What's good for the gander...

In the tiny town of Liacchiarella (south of Milan near Milano Tre), one of the country's biggest events runs afoot for the next two weeks.
Palio dell'Oca meaning goose race is just that. And it is a year in the making, starting with neighbourhoods collectively choosing and agreeing upon a web-footed bird then nurturing it, training it, coddling it until the second Sunday of October.
The winning neighbourhood wins the coveted palio cloth until it's up for grabs next year.
The event also boasts an abundance of beer, wine, music and - you guessed it - goose sausage.
For more information visit www.provincia.milano.it/cultura/metropoli/scheda.asp?ID=53&Pl=7#Sagre%20e%20appuntamenti.

Chestnuts roasting on a open fire

This month marks the start of the chestnut harvest and celebration period.
Although no longer the food staple it used to be, the nutty wonder boasts 2-million acres of forests in Italy and annual production reaches 80,000 U.S. tonnes annually. Chestnut festivals dot the country in various villages, many of them offering tours through chestnut groves and a variety of ways of preparing and eating them.
Celebrations are concentrated in the Tuscany, Lazio, Campania, Calabria and large sections of the Alps and Apennines.

Cause for celebration

Imagine a creamy Pinot Blanco bubbling from every water fountain in eyesight. This sommelier's dream comes true once a year in Marino, a town outside of Rome, during the grape festival Sagre dell'Uva.
Known as the oldest and perhaps, most famous grape festival, the three-day event starts the first weekend of October with more than 100,000 people crowding streets on the Sunday, the high point of the celebration.
First launched by a local poet in 1925, the event keeps Marino on the tourist map and generates fanfare for the local wine cooperative that generates the events' liquid staple.
Festivities also include parades, free grapes and food stalls heaped with olives, mussels and sweets - all complemented, of course, by a good glass of wine.

Gardaland almost done for the year

Until next year, October marks the last month for a chance to visit Gardaland this year. Known as Italy's answer to Disneyland, the 28-year-old park treats kids and kids at heart to big and small attractions, rides and one of the largest dolphin parks in Europe.
Situated in Verona's Peschiera del Garda, the site also has a Medieval Times restaurant where, like its U.S. counterpart, visitors can enjoy dinner utensil-free while watching a dueling swordfight.
For more information, visit www.gardaland.it/welsome-uk.html.

"Parco Trekking 2003"
This Sunday, hiking enthusiasts can enjoy "Parco Trekking 2003", together with the park's guides.
It will be a 6-hour-long itinerary of intermediate difficulty from Monte Pomiciaro and Acqua Rocca, starting at the square of Monte Pomiciaro at 9.00 a.m.
Recommended equipment and clothes include rucksack with packet-lunch, mountain shoes, wind-jacket, cap, water-flask. It is also advisable to bring binoculars and camera.
The participation fee varies from 5,00 to 15 euro per person.
The bookings must be made at the park's offices on Friday, October 3 from 9.00 a.m. to 12.00 a.m.
For further info about the Parco dell'Etna, visit http://www.parks.it/parco.etna/Eindex.html.

Publication Date: 2003-10-05
Story Location: http://tandemnews.com/viewstory.php?storyid=3212