Carciofo (or carciofi, plural) is one of my most favorite Italian words to say. It sounds and feels like when you are chewing, (Car-Chiey-Oh-Foh) which is why I like it. It means artichoke. And well, in Sicily, spring is artichoke season! Artichokes pervade every market right now, and you know what that means–there are artichoke…
Tag: festival
Orange You Glad
This weekend in Scillato (Province of Palermo), a medieval village at the foot of the Madonie Mountains, they are celebrating the Sagra dell’Arancia or Orange Festival. It’s the end of *their* orange season–their’s because their altitude makes their citrus season fall later than their neighbors’ down in the “Conca d’oro” of Palermo. The village’s altitude…
Bloom and Song
From February 12-22, 2015 the city of Agrigento celebrates the 70th Sagra del Mandorlo in Fiore (The Festival of the Blooming Almond Trees) and the 60th International Festival of Folklore. The “in Fiore” festival marks that spring is arriving and the almond trees are in bloom, while the folklore festival features performances of not only…
Chestnuts… in an Open Basket
These two figurines from Palermo’s Museo Etnografico Giuseppe Pitrè are carrying traditional baskets filled with foodstuffs. The woman carries eggs, and the man, it’s hard to say. I’m going to venture to guess that perhaps he’s carrying chestnuts or “castagne.” This is the season for harvesting chestnuts–and like the olive festivals also celebrated in November,…
Celebrating Ricotta? Count me in!
October in Sicily is packed with feasts and festivals celebrating local gastronomy. This weekend in Paternò on the southern slopes of Mount Etna, they are celebrating the 2nd annual Festival of Ricotta and Mostarda. Ricotta, pictured here, is a fresh cheese made with either sheep’s milk (most common in Sicily), cow’s milk, or goat’s milk….
It’s a Symbiotic Relationship
In the beginning of October, Ragusa celebrated the 20th annual “Ibla Buskers Festa di Artisti di Strada.” The Baroque city’s piazzas were full of musicians, circus performers, artists, and–probably most important, spectators. The Associazione Culturale Edrisi and ibla Buskers aims to illustrate the symbiotic relationship between performers and audience and the best street art in…