Once a year hidden high in the Tuscan hills, the streets of Certaldo are given over to the dark side. Under cover of darkness thousands of people converge on the cobblestoned roads to revel in Mercantia, the annual International Festival of Street Theatre. For the past 23 years, the festival has been a big event for trolls, tricksters and grim reapers. We’ve managed to stumble across a world without wholesomeness but it’s all in good fun.

Each night as the sun goes down high above the city walls the mayhem begins. A funicular ferries crowds to the town’s peak. When we step off the carriage a trumpet sounds and it’s a call to arms. Jazz players get the buzz going, literally pulling people onto the street to start dancing. The main road is one moving mass of characters; capes, witches hats, ball gowns, corsets, there’s no uniform but the energy moves through us until we’re all in rhythm.

There are stalls selling everything from human-sized gnome hats to stuffed toys shaped like skeletons. I pass ghoulish creatures assembled in a very creepy Cabbage Patch doll collection and resist picking up a silver Cinderella pumpkin carriage pendant. I really wish I’d bought that now.

It’s unlikely I’ll see anything, or anyone, like this ever again. Street theatre has a strong history in Italy and here the best, worst and most whimsical is on show. The festival’s website, when very roughly translated, seems to be a Manifesto of sorts. It describes the fourth dimension as ‘the space of our experiment, a theatre for magic.’ And that’s certainly what’s happening.

At one point high cackle cuts the air as a demon on stilts lunges past, his minions cracking their whips to clear the way. We turn one corner to find classical music and around the next stumble into a wedding ceremony for a bride and groom on stilts, dressed in drag.

Along the back wall of the city food stalls are set up for alfresco market style dining. Sangria is doled out from giant urns, huge hocks of pig rolled out from smoking sheds and vats of homemade paella are going cheap. We grab a few plates of prosciutto and risotto and settle onto the ancient wall to watch the moving acts ramble by.

The festival runs every night for a week but you’d need as long to see each act and that’s without visiting the artisans. Clay makers slick back wet slop from a goblin’s head and alabaster carvers chip at giant slabs, strange shapes just starting to emerge from the grey stone.

Local specialties are on show too. A man sits in front of a basket heaped with black truffles, his elbows resting on locked boxes just in case you want to bulk buy some of his black gold. Sloppy gelato served from big metal drums drips off revellers’ chins but they’re careful to keep the mess away from the fungi.

During the day sunlight casts a rosy glow on Certaldo. With all the charm of neighbouring San Gimignano, it’s got that Tuscan touch without the tourist prices. During Mercantia exploring the town is about people watching. At witching hour, when the kids have been sent to bed, the party really begins. Fuelled by sangria and the electric energy of the night, the crowd surges towards the clock tower. Jazz bands station themselves along the route, jamming, jumping and hitting high notes while herding everyone along. We dance our way to the highest point of the town, the clock tower looming overhead. I can’t hear a word of the bawdy performance on the stage but the reactions around me are enough. Peering past pointed hats, around men in suits on stilts, the best theatre in the world is all around me.

The Mercantia Festival takes place in Summer every year.

For more information, see www.mercantiacertaldo.it/

Mid-year resolutions

By Stephanie Nuzzo

I’ve been hearing a whole lot about people’s plans for this year. There have been a lot of new beginnings promised for 2011, but to me, New Years’ resolutions are bullsh*t. I had my new beginning in June this year.

Halfway through 2010 I decided I was over the Groundhog-days I was living, grabbed a friend and flew across the world. For seven weeks I roamed around the cities I  had previously known through the pictures on my desktop screen, and experienced the cliché’ of ‘discovering myself.

I learnt that a part of me belongs in London; Spitalfields markets, the pub-culture, the shopping, Pret-a-Manger, the shopping, the shopping, the shopping … it all just agreed with me. I learnt that the men in Ireland do NOT resemble Gerard Butler in P.S I Love you, but the people are a laugh and they will outdrink you. I learnt that boys in Amsterdam are not to be trusted. And I learnt about my heritage – as horribly cheesy as that may sound…

For the last week of my trip I stayed with family in Alcamo, Sicily; family I had never met, mind you.

I stepped out into the airport, quietly freaking out inside because noone knew how to speak English and I wasn’t sure who would be waiting to pick me up. But when I walked out through the gate, I recognised them immediately, standing there with a big sign that read ‘Stephany’ in pink letters. They ran up to me and thrust a bunch of flowers in my face. After only moments, I felt a deep connection with these people I didn’t even know. In this frenzy of lips and arms, I had found myself in a familiar place.

On the stony beaches of Italy’s soccer ball I forgot about unattended emails and Facebook notifications, I was distracted from low G.I diets and gym memberships … I just explored the Mediterranean island that was once home to my grandparents. And that one lazy week gave me a whole lot more than any anaemic New Years’ resolution ever has.

Romancin’ in Verona

By Lauren Barker

In fair Verona, where we lay our scene, you are perched under a roof of vines, spooning into a heavenly Nutella tiramisu, coffee warm in the belly. It’s mid-autumn, the leaves are beginning to brown, sunlight dapples the cobblestones below. It’s the perfect time to visit Verona: the throngs of tourists have migrated home, the temperature affords long strolls along the Adige and the restaurant menus turn to hearty comfort foods.

As the imagined setting of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Verona sure knows how to woo a girl. Tourists gather below Juliet’s fabled balcony to worship love, write love letters on the walls – and sneak a hand onto Juliet’s left breast for good luck. It doesn’t matter that the story was fictional; romantics make the pilgrimage for the characters, for the very idea of love.

Follow the twists and turns of the Adige River for an ever-changing view of the city. You’ll find the ancient Roman stone bridge Ponte Pietra, and close by the famed Giardino Giusti. Created in the late 15^th century, the garden’s terraced paths lead you past statues, fountains and hedges, ultimately arriving at one of the best vantage points of Verona. Gaze out at the terracotta-tiled horizon and soaring church spires. Staying north, the Roman Theatre and Archeological Museum are must-sees. Clamber over the ancient stone seats and admire well-preserved mosaics, frescoes and statues.

Back in the city centre, Piazza Brà boasts one of Italy’s largest amphitheatres, the Verona Arena, an incredible 2000-year-old structure that still houses operas in the summer. Wander the city’s marble streets and you’ll find Gucci, Prada and Dolce & Gabbana waiting for you. Sure, your purse may leave a little lighter, but those Italian leather boots aren’t going to buy themselves…

A few steps from Porta Borsari, the medieval Castelvecchio (Old Castle) stands guard. Inside you’ll find a museum with a fantastic display of sculptures and reliefs. The faithful can also wander the well-worn floors of a number of awe-inspiring churches, such as the Basilica di San Zeno and the Basilica of San Lorenzo.

Late evenings see lovers and families strolling Verona’s streets, where old fountains bathe in the golden glow of streetlights. Piazza Erbe fills with winers and diners most nights or pop by the student quarter of Veronetta for a purse-friendly €1 glass of wine.

The city centre is small enough to cover by foot, or if you’re venturing further afield, take the bus. Porta Nuova train station is located south of the city centre and connects with many destinations across Europe.