Another day with perfect weather. The Feast of Sant' Efisio, the patron saint of Cagliari and a public holiday. The feast is marked by the longest religeous procession in Italy, and it is somehat mind boggling. More than 100 horses, bedecked with bells and riders in various traditional costumes. Twenty or thirty ox-drawn carts festooned with flowers and with people in traditional costumes on the carts. I lost count but around 3000 representatives of all the small towns, villages and suburbs from across Sardegna in solemn procession, singing hymns (a different one for each group). Then hundreds of horsemen with both the horses and riders all decked out. Then a small contingent of clergy and civil leaders.
The procession took three hours to pass by and there was a huge crowd at the barricades. I had the good fortune to have a room that overlooked the route from the second floor, with a balcony, so the view was great.
Some photos:
Afterwards the bars and restaurants were bulging, a lot of people enjoying the day after such a happy community event. The street party went on late, late into the night. There was about one hour's gap between the last revellers and the first garbage and street cleaning trucks!
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