Sicilian Carnevale 2024

 

This has been our first year to experience Carnevale in Sicily. It has been fun and interesting, and we've learned a lot about this holiday season both in Italy and other countries. Growing up in Detroit (and I think this applies to almost everywhere in the U.S., with the exception of New Orleans), Carnival celebration was limited to Fat Tuesday. In fact, I don't remember ever calling this season Carnival. With there being many Polish and Italian immigrants (primarily Catholic), the focus seemed to be on the foods of Fat Tuesday in anticipation of the Lent period during which many Catholics forgo sweets. 

John doesn't remember having special Italian foods for Fat Tuesday, but we both remember eating, pączki, a traditional Polish doughnut. They were typically filled with jam, but might also have lemon or custard, and they were either glazed or covered in powder sugar. Pączki were like a high-level jelly doughnut, as the dough was not the same as a typical doughnut. 

If you want to learn all about these super-delicious treats, here's a fun video.

When we moved to south Georgia, I missed the Fat Tuesday pączki. However, when we transferred to Atlanta, I was sometimes able to find them at Publix. They were good, but not the same as the OG in Detroit. 

Publix pączki. It was a challenge to find the glazed instead of the powdered sugar, which I do not care for. But, Publix for the win!

When we lived in Georgia, so close to New Orleans, I learned about King Cake. This is a traditional Mardi Gras multi-colored desert served during the Carnival season, and it has a surprise inside - a baby! You can learn about the baby, and the history of this cake here. (Publix also sold these.)

Are you a pączki or a king cake? Or something else ...

Later in life, as I explored my English heritage and developed friendships with English people, I learned about Pancake Day, or Shrove Tuesday. It's a feast day basically equivalent to Fat Tuesday. I've never had the opportunity to experience Pancake Day, but looking at photos, the pancakes seem a bit more like a crepe than what we call pancakes in the U.S. 

Looks delicious! Learn more about Pancake Day here. 

Italy, too, has special foods for Carnevale. We've had the chance to sample some that we found here in Sicily's Messina province. It was a huge sacrifice for the good of the blog. 😁

The most popular treat I've seen is the chiacchiere. They started showing up around February 1. Chiacchiere are puffy pastry dough, fried, and then covered with toppings. Around here, they have all had chocolate - that's the way, bring it on! In the header picture, the chiacchiere are on the right. Here are those from our local bar:

Chiacchiera and raviolo, which was filled with pistacchio crema. Yum! For those who like language: Chiacchiere is a verb in Italian that means to talk or chatter, small talk.

Chiacchiera and pignolata. This was my favorite chiacchiere of those we tried. It was covered in white chocolate and inside was something like frosting. Decadent! I started calling it the Sicilian pop-tart. You can see I had it more than once, LOL!

John was excited to see pignolata on the sign at the bar, because his grandmother Maria Milano Impellizzeri used to make this. However, being a different region, the pignolata here was not the same. It was still tasty, but did not have the special childhood taste. (We were able to sample the pignolata of his childhood when we visited Maria's hometown in 2022.) We also found a regional variation here where the pignolata is covered in chocolate. I resisted! Maybe next year.

Another special dish was Maccheroni al sugo di maiale, which our local specialty butcher had available on Fat Tuesday and Fat Thursday (the one previous to Ash Wednesday). What?! Fat Thursday?

This was beyond delicious. The little rolls in the front were a treat from the chef Cristian. He called it 'meat sushi,' LOL. We're so lucky to have this shop in our neighborhood! Cristian always has delicious prepared foods on offer.

After Lent, our friend Grazia said that the local bar had a special treat, called maritozzo, that we should try. Her grandson loves them. This one is a brioche type pastry filled with cream. It was very light. I was surprised to see another new treat after Lent, but when I researched it, I understood why. Learn more here.

This one also has an interesting language connection. Marito means husband in Italian. More on that in the link above.

But back to Fat Thursday ... Yes, there is also a Fat Thursday! In my research (inquiring minds want to know) I also learned that the pączki in Poland are typically eaten on Fat Thursday, not Fat Tuesday. The U.S. really needs to step up its Carnival game. Who knew all these other places were having fun, extended celebrations?!

In our town, there was a party in the square for kids. They were in costumes, enjoying music, and throwing confetti. Lots of confetti!

