Strawberry Festival in Nemi, 02nd of June.
June is here and it brings one of the most important, folkloristic and colorful events of Castelli Romani: the Strawberry Festival of Nemi.
Every year since 1922, on the first Sunday of June, the festival is celebrated and for this amazing occasion, the city fills with red strawberries, thanks to dozens of stalls scattered along the streets of the town and the famous "fragolare" (strawberry ladies) in traditional costume (red skirt, white blouse, black corset and on the head the "mandrella", a very light traditional headdress made of white lace), which run through the streets, carrying the baskets of this very tasty fruit.
Strawberries, indeed, wild strawberries and "fragolone" (giant strawberries) have for centuries been a product of excellence of Nemi, to the point of being portrayed in the famous italian song "Na gita a li Castelli" brought to success by Ettore Petrolini, and there are many kind of preparations dedicated to this product, from risotto, to jams, syrups, classic ice cream, and the famous "fragolino" wine.
For several years, the Sagra is accompanied by the Mostra dei Fiori, a competition of great visual impact that "colors" the historic center with flowers, whose winner is assigned the "Fragola d'Oro", a real strawberry covered with the precious metal, thanks to a chemical process.
The Strawberry Festival is a real event, thanks to the simultaneous happening of shows, live concerts, tastings, and the classic fireworks which close the festival.
Nemi is only about 15 minutes from Frascati and from Hotel Colonna: taking Via 24 Maggio from Piazza Marconi and following the directions, reaching the town is quite simple even for those unfamiliar with this area.
The event takes place the 2nd of June.