Festival – JACKMAN ESCAPADES

Salamanca – A Major University Town

Off To Salamanca …
Salamanca is located about 200km due west of Madrid, 2 1/2 hours by train and has one of the oldest Universities in Spain. University starts back from the summer break mid September so our train was full of young people heading to Salamanca for their first semester.

The landscape from the train, typical for the entire journey

Surprise, Surprise – Another Festival …
Our train arrived on time and we caught the local bus to Plaza Mayor where our hotel was located. We didn’t realize until we reached our hotel that a big festival had just begun and was running for the following week. The town was alive with people enjoying the party style atmosphere. There was entertainment around each corner with lots of taverns serving food and drinks at very cheap prices all day long.

One of the many taverns around the old town set up for the festival

About The Festival
After a walk around the old town we visited the tourist information office to get a program for the festival called the “La Virgen de la Vega”, (The Virgin of the Valley) The festival is important to the locals because she was the patron saint that assisted in defending the city from invading enemy troops during the Spanish War of Succession in 1706. The festival which goes for a week has the widest range of entertainment and cultural events you could imagine and it was a great time to be in Salamanca.

Entertainment at one of the taverns

Our First (And Only) Bullfight
Part of the festival was the traditional art of bullfighting. Yes, it is considered an art not a sport in Spain, and it is something we consider you should see only once. A bullfight consists of six bulls & three matadors with each matador being accompanied by two assistants. In a little over two hours the matadors each kill two bulls or “toros” as they are known in Spain.

Matadors assistant testing the agression of the bull

Following the killing of the bull the crowd reacts depending on how they judge the spectacle. In our case, one of the matadors received a great deal of cheering and was awarded the ears of the bull as a prize. He then paraded around the arena showing off his prize to the cheers of the crowd.

Matador just after he has stabbed the bull with his sword

Bullfighting is an amazing specatacle with a lot of crowd participation. It has deep cultural roots in Spain hence the reason for its survival. It is something we are glad we witnessed, but would not ever consider going again because of the cruelty. What is interesting though is that following the killing, the bull is butchered and the meat sold to high class restaurants, so if you have had a nice steak in Spain, chances are you were a participant in the end result of a bullfight.

Bull being removed after the kill

Some Light Relief – A Concert …
We caught a bus back from the bullfight, enjoyed a meal at one of the taverns and then went to Plaza Mayor (pronounced may-or) to find a fantastic concert was in full swing featuring two Spanish groups; “Folk On Crest” and “La Banda del Soplo”. They played until midnight to a crowd of many thousands in the Plaza. A fantastic atmosphere and a great start to our time in Salamanca.

Concert in full swing at Plaza Mayor

A Medieval Market
Part of the festival was a medieval market selling all sorts of jewelery, soaps, food stuffs and toys with all the store holders dressed in medieval costumes. There were around 50 stallholders including a couple of very unique medieval taverns selling a wide range of typical local food. The market was complete with wandering minstrals and it made you really feel you were back in medieval times.

A stall holder at the medieval market

Entertainment and Taverns Everywhere …
Following our visit to the medieval market we walked the town. Everywhere we looked there was entertainment and taverns including another concert in the Plaza. During our time in Salamanca, we attended all three night time concerts and enjoyed the variety of entertainment.

Street entertainers at one of the many taverns

A Festival Full Of Suprises …
Sunday was a big day for the festival with processions through the town, an historic folk concert in the Plaza, and to our total surprise and half way through the folk concert, about 200 motor bikes all revving their engines and with a police escort, ride into the Plaza. All this going on whilst the folk concert was in full swing. Talk about contrast. The bikies parked their bikes and proceeded to watch the concert until it finished then departed the Plaza.

Folk concert in full swing

Motor bikes on display in the Plaza Mayor

A Sad Farewell …
It was with some reluctance that we departed Salamanca. It is a beautiful city, the young people are all happy and smiling having a great time before uni starts and we did not see one instance of drunkeness or bad behaviour in our three days. In fact, in our three weeks so far in Spain, we have not seen anything that has given us any concerns.

Crowd enjoying a comedy concert in one of the Plazas

WARNING-VIDEO CONTAINS BULLFIGHTING
If you will be offended don’t watch. We do not condone this artform.

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Location:Salamanca, Spain

Our Final Few Days In Montone

What A Week …
This really has been an amazing week and one that will go down as a lifetime experience. The festival, interaction with friends and the Montone community as well as the food and wines have all been highlights. We learnt very early in the week that to survive you needed to have the afternoon siesta just like the locals as the piazza is still alive and buzzing at 2:00 AM.

Further Afield …
On Thursday we decided to venture out of the village and return to two of our favourite places in Umbria. The village of Corciano and Castiglione del Largo. If you are travelling in Umbria then these are two places that should not be missed.

Corciano
Corciano is a mountain top village similar to Montone. It is a beautifully preserved village similar to Montone but much quieter. In 1416 the condottiero Braccio Fortebraccio of Montone laid siege on Corciano so there is some history between the two villages. Above and below this text are photos from Corciano.

Castiglione del Largo
Situated on Lake Tresimeno this is another fortified village but unlike Corciano it has catered well for tourists with restuarants, shops and great views over the lake. We stayed their back in about 1998 and have returned many times since.

There are a number of alimentari (delicatessens) that sell local produce such as herbs & spices, sausages and preserved meats, local wines and a host of other goods. Each store has samples for tasting and some will make you up an antipasta plate for lunch with a local glass of wine.

A Truffle Experience …
On Thursday night we were lucky enough to be invited to a local farm to go truffle hunting. A truffle is part of the mushroom family and the black truffles that we were collecting grow about 10 cm below the surface and are located by a dog that has been addicted to the smell of the truffle. Black truffles sell for around €1000/kg in markets.

