Sunday, January 15, 2012

January Sales Italian Style




Shopping  for bargains  in January is a  tradition  the world over.  Roman families take advantage  of the 20% discounts on beautiful bed linens  and towels offered by the city's exclusive shops. 

Here in  Vetralla, 68 kms north of Rome, it takes on  a deeper significance  at  the mega market of January 17th  which has been held for centuries and  is dedicated  to  Sant’Antonio, St.Anthony Abbot,  protector  of animals.  


The celebration begins the evening of the 16th with a huge bonfire in nearby Bagnaia. Here are some photos of the event   by Gianfranco Pignatale. 

a family  of  grey cats waiting  for a blessing
The morning of the 17th sees the blessing of  pet dogs, cats and horses  in front of  the church.  Most offices  are closed and the  school kids play hookey as the whole town turns out to shop  all day long.


fresh berries  and dried fruit

 Hundreds of bancarelle (stalls) fill the centro storico,  selling everything from  dried fruit and sweets to fishing boots.  

The dried fruit vendors who come  from the  nearby hilltowns  of  Vallerano and Canepina  offer  dried figs, chestnuts, pepperoncino  as well as imported  banana, pineapple, and even cranberries  from  the bogs  of  Cape Cod.  They travel so far and wide that tradition says when Columbus arrived in the New World, there was one of these stalls waiting for him.
Selling dried cranberries from Cape Cod 

fluffy  dresses 


Penny Candy   and nuts
 You can find brightly  colored penny candy next to fluffy dresses,  tools and knives, artificial flowers and ceramic kitchen utensils  on successive  stalls.

Most of all  it’s a time  to  stroll  among the crowds, greet friends and family, show off   new family members  or a new fur coat….shopping is secondary.

What's  on your  January sales shopping list? What  bargains have you found? 


11 comments:

  1. Mega market in Vetralla? What a pity not to be there on Tuesday, I love markets.
    But maybe it's better this way, I waste all my money during the Christmas season :-(

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  2. Those look a lot like first communion dresses but in Vetralla little girls must wear those terrible nun-like contraptions.

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    1. Thanks for your comment GC I really dont know who buys those fluffy white dresses, maybe for weddings.

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  3. We only have a monthly market, but there is the ubiquitous dried fruit vendor. Ours also sells his own honey! Pat Smith

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    1. Local honey is sooo good especially for people with colds, flu. I just learned that its the only food that never goes bad...its good even after years .

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  4. Thanks for the reminder about the market tomorrow, hope you find some good things to buy. Maybe see you at the bonfire tonight! Christina

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  5. Christina, why not come to the market with some of your students..its a great people watching occasion.

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  6. Wish we had the rolling Italian market here in the US. Interesting that yours comes also as an annual event, celebrated by the abitanti. Studied Italian in Liguria several years ago for five weeks and got used to the weekly market in the piazza. You can get anything almost including the caro e meno caro; from underwear to carciofi. The beauty of the market is the freshness of its produce and the abundance and variety of cheese and dried meat. This of course leads to the dinner table where the food tastes so much better for it. You have been blessed being able to live in this beautiful country.

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  7. DEar Pensionato, so true, we are so lucky to have fresh food bought daily, cooked beautifully, enjoyed with wine and our extra virgin olive oil. Where did you study in Liguria? I lived in Genova-Nervi for a year.

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    1. We were in Chiavari, about one half hour south of Genoa by rail.

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