Photo: Marcello Marengo/Archivio Slow Food

By Wendy Perrin

Question posted by a Conde Nast Traveler reader:

"I once read about a fishing festival on the coast of Italy. I think it was a week-long celebration with the fishermen doing the cooking. When and where is it?"   Alvin Ross

I had no earthly idea, but I knew who would. So I e-mailed Maria Teresa Berdondini, a foodie and Italy specialist on my list of the best travel agents. Her answer:

"There are many fishing festivals in Italy, from Liguria down to Sicily. Is your reader talking about Slow Fish, a sustainable-fishing festival in Genoa that the Slow Food movement organizes?  The next is in May 2007.  The fish is cooked by the best Italian and international chefs, with an emphasis on minor fish still caught in the Mediterranean Sea and cooked with hidden spices.  There will be food stands, tasting laboratories, cooking lessons, panel discussions, and debates among international fish specialists on the topic of fish threatened by extinction. Many seminars and events are translated into English.

A smaller event I know of and recommend highly takes place in Cesenatico, on the northeast coast, about 160 km south of Venice. It's a three-day festival in early November called 'Azzurro Come Il Pesce' ('As Blue As The Fish'). It aims to re-introduce consumers to 'pesce azzurro'--the family of 'blue fish' that includes sardines, tuna, swordfish, mackerel, needlefish, and anchovies.  The Academy of Italian Cuisine and many local restaurants offer tastings of Adriatic dishes and ancient recipes. Cesanatico's picturesque harbor was designed by Leonardo da Vinci in the 15th Century.  The event can easily be combined with a tour of the stunning Byzantine mosaics only 30 minutes away in Ravenna."

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