Festa del Fungo Porcino
August is the month of festivals in Italy….the Sagra della Ranocchia (Frog Festival) in Lierna for one, and the Festa del Fungo Porcino (Mushroom Festival) in Moggiona for another.
A few days before the actual festival dates (usually spread over three days, around the festival of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in mid-August), the village of Moggiona galvanises itself into extraordinary activity … the small road up to the cemetery becomes transformed into a massive dining area, with trestle tables up both sides, and thatch laid across a roofing structure to afford some shade for the diners. The playground of the old school plays host to large barbecue type kitchen equipment; the rather rude wine dispenser is put into place (you’ll have to go to find out what it is!); various stalls selling a miscellany of jewellery, leatherware, pictures, etc, set up in the street leading from Tassini’s to the main square; the tennis court gets taken over with chairs and other paraphernalia (NB no tennis playable for the week); and the small sports building near the ‘ballo‘ expands; various small bands arrive to practise their repertoires.
And then it starts… first of all with the village women decorating the church with flowers; then the elders donning their processional robes (the Mayor in attendance); a small service in the chiesa opposite, with far more people milling around outside the church than in it; and then the Madonna is carried aloft out of the church with the villagers forming a chanting retinue behind. Italians from all quarters converge on the village from midday onwards, milling around and just enjoying themselves.
The village men start cooking and the huge menu is exhibited. Sausages, steaks, chops, chicken, chips…..and mushrooms! You queue for your ticket (a modest sum) and then queue to get a seat at the communal tables. It is all great fun. These dried mushrooms are a huge speciality and are sold by the etto from a stall as well. Well worth dragging all the way back to England (where they would cost you five times as much to buy). Wine flows freely (literally). Towards the end of the meal, the ‘waiter’ will come with the grappa (again free). Should you not wish to eat at the Festa itself it is possible to present your ticket and they will give you your food to take away, by joining the usually much shorter queue just beside the cooking area – not a bad idea if you want a quiet meal on the terrazza at Casa Teresina instead – but you would miss out on the free wine and grappa!
During the evening the festivities in the ballo area may take the form of a small play or dancing – young and old dance together a series of fox-trots, waltzes; quicksteps etc, etc. The locals all seem to dance extremely well. You can join in, or if you just want to watch it all from the steps you can have just as much fun.
A note of warning: parking becomes hugely problematical during festa days. Do not expect to go out during the day and return to be able to park in your normal place – parked cars stretch down the road out of Moggiona for a good mile. When the formal three days of festa are completed, the villagers have their own party at the ballo, as a way of rewarding themselves for all their hard work – and they certainly deserve it!