° Andrea Bocelli in concert - Teatro del Silenzio-Lajatico-Pisa-Tuscany - Saturday 18th July 2009

° Cantine aperte - “Festival of the Wine Farms” - Sunday 31st May 2009

° Palio di Siena - July 2nd and August 16th
It’s much more than just a horse race!

The Palio di Siena is the most famous and magnificent horse race held twice in every year. The participating horses and their jockeys represent a Contrada and also wear the colors and designs of it. A spectacular procession precedes the race and this attracts visitors from all over the world. The central piazza of the town was the Siena is essentially a medieval city. On July 2nd and August 16th every year, the city becomes alive with action and enthusiasm, and gets ready for one of the most famous and welcome folk festival, the Il Palio. The highlight of the folk festival is the horse race Palio de Siena that encaptures the entire city itself. It is a historic horse race that takes almost every year and takes a year for the 17 Contrade of Siena to complete their preparations for it. The 17 Contrade of Siena form the backbone of the Il Palio. The celebrations of the day are dedicated to Virgin Mary. The race field consists of ten horses which mean that only 10 of the 17 Contrade can participate in the race. The seven that does participate get to it the next time. The other three will be randomly chosen. The horses to run the race will be chosen by means of a draw. They will have six trials before the actual race. Prayers and offerings go along for the winning of each Contrada. These days there are bribing also. There is a spectacular pageant in medieval costumes just before the race. The loud echoes of explosives signal the onlookers the beginning of the race. Nine jockeys ride on the bare backs of their horses. The tenth horse stands behind them. The racers can use whips for their horse and worry other horses also. The winner is supposed to be that horse that crosses the finishing line with its head ornament in its place. And the loser is the one that finishes second and not last! The winner gets a beautiful banner in silk made especially for the particular year. The victory is often celebrated for months together. The losers would also have to bear the bullying by the winning team too.

La giostra del Saracino Arezzo –Tuscany

Tuscany draws you with an irresistible air to Arezzo transforming a land into a theater filled with a lifestyle of tradition, culture and cuisine. Arezzo which is about 80 kilometers from Florence hosts the Giostra del Saracino or the joust held at the Piazza Grande. This medieval festival displays facets of its old world charm, its famous history, tradition and its tasteful cuisine.
Held on the first Sunday in September, the procession of La Giostra del Saracino winds its way right down to the Piazza Grande. Originating from the ancient Crusades, this Saracen joust began in the Middle Ages. The Christian Crusaders battled with the Islamic tribes or the Moors of the North African Arabs in an attempt to drive them out of Europe. This Baroque joust started between the 15th and the 16th centuries and gained popularity. But during the 18th century, the royal air that surrounded it declined and lost its notoriety. A brief spell of fame enveloped this game during the Romantic period. With a culture of tradition, the Giostra del Saracino was re-established as a historic event in 1931 with its original 14th century ambience. With the spirit of competition and joy, the joust also takes place when dignitaries and princes visit the city and during important functions, carnivals and weddings.

Torre del Lago-Lucca 55° Puccini Festival

Take one look at the landscape from the banks of Lake Massaciuccoli in the city of Torre del Lago, Tuscany and it is easy to understand Giacomo Puccini’s inspiration for his operas. The great Italian composer, Puccini, once wrote to his friend Forzano, “I always come out here and take a boat to go and shoot snipes … but once I would like to come here and listen to one of my operas in the open air.” Forzano brought alive his friend’s wishes in 1930 when he organized the first Puccini festival celebrating not only Puccini’s operas but also the beautiful landscape that inspired Puccini.
The open-air theatre, which hosts about 40,000 opera lovers every year, has the Massaciuccoli Lake in its background, presenting an unforgettable experience to Puccini fans, opera lovers and visitors alike. The incomparable natural scenery, the stage designed by among the most reputed designers, painters and sculptors in the world and Puccini’s music together paint fantastic images in the mind of the viewer.
The festival attracts among the biggest names in world opera. Tito Gobbi, Mario del Monaco, Luciano Pavarotti, Giuseppe Di Stefano, Placido Domingo, Josè Cura among other reputed names have performed here. The highlight of the festival is the attention to details invested on it. Each set, costume, opera, ballet and the colors resonate with the Puccinian spirit. The Puccini Prize, an award instituted in 1971, is a statuette resembling Puccini and handed out on the death anniversary of the composer on November 29th.
The Puccini festival invites worldwide attention attracting diverse artists. Some of the previous set designers have included the Japanese sculptor Kan Yasuda for Madama Butterfly, the Belgian painter and sculptor Jean-Michel Folon for La Boheme and Igor Mitoraj for Manon Lescaut.www.puccinifestival.it