knead for 10 min, adding extra flour as needed.  The amount of flour will depend on how much moisture is in the beets.  I had to add at least an extra 50g (~1/3 cup).  The dough should spring back when you stick a finger in it, but not stick to the work surface.  It will look and feel like pink play doh!  Cover with an upside down bowl and let sit for at least half an hour.  

We used the same ricotta filling as in the original post, omitting the spinach and adding the zest of half a lemon for extra flavour. This is enough filling for 2 ‘half’ doses of dough.

Heart shaped beet ravioli being shaped

When rolling the dough, flour the work surface as needed.  If the dough is still too moist to go through the pasta machine, sprinkle with flour before rolling it out-but be careful not to use too much.  If the dough is toodry, the 2 pasta sheets will not stick together and the ravioli will open while cooking.  Yuck!

Cutting out heart shaped beet ravioli

Roll the dough to the second thinnest setting on the pasta machine-usually this is a 6.  Use a heart shaped tagliabiscotti – a cookie cutter about 6-7 cm (2¼-2¾ inches) wide.  It is handy to have a slightly smaller size too, for places where there is not quite enough dough to cut the bigger size.  This decreases dough wastage! Press around the filling to remove air before cutting, and seal around the edges with fingers after cutting.  Egg white can be brushed along the edges to seal, but I have never found this necessary.  If the heart shape is not working for you, a traditional shape looks festive too.  

The colour lightens a lot when cooking, so make them as dark as possible!  If you do not like beets, not to worry, they add very little taste to the pasta dough.

Heart shaped beet ravioli boiling

Each half portion of dough will make about 45 ravioli.  Freeze and cook them as described in the original post.  Serve with a simple sauce.  I heat up olive oil with whole or chopped sage leaves and slivered almonds or hazelnuts.  Spoon it on top of the ravioli and sprinkle with Parmigiano Reggiano.  Aglio, olio e peperoncinoalso works well, or a light cream sauce with walnuts. 

Note-If my instructions are not clear or detailed enough you can link to 2 different, but similar heart shaped beet ravioli recipe posts. If you need a video, watch Gabri’s. It is in Italiano, the visuals are helpful even if you do not understand. For a more professionally presented printable recipe, check out Pina’s post.

Buon appetito e auguri per la festa di San Valentino!  Viva l’amore, Cristina

*nipotine means nieces or granddaughters.  In this case it means nieces! Grazie Isabella e Francesca!

Panforte di Siena

12 Saturday Dec 2020

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Panforte di Siena

Panforte is un dolce Natalizie- a seasonal treat from Siena, although it is sold all year round.  A chewy, sweet cake, panforte leaves a wonderful aftertaste of candied citrus, almonds and a bold hit of spices.

Panforte dates back to the introduction of exotic spices from the East, via the port of Pisa.  The earliest known record is from the year 1205.  Documents in the State Archive of Siena state that a bread rich with pepper, spices and honey was paid as a tax to the monastery of Monte Celso on the seventh of February, 1205.

Panforte di Siena

Panforte was originally made with flour, water, honey and spices, mixed with chunks of fresh autumn fruits such as grapes, figs and plums.  The water content of the fruit kept the bread moist and after a few days, fermentation gave it an acidy flavour. This is where the name panes fortis, or ‘strong bread’ comes from.  It was also known as panpepato because of the abundance of pepper and other spices and the dusting of black pepper on top.

Panforte di Siena ingredients

Panpepato/panforte was made by speziali, spice sellers who could be considered medieval pharmacists.  It was valued not only as a food but also as a medicinal remedy because of the spices it contained.

Siena was on the Via Francigena, the ancient pilgrimage route running through France to Roma, then to Puglia where the ports of Bari, Brindisi and Otranto were transit points for the Holy Land.  This made Panforte known outside of Tuscany. A sweet cake with energy and sustenance, Crusaders carried it on their travels…like medieval energy bars! In 1515, a nun named Suor Berta changed the fruit to canditi-honeyed or candied fruit.  The canditi were usually citrus fruits (orange, lemon and cedro/citron) and dark melon or pumpkin.

