To Liguria for the Fish feast

From 11 to 13 May in a small Italian town of Camogli on the Ligurian coast will be held a colorful Sagra del Pesce celebration. This is the most favorite holiday of the local people, which is celebrated in honor of St. Fortunato - the patron saint of fishermen, because the whole history of the city has been connected with sea and fishing. That is why Sagra del Pesce is often called the Fish feast. The main attribute and symbol of the celebration are giant frying pans over four meters in diameter, which are installed during the celebration on the city streets for preparing grilled fish - the main food of fishermen in the Middle Ages. There are so much fish that it is enough to feed not only residents, but also visitors and tourists. And it is absolutely free. In the past Sagra del Pesce was a popular holiday, but didn’t celebrated with scope and grandiosity. But in 1953 the city authorities decided to attract tourist attention and to the holiday program were added street parades, music and theatrical performances and fireworks. And a fisherman Lorenzo Viacava proposed to use giant pans for cooking festive meals (previously fish was baked just on the grids). A new tradition was accepted and now the population of Camogli increases almost six times thanks to the visitors.

In addition to entertainment events Camogli attracts with its historical monuments. Once there was one of the largest fishing fleets in Italy, the city even got the second name - the city of a thousand sails. Castello della Dragonara castle built over a thousand years ago reminds those times. Now it houses the exposition of the navigation museum. Near the castle is located a sea aquarium, where are presented all fish species that live in local waters.