Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK
For members

WHAT CHANGES IN ITALY

On the agenda: What’s happening in Italy this week

From national holidays to the Rome marathon, here’s what to expect in Italy this week.

Published: 13 March 2023 09:52 CET
On the agenda: What's happening in Italy this week
Participants run across Piazza Venezia by the Vittorio Emanuele II monument at the start of the Rome Marathon on September 19, 2021 in Rome. (Photo by Filippo MONTEFORTE / AFP)

Monday

Tax reform bill on the way 

Italy is waiting to find out the details of planned changes to the tax rules and we should know more after the first draft of the tax reform bill is published, which ministers said would be released this week – possibly as early as Monday, March 13th. 

The riforma fiscale, in the works for well over a month now, has been the subject of intense media speculation since early February – but nothing has yet been announced.

READ ALSO: Flat tax, superbonus and wild boar: What’s in Italy’s 2023 budget?

According to the latest reports from financial newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore, the bill is expected to introduce radical changes to both Irpef, Italy’s main income tax, and Iva, the Italian equivalent of VAT.

Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti are due to publish a first draft of the government’s tax reform bill on Monday. Photo by Filippo MONTEFORTE / AFP

24-hour public transport strike in Umbria

Italy’s central Umbria region could see some disruption to public transport as staff at Umbria TPL e Mobilità, the main local public transport operator, will take part in a 24-hour strike on Monday, March 13th. 

The level of disruption caused by the demonstration will vary from place to place as will minimum services and their times. 

READ ALSO: Calendar: The transport strikes to expect in Italy this spring

The Perugia Airlink, which connects Perugia and Assisi to the San Francesco D’Assisi airport, may also be affected by the strike.

The demonstration was called by unions Filt Cgil and Faisa Cisal in protest against the upcoming privatisation of Umbria TPL.

Wednesday

Milan-Turin bike race

The 104th edition of the Milano-Torino (Milan-Turin), the oldest bicycle race in the world, will take place on Wednesday, March 15th. 

The 192-kilometre race starts in Rho, north-west of Milan, and ends in Orbossone, south of Turin. 

The Milano-Torino was first held in May 1876, when eight riders departed from Milan’s Porta Magenta area but only four made it all the way to Turin.

The 2023 edition of the race will be shown live on Rai Sport (channel 57 on Italian TV) and on the RaiPlay streaming platform.

Britain's Mark Cavendish celebrates as he crosses the finish line on March 16, 2022 to win the Milan-Turin semi classic single day cycling race.

Britain’s Mark Cavendish celebrates as he crosses the finish line on March 16, 2022 to win the Milan-Turin semi classic single day cycling race. Photo by Marco BERTORELLO / AFP.

Friday

National Unity Day

Though it isn’t an official holiday, which means that you won’t get time off work, March 17th is one of the most patriotic days of the year as Italy celebrates the Day of National Unity (or Giornata dell’Unità Nazionale).

March 17th is in many respects the country’s birthday as the Kingdom of Italy was officially founded on March 17th, 1861. Before then, the peninsula was split into rival states and regions which had regularly changed hands, allegiances and boundaries over the centuries.

Official ceremonies are held every year to mark the occasion, including the laying of a laurel wreath before the Altare della Patria monument in Rome and various commemorations held by the graves of some of the most important figures in recent Italian history.

St Patrick’s Day

March 17th is also St Patrick’s Day, which commemorates Ireland’s patron saint and, more broadly, Irish culture and heritage.

Celebrations aren’t as widespread in Italy as in some other countries but most major cities will still offer a number of Paddy’s Day-themed events over the weekend.

READ ALSO: Where to celebrate St Patrick’s Day 2023 in Italy

In Rome, the Scholars Lounge will put on 18 hours of “great Irish craic”, with five live music gigs followed by two DJ sets and free giveaways.

In Milan, the Spirit de Milan venue will host Spirit of Ireland, a three-day festival offering a combination of traditional Irish dance classes, live music concerts and Irish food experiences.

The Colosseum illuminated in green for St. Patrick's Day 2017.

The Colosseum is illuminated in green for St. Patrick’s Day 2017. Photo by FILIPPO MONTEFORTE / AFP.

Sunday

Father’s Day

While most countries in the world, including English-speaking ones, celebrate Father’s Day on the third Sunday of June, Italy marks it on March 19th. 

That’s because March 19th corresponds to the Feast of Saint Joseph – the patron saint of family men according to Catholic tradition. 

Father’s Day stopped being a public holiday in Italy in 1977 but it’s still widely celebrated today as Italian children give their fathers small gifts and families eat homemade sweets known as dolci di San Giuseppe.

