Archive for July, 2009
Battaglia dei Fiori
In Ventimiglia, once every two years a pretty amazing festival is held: La Battaglia dei Fiori or in english, the Battle of Flowers. This festival is an celebration of the Spring where the communities that make up Ventimiglia compete to create the best most extravgant float to be judged during a parade. These floats are made almost entirely out of flowers. One person told me there can be as many as 80,000 flowers on a float, but from the looks of them I would guess more.
The floats parade around the town on two days. The first is a night parade, with dancing, music and food. Everything culminates in a fireworks spectacular while the floats are repaired and touched up ready for the following day. The daytime parade is where the meat of the competition happens. Float girls climb aboard their communities entries, bands fire up, dancers and entertainers pour out onto the street. I have never felt such a happy, excited crowd. The parade loops around the town two or three times, at which point everyone in the parade starts showering the crowd in flowers. Hundreds and hundreds of flowers. With this the parade degenerates into a massive flurry of thrown flowers with the audience getting in on the game and having a good time.
The day was a caccophony of music, fragrance and colour and I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face. I particularly liked the Pink Floyd float. A fairly fitting way to end my last day in this wonderful town.
Enjoy the (rather large) gallery, and there’s even a bit of fan service in there, just for Kym. The day photos were taken from a rather precarious position on a fence, from which my relative who was one of the float girls almost knocked me off with a well pitched flower. The flower battle starts on page three and the day time parade on two.
Ventimiglia
My visit to Ventimiglia started with the first ever photo of me in all my gear, and ended with a new understanding of my family and our history.
Arriving on the train from Nice (I haven’t written anything about my time in Nice mainly coz I don’t have time) I stepped onto the platform to be welcomed by my Granddad, Toto and my Mum. From that moment each day was a lesson in eating, meeting members of the family and struggling with Italian.
Much of my mum’s side of the family lives in this area of Liguria, which is only 7km’s from the French/Italian border. The City contains around 30,000 people, split down the middle by a river and is very popular with tourists wandering along the French riveria.
The city very beautiful. Portions are very old, and worked into the hills and cliffsides while modern buildings appear occasionally. Being reasonably small and dense the city retains a bit of a small town feel with everyone knowing each other and walking through the streets you can hear shouts of Ciao between the inhabitants constantly.
Moving out of the city center you can find beautiful old suburbs such as where some of my relatives lived, perched high in the mountains that surround the town.
The appearance of three intruders from Australia was quite an event. Every meal we were offered were huge and every minute of my 2 and half weeks in Ventimiglia was planned and crafted to meet someone or see something new. I ventured into mountain towns, scootered to hidden beaches, ate dinner and swam perched in a mountain cottage. I wandered markets and watched the sunset across the pebbly shore. I made new friends and loved every minute of my time in this small town. It was the true Italy, and I can’t wait to go back.
Monaco
The French riviera is home to some of the richest people in Europe and the most elite of those live in Monaco. Apart from being the 2nd smallest country in the world Monaco is also a money haven, operating with zero personal income tax. It has its own Monarchy, headed by Prince Albert II. The amount of money getting splashed around here though is ludicrous. Massive yachts line the harbour with topiary gardens adorning their decks. Caviar features on menus at 350 euro a pop. Shorts, in particular the pair I was wandering the streets in, retail for 100euro, making the $30aus (~15euro) I paid for them seem a bargin! To live in Monanco one is required to “apply” for residency. The application carries a non-refundable fee of $1,000,000 if the application is accepted or not.
Monaco also plays host to the Monaco Grandprix, a car race that closes the streets. I didn’t manage to time my trip to be in Monaco for the race, but evidence of the event was still present. Bollards were still being removed grandstands still loomed and skidmarks on corners stood in harsh relief on the bitumen.
At night Monaco transforms. Buildings light up and terraces fill with socialites enjoying the scene. The Casino comes alive and festivals dot the calendar.
All in all Monaco is a wonderful place, especially if you have a little walking around cash you don’t mind parting with. Just a quick tip to Australia’s: wear all the Billabong, Ripcurl, Roxy and Quicksilver you can. They run PREMIUM prices in Monaco, making those pair of shorts you bought on special at 15 bucks look like their worth a million dollars. I had a great time in Monaco, heading there a total of three times, once with some busabout friends, once with Mum and Nonno, and finally at night with a few of the relo’s.
Oh, and if you’re wondering… yup: that’s my Ferrari f430. Trust me.