We were then given a tour of the farm to inspect Sergio’s (the owner) wine making facility and meat curing. Very interesting.

Dinner Followed …
Following the truffle hunt we enjoyed dinner at the farm sampling farm grown and local produce, wines and of course truffles. Another unique experience.

Porta del Borgo Historical Play …
Set in the courtyard of the Church of Saint Francis this medieval play was a highlight for us and I have included in the video below some excerpts.

We Need A Quiet Day …
Friday was a quiet day with a quick trip to Citta de Castello for some shopping and then lunch with our friend Carlo along with Luke and Allison, Bevan and Jill. We had dinner at Bevan and Jill’s that evening and to finish off a medieval play put on by the Porta del Monte quarter. It was really nice to slow down for the day and catch our breath.

Further Afield Again…
On Saturday we decided on another short day trip to another medieval village called Anghiari (pronounced Anyaree) about 40 km north of Montone and close to Sansepolcro. This village perched high on a hilltop is secured by massive walls to fortify the village from invaders. It is more rustic than Montone but has a real charm. It has a few small tourist shops, restaurants, a museum and boasts some of the best coffee in Umbria at the Giardini del Vicario Caffe. Well worth a visit if you are travelling this part of Italy.

Another Highlight …
Saturday night turned out to be another highlight of our trip and this was to a restaurant in Umbertide, 10 km from Montone, called Ristorante Pomorancio. This restaurant would be equally at home in any city in the world with magnificent decor, a fabulous garden setting for outdoor eating and located right on the river. We were served an absolute feast of seafood accompanied with fine french champagne and Italian wines.

The Festival Parade
Sunday signaled the end of the festival and for us the end of a memorable week in Montone. The finale was a grand parade through the streets of the village by hundreds of villagers dressed in medieval costumes followed by the Sansepolcro Flag Throwing troupe.

We had our final meal in one of the medieval taverns set up for the festival and bid goodbye to our many friends in the village.

Click on the video below to be redirected to Youtube to see a short video highlight of our last few days.

As I finish this post, Liz and I are sitting in the Business Lounge at Bologna Airport awaiting our flight to Seville in Spain.

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Location:Montone, Italy

The Festival Continues

We thought after the party at Ivan’s on Sunday night that the partying would be over and we would settle down to a nice quiet week enjoying the festival. How wrong we were !!!

A Public Holiday …
Monday was a public holiday in Italy. A National Day called Assumption Day or Ferragosto. It is one of the most important Catholic holidays, because it’s the day that the Virgin was “Assunta in Cielo”, in other words transported directly to Heaven to be with her son, Jesus, and also to look after those of us still here on Earth It is during this week that many communities hold festivals to celebrate their own origins and such is the case in Montone. The entance to Montone (below) proudly displays the poster announcing the “Santa Spina Festival” along with the flags of each quarter and the Montone Flag.

Lunch With The Locals ….
Whilst enjoying a morning coffee in the Piazza we were invited to the “Porta del Borgo” quarter private lunch where the volunteers for the festival enjoy a family lunch prior to the opening of their tavern that evening. We arrived armed with food and drinks and were made most welcome by the locals and enjoyed an afternoon sampling delicious traditional Italian foods and local wines. It concluded with an impromptu singalong.

Medieval Wenches …
Liz, Allison and Jill offered to work in the Porta del Borgo Tavern that evening and had to dress in traditional medieval costumes and work as waitresses. They worked hard but had a fun time claiming the Tavern would not have survived without them.

Medieval Comedy …
Monday night marks the start of the traditional medieval plays and each quarter is required to put on a 15 minute comedy set in medieval times. It turned out to be an hilarious evening, all in Italian, but funny none the less. The sets, costumes and props were fantastic and could hold their own in any professional theatre. These people are just so talented.

A Traditional Meal …
The evening finished with a visit to the Porta del Verziere Tavern for a traditional medieval meal and local wines. The taverns are set up just for the festival and operate each night till about 1:00 AM. Very inexpensive meal we thought at 8 Euro per head for entree, main course and 2 litres of wine. So another late night as the plays didn’t finish till 11:00 PM.

A Quiet Day and a Wild Night …
Tuesday was a restful day but turned out to be another wild night. Drinks and nibbles in the early evening followed by another traditional meal in the tavern and then an impromptu get together with some of the locals in Bevan and Jill’s apartment. 4 bottles of Limoncello were consumed in an hour. We finally got to bed around midnight again.

Tuesday was also the archery competition which we unfortunately missed due to our tavern dinner but we were lucky enough to see the procession announcing the winner, Porta del Monte. See the video below for the procession.

Market Day …
Wenesday is market day in Umbertide, a larger town about 10 km from Montone. We ventured down the mountain and wandered around the market selling, clothes, household goods, fruit and vegetables and beautiful porcetta which has been roasted overnight.

Pizza and Plays …
Wednesday night was a great night. We drove to another village called Pietrelunga about 30 km from Montone. The restuarant called Ristorante Pizzeria Locanda Dei Foorucci has won many awards in Umbria for the best pizza and the 6 of us agreed that the award is well deserved and all at very reasonable prices. Typically the pizza’s cost between €4.00 to €5.00 with the supreme pizza’s at around €7.00. Good value and a beautiful atmosphere overlooking the adjacent valley.

We returned to Montone Just in time to catch the Porta del Verziere medieval play called

Terribillis Infamia

, Terrible Infamy. It covered the story of the hardship the soldiers went through during regional fighting in 1424 BC and the rape and killing of the women in the village by the soldiers. Very dramatic.

Below is a short video which you may be interested in that highlights some of the activity covered above. It provides a real feel of the talent and skills of the people of Montone who present this festival.

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Location:Montone, Italy