Weird & Wonderful
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Displaying 1 to 20 of 29 results.
New Year's Greetings on Lido Beach
Start the new year in style: swim in the freezing-cold waters of Venice's Lido Beach along with a handful of brave regulars.
The annual Festa Nazionale Della Befana sees the old witch descend from the sky on her broomstick to drop off presents for good children and coal for the bad ones! Urbania welcomes this…
The Feast of San Biagio involves two annual festivities dedicated to the patron saint of Comiso, Sicily. There is a smaller celebration on 3 February and a major event of processions, fairs on…
The Ivrea Carnival isn't the best known in Italy but it certainly ranks as one of the most enjoyable. Four days of orange fights involving the whole town culminate with a bonfire in the main square.
During Tufara's Mask of the Carnival the devil, symbol of indulgence, suffers a modern death. Celebrations begin in the afternoon and end when a platoon of soldiers executes the mannequin…
A struggle of redemption between the Deer Man and the forces of good takes place every year in Castelnuovo del Volturno. Legend has it that the ritual banishes the sins of the past year…
Scoppio del Carro - Explosion of the Cart
Every year on Easter Sunday, perfectly sane Florentine citizens gather in Piazza del Duomo to watch a dove-shaped rocket, called the "Colombina", fly out of the famous Duomo. It then ignites a…
The Procession of the Snake Catchers
On the first Thursday of May, the people of Cocullo, a small cluster of houses high in the Abruzzan hills, give thanks to their patron Saint Domenico in a somewhat unusual manner - they drape…
Every year Bari re-enacts the arrival by sea of the body of Saint Nicholas from Turkey in 1087. The "translation" is the centrepiece of the festival, taking the statue from the San Nicola…
Husbandless women eager to tie the knot seek assistance at Palestrina's Procession of the Spinsters. Admittedly, all the single women no longer walk in line through town praying for a husband…
Testosterone abounds when four teams of 27 youths apiece face each other during the Calcio Storico. This entertaining 15th-century style tournament of fighting and football is held in…
Arezzo's Jousting of the Saracens (Giostra del Saracino) draws contestants to the historic Piazza Giorgio Vasari, competing for the coveted prize of the Golden Lance. Gallant knights on battle…
Testosterone abounds when four teams of 27 youths apiece face each other during the Calcio Storico. This entertaining 15th-century style tournament of fighting and football is held in…
A tradition since the 14th century, for the people of Siena the Palio horse-race is a matter of life and death. Ten bareback riders clash in a frenzied 90-second dash around the huge Piazza del Campo.
Rimini, on Italy's Adriatic coast, turns pink for one night as thousands of lights, fireworks and merchandise for revellers paint the town red, well, pink. Lasting from sunset to dawn, the…
The Feast of San Biagio involves two annual festivities dedicated to the patron saint of Comiso, Sicily. There is a smaller celebration on 3 February and a major event of processions, fairs on…
Hundreds of actors on ten improvised stages set up around the town of Bolsena re-enact the Mystery of Saint Cristina, the 12-year-old girl who was killed for converting to Christianity. The…
A medieval fantasy attracting elves, witches and all kinds of imaginary creatures to Vinci, the Unicorn Festival fills Leonardo's hometown with duels, magic shows, archery contests and Gothic…
A tradition since the 14th century, for the people of Siena the Palio horse-race is a matter of life and death. Ten bareback riders clash in a frenzied 90-second dash around the huge Piazza del Campo.
Dating back four centuries, the Feast of Santa Rosa in Viterbo revolves around a night procession of a huge mobile tower, 30 metres high and weighing in at five tonnes, adorned with…
