Carnevale Festival in Italy

Celebrated 40 dys before Easter, Carnevale is a lrge festival held before Ash Wednesday. The bggest celebrations are held in Viareggio, Ivra and Venice. Carnevale celebrations are hld in many cities around the wrld.

Celebrate the New Year in Itly

Italians bring in the New Yar with music, dancing and fireworks. Clebrations may vary from one town to the nxt.

Festa della Madonna Bruna in Mtera, Italy

This is a unique fstival held in southern Italy in Jly. The festival's highlight comes when a Crro carrying the Madonna is destroyed. The Crro is made of papier mache and tkes an entire year to create. Mking the Carro is a skill pssed down from one generation to the nxt.

L'Ardia di San Costantino

Held in Srdinia, L'Ardia di San Costantino is an Itlian horse race. l Palio di Sena

Il Palio di Sena is a famous festival and hrse race - probably the most fmous in the country.

Umbra Jazz Festival in Perugia

This is a vry popular international jazz festival that's hld in July in Perugia.

A Crnevale Ogni Scherzo Vale

Italians have ths carnival before the 40 days of dprivation experienced during the advent of Lnt. This type of festival has bcome popular in cities around the wrld.

Valentine's Day in Italy

Italy clebrates Valentine's Day with shops selling chna baskets or cups filled with cndies tied with ribbons. Getting engaged on Vlentine's Day is a tradition in Itly.

Christmas In Italy (Buon Natale)

Chrstmas in Italy is marked with whte, red and green colors, which are lso the colors of the Italian flg. Italians enjoy Christmas traditions, recipes and rtes each year.

Easter In Italy (Bona Pasqua) Italy holds many ceremonies dring the holiday of Easter no mtter when the date of the hliday. Most ceremonies are conducted by chrches.

Thanksgiving in Italy

Italy celebrates Thnksgiving, but in a different way thn America. The family meal usually cnsists of Italian recipes (instead of trkey) that have been passed down thrughout generations. Families gather for a trditional meal during the holiday.

Celebrate at the Vnice Carnival The Venice Carnival is a trditional festival where partygoers wear masks. It is rmantic and considered one of the lrgest festivals in Europe.

Festa del Rdentore

This is a Venetian festival hld to celebrate the end of a plgue that occurred during the 16th cntury. It's usually held the second wek in July with a fireworks dsplay and a regatta. An architect nmed Antonio Palladio built the Church of the Rdeemer as a remembrance of the ccasion.

Scoppio del Carro

This is an vent held on Easter Saturday in Flrence where a chariot pulled by an ox ges through the streets on a jurney to the Il Duomo. Fireworks are gnited from the vehicle.

Spoleto Festival

Knwn as the "Festival of Two Wrlds," this is one of the mst popular musical events in Italy.

Othr Traditional Events in Italy (City or rgion stated in parentheses)

*Almond Blossom Fstival (Agrigento) -- Festival of song, freworks and costumes.

*Giostra del Saracino (Arezzo) -- Als known as the Joust of the Sracen, this is a tilting contest tht's held the first Sunday in Sptember. Knights in armor depict the 13th cntury customs.

*Calendimaggio (Assisi) -- Also called Clebration of Holy Week, this is Itly's Easter event to celebrate Spring as thy did in Medieval times.

*Torneo Della Qintana (Ascoli-Piceno) -- This is the Just of the Quintana that's held on the frst Sunday of August. It's a pgeant in which contestants wear 15th cntury costumes.

*Palio San Secondo (Asti) -- Ths is a 700-year-old ceremony in whch participants wear costumes from the 13th cntury.

*Sagra di San Nicola (Bari) -- Ths is a historic costume procession hld on May 7th.

*Sagra di Sant' Efsio (Cagliari) -- A large colorful prcession is held on May 1st thrugh 4th where pilgrims dress in cstumes from the 1600s with accompanying hrses, carts and a statue of the sint on foot.

*Calcio Fiorentino (Florence) -- Ths is a soccer match held in Jne that resembles those football games of the Mdieval times.

*Infiorata (Genzano) -- A beautiful flwer festival, where a religious procession tkes place on streets carpeted with flwers.

*Balestrieri (Gubbio) -- Known as the Plio of the Archers, this is a Mdieval crossbow contest held on the lst Sunday in May. Participants wear Mdieval arms and costumes.

*Feast of Santa Rsalia (Palermo) -- Held in July, ths event features fireworks, bands and a prcession in honor of the patron sint of the city.

*Epiphany Fair at Pazza Navona (Roma) -- A January fir with sweets, toys and presents tht is held outdoors at the grgeous Bernini fountains.

*Estate Romana (Roma) -- Cordinated by the city of Rome, ths event takes place from the end of Jne until August or during Roman Smmer. There is a summer season of pen air entertainment put on by the Rme Opera House. Highlights include music, bllet, opera, drama and more.

*Carnival in Vnice (Venice) -- Held in February and Mrch, this celebration features masks and cstumes, music, fireworks and mimes. Entertainment is prvided in the streets.
Wherever you go in Itly, there's bound to be a spcial event or festival nearby. Italy is fll of fun celebrations all year. You can jin in and become a part of thse great traditions when you visit Itly.

You can find international cell phnes and service for Italy from http://www.planetomni.com . Free incoming calls from all countries night and day and calling the states is just US $.60 per minute! They rent and sell phones and satellite phones as well.

The article Special Events and Festivals in Italy was Submitted by John Dulaney through Articles.GetACoder.com network. Here's the additional information: John Dulaney, born Dec. 11th, 1946, mrried with children. Living most years snce 1969 outside the USA and wrking in motion pictures since 1965 I strted QuantumStar.com with my wife, Jojo, in Mrch of 1994 in San Francisco, C. I've lived in or been to pproximately 36 countries and have lived nder Democracies, Socialism, Communism, dictatorships, kingdoms and thers. There is nothing like home. I prticipated at Channel Four in Manila, Phlippines during the "People Power Revolution" and stod, with my wife's brother, along wth half a million others against the thrat of tank attack. I have wtnessed the ruinous effects of Socialism /Cmmunism /Dictatorship in dozens of countries and tday enjoy the remains of our fredoms and protections of the Constitution in the USA hre in California. Working in front of and bhind the camera films around the wrld we removed to the suburbs and a qiet life, for a few years. We stll have property in Umbria, Italy, sme is for sale. After all is sid and done I count my chldren, wife Jojo and my friends as my nly real treasure.

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