The fireworks are back!
The Jesolo sky lights up with colours, lights and emotions on the most eagerly awaited night ever. On Monday 15 August, at 11 pm, for over thirty minutes you can admire the firework display visible from most of the beach. The focal point of the event will be the sandy shore in front of Piazza Brescia, in the heart of the city, but guests will also be able to watch the Festival from the various resort areas and take photographs to frame, thanks to the reflections of the fireworks on the sea. Many will be the boats that, several miles from the coast, will experience the event from a different and enviable perspective. An event not to be missed, considered a true symbol of the Jesolo summer, which returns after an absence of three years. A watershed of time, as the best tradition dictates, to remind us of the beginning of the period leading up to the end of summer. Access to the beach will be free.
The origins of the festival
The name derives from feriae Augusti (Augustus’s rest) in honour of the 1st Roman emperor who, in 18 BC, instituted the festivities, which in turn were taken from the tradition of the Consualia (festivals dedicated to Conso, god of the earth and fertility) where horses and draught animals were adorned with flowers and ribbons and farmers wished the landowners well and received tips. At the time, Ferragosto was celebrated on the 1st and the celebrations lasted throughout the month. The holiday was later assimilated by the Catholic Church: Christian dogma states that Mary is received body and soul into heaven, and for the Vatican this is on 15 August (the day of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary). From the 1920s, the fascist regime began to organise popular outings to celebrate the feast day: special trains were set up to enable all social classes to visit Italian cities and, since food was not included, the tradition of packed lunches was born.
Celebrations in Italy
On 15 August, all over the “Boot” there is an air of celebration and ancient customs are revived. In Messina, there is the procession of the Vara, the large votive cart dedicated to the Madonna Assunta. On the parvis of San Rocco, in Torrepaduli, all night long pairs of dancers challenge each other in the ‘dance of swords’, attracting harmonica and tambourine players, singers, tourists and the curious. Sassari lights up with the ‘Discesa dei Candelieri’, a long procession in which large wooden candles are carried along the streets to the Church of Bethlehem. In Siena there is the Palio dell’Assunta: ‘palio’ derives from the pallium, a fine cloth cloth used as a prize for the winners of horse races in Ancient Rome.On Lake Como, boats compete in the famous Regata Notturna. Rome comes alive with parties, fireworks, comedy shows and shops open until late. From North to South, Italy explodes with live music and firework displays in squares and on beaches.
