Florence on fire?! Nope. It’s just Easter.
It’s almost Easter! Hands down my favorite holiday after Christmas. I mean, some huge bunny hides chocolate for me? Who comes up with this stuff? AMAZING. So, in honor of this holiday I thought I would write a little something about Easter in Italy, which is really quite different.
There is chocolate, yes. It does come in an egg form, of course.
But, there is something so much better in addition. There is a 500 hundred year-old cart…ON FIRE!!!!
Read on.
EXPLODING CART!!!
Easter, according to the bible, is the day on which Christ rose from the dead, otherwise known as his Resurrection. If this is at all foggy to you (it can be so confusing!), let’s review. Christ is captured and sentenced to death. He is crucified on what is called Good Friday. He is then buried and is, for all intents and purposes, dead for three days. On the third day, the Sunday morning after Good Friday, he is resurrected.
The Jewish holiday of Passover falls at the same time as Easter, as they are symbolically linked through the bible. Jesus was eating Passover dinner – also known as the Last Supper- with the apostles, right before he was captured.
Now, what hidden chocolate eggs and huge bunnies have to do with the above-described biblical events is anybody’s guess. Whereas, lighting a huge antique cart on fire using a flaming dove as the spark and enjoying the ensuing fireworks display makes COMPLETE sense in light of the events surrounding a holiday celebrating Jesus’ resurrection. Am I right? You think I’m kidding? Here is what our friends at Wiki say:
“In Florence, Italy, the unique custom of the Scoppio del Carro is observed in which a holy fire lit from stone shards from the Holy Sepulchre are used to light a fire during the singing of the Gloria of the Easter Sunday mass, which is used to ignite a rocket in the form of a dove, representing peace and the holy spirit, which following a wire in turn lights a cart containing pyrotechnics in the small square before the Cathedral.”
(Don’t believe me? Check here.)
Ok ok. Sheesh. We’ll explain! Continue Reading…
So, you’re going to Italy to study abroad. It’s a dream come true. You can’t wait to leave. You’re also a little overwhelmed about what you need to do before you leave and what to expect when you finally arrive.
I loved lazy days where I did my loop around Florence to stop by all my favorite little shops and oggle the beautiful new items. Those days were even better when there was something I actually had in mind that I “needed” and could go from just some sad American drooling at the window to an actual self-respecting shopper. For example the day I decided I “needed” a leather bag to wear on my bike in case the basket was full of groceries. Or when it occurred to me that I “needed” a new dress to wear to an event because the others I had were simply not suitable. And obviously, i “needed” a coral necklace to wear for good luck, you know, just general, all-around good luck. I mean, we’re talking life and death, people!
