Sunday, August 20, 2006

Scottish week in Italy

A week-long celebration of all things Scottish has drawn to a close in the small Italian town of Barga.

Its "Scottish Week" was officially opened by Largs actress Daniela Nardini and also featured a concert by Paisley singer Paolo Nutini.

They are among thousands of Scots Italians who have their roots in the Tuscan hilltop town. Barga calls itself the most Scottish town in Italy with a host of events to mark links between the two countries.

Scottish Week was held from 10 to 16 August with a wide range of attractions on offer. A Scottish market was held throughout the week offering a variety of goods for sale.

Singer Paolo Nutini staged a concert in the Teatro Dei Differenti along with fellow Scots Italian performer Adriana Spina from Livingston. A whisky tasting was also part of proceedings while the town's Fish and Chip Festival was running at the same time.

Thousands of people left the Garfagnana area where Barga is situated in the early 20th century to seek work overseas.

Many of them ended up in Glasgow and the west coast of Scotland where their descendents now live.

It is these links that the town's mayor Umberto Sereni has been keen to cultivate with events such as Scottish Week.

Among the visitors this year were former Lord Provost of Glasgow Alex Mosson, Scottish sculptor John McLaughlin and the UK's consul general for Tuscany Moira McFarlane.

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