A battle of oranges and a palio with no saddle
The festivals of Piedmont are old, thoroughly organised and often surprising.
The Piedmontese calendar concentrates on two moments: carnival, which here is a serious business, and autumn, when the new wine and the truffles arrive. In between comes the summer of the lakes, made of village feasts and concerts in the villas.
The carnival of Ivrea
For three days, between February and March, Ivrea throws oranges at itself: thousands of throwers on foot, in nine teams, against the orange-throwers on the carts, in the squares of the old town, re-enacting a revolt against the tyrant. Tonnes of fruit are used and the town ends up red. Onlookers wear the red cap and stay behind the nets.
The palio of Asti
It is run on the third Sunday of September in Piazza Alfieri, bareback, and it is documented from 1275: one of the oldest palios in Italy. In the days before there is the Festa delle Sagre, in which each village of the Asti hills cooks its own dish in the square.
The autumn of wine and truffles
The international white truffle fair of Alba runs from October to December and fills the town every weekend. In Asti in September there is the Douja d'Or, given over to wine; in the Langhe and the Monferrato every village has its food fair between September and November. In those months finding a place without booking is hard.
Summer on the lakes
Stresa has a classical music festival from July to September, with concerts on the islands too. On Lake Orta there are seasons of events on the island of San Giulio, and in Verbania the garden season at Villa Taranto runs from March to October. The campsite noticeboards cover the rest.