Photo credit: <a href=”https://www.flickr.com/photos/82842528@N00/3040323149/”>whatamisearching</a> via <a href=”http://foter.com/”>Foter.com</a> / <a href=”http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/”>CC BY</a>
Golden. Crunchy. Warm. Savory. Cicciolo, which are essentially pork cracklins, are the highlight of this festival. The direct translation of Cicciolo d’oro is “greaves of gold”. Greaves are the portion of armor used to protect the shin and calve. At least 400 butchers will gather over 150 pots of boiling oil in Campagnola Emilia this Sunday December 13th to compete for the best cicciolo. Whether you give the cracklins a try or one of the other pork based dishes offered from the street food stands, if you are a fan of pork, you won’t go hungry.
Photo credit: <a href=”https://www.flickr.com/photos/stradeperdute/11642000495/”>stefano peppucci</a> via <a href=”http://foter.com/”>Foter.com</a> / <a href=”http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/”>CC BY-ND</a>
Campagnola Emilia is about 25 kilometers from Reggio Emilia in the Po River Valley. The Emilia Romagna region of Italy is known for its many savory treats, meats, pastas and agricultural products. Campagnola is home to the church of Sant’Andrea, the oldest structure in the village built in the 11th century. The festivities start at 9am on Sunday and run into the night. Be sure not to miss the pork sausage in a continuous ribbon spanning an incredible 250 meters through the village.
Photo credit: <a href=”https://www.flickr.com/photos/maong/3491576478/”>Monica Arellano-Ongpin</a> via <a href=”http://foter.com/”>Foter.com</a> / <a href=”http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/”>CC BY</a>
lisa loves to travel 