"With a population of over 63,000 it is the main centre of the northern Tuscan Riviera known as Versilia, and the second largest city within the Province of Lucca. It is known as a seaside resort as well as being the home of the famous carnevale parade.
The city traces its roots back to the first half of the 16th century when it became the only gate to the sea for the Republic of Lucca. The oldest building in Viareggio, known as Torre Matilde, dates back to this time and was built by the Lucchesi in 1541 as a defensive fortification to fight the constant manace of corsair incursions. Viareggio is also an active industrial and manufacturing centre; its shipbuilding industry has long been renowned around the world and its fishing and floricultural industries are still fundamental sectors to the city’s economy."
The first time, Alan & I drove there as a day trip soon after we arrived in Florence. We were actually aiming for the Cinque Terre, further north, but as usual left Florence late, had trouble navigating our way on to the freeway, and decided to call into Viarregio for lunch and head up the coast from there, but we were so taken by Viareggio itself, that we never left! We had a lovely day as the weather was perfect and the place was a pleasant surprise. Although we had no expectations and knew nothing about the place, it was different from any other Italian city we had seen, and far more like Australian coastal towns than we thought possible, until we wandered down the main street later in the afternoon - then it most definitely was in Italy!For a start the town is more planned than most Italian cities. It consisted of straight streets in a grid pattern (not usual in Italy and certainly not in Tuscany!). The architecture is mostly modern, varying from early 20th century / Belle Epoch to late 20th century - very boring. The main redeeming feature of the architecture is the beautiful tiles and friezes used to decorate some of the buildings. The central part of town runs parallel to the beach. It is basically one long very wide main street with a park running down the centre and very wide footpaths. Traffic is one way on each side of the park. For Melbourne people, think Dandenong Rd or Royal Pde with parkland in the middle rather than tram lines. The main street ends at the river / canal which flows into the beach. There is a pedestrian bridge over the river, but the cars detour several streets inland to cross it. They have built a lovely wide path all along the river that leads on to the jetty out into the sea. Fishing boats more along this river path and sell fresh seafood direct to passers by - very nice!
The beach was the biggest surprise - it was not European stony beach, but far more like Australia with a lovely, long, wide sandy beach, gentle waves and a curving aspect that gave you views of distant hills. People were playing on the beach, walking dogs and sunbaking on the sand - not deck chairs! I even managed to spot a surfer, although it definitely wasn't a surf beach! (Maybe he was a hopeful Aussie or American - the Europeans don't surf!). Fortunately we were there in the off season, so it was not crowded, but we are told that in summer you cannot move for the people. We were also told that large sections of the beach are private, accessed only if you are staying in a certain hotel / eating at a certain restaurant / etc. and was born out by the limited access routes we found going directly onto the beach. This is definitely a European concept that I hope never reaches Australia!
After a late lunch in a cafe alongside the jetty, we hit the main street again to find that it was passegiatta time! This is a weekend ritual in Italy. On Saturday and Sunday late afternoon / evening, every man, woman, child and their dogs, grandparents, grandkids, etc comes out to stroll along the main shopping / cafe street of the town. There we were thinking the town was fairly empty and all of a sudden we couldn't move for the crowds! Still I really like like passiagata concept. It is really nice seeing old couples strolling arm in arm, teenagers walking in friendly groups and everybody just strolls. There is no pint in trying to rush - you can't.
Finally, to finish the day, we stayed till sunset and saw the most beautiful sunset over the beach - a perfect way to end a day at the seaside. After the day trip photos comes a very different Carnevale.
The 2nd time I went to Viareggio by train on a Sunday in February to witness their famous Carnevale float parade. It is an easy one hour train ride from Florence, and there are lots of trains till late in the evening. Again from Wikipedia: "the home of the famous carnival of Viareggio (dating back to 1873), and its papier-mâché floats, which (since 1925), parade along the promenade known as "Passeggiata a mare", in the weeks preceding Easter. The symbol of the carnival of Viareggio and its official mask is Burlamacco, designed and invented by Uberto Bonetti in 1930.
Every Florentine person I spoke to said we must visit Viareggio for Carnevale - it is the most celebrated Tuscan town for Carnevale. And I have to say it was true. It was an amazing spectacle. The floats are spectacular - absolutely huge and works of art in themselves. They are made of papier mache. The theme of each float is varied, but the common element is political satire, so most of the figures on the floats are characitures of current political figures. In addition they have moving parts, so the bodies move or doors open and close, etc. Each float also had a group of people in themed costume precedeing the float as a lead up to the theme as well as forming part of the tableau on the float itself. I think the whole town must be involved in the production of the floats - it is a huge undertaking. As well as the floats there are individual groups of characters like a street parade. This beat Melbourne's Moomba Parade hands down.
One of the best things about the parade, apart from the magnificent floats, was its very Italian nature - there were no barricades, no order, and minimal crowd control, but it all worked. In Australia for instance, you would have safety barricades for the crowd to stay behind while the parade wandered past. Here, no! - you could wander in and out of the parade, walk alongside the float and talk to your friends on the float, stop between floats and take photos, etc. There were security men walking just ahead of the floats who would very nicely ensure people stepped back out of the way, just in time. At times the floats passed me and babies in prams with just millimeteres to spare! I loved the seemingly chaotic nature of it all, but what impressed me was the calmness of everyone. They just moved out of the way of the floats as required; but the ability of everyone, including spectators, to be part of the parade did make for a true carnival spirit. In addition, there was an advertised start time, and it did start on time, but there was no big fanfare - you just looked around and noticed that the floats had started moving. (A bit like the Italian trains really - they all leave on time, but there is no announcement - they just go!) Before the parade started, you could wander up and down the street, looking at the floats and watching workers putting last minute touches or repairs to their creation, then wander on and look at the next one.
As usual there was the inevitable confetti everywhere, many of the Italian spectators were in fancy dress costume, everyone was friendly and happy - and overall it was a great atmosphere. In many ways it was more involving than Venice Carnevale proved to be. The Viareggio Float parade runs for several weekends in February, and if you are ever in Italy / Tuscany at this time, I highly recommend you go. Now I will let the photos involve you in the fun of the day (I hope)!
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