Viva Santa Lucia!
Tag: festa
Thanks To Cacio E Vino And Our Guests | Viva Santa Lucia
A few photos from our Experience Sicily Santa Lucia Feast in New York City. Thanks to Cacio e Vino for hosting us with the excellent food and service! Thanks to our guests who brought their beautiful spirits to share with each other! It was a joyful afternoon. Viva Santa Lucia!
A Dagger? Eyes On A Plate? What Intrigue!
A dagger? Eyes on a plate? What intrigue! (Continued from an earlier post…) Inspired by Sant’Agata of Catania before her, Lucia refused to participate in the activities of the brothel to which she was condemned. This of course, angered the madame, who called the Roman authorities to further punish the maiden. Somewhere in this mayhem,…
Let’s Light Up These Dark Days on Sunday With Santa Lucia
At the dawn of the 4th century, practicing Christianity in the Roman-ruled city of Siracusa was illegal. Already though, inspired by nearby Catania’s Patron Saint, Sant’Agata, who lived just a few decades before (from 231 AD – 251 AD), the young and beautiful Lucia devoted herself to Christianity. In fact, she was known to enter…
Let’s Have A Ball On Sunday
Sunday in NYC: Let’s eat rice balls!! Santa Lucia is the patron saint of grain, and as a result, arancine, or rice balls, are a significant element to celebrating the Feast of Santa Lucia. So much so, that in Palermo, her feast day is also the Sagra delle Arancine. Why rice balls (pictured)? To commemorate…
Let’s Celebrate Santa Lucia In New York Together
You are invited to Celebrate La Festa di Santa Lucia! Next Sunday in New York City at Cacio e Vino, Experience Sicily will host the Feast of Santa Lucia (Saint Lucy), the beloved patroness from Siracusa, Sicily who is venerated from Venice to Sweden and beyond. It is a festival of light to help us…
Ancient Myths Light The Way
The legend of Santa Lucia starts before the early 4th century CE, when the maiden was killed by Roman soldiers for being Christian. Lucy’s story as we know it today starts with the ancient Greek divinities Demeter and Persephone. Demeter is the goddess of the grain, the harvest, and fertility. Persephone, Demeter’s daughter, is the…
Celebrate Saint Lucy In New York City
Now that the clocks have changed and the daylight is growing shorter here in the northeastern United States, I turn to Santa Lucia or Saint Lucy, the patron saint of light, to guide me. Her official feast day is December 13, which, before the change to the Gregorio calendar, was the date of the winter…
Celebrating The Madonna On September 8
September 8 is considered the birthday of the Blessed Mother by the Catholic Church. As a result, throughout Sicily this weekend, there are festivals to celebrate the Madonna. It’s not clear why this date was officially chosen as such; however, because this time of the agricultural year is traditionally a major harvest season, for centuries…
Sicily’s Legend Of Colapesce
The Sicilian legend of Colapesce was illustrated beautifully during the 2019 Archi di Pasqua of San Biagio Platani. Colapesce is a hero in Sicilians’ eyes. Born Nicola di Messina, the name Colapesce is rooted in Cola from Nicola and Pesce, fish. Colapesce was nicknamed so because he was an apt swimmer who could hold his…