On Saturday, there was another similar event. Why? I don't know. 😂😂😂

This little train that the kids were getting rides in was cute. Harry Potter and the Money Heist costumes were very popular, as well as princesses. The police officer on duty was the same one who did our residency checks. Small town living!

More confetti! John and I think we have figured out the secret of Italian bureaucracy paperwork - all the documents and photocopies - they need it for making confetti for Carnevale!

In January I discovered that our local travel agency does some day trips around Sicily, and there was one scheduled to visited the town of Acireale for their big Carnevale celebration. So, we signed up, and our friend Corinne (who lives part-time in a nearby town - and just had her Italian citizenship recognized - yay, Corinne!) decided to join us. 

Acireale is in Catania province, and is about a 2.5 hour drive away. 

Acireale's Carnevale celebration is old and famous, so we were looking forward to the chance to see the parade of 'carts' (floats) for which they are known. Unfortunately, Mother Nature did not cooperate. There was intermittent rain and some wind, which meant the carts were delayed in coming out and making their circuit (and several musical events were canceled). However, we were all making the best of it. We enjoyed seeing people in costumes, celebrating, dancing and enjoying themselves. There was a lot of confetti - surprise! - and also Silly String. I haven't seen that in ages. We also enjoyed visiting a city we haven't seen before.

Corinne and I are ready for the celebrations with our biscotti masks.

On the Streets 

Silly String! Those ragazze were covered! 

Creative!

Some random shots around Acireale.

By the time the weather finally cleared, it was almost time for us to return to our bus to head back home, but we did get to see one cart go through its full display. This was not exactly what I was expecting. The carts are very intricate, with mechanical moving parts. In the procession, the cart moved slowly down the street, then stopped in front of the main plaza, where we were at. The cart went through a 'show' of the various moving parts, and someone was providing commentary on it. 

In the program they were described as allegorical, so I think each one tells a story. The one we saw was labeled Space X on the front. In the middle was Albert Einstein. I understood the connection there. However, at one point, a bearded figure of olden times ascended from within the cart. I wasn't sure what he represented. Maybe a god? 

The cart with Einstein and the mystery man extended.

When I saw this, I wasn't super disappointed about missing the other carts. It wasn't particularly interesting to me to watch the mechanical parts moving accompanied by commentary, although I could certainly appreciate the craftsmanship and beauty of the carts. I guess I was expecting something more like a parade with floats and bands, etc. 

A few days later I saw these photos from Augusta's Carnevale celebration taken by John's cousin Salvatore, as well as this video sent by friend Domenico (I love the music and am really curious about the money costumes!). This celebration seemed more like what I was expecting. Maybe next year we will go hang out in Augusta for Carnevale?

Thank you, cousin Salvo, for letting me use your photos!

That's about it for my Carnevale update. I'd like to hear about your own Carnival customs and celebrations in the comments.

What else have we been up to since the last update? Most of our time is still being taken up with getting settled tasks / setting up residency. We set up an Italian bank account and learned how to use Wise money transfer service. (We have a potential for an apartment to purchase, but I'll share more on that when I'm certain.) 

John applied for his Social Security (how can we be that age already?!), and we're learning how to navigate the health care system. It's a little confusing and challenging with the language barriers, but we are very grateful for the awesome socialized medical care here. John has a great primary care doctor, who has a wonderful, helpful assistant. John's residency process is complete, and he has received his identity and health care cards!

John got a fancy Italian shirt for his 64th birthday. Cards, yay!

As for me, I'm still 'in process,' but have completed more steps. I was able to secure my Codice Fiscale (sort of like a social security number, for our American friends). This allowed me to submit paperwork for residency in Capo D'Orlando. I had my police visit and am waiting for my residency letter. After receiving that, I can apply for my identity and health care cards. As for my 'visa' that will allow freedom of movement in and out of Italy without timing restrictions, it is still being processed. 

Off to another town, Sant'Agata di Militello, for the Codice Fiscale. I have a big smile because our previous experience at that office was stressful and frustrating, and this time it was easy. It also has a nice scenic bus ride (the learning of schedules and stops another item conquered).

I'll be glad when this one is completed. At least there's a website to track the progress!

And, we helped make soap!

It went from this ...

... after lots of stirring ...

... to this ...

... and finally to this!