A February Week in Lucca — Two Parts Italy

The last week or so here in Lucca has been mostly cold, rainy, and windy. Some days saw just a slow drizzle but others were seriously rainy. One night brought drama with thunder, lightning, hail, and brief periods of flickering lights. Mixed in were periods of cloudy, chilly weather with breaks in the rain. The rare days of sunshine felt like a gift with blue cloudless skies and some sunshine!

Despite the less-than-ideal weather, there is a bit of buzz in the air. The long weeks of January are over, and the days are getting longer. February is short and will land us one month closer to spring.

It is a time to make the best of breaks in the weather, go for walks about town, and see what might be new to discover. Camera in hand (well, my IPhone camera) each bit of clear sky was a chance to set out and explore.

One walk last week brought a surprise encounter with a local group of Steam Punk enthusiasts. All in costumes, they make for compelling photographic subjects.

Walks around Lucca last week also provided a chance to see Valentines Day themed window displays. Look closely at the typewriter in the photo below – the brand name is most appropriate.

A lot of the buzz in the air had to do with the start of Carnevale, an event that will go on until the beginning of Lent. Viareggio is home to most of the Carnevale action, but the themes, masks, confetti, and paper mâché creations spill over into Lucca in many ways.

Last week it was in the arrival of the Skull Parade, a collaboration between Viareggio and Mexico City. The large paper mâché creations reflect Mexican Day of the Dead culture with a splash of Italian Carnevale. They are scattered throughout Lucca so you never know when you might stumble onto one. Searching for these teschi (skulls) was good motivation to go out for a walk, even when an umbrella was required.

Other Carnevale related arrivals included a huge Gorilla mask, created by the Cinquini brothers, under the loggia in Piazza San Michele. Could his eyes really be following me? Indeed they can!

A Carnevale event just for children on Saturday was a blizzard of confetti thrown by costumed kids. It was a fun kind of chaos. A stilt walker threw streamers for the kids and the unicycle rider provided bags of confetti. Give a kid a bag of confetti and just watch what happens.

Inside the Piazza Anfiteatro, the oval-shaped piazza that follows the outlines of the old Roman Amphitheater, nightfall brought Carnevale themed projections on the buildings. It was just warm enough to sit outside in a cafe (cozied up to the gas flame heater), sip a glass of wine, and enjoy the light show.

All this in one week! And what will next week will bring? More Carnevale events and hopefully some drier weather.