Advertisement
Published: September 26th 2013
Little Italy
Is this still New York?Ahhhhhhh..Little Italy. The aromas and sounds of a shrinking, but vibrant, Italian American community craft the setting of an American landmark...with some old world flare. When one enters the Feast of San Gennaro they are transported to another place in time, and what New Yorker would not welcome the opportunity to take a break from their day to day grind to live a little bit of "La Dolce Vita." For Italian's its a reminiscent taste of favorite dishes of old. For everyone else, its the best place in New York to eat Italian food! However the feast is about more than just food, it is also deeply rooted in catholic tradition.
From the years 1870-1913 the largest diaspora of people in modern history was recorded. Italian immigrants flooded New York City by the boat load, in an attempt to escape the horrific poverty that had ravaged southern Italy after the unification of the Italian Peninsula. Many of these immigrants who settled in the area, now known as Little Italy, came from the city of Naples, with little more than the cloths on their backs and their traditions. It is from those traditions that the New York Feast of San Gennaro
Old Mulberry Street
The Italian Diaspora was born.
Tradition says that while serving as Bishop of Naples, San Gennaro protected the persecuted christian community from the pagans. He was eventually caught and sentenced to execution by being eaten alive by wild bears. The bears, however, refused to eat San Gennaro and he was later beheaded at the basin of a volcanic crater near Naples. It is because of this martyrdom that the faithful of Naples selected San Gennaro as their patron and pray to him for protection against disasters. Following in this tradition, Neapolitan immigrant families erected a small chapel on Mulberry Street to house the image of their patron Saint and invited all to pin an offering to the ribbon streamers that are hung from the statue's apron. This money was then distributed to the needy poor of the neighborhood. For those people this practice was a symbol of hope in a world void of miracles and a custom that is still practice today.
Over time, the festival expanded from its feast day on September 19th to an eleven day street fair. As you sit in the Italian style street cafes and wait for your food, it is entertaining to watch as the
San Gennaro
Still watching over his people as a symbol of hope staff hustle frantically transitioning from English to Italian trying to please their guests while collaborating with their coworkers. There is live music, carnival games, zeppole, sausage and pepper, gelati, espresso, and no shortage of Italian restaurants stocked with wine to enjoy. It seems that every inch of the neighborhood has a story to tell, which only adds to the excitement of the event. Whether you come for the food, the faith or maybe a little of both, there is certainly enough good times to be had by all! Ciao!
Advertisement
Tot: 0.094s; Tpl: 0.01s; cc: 10; qc: 46; dbt: 0.0523s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
