Men in Tights!!

The things that you can discover in Lucca

17.07.2011 - 17.07.2011 30 °C

After our cooking class we saw a poster for some sort of event in a square very close to our B and B. So we wandered over there and waited. We didn't know for what but many were waiting so we joined in. Well what came marching through the square but many men in tights, marching bands, flag throwers and people dressed in period costumes.

What period in time we do not know. What we were going to watch was a crossbow competition, Torneo Nazionale della Balestra, as it would have been many years ago. There were three towns represented. Lucca, San Marino, and Massa Marittima each had a group of people to represent them.

Each of the men had one chance to shoot an arrow from their crossbow and the team with the most points would win, which turned out to be San Marino. The little man in a green coat and of course tights was delighted when his team won.

After this competition there was an individual one for about 9 (three from each team) men. Each shot at a single target and the closest to the center was the winner. An italian man kept lending us his binoculars so we could get a close look at the targets. The important men displayed the target to all of the peasants (us) in the audience.