The coat of arms of the municipality of Livorno on a side gate of the “Mercato Centrale”.
These brave guys are hovering above the skylight of the “Mercato Centrale” in the basket of a huge cherry picker. They are probably checking the state of the roof, made of Eternit boards, hence the protective gear.
The truck parked on the side of the “Mercato Centrale”.
From below, a co-worker is carefully maneuvering the boom lift.
This same wall of the “Mercato Centrale” was thoroughly cleaned last summer. The only question then was how long it would last.
Most of you probably already know how much I like events like the so called White Night or Blue Night. A Tricolor Night became unavoidable and therefore a constellation of minor non-events was organized, or better disorganized, all over the town center.
Ramshackle bands playing improbable music of the Risorgimento, horse riders in even more improbable “garibaldino” attire and the since unattained technical prowess of illuminating our “Mercato Centrale” with three colored floodlights, were some of the pearls of this absolutely forgettable night.
The purpose of this event would be to keep people awake until dawn with music and open shops. This could work in bigger cities, but here the few shops still open shut down at midnight, without any significant sale. The people still around, often sleepy or with a beer too much, wander aimlessly from a spot of loud music to another, until they decide that they belong to bed.
The first year that this thing was organized, they were so smart to plan fireworks at 4 AM, waking up and enraging the greater part of the Livornesi, soundly asleep at the time.
“Scali Saffi”, a green on green composition at the front gate of the “Mercato Centrale”.
An abandoned Ape, the grass had time to grow around the wheels.
A typical “portone” (front door), the ring on the right side opens a smaller service door.