Rome marathon

The 28th edition of the Rome marathon will take place on Sunday, March 19th. 

The 42-kilometre race will start and finish at the Colosseum, with the start time set for 8am.

Two parallel events will also take place on the day: a five-kilometre fun run in the Circo Massimo area and the Run4Rome relay race.

Runners have until Thursday, March 16th to sign up for these events. Further details can be found on the marathon’s official website.

Participants run across Piazza Venezia by the Vittorio Emanuele II monument at the start of the Rome Marathon on September 19, 2021 in Rome. (Photo by Filippo MONTEFORTE / AFP)

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.
For members

WHAT CHANGES IN ITALY

On the agenda: What’s happening in Italy this week

From mafia victims remembrance day to celebrations for the Florentine New Year, here's what to expect in Italy this week.

Published: 20 March 2023 09:50 CET
On the agenda: What’s happening in Italy this week

Monday

Start of spring

The spring equinox, which falls on March 20th this year, will mark the first day of astronomical spring in the northern hemisphere.

After the equinox – which, scientifically speaking, is the moment when the sun appears directly above the earth’s equator – daylight will gradually increase up until the summer solstice on June 21st.

Tuesday

Mafia victims remembrance day

Italy will commemorate the victims of mafia crimes on Tuesday, March 21st, which is known as National Remembrance Day for Innocent Mafia Victims (Giornata della Memoria delle Vittime Innocenti delle Mafie).

Anti-mafia organisation Libera created the event back in 1996, but it was only officially recognised by the Italian state in 2017. 

READ ALSO: ‘Very violent’: How Italy’s youngest mafia is terrorising the Puglia region

March held in memory of mafia victims

Italy will commemorate the victims of mafia crimes on Tuesday, March 21st. Photo by Damien MEYER / AFP

The day is not a national holiday, meaning public institutions and schools will remain open, but a number of events paying homage to mafia victims will take place around the country.

A march followed by guest talks and seminars on the history of the mafia will take place in Milan – the ‘capital’ of this year’s Remembrance Day – on Tuesday morning.

Wednesday 

Surrealism in Milan

An exhibition exploring the relationship between surrealism and non-western cultures will open at Milan’s Mudec Museum on Wednesday, March 22nd. 

The show, titled ‘Dalì, Magritt, Man Ray and Surrealism’, will display over 180 items, including some lesser-known artworks and historical documents, that are expressive of the cultural syncretism lying at the heart of surrealist art. 

READ ALSO: Metro, bus or tram: How to use Milan’s public transport

The exhibition will remain open to the public until late July. Tickets can be bought here.

Friday

European Gelato Day

Friday, March 24th will be Europe’s Artisanal Gelato Day.

The event, which was first launched back in 2012, is to this day the only food-related recurrence recognised by the European parliament. 

Austria’s very own apfelstrudel ice cream will be the centrepiece this year, with gelato makers from all around Europe having a crack at producing the strudel-flavoured delicacy. The flavour will be on offer at artisanal gelaterie in Italy.

Gelato makers in Italy

The 11th edition of the European Artisanal Gelato Day will take place on Friday, March 24th. Photo by Andreas SOLARO / AFP

Saturday

Florentine New Year

Florence residents will be ringing in the Florentine New Year on Saturday, March 25th.

The Tuscan city marked the official start of its calendar year on March 25th – the day of the Annunciation of the Lord according to Catholic tradition – from the early Middle Ages right up to 1749, when it switched to the Gregorian calendar by order of Grand Duke Francis II.

 Florence residents have carried on holding celebrations on the day through the centuries, with the former capodanno being a beloved cultural event to this very day.

READ ALSO: What are the best Florence neighbourhoods for international residents?

As usual, this year’s celebration will be marked by a costume parade starting in Piazza di Parte Guelfa and ending before the Basilica della Santissima Annunziata, where a solemn ceremony will be held.

A wealth of events (special art exhibitions, guest talks, conferences and so on) will take place in the days preceding and following March 25th. You can find out more about those here.

Sunday

Clocks go forward

Italy will make the switch to Daylight Savings Time (also known as summer time, or ora legale in Italian) in the early hours of Sunday, March 26th.

READ ALSO: Whatever happened to the EU plan to ditch the changing of the clocks?

Clocks will jump forward by one hour at 2am, meaning a lost hour of sleep that night but one more hour of sunlight from then on.

While the EU voted in 2019 to scrap Daylight Savings Time (DST) by 2021, Covid, Brexit and an intra-EU stalemate all delayed the move, which means the switch will go ahead once again this March for all EU states.

SHOW COMMENTS