Canditi, nuts and especially spices were costosissimi-making Panforte an extremely expensive item.  Only the wealthy could afford the extravagance.  It was also given to the clergy as a gift on special occasions such as Christmas or local feast days.Panforte confezionato

The recipe remained the same for centuries, almonds, flour, honey, canditi and spices, dusted with black pepper and held together at the bottom with foglie di ostie-a sheet of unconsecrated communion host! That was until 1879, when Regina Margherita di Savoia– of pizza Margherita fame-visited Siena. In her honour, a local speziero made a more delicate ‘white’ version of panforte, without the black candied melon and covered with a dusting of vanilla icing sugar instead of black pepper. It was called Panforte Margherita and is the version most often sold today.  In 2014, Panforte di Siena received the PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) European Union designation of quality label. Panforte di Siena with holly and greenery

In Siena it is thought that Panforte should contain 17 different ingredients.  This is because 17 is the number of Contrade or districts in Siena.  Representatives from the Contrade take part in the Palio di Siena horserace every July 2 and August 16.

A thin wedge of panforte makes a delicious treat with caffè or liqueur after a meal. Panforte makes a beautiful edible gift-but only for very special people! I made mine small, wrapped them in parchment paper then in Florentine paper and sealed the bottom with a large gold sticker.Homemade panforte di Siena

I used white pepper, as the flavour is more delicate, while still providing heat.  It is hard to find good canditi, so I made my own with organic orange and lemon peels using Domenica’s recipe. canditi

My homemade canditi ran out after 2 batches, then I substituted chopped dried Kalamata and Mission figs and sour cherries. The zest of an orange added a bit of citrus flavour. For the ostie, I used something called ‘edible wafer paper’ made with potato starch. Edible rice paper is also available at specialty food stores.

Panforte di Siena

Ingredients:

125g (1 cup) hazelnuts

200g (1½ cups) blanched almonds

175g (1½ cups) icing sugar, sifted

200g (⅔ cup) good quality honey

30ml (2 tbsp) water

300g candied fruit peel (orange, lemon, citron) or dried fruit

Grated orange or lemon zest

5g (1 tsp) ground cinnamon

2g (¼ tsp) ground ginger

2g (¼ tsp) ground cloves

2g (¼ tsp) ground star anise

3g (½ tsp) ground coriander

2g (¼ tsp) ground nutmeg

2g (¼ tsp) ground white pepper

175g (1½ cup) flour, sifted

Ostie-unconsecrated communion wafer /wafer paper/rice paper

Icing sugar to coat

 Instructions:

  1. Using a heavy saucepan and a low flame, set the sugar, honey and water to boil. Stir frequently with a wooden spoon, being careful to keep the syrup from sticking. This will take a while, so in the meantime, do steps 2 and 3.
  2. Use pan(s) with removable bottoms.  Line with the ostie/wafer paper. If needed, grease and dust the sides with cocoa powder.
  3. Toast the nuts lightly for 6-10 min in a 200°C (400ºF) oven.Panforte dry ingredients
  4. Coarsely chop with a knife, or leave whole.  Dice the candied fruit.  Dice the candied fruit and mix with the spices and nuts, then add in the sifted flour.
  5. When the syrup in step 1 reaches at least 100°C (200°F ), remove pot from heat and stir into the fruit and nut mixture. If you do not have a candy thermometer, use a toothpick to pick up a bit of syrup and pass it under cold water. If it becomes solid, it is ready.Panforte syrup in a pot
  6. Working quickly, using wet hands and 2 tablespoons, divide the batter into the pan(s), smoothing the top with damp fingers or the back of a wet spoon. It can also be pressed down with the bottom of a glass.Panforte crudo
  7. Bake in a 150° C (300°F) oven for 35-40 minutes. Do not let the panforte brown, or it will be too hard. Panforte cooking in the oven
  8. Remove the panforte from the pans and let cool completely on a rack. Dust with icing sugar on all sides. and serve cut into thin wedges.
  9. Panforte keeps well for a month if wrapped in parchment paper or in an airtight container and stored in a cool, dark place. Do not store in the fridge.
  10. This recipe makes one 22cm (9½ inch) panforte in a springform pan or six 10cm (4 inch) panforte in tart pans. A 25cm (10 inch) round of parchment paper and fancy paper wraps the 10cm size.

