Saturday, August 25, 2007

Italian Events & Festivals



















Should you be lucky enough to be traveling in Italy during the next months, you might want to check out some of these interesting events:

September 3-27: Settembre Musica, Milan, Lombardy & Turin, Piedmont

More than 80 concerts featuring famous and local composers and classical and contemporary music. Visit: www.comune.torino.it/settembremusica for more information.


September 7-9: Murabilia, Lucca, Tuscany

Come to the beautiful town of Lucca for their annual botany festival. 150 exhibitors transform the medieval walls of Lucca with plants, flowers, vegetables and bonsais. See http://www.murabilia.com/ for more information.


September 9: Campionato del Vino, Fiesole, Tuscany

This is right up my alley and I wish I could be there for it. This is a championship of wine in which teams of connoisseurs compete in a tasting tournament. There are also food and wine tastings for the public as well as debates and opportunities to learn more about the concept of Slow Food. (Sponsored by Slow Food Firenze.) For more information, visit: http://www.slowfoodfirenze.it/.


September 8: La Notte Bianca, Rome, Lazio

I have my friend at "My Melange" to thank for drawing my attention to this unique and fun event in Rome in which many tourists venues stay open all night long and public transportation is free after 10pm. What a great excuse to stay up all night long! Please see her article on it for all the details: http://www.mymelange.net/mymelange/2007/08/la-notte-bianca.html.


September 29-November 11: Fiera del Tartufo, Cuneo, Piedmont:

This annual Truffle Festival has become somewhat of a religious pilgrimage for foodies. The famous white truffles of Alba are the focal point for this festival in which many small events and participating restaurants provide the lucky tourist with plenty of opportunities to sample this delicacy. Of course, don't forget the perfect match with those truffles - the wines of Piedmont. In addition there are music events, exhibitions and more. For more information see http://www.fieradeltartufo.org/. The truffle season gets better towards the end of this festival, so go as late as you can, and the crowds are less in November than they are in October. I am offering a small group tour to this festival in early November 2008 - focusing on the food and wine of the Piedmont region. Please see Passionate Palate Tours for more information.


As always, if you are traveling in Italy and looking for fun things to do, be spontaneous. Keep an eye out for signs posted announcing local festivals or "Sagras". Following these signs will usually lead to local food festivals where you can witness and participate in a genuine slice of Italian life.

Buon viaggio!

11 comments:

Chris said...

Oh I wish I wish I wish I wish! I have wanted to go back to Italy for many, many years. Hopefully next year.

ritu said...

i think also in september some time the famous cheese fair will take place in Bra, Piedmont..
I can just sniff the white truffles, I hope this year the pricing will be better than last year..

The Passionate Palate said...

Chris - you will get back to Italy...you must!

Ritu - I must find out about the cheese fair. Is that a Slow Food event? With the dollar being so weak against the Euro, I would have to settle for sniffing and not buying - that is IF I was going. Sadly, I am not. Will you be there?

Thistlemoon said...

This is such a wonderful business and website you have going on! I am so jealous! Roberto and I will have to join one of your tours when we go back to Rome! - Let him see a part of Rome he never has before!

Welcome to The Foodie Blogroll! Hope to see you on the Leftover Queen Forum!

Mélanie said...

I should go to the fiera dei tartuffo ad I love it.

Alice Regan said...

Let's see music, wine and white truffles! Where do I sign up?

The Passionate Palate said...

Jenndz - I would love to have food lovers like you and Roberto along for a trip to Italy!

Melanie - nice to hear from you again...and I wish I could get to Piedmont as easily as you can! You should go.

Inspired Tokens - welcome and I guess I won't have to twist your arm, will I? Me neither, I wish I could go to all the festivals.

Pomiane said...

Ma - you've left out the Anima Mundi music festival in Pisa! One of the - as yet - undiscovered cultural gems of (late) summer in Europe!

The Passionate Palate said...

Pomiane - I don't know about this one. What is Anima Mundi? Please do leave more information or a link if you have it. Grazie!

Larry Aiello said...

What a great web site....I agree,
la Notte bianca is a definite must! Rome comes to life, and it really is a spectacular event.

They are even starting to copy that in other towns, but no where comes close to Rome.

Larry
http://www.Italian-Link.com

The Passionate Palate said...

Larry - thanks for the comment and compliment. I wonder how La Notte Bianca was with all the V-Day demonstrations?