Iacopone da Todi was a monk and a prominent poet of the 13th century, a great era for art and literature in Umbria.  Todi, Iacopone’s birthplace and one of the most evocative medieval towns in Italy, now dedicates an entire exhibition to its most famous son. The exhibition is divided in two sections: in the first the visitor can follow the poetic and spiritual progression of Iacopone through rare manuscripts, documents, and images of the monk like the one on Paolo Uccello’s fragment of fresco etc. The second section presents works of art, paintings, sculptures and silversmith of the 12th and 13th century that allow the visitor to follow the extraordinary development of different forms of art in the Middle Ages.

The Scoppio del Carro - Florence

In Florence on Easter Day one of the city’s most atmospheric ceremonies, attended by thousand of people, takes place in front of Florence Cathedral, the Scoppio del Carro, the “Explosion of the Cart”. It is not precisely known when the cart, the Brindellone to the Florentines, was first introduced, but it is known that originally it contained a large tub of flaming firebrands which were distributed to worshippers gathered in front of the Cathedral.  The explosion, “scoppio” takes place at twelve o’ clock precisely, following a ceremony that begins several hours earlier in the Church of SS Apostoli.

Tosca, the famous opera by Puccini can now be enjoyed in “pocket-size” format. The most important arias and scenes are condensed in a 75 minutes performance at the Teatro Flaiano. A novelty aimed to stimulate appreciation of opera for all, newcomers, lovers of the most famous arias and children. Rossana Siclari directs a performance featuring young singers from various music conservatories and the Orchestra della Piccola Lirica.

This unusual festival was established in 1981 and the competition takes place on the beaches of the lovely seaside resort of Cervia in Romagna. Furthermore there will be stands showing how the kites are made, concerts and kite flying shows in the night in a wonderful spectacle between sky and sea. This is an international festival where artists coming from all over the world can express their creativity in creating colourful and original kites.

The “Vogalonga” is a 30Km non-competitive rowing race in which hundreds of boats of every shape and form, together with hundreds of Venetian and foreign rowers take part. This day of festivity, completely devoted to rowing, makes it possible for Venice and the lagoon to be rediscovered along the race’s singular course. The first edition of the Vogalonga originated in 1974 to find a solution to the ever worsening situation of the lagoon due to noisy boats with outboard motors. 500 old Venetian boats thus gathered following the same route as today’s Vogalonga. Over 1700 boats and 5000 rowers with crews from all over the world.

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