Colors of Livorno - traditions, festivals, mentality and lifestyle

Livorno is an incredibly beautiful city with a rich history and traditions that are embodied in the life of its present inhabitants. Every year, the city hosts dozens of interesting holidays, including very beautiful religious celebrations, enchanting carnivals, and fascinating gastronomic festivals. One of the main historical symbols of Livorno is the ancient Fortezza Vecchia, in which wonderful holidays are held one after another during the summer.

The fortress turns into a huge cultural center where theater performances, music concerts, and historical reenactments are organized every day. Of particular interest are cabaret performances, for which special open grounds are equipped in the castle. One of the most interesting summer festivals is the Effetto Venezia taking place n the picturesque district of La Venezia. This area is notable for its ancient channels, so it is often referred to as "Little Venice".

Concert and gastronomic venues are set up along these canals for festival days. Life does not freeze here literally for a minute. Artists organize interesting performances under the open sky, while exhibitions and masterclasses are held in local art galleries. Festival guests will enjoy incendiary open-air concerts. Gastronomic programs are another integral part of the festival. Local restaurants set tables on the banks of the canals inviting their guests to try the best specialties. All the entertainment keeps on going on the streets until midnight. Local museums and galleries take an active part in the festival. Copyright www.orangesmile.com

Connoisseurs of modern art would be happy to visit Livorno in August when the annual Premio Rotonda festival is held here. In the first years of the festival, only Italian artists and photographers took part in it. Today, foreign artists join the event as well. Some of the most fascinating for tourists are annual gastronomic festivals taking place in Livorno almost every season.

Some of them may seem quite funny to foreign guests. For example, in the spring, they hold a thematic beans festival called La Sagra del Baccello. Beans are a very important component of traditional cooking for locals. A beautiful celebration on the occasion of legume harvesting originated here back in the Middle Ages. Such a cute tradition has survived to the present day. During the festival, guests are invited to try popular regional dishes, the key component of which is beans.

In the autumn, the thematic mushroom festival La Sagra del Fungo takes up the baton. Tuscany is rich in lush forests where locals pick up rare and incredibly delicious mushrooms. With the onset of autumn, tourists are offered original activities such as truffle hunting. Locals use specially trained dogs to search for the most expensive mushrooms in the world. Festival guests will have the opportunity to stroll through the most beautiful Tuscan forests and try some specialty mushroom dishes prepared by native chefs.

La Festa dell'Uva, the grape harvest festival, is also held in autumn. This one offers guests a very rich program, they can walk through the picturesque Tuscan vineyards and taste the best young wines. All Livorno's gastronomic festivals without exception are accompanied by lush public festivities. Bright carnivals and solemn processions pass through the central streets where traditional music concerts are organized and entertainers perform for the audience. A mandatory attribute of gastronomic holidays is traditional fairs where you can buy not only the freshest products but also try ready-made dishes.

It's a good idea to travel to Livorno on Easter, as traditions of religious holidays are no less special here. It is customary to celebrate Christmas with the family, while Easter is typically spent away from home. Locals go camping, visit friends, and even go on vacation for the period of Easter holidays. The city's main Easter symbol is a special type of Easter cake called “Schiacciata di Pasqua”, which has been baked according to the unchanged recipe for hundreds of years. Anise and candied fruit are necessarily added to the cake's dough so the taste turns out to be very rich. Livorno is also known as a major sailing center. International sailing competitions and regattas are held here every year in the summer, which also attracts many foreign tourists.