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| Bovines Dragging the Cart to the Square |
First, I'll give you part of the story; then, the pictures. Then the rest of the story.
Once upon a time (actually Thursday), I was told that Florence celebrates Easter in a particular way: The explosion of the cart. This yearly ritual involves a "cart," fireworks, a bird and a procession, notwithstanding a large crowd of THOUSANDS of people who push and shove each other while waiting for the celebration to start. Here's how it goes (taken from my post on FB):
A medieval cart is brought to the piazza in front of the duomo (basilica). The flint stones used to light the candle at the altar of the church (as a first step to the celebration, and after mass) come from a member of the Pazzi family who was the first person to plant a Christian flag in Jerusalem in 1099 (a crusader). The same candle is used to light a ceramic dove, which "flies" (or is sent from the altar to the outside) to light up the cart into an explosion of colors and sparks. If all goes according to plan (and none of the builddings around burn to the ground), the harvest season will be great. (Mostly really a mix of paganism and christian rituals accompanied by music and wishes from the bishop of the duomo).
Urie and I left the palazzo to make it to the Duomo in good time. We got breakie on the way--our apartment is getting to be devoid of food as we are leaving in a few days to come back to America--and continued to the piazza Santa Maria del Fiore. While the pictures fail to show you how crazily crowded the place was--believe me, it took us half an hour to get out of the mess to the next street once the event was over--we were, masses of us, sardined and awaiting the happy celebration. Really, I was waiting and Urie was checking my watch every two minutes. We waited for about an hour and fifteen minutes before the cart was ready, set, almost to go.
The bird flew (I missed it) and the cart lit up. Below are pictures of the event, including a boy eating a waffle with Nutella. Eventually, if you have the patience to go through the pictures, you will see the smoke and the "explosion." The whole thing must have lasted about five minutes, notwithstanding these were very LOUD minutes to get through. Look at pictures then find the continuation of the story (my explosion) following.
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| 10:00 a.m. The Regular Crowd Shuffles in |
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| Guardians of Peace? |
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| Breakfast on the Run |
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| Short Procession |
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| Let's Make Music |
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| Flags of the City |
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| Priests |
WAITING... WAITING... WAITING.. WAITING... WAITING... WAITING...
WAITING... WAITING... WAITING... WAITING... WAITING... WAITING...
WAITING... WAITING... WAITING... WAITING... WAITING... WAITING...
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| About to Start |
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| Hell Breaks Loose (Feels Like It) |
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| Colors and Lights |
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| Different Parts Make Different Noises |
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| This Thing Is about to Burn! |
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| We Can't See Either |
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| I'm Thinking that the Bird Is Dead |
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| Last Bonanza! Fourth of July on April 5th! |
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| Peace Reestablished; the Flags Have Emerged |
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| End of Procession |
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| TV Crew Filming and Commenting on the Event |
It took more time for me to focus my camera to take pictures than for the noisy explosion to happen. Meanwhile, some of the show was slightly scary, especially for people who live in a culture of guns and high assault riffles. Seriously, even Urie commented that it would be the perfect set up for terrorist groups to attack because of the noise and the distraction. (Some of it sounded like repetition guns, and the short lights looked exactly like shots being... well... shot.)
Once the cart completed its series of explosions, the crowd decided to take its sweet time to leave the square. There was little room to go, and lots of people to move along. We were patiently waiting our escape when a gypsy woman filtered the ranks and started to beg for money. (Watch your purses, ladies and gentlemen!) She was brandishing a laminated picture of two children, probably taken from a magazine, and started yielping something while shaking a cup o' change to the crowd. She went straight to Urie (the tallest "man" around), and shook her coins at him. Aside from the napkin he'd used to wipe the Nutella off his chin, he had nothing in his pockets. (Theory: She recognized he was American and thought $$$, as compared to Italians who are onto the gypsies. Only Urie's the son of a poor Canadian, which means no cash.) Urie shook his head, humbly, not wanting to be too discourteous about it.
That's when the woman decided to make him the victim of her ire. She slapped him on the arm, shoved him and started screaming in what appears to have been Roma obscenities. That's when my bird lit my fuse and I EXPLODED.
I was probably purple in the face, eyes popping out, and I told her, " YOU... YOU DO NOT TOUCH MY SON OR YOU'LL HAVE TO DEAL WITH ME." She looked ready to push him again, so I pushed her shoulder, planted myself between her and Urie, and switched to French. (More like quebecois. It's more threatening!) "Aie, toe ma maudite, si tu veux avoir affaire avec moe, t'es ben partie. Tu touches pas a mon gars, tu m'entends-tu? Ou j't'en sacre une mechante sur la yeule." She actually looked panicked for a moment, and moved away as quickly as the crowd could part to let her go. (No one wanted to deal with her... or with me by that point, the people mulling about parted red-sea style and she skidaddled out of there like a rat going back to the sewers.) I know I am harsh... but SERIOUSLY! I was seeing flames... I was on fire. I was the cart. (All of this happened, of course, in front of the tv crew...! Thankgoodness, I think they had already signed off.)
Urie told me, "Thanks, maman. Now everyone thinks I'm a pansy and can't take care of myself. I could have handled it." I am sure he could have, and he probably would have been much more subduded about it. In light of the occasion (Easter), I reacted rather poorly. To make up for it, I gave cash to a beggar later on. But let me tell you: No one pushes my kid without dealing with the tiger in me.
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| Recovered from Mother Shame |
So the cart exploded, and I exploded. I think we're going to have a fine harvest this coming season!!
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