Panforte di Siena wedge with espresso and Christmas ornaments

Buon appetito e Buone Feste, Cristina

La Festa della Liberazione

25 Saturday Apr 2020

Posted by in Blogging, Feste

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Today is la Festa della Liberazione d’Italia, the anniversary of the liberation of Italia from Fascist occupation in 1945, and a day to honour those who served in the Italian Resistance. That makes today the 75th anniversary of liberazione.  April 25th has been an Italian national holiday since 1946- Viva la libertà!

There are usually rallies organized all over the country by ANPI (Associazione Nazionale Partigiana d’Italia).  This year the celebration is bittersweet, there not being much liberazione at the moment with everyone in isolation.

There will be balcony celebrating all over the country, including singing Bella Ciao.  This was originally a protest song of the late 19th Century, for women working in the rice fields in Northern Italia, then adapted as an antifascist song of the resistance.  Please listen to this Facebook link to a video of a beautiful version sung by a few of my talented young paesani in Orsara di Puglia! Frecce Tricolori Festa della Liberazione 25 Aprile

Le Frecce Tricolori of the Italian air force also flew the colours of the Italian flag over Roma this morning.

Today is also Un po di pepe‘s 6th bloghiversario / blog anniversary.  I usually write about the past year and what I would like to write for the next one.  This year, I would just like to share a 1955ish quote by Piero Calamandrei, an author and protagonist of the Resistenza:

La liberta è come l’aria.  Ci si accorge di quanto vale quando inizia a mancare. /Freedom is like air.  We only realize how much it is worth when it is lacking.

Continue to stay safe everyone, and hang in there.  Forza! Ce la faremo!  Un abbraccio, Cristina

Il Zampognaro

22 Sunday Dec 2019

Posted by in Feste, Italian life, Parole piacevoli

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Zampognaro-traditional Abruzzese bagpipe playing shepherd Il Zampognaro (zahm•poh•NYAH•roh) is a part of most Italian Presepi or Nativity scenes.  Zampognari are traditional Abruzzese shepherds, playing bagpipes known as zampogne (zahm•POH•nyeh). I have wanted one for a long time, and wrote about it in Il Presepio and Il Presepio di Mamma. Last year in Napoli’s  Via San Gregorio Armeno I was so overwhelmed that I forgot to look for one!

Via San Gregorio Armeni Napoli, Antonio Pepe, www.unpodipepe.ca

‘Lavorazioni di Pastori e Scenografie Presepiati Antonio Pepe’, Via San Gregorio Armeno, Napoli (no relation!)

This year, I spent a few days in Lecce before going to Napoli.  Lecce is known for cartapesta-papier maché and I saw Nativity figures, so I searched and found my  hand made glazed terra cotta zampognaro.  He is smaller and does not look like the other figures, but he has so much character with his puffy cheeks, I can almost hear him playing Tu Scende dalle Stelle….

Are you wondering why Abruzzese bagpiping shepherds are in Italian presepi?  It has to do with la transumanza, the migration of animals along tratturi-established paths in use since pre Roman times that were protected by royal decree.  Pastori-shepherds moved their animals from the mountains of Abruzzo and Molise where they grazed in the summer, to la pianura, the lowlands of Puglia.  They did this to escape the snow, and in spring the sheep and goats were herded back to Abruzzo. The tratturi were used into the 1960’s, then trucks replaced the crossing by foot.view-from-hotel-certosa

During le feste Natalizie, December 8th to January 5th, zampognari in traditional dress would go to the villages to play for extra money or food, thus the zampognaro became symbolic of Christmas in Italia and earned a place in the Presepio.

