Alex's Video B'Day Card from Norcia, Italy

We're in Norcia...a small Umbrian hill town known for it's wild boar, truffles and pork products. We recorded this video birthday card for Alex...we really miss you and wish you could be with us here.

Mamma Mia! Santa Rosa

I would never, ever consider going to Times Square in New York for New Years Eve. Crushed in a sea of humanity is not my idea of a celebation. Yet there I was on the night of September 3, in the provincial capital of Viterbo, packed into a narrow medieval street waiting with thousands of other people. Every piazza and side street was bursting with anticipation. TV camermen were strategically located to provide constant coverage of the Transport of the Macchina of Santa Rosa, Viterbo's biggest annual event.

The tradition goes back to1258, when, six years after her death, the body of St.Rose, patron saint of Viterbo, was moved from it's original resting place to the church of Santa Maria delle Rose. The Macchina (kind of like a parade float) has evolved over the years from a replica of an alter to its current incarnation - 30 meter tall (about 6-7 stories) aluminum and fiberglass tower lit with 800 candles and 1200 computer controlled LED lights, decorated with angels and crowned with a statue of Santa Rosa herself. Weighing in at 5 tons, it is carried on the shoulders and backs of 100 Porters (Facchini della Macchina) who transport the tower a distance of a bit more than 1 kilometer through the narrow medieval streets. Yes, you read that correctly...100 grown men carry a 5 ton/30 meter tower on their backs through narrow medieval streets for about a half a mile.) People crowd balconies, rooftops and upper story windows to get a glimpse of this marvel as it passes, sometimes so close that a spectator on the balcony could reach out and touch it as it passes. Street lights, shop lights and lights in the apartments are all turned off for maximum effect, as the electric and candle-lit tower passes through the town.

There are 5 stops along the route, where the Macchina is set down on a specially built platform, high enough for the Facchini to carry it safely into place before transferring the 5 ton weight from their shoulders to the scaffold. At each stop, the crowds go wild, cheering the Facchini as they file out from under the Macchina- row by row, with the precision of a military drill team. It is as boisterous and high spirited as an Italian soccer match, and the Facchini are the heroes of the day. The cheering masses scream “Viva Santa Rosa” as the Facchini file back under the Macchina after each stop, to hoist it further along the path to it's final destination.

Popping bottles of Champagne and fireworks mark the end of another years journey for Santa Rosa and the 100 amazing dedicated Facchini.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsg6fyk2tYo not our video, but excellent

(Mille grazie to Ivan and Manuela, without whom, we would not have attempted to tackle this event on our own.)

WHAT RECYCLING?

After we posted “Their Days Are Numbered”, our friend Michael wrote "How (NOT) To Implement a Recycling Policy in your Town" that explains the rules and details for Soriano’s recycling collection program. Well, May 3rd has arrived and it looks like things haven’t changed much…see for yourself.

Marta's Lungolago

A stroll along any lungomare (a landscaped street and park-like walkway along the seashore) on the Italian coast isn't the only way to enjoy a passeggiata. There are equally beautiful lungolagos along Italy's magnificent lakes. A couple of lakes are better known thanks to a Hollywood couple that got married in the castle on Lago Bracciano (thanks Tom and Katie) or another popular American actor who purchased a villa on Lago Como (thanks George). Nevertheless, warm weather attracts Italians and international travelers alike who crowd the roadways, restaurants and bars trying to escape the cities.

So before the onslaught of summer tourists arrived we recently made two trips to the nearby village of Marta that sits on the southern bank of Lago Bolseno; one trip just to walk around and explore and the second for Sunday pranzo and another stroll. Nothing defines the Italian concept of “la famiglia” like watching children, parents and grandparents together walking, playing, eating gelato and just enjoying being together along the lungolago.

Che bello...buona passeggiata!

Belated Buona Pasqua

It's taken many unsuccessful attempts but here some slides of what we've seen in the first few weeks. I started trying to upload last Thursday, but the slow and weak signals and the fact that all the school kids have been on their home computers from Friday through today, it's impossible to get a connection. Turn up the sound on you computer and enjoy...Buona Pasqua!