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Go wild with the Florentines and the rest of the world It's Carnival time again
[Susan Glasspool]
Florence has enthusiastically revived its ancient carnival traditions in recent years and created a new event that involves both the locals as well as visitors to the city. A wonderful exotic parade is now organised by the City Quarters and all the new foreign communities in the city. An intelligent way of bringing people together and encouraging them to forget racial and religious differences by uniting them in a lively, joyful and universal event. Naturally anyone can join in (and the weirder the costume the better)!
Centuries ago Florence celebrated Carnival with splendid festivities that probably derived from the Roman Saturnali which originated with the celebrations of Dionysius in ancient Greece. The King of the Saturnali, the focal point in the procession through the city streets, was gradually transformed into the straw and grass adorned King of Carnival, and later into an allegorical float decorated with fantastic elements in papier-maché, often created by famous artists.
Over the centuries Carnival became a major event with splendid masked balls, parades and especially theatrical performances, until it became a yearly attraction in Florence. Practical jokes were even then part of the fun, while the last day of Carnival ended with the burning of the so-called Carnival dummy and firework displays along the banks of the Arno. The most famous Carnival figure in Florence was Stenterello, a crafty, quick-witted and brightly-clad figure whose humour perfectly reflected that of the Florentines.
Traditional Carnival events take off in Florence in the last days of the festivities with parades and other events in the city Quarters, many specifically for children. Most of these initiatives will be held on February 25th.
Why not join in the great parade which departs from Piazza Ognissanti on February 26th (at around 2.30pm), moves along the banks of the Arno as far as Via Tornabuoni, where it heads towards Piazza Duomo and then back to reach Piazza della Signoria by about 4.15pm., where it is welcomed by the various ethnic communities. Headed by the traditional Florentine Republic in costume, this fantastic parade includes - just to give you an idea of its size - groups from Mexico, Perù, Senegal, the Ivory Coast, Brazil, Sweden, Columbia, Albania, Bangladesh, the USA and Germany, plus the typical Florentine horses and carriages and more besides. So get organised! Hire or make a costume and join in the fun on February 26th!
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