On any trip to Italy, it's a good idea to keep your eyes open for signs and posters advertising
a "festa" or "sagra" -- these local festivals take place all over Italy between late Spring and
late Autumn, and they provide visitors with a great chance to participate in community events that are still relatively free of large groups of tourists. A couple of years ago, on our last evening in
Florence, our friend Monique crammed us into her Fiat and took us for a short drive, just a few minutes away from the city. The place was Chiesanuova, the time was mid-June, and the celebration was the Sagra di'Pinolo -- the Pine Nut festival. Monique explained to us that these local fairs are usually supported by the Church, sometimes with assistance from various political organizations. We weren't quite sure what to expect from the evening, but we were glad of the rare opportunity to be in a place where we were the only tourists, having spent the past few weeks traipsing around tourist attractions in various countries.
We parked in a haphazard gravel lot, cramming the car in next to a stone wall, beyond which we could see olive trees, with the occasional cypress spiking skywards. On the other side of the lot was the community hall and courtyard where the food was being served, as well as a series of booths selling wines, pastries, and other treats. On the playing field beyond, a rough stage was set up for the band that would perform later in the evening. Accompanied by a group of Monique's Florentine friends, including a large Collie/Shepherd mix by the name of Duchess, we headed for the food.
We seated ourselves at long trestle tables covered with paper cloths -- practical rather than
exotic, but they added to the laid-back atmosphere. Our servers were elderly women wearing black, who recited the menu rapidly and without fanfare. Monique translated for us, and before long, the food started to appear, starting with two kinds of
crostini,
baskets of thickly sliced, unsalted Pane Toscano, and a
Panzanella
salad, containing meaty chunks of fresh tomatoes, fresh basil, and roughly cubed bread. We drank fizzy mineral water, and red wine that arrived in a large carafe -- I don't know what it was, but it was good.
Funnily enough, although this festival was supposedly connected with pine nuts, we didn't see any on the menu. We weren't complaining, though -- the fish was moist and fresh, the
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