ITALIAN NEWS

Satisfy It’s sconti (sales) time in Italy. Shoppers can find great bargains but keep in mind a few tips to avoid rip-offs.

https://www.altoadigeinnovazione.it/

By Alberto Lunetta NAS Sigonella Public Affairs

Discount Shopping season begins in Italy

Attention all bargain hunters! Italy’s winter “stagione di saldi” or discount season kicked off last week!

Every year in Italy, there are two government-regulated periods for such a special sale. This period will last through the end of March. The next discount season will kick off in the late summer, so it’s time to take advantage of vendite promozionali (promotional prices), sconti or saldi (discounts).

Every time a new promotional campaign begins, the Italy Consumers’ Association warn shoppers against “drastically cut” prices and suggests a few golden rules to score the “best deals.” Keep these tips in mind to avoid getting ripped off!

First off, be wary of any discounts higher than sixty percent from the everyday price. Consumer Associations officials warn that a small number of unfair retailers may try to sell worn or damaged items as “promotional sales.” Be sure to scrutinize the stitching and look for signs of wear if you see a deal too good to be true.

As for the return policy during the discount season, defective merchandise can be exchanged or returned as usual. Always keep your scontrino (receipt) or your return could be denied. Avoid stores displaying a sign which reads: “la merce venduta non si cambia” (purchased merchandise cannot be returned) or “all sales are final.” By Italian law, you have the right to be refunded or exchange any defective clothing item within two months.

With that being said, once you buy something and later you don’t like it anymore, you cannot get your money back just because you don’t like it anymore. Personal taste is not a legitimate reason to exchange an item. Retailers are only obligated to exchange the item only if defective. So just because you have second thoughts about that new dress or you bought the wrong pair of sneakers for your child does not mean it is an obligation for storeowners to refund or exchange. If they do refund you, realize that it is just a courtesy. If you have questions, try to ask about the store’s policy before you buy!

Additionally, stores must show the initial prezzo (price) and the reduced price on tags, both in numbers and in percentage. So be sure to check that the tag has all the required information to avoid a rip-off. Check different shops to compare prices.

Lastly, be aware that you can use the standard forms of payment while shopping at sales. If some stores display signs saying “non si accettano carte di credito e bancomat” (credit cards and ATM cards are not accepted) or the sales clerk tells you the same thing regarding the sales items yet they have a card machine and usually accept it, it’s best to just walk away.

While you’re in search of big bargains, make sure you keep in mind some tips suggested by all the Italian Consumer Associations to avoid rip-offs. Good luck with your Italian shopping!

Saint Sebastian Festival to be held in Acireale on JAN 20

“Evviva Sam Mastianu! Evviva lu rizzareddu, Vàddatilu quant’è beddu, li miraculi ca fa” (Long live Saint Sebastian! Long live the curly-headed, look at his beauty and the miracles he performs). This ancient prayer demonstrates that that reverence to San Sebastiano (Saint Sebastian) is deeply embedded in the religious history of Acireale, an elegant town in the Catania province.

Every year, thousands of pilgrims and tourists swarms the streets of the historic center to show love and respect to their celestial patron.

Despite being just the town’s compatrono (co-patron saint) along with Santa Venera, whose festival is celebrated on July 26, Sebastiano still gets most of the attention by the Acireale’s religious community.

The festival honoring him will be held on Thursday Jan. 20 at the Saint Sebastian Basilica. It begins at 7:30 a.m. at the Saint Sebastian church with the opening of the little chapel that houses both the statue of the Christian martyr and the relics.

Holy mass will occur at 9:30 a.m. by Acireale Bishop Antonino Raspanti . At 11 a.m., the statue of San Sebastian begins its procession through the streets of the town’s historic heart.

The “fercolo” or float, on top of which the statue depicting the saint is placed, will be taken around by a group of 60 “divoti” (devotees) who perform spectacular maneuvers even running and going up steep climbs. The divoti who carry the float belong to a confraternity continuing an centuries-old tradition handed down from father to son.

The procession lasts all day and ends at midnight when the statue is brought back to the San Sebastiano church. Firework shows and ringing church bells are performed all day long throughout the city.

The San Sebastiano church is located in piazza Leonardo Vigo next to the Acireale Cathedral.

San Sebastiano is probably one of the most famous martyrs in the Christian tradition. His martyrdom was a favorite subject of Renaissance painters who depicted him as a handsome young man. He became known for keeping his dignity through the gruesome pain of terrible arrow wounds and allegedly triumphing over physical suffering.

Sebastiano was born in northern France 256 AD. He served as an officer in the Roman army under Diocletian. During the time of his rule, the emperor issued an edict prohibiting Christianity.

Sebastiano maintained his Christian religious practice and was eventually discovered. For violating the law in 288 AD, the Roman authorities arrested Sebastiano, shot him with arrows and left him for dead; tradition holds that he survived the arrows which miraculously failed to pierce any vital organ.

Thus the arrow became his identifying attribute. Tradition holds that he was eventually beaten to death.

A true hero of the Catholic religion, San Sebastiano is also worshipped almost everywhere in Sicily, but particularly in the province of Siracusa and in Maniace.

Acireale townspeople consider him as a protector against the plague as he reportedly saved the city during plague epidemics. According to one tradition, the city was spared by the plague in 1466, and therefore, devotees built a church to thank him.

However in 1693 the church sustained heavy damage during a catastrophic earthquake which struck the Catania province. The Acireale devotees did not give up and erected a new magnificent basilica dedicated to San Sebastiano in the 17th century. Gian Battista Marino, a sculptor from Catania, decorated its façade in the second half of the 17th century in Baroque style. The church’s interior is decorated by paintings depicting scenes from the life of the saint and other masterpieces telling the story of Christ by Venerando Costanzo.

Today, the Basilica Collegiata di San Sebastiano is among the most beautiful Baroque buildings in Acireale, and remains a top wedding ceremony destination.

San Sebastiano continues to be sought by pilgrims to aid in healing from illnesses and thanked for surviving a natural disaster or accident. If a miracle occurs, devotees offer tall wax objects, money and small golden objects.

Sometimes these objects are taped on red ribbons and tied to the branches of the stump against which the statue of San Sebastiano is placed.

Once the epidemic was over, these linens were taped on the pillars that support the carriage on which the statue of the saint is carried in procession. Even nowadays, devotees still wear the linen around their chest and head. For more information and detailed schedules visit https://www.facebook. com/La-Festa-di-San-SebastianoAcireale-1505740462973806/

Tradition also holds that in the past, one who would miraculously survive plague epidemics would offer white linens to the saint. At that time an infected person was indeed required to wear white linen around their neck as a symbol of carrying the disease.