5 Maggio

Today, 5 May 2010 is the 150th anniversary of the departure of Garibaldi and the i Mille (the Thousand), from Genova Quarto to Marsala, Sicily in a successful campaign to crush the Napoleonic army in the south.  This was one of the last great campaigns to unify what we know today as the country of Italy.  Garibaldi is one of modern Italy's great heroes and probably the most well know representative of the Risorgimento (unification movement) outside of Italy.  Even within Italy, there is a special place in the hearts of Italians for Garibaldi.  He wasn't a statesman, but a soldier, and an exceptional soldier at that.  Even Abraham Lincoln recognized his talents and offered him a commission in the U.S. Army in 1861.  Garibaldi declined stating that he would serve the cause of the United States only as it's Commander-in-chief, with the power to declare the abolition of slavery.  Something Lincoln wasn't prepared to do at that time.

Garibaldi is also one of Genova's favorite sons, even though he was born in Nice.  Actually, off and on, Nice was part of The Republic of Genoa and in 1860 it was part of the Kingdom of Sardinia which included Liguria, Piedmont and the island of Sardinia.  Garibaldi was seriously annoyed when Nice was ceded to France in 1860 since he believed that all territories peopled by Italians should be part of what would become Italy.

So, I had big plans for today.  I wanted to go to Quarto where I thought there would be a huge celebration.  Maybe there was, but when I got up this morning it was pouring.  There are limits to my willingness to get wet, so I decided to hang around the hill this morning in the hopes that the weather would clear up.  It didn't.  At least not until late this afternoon when I went down to Via XX Settembre to do some quick shopping.  There in front of the Carlo Felice opera house is an enormous statue of Garibaldi on his horse, today swathed in a red cape.  The fountain in Piazza de Ferrari is a spouting a lovely shade of green.  Perfect for great photos, except for the fact I forgot my camera.

So here's a great shot of the Garibaldi statue.  Imagine it with a red cape looking at green water across the street and you've got a good idea of what I'm talking about.

At the next holiday commemorating the unification, I will write about my family secret, hidden in the archives for lo these many years.  It will probably explain a lot about me.