La Transumanza: Cammino Reale/Royal Shepherd’s Track has been on the  tentative list of UNESCO’s World Heritage Sites since 2006.  On December 11, 2019, it received UNESCO designation as ‘intangible cultural heritage of humanity’! Auguri zampognari!  Do any of you have un zampognaro?Presepio 2019

Cari lettori di Un po’ di pepe, Vi augura un Buonissimo Natale e un meraviglioso 2020 piena di gioia e salute!

Dear readers of Un po’ di pepe, I wish you a very Merry Christmas and a marvelous 2020 filled with health and joy!

Ciao, Cristina

Ferragosto

15 Thursday Aug 2019

Posted by in Feste, Italia, Italian life

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Ferragosto refers to August 15th and up to a week before and after. August 15th is a national holiday, celebrating l’Assunzione di Maria-the Assumption of the Virgin Mary to Heaven at the end of her life on earth. If you know anyone named Maria Assunta, she was probably born on August 15th!

Most Italiani take their holidays at this time, heading to the mountains or seaside for cooler weather. At the very least, most are away for ‘il ponte di Ferragosto’ the long weekend around August 15th.

Ferragosto goes way back….the name comes from the Latin Feriae Augusti or holidays of the Emperor Octavius Augustus, started in 31 BC. There were already several other Roman festivals the same month, such as Consualia, celebrating the harvest. They were combined into a longer rest and feasting period after months of heavy labour in the fields. The celebration originally included horse races. Il Palio dell’Assunta in Siena every August 16th still keeps this tradition going. Taking a trip mid-August became popular in the 1920’s. The fascist government set up discounted trains for Ferragosto Aug 13-15 to give the less well off an opportunity to see other Italian cities. In the 1960’s it became common for factories and large businesses in the bigger cities such as Torino and Milano to shut down for 2 weeks in August, or sometimes even the entire month.

This gave workers from the south or small villages the opportunity to return home and spend time with family, and also to get away from the summer heat in the city. This tradition continues, although not as much as in previous years. It is common to see Chiuso per ferie signs for 2 weeks in August, but many small businesses now close in June or September instead.

     

I am often asked why small, independent businesses shut down for 2 weeks instead of having more staff and staying open. The main reason is that in Italia it is very expensive to have dipendenti-employees.  It often makes more financial sense for a local, family run place to simply close for a few weeks. Spending time with family is also valued more than in some cultures, so shutting down to be with family is an accepted, even encouraged practice.

2 weeks ago I was in Napoli and tried to go to the popular Pizzeria Gino Sorbillo. The lineup was ridiculously long, so I went somewhere else and had a delicious pizza Margherita. Last year on August 17th, the sign pictured above was on the door of the same place. They were closed for 3 weeks and their other location near the harbour was open.

Should you avoid going to Italia in August? Absolutely not! If that is when you are able to go-then do it! Just do not attempt to travel on August 15th, as public transportation will be greatly reduced and nearly everything will be closed. Museums and cultural sites will be open though. Roma, for example, will be empty of Romans for the week, so it will be less crowded with fewer cars on the road. It is a great time to visit air-conditioned museums and cool stone churches. There will be more than enough restaurants open that nobody will starve.

I usually go to Italia in August as this is the best time of year to go to my small mountain village. There are feste and concerts all month, my friends and relatives have time off and those who have moved away for work come back to visit.

What are you doing for Ferragosto?

Buon Ferragosto, Cristina

This post is written as part of the monthly blogging linkup Dolce Vita Bloggers  hosted by Kelly , Jasmine and Kristy.