Every year Ascoli Piceno transforms back into the important and bustling Middle Ages city it once was. La Quintana, Ascoli’s high-energy medieval jousting match, rivals the excitement of Siena’s Palio but without the crushing crowds. The beautiful centro storico fills with colorful banners and resplendent costumes as the city pays homage to its storied past. Carried on since the early 1300s, the thrilling, historical events take place over a month-long period, starting with the flag-throwers competition.
Flag Throwing – It Isn’t For Sissies! Forget any image you may have of a majorette with a baton. These guys, called sbandieratori, are athletes with great balance, strength, coordination, stamina and a touch of showmanship. They launch the heavy flags in a show of artistry filling the space above the piazza with a blaze of unfurling color, some working as many five flags at a time, deftly using their feet as well as their hands to fling the banners skyward in an explosion of waving glory.
The most amazing sbandieratore event is the large-group competitions, whose choreography incorporate the movements and intermingling of the musicians, making American marching bands look positively bland. Drummers twirl in formation while long wooden-handled flags whipppast their heads. Without flinching. Slender elongated brass trumpets blast while their players weave among the host of characters. The entire scene looks like an elaborate, beautiful dance. Oh yes, and all of this is performed while wearing heavy brocade and velvet costumes.
An Opulent Parade. Preceding the jousting match is the mother of all pageants, the corteo storico, in which 1400 participants in costume parade through the travertine-paved piazzas and streets in a grand procession. Knights in actual armor and women in glorious gowns are accompanied by citizens representing old-world themes, such as archers, falconers, mountaineers, and more.
The events of La Quintana culminate in the high-energy and highly heated jousting match where the sestieri (districts) inhabitants root loudly for their neighborhood’s horse and cavalier to win the cherished Palio.
Impotence, as it is also known, can be a common treatment for acoustic neuroma or otherwise known as product placement. unica-web.com order generic cialis In addition, applying a moisturizing penis creme can help sample viagra prescription to keep the package in top-notch condition. Alcohol consumption contributes to high calorie intake and should be avoided to enable the medicine to be most effective. brand cialis 20mg Anxiety: Numerous men generic super cialis navigate to this unica-web.com with premature ejaculate also have issues with tension-either particularly about sexual execution or identified with different issues.
La Giostra – The Main Event. The joust utilizes a unique figure 8-shaped track; in the middle is a target called the Saracen or the Moor. (No, political correctness hasn’t invaded medieval traditions.) The cavalieri must ride the horse around the perimeter of the track, enter the figure 8 and skillfully maneuver the horse on the tight turns while grasping a long, heavy wooden lance that he uses to strike the target, all at full speed.
It is an exciting and heart-pounding event played out before thousands of spectators, all of whom have strong affiliation with their sestieri. The preliminary joust in July serves to rile people up so that when the August edition rolls around the fans scream curses about the opposing cavaliers’ mothers, the rival districts’ intelligence levels, and other epithets. No wonder city-state wars broke out so frequently in the Middle Ages.
Following the competition, the winner is announced, the Palio is awarded, and the teams parade out of the stadium in the order of placement, a long tradition which allows the citizens to see how their teams fared. With rhythmic drumbeats they march home, accompanied by their neighbors, to celebrate or mourn the day’s wins and losses.
If you’re going to Ascoli Piceno for La Quintana, it takes place in mid-July and the beginning of August. Check the La Quintana website for event schedules. If you want a place to stay in Marche from which to travel around the area, we recommend Marche Owners Direct, a reliable and trustworthy group of holiday homes that we have used ourselves. I am not compensated for recommending them, I just know that they offer quality properties and you don’t have been wary of a rip-off like other large “owner sites”.