The Donkey Festival in Gallodoro

A Gallodoro, a small town in the Metropolitan City of Messina in Sicily, in month of August it is celebrated Donkey Festival and also remembers San Rocco. This day of religious celebration offers the faithful liturgical celebrations in honor of the Saint, but does not forget the rural traditions of a community which, although anchored in the present, does not renounce its collective memory.
That's how the Donkey Festival in Gallodoro (the crazy scoccu in Sicilian dialect) merges with the Feast of San Rocco, to give life to a great religious and popular festival.

In front of Mother Church, arriving from the main street of the town, carried in procession by the inhabitants of Gallodoro, theCrazy Donkey: a paper mache statue depicting the donkey, a sort of animalistic mask worn by one of the faithful, which reaches up to the Church.

In the dark evening sky, all the faithful carry torches and fireworks which they set off in the night; the donkey itself is entangled in a string of fireworks, which explode with every step. The donkey chases and is chased, enlivening the procession that crosses the town amid shouts and fun.
The entire route is illuminated by lights, for a real triumph of lights in the night.
The feast and the animal that characterizes it have a highly symbolic value, as does the use of fire during the procession: in the allegorical origins of the profane representation, lies the sacredness of a rite that joins the religious celebration, bringing joy to the town and spiritual liberation.

The history of the donkey festival in Gallodoro

Man has always attributed to animals the virtues and vices that he finds in himself: the donkey, an animal that supports man in working the land, thus becomes a symbol in the peasant tradition of many towns in Sicily. Stubborn but trustworthy, the sceccu has thus become almost a mirror of man; of course, it is now several decades since machines have replaced the animal in the work of the land, but the Donkey Festival in Gallodoro continues to celebrate this ancient bond every year and to reproduce the liberating allegory that it represents, through the vicissitudes of the sceccu in papier-mâché along the streets of the town.

Another symbol of the festival, fire, is a reminder of the opposition between light and dark, between good and evil, as well as the power of fire and its importance for life, especially when for man the bond with the earth it was the first foundation of life itself.

When the donkey festival takes place in Gallodoro

The day of the Feast of the Donkey in Gallodoro is the 16 August, day also dedicated to celebrations of San Rocco; the Festa dell'Asino takes place after dark, illuminating the night with torches, fireworks and illuminations.

Where the donkey festival takes place in Gallodoro

The Festa dell'asino in Gallodoro is a street festival: the nocturnal procession of the donkey along the streets of the town culminates in Piazza Santa Maria, in front of the Mother Church, where the donkey arrives accompanied by its "master" and surrounded by the inhabitants of Gallodoro. Tradition has it that the simulacrum of the donkey was formerly built in the Church of San Sebastiano, where it was kept until the day of the procession.

What to do during the donkey festival in Gallodoro

The Festa dell'Asino in Gallodoro is first of all a fun and liberating event: the participants, locals and tourists, meet to follow the donkey in the procession and thus exorcise their fears, forgetting worries or thoughts that are pushed away; the donkey festival is the right occasion to indulge in a traditional rite, during which you can also get to know the inhabitants of Gallodoro. On the occasion of the Feast of San Rocco, those who wish can follow the liturgical celebrations to gather in a moment of prayer.

Those who stop for a weekend or a short holiday in Gallodoro can also discover the beauties of the place, such as the Church of Santa Maria Assunta which is located in the main square of the town and preserves the beautiful Banner of the SS. Crucified; at the Church of San Sebastiano, another symbol of the festival, you can also visit the Parish Museum of Sacred Art. The summer period is the best to visit the surroundings of Gallodoro and discover its natural treasures, such as Monte Castellaccio where popular legends place the existence of gold mines, from which the nearby town takes its name.

To learn more about the rural traditions celebrated during the festival, you can visit the numerous oil mills scattered among the rocks around Gallodoro, which can be reached by horse riding or trekking.

A little away from Gallodoro you reach Taormina, famous for its beautiful beaches; in the centre, art lovers cannot miss the Cathedral and Porta Catania, but above all the Greek Theater, the ancient symbol of the city.

How can you get to the donkey festival in Gallodoro

Gallodoro, in the Metropolitan City of Messina, can be easily reached by car or train from the main locations in Sicily.
In the car, take the A18 Messina-Catania motorway to the Taormina exit and continue on the SS 114 towards Messina up to Letojanni. From here, follow the signs for Gallodoro.
Who prefers to travel on the train, can get to Gallodoro by getting off at Taormina Station and continue for the next 6,5 km by public bus.