Though Italy is a country steeped in old traditions, the unified Italy that we know today is a relatively young country. In fact, Italy is celebrating their 150 year anniversary this year.
And this Travel Tip Tuesday, I wanted to let you know of some great events happening on the actual anniversary, which is March 17th.
Part of the country-wide celebration includes Notte Bianca, Rossa e Verde (white, red and green night) where most Italian museums in major cities will stay open late on the evening of March 16th, until about 1:00 am the morning of the 17th. And at 7:00 am on March 17th, Italian flags all over Italy will be raised simultaneously as a tribute to the anniversary.
Here is a listing of some other events taking place in Italy’s major cities – Rome, Florence and Turin that day.
Florence
- A special lighting ceremony at the Pitti Palace, designed to showcase the facade of the Palazzo.
- A beautiful red, white and green path, honoring the Italian flag, will be set up from the Piazza Baccaria to the Piazza della Republica – many shops along the route will also be decked out.
- A stage show dedicated to Italian art in the Piazza della Signora.
- Live music and theater pieces in Santa Croce.
- A market near the Duomo, featuring hand-crafted items.
Rome
- An opening ceremony at the Vittorio Emmanuele monument in the Piazza Venezia.
- Memorial ceremony honoring Italy’s first king in the Pantheon, where he is buried.
- Release of white doves and music concert in the Piazza del Popolo.
- Cannon salute (yes, 150 shots!) and a tricolor fireworks display in the park on Gianicolo Hill.
Turin and Piedmont are two other regions that are hosting many other special events for a nine month period – beginning March 17th and running through November. For more information on that, you can visit the website for Esperienza Italia.
You can also visit the main website for the 150 year celebration, which is only in Italian.
Know of any other cool events happening for Italy’s 150 year anniversary? Please tell us about them in the comments!
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Don’t forget to check out Cherrye’s travel tips at My Bella Vita.
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