Italy Events and Festivals

2/01/2010 - 3/28/2010Viareggio Carnival

The February Carnival in this 19th-century seaside resort is famed for its exuberance and colour. Parades of floats (known as 'carri') pass through the streets, many of them supporting huge caricatures of celebrities and politicians made of papier mache and weighing up to 40 tonnes. Merrymaking, revelry, feasting and public festivity are the hallmarks of carnival. The parades take place each Sunday, usually beginning on the second Sunday in February and there is a fifth parade on Shrove Tuesday. Each year has a theme and a programme of events such as musical comedies, children's amusements and special carnival menus in local restaurants.