Festival of Culatello
Zibello
Streets of the village
First weekend of June
gastronomic event celebrating culatello.
www.stradadelculatello.it
Saint Johns Night
Parma and surrounding villages
Night of June 23rd
Open air dinners of tortelli outside restaurants or local village festival for hundreds.
Solstice celebrations still center around the day of the astronomical summer solstice. Some choose to hold the rite on the 21st of June, even when this is not the longest day of the year, and some celebrate June 24th, the day of the solstice in Roman times.
Although Midsummer is originally a pagan holiday, in Christianity it is associated with the nativity of John the Baptist, which is observed on the same day, June 24, in the Catholic, Orthodox and some Protestant churches. It is six months before Christmas because Luke 1:26 and Luke 1.36 imply that John the Baptist was born six months earlier than Jesus, although the Bible does not say at which time of the year this happened.
The celebration of Midsummer’s Eve was from ancient times linked to the summer solstice. People believed that mid-summer plants, especially Calendula had miraculous healing powers and they therefore picked them on this night. Bonfires were lit to protect against evil spirits which were believed to roam freely when the sun was turning southwards again. In later years, witches were also thought to be on their way to meetings with other powerful beings, though this is not the case today
The feast of Saint John the Baptist has been celebrated in Florence from medieval times, certainly in the Renaissance, with festivals sometimes lasting the three days from 21 to 24 June.
This happens nowadays also in Cesena with a special street market and celebration that last from June 21 to 24. Saint John the Baptist is the patron saint of Genoa, Florence and Turin where a fireworks display takes place at the celebration on the river. In Turin Saint John’s cult is also diffused since medieval times when the city stops to work for two days and people from the surroundings comes to dance around the bonfire in the central square.
Ricordanze di sapori: dinners in the castles
Rubeo Convivio
Rocca dei Rossi of San Secondo
Waiting for the dew
Castle of Roccabianca
the seats available for each night are limited, a reservation is required. It is possible to book by calling the Association or directly on the website www.castellidelducato.it.