Closed for August
Italy is closed for the month. Starting around the first weekend in August shops began shuttering their windows and posting signs that said “Closed for vacation.” Most companies shut down for the month so that taking a vacation becomes almost mandatory for workers. TV newscasts and newspapers have been full of reports and headlines about the traffic nightmares as millions of people flee the cities for vacation spots on the coast and in the mountains. One free daily newspaper has even stopped publishing for the month of August. Friends warned us that we would have a hard time finding grocery stores and fruit stands open during August, so we better plan ahead. August 15, or Ferragosto, is the grand-daddy of vacation days. The day has Roman Catholic origins, but now is more a symbol of the August vacation.
The flip-side of all this vacationing is that the less touristy cities become ghost towns, but in a good way. It becomes much more enjoyable to walk down empty streets that are normally too crowded to maneuver through, and you don’t have to wait in line for tables at restaurants (but you do have to make sure they’re open!)
Times are also changing. In the past, absolutely everyone went away for a month of vacation. This year, a newspaper reported that a higher than ever percentage of the population is either taking only one week of vacation or none at all, though this is mainly due to economic reasons. And as for those grocery stores, gone are the days when you had to consult the newspaper to find an open store. Now, most are at least open in the morning.
Not everyone enjoys the leisurely days of August. Beppe Grillo, an Italian political activist/comedian, has some interesting thoughts about the month.
Just as night falls and giant globes of white lights strung up above the streets illuminate the village, the procession for San Fortuno, the patron saint of fisherman, begins. A brass band leads the way up and down the streets around the harbor as thousands of spectators watch the giant sarcophagus for San Fortuno pass by. At the end of the route the heavy float is precariously carried up the stairs to the Church of Santa Maria Assunta. When it reaches the top, the crowd cheers because the float has successfully reached its destination.
A couple hours pass and the crowd fills up on seafood, ice cream, and beer as they wait for the fireworks to begin. Spectators gather along the beachfront promenade where the fireworks will be set off just a few meters away. The fireworks bang and glow directly overhead reflecting colored lights off the tall houses lining the beach. The grand finale is unlike any fireworks display I’ve ever seen. A flaming arrow is shot at the the belltower of the Church of Santa Maria Assunta, which sits at one end of the beach. Sparks and flames shoot out of the belltower from all angles, and it lights a wire connected to a giant wooden cartoon character constructed on the beach below. The flame creeps down the wire, and with a little help from torches on the beach, the construction is engulfed in flames within minutes. The temperature on the promenade rises, and for a few moments it’s almost as bright as day. It doesn’t take long for the construction to burn to the ground, signaling the end evening and time to rest up for the main event tomorrow.
A giant padella, frying pan, has been set up on a stage above the harbor. This frying pan is said to be the largest in the world weighing 2900 kilograms with a diameter of 3.8 meters. The frying pan is filled with hot oil, and smaller baskets of whole fish are dunked and then dished out in paper bowls to the hungry crowd. The feast starts at 10am and lasts until everyone has been fed.
Eventually we made it to the front of the crowd, thanks in most part to the momentum of the people behind us. There was a police officer controlling the flow of traffic at the entrance to the frying pan area. He stepped aside and let a few of us ascend the walkway to the frying pan, where we got a quick look inside, and were handed a still steaming bowl of fish. It was delicious, fresh ans simple with nothing more than the olive oil and a squirt of lemon for seasoning. And imagine this, by the time we finished our fish, the unruly crowd had transformed into an orderly line!
On Sunday the football (soccer) Gods smiled on Genova. With a tie against Napoli Genova’s football team, 
April 25 is a national holiday in Italy called 
All over Italy there are ongoing reminders about World War II. Most cities and towns have a street or piazza called XXV Aprile (25th of April). Buildings damaged during the war echo of the past. In Genova the opera house was destroyed by bombing, and was only properly rebuilt in the 1986. In Parma a section of a palace was damaged and never rebuilt. The jagged edges of what remains of the building stand as a reminder of the war.
I have never seen such a high concentration of vespas and motor scooters as in Genova. To say that motorini make up half the vehicle traffic in Genova might be an exaggeration, but not by much. There are entire lots designated just for motorini where they pack in like sardines with handlebars wedged precariously close to the next bike. Business men and women zip around in their suits; passengers clutch little dogs in their arms; and kids can be seen at any time of day walking around with their helmets. The strangest thing about motorini are the traffic rules, or rather complete lack of traffic restrictions they are subject to. As long as they obey the speed limit and wear a helmet, motorini can pretty much do anything. They creep through traffic at red lights, and by the time a light turns green half a dozen scooters will have assembled ahead of the cars only to zip off the split second the light turns green. It’s common practice for motorini to pass cars at will along windy streets in no passing zones. If you’re standing on the curb at a crosswalk, look out! It’s entirely likey a motorini may use that as an entrance to hop onto the sidewalk to park.