Feast of San Michele in Sant’Angelo

Two extraordinarily intense days await the village of Sant’Angelo on Ischia on 29 and 30 September, with a programme that offers ever-new emotions to those who experience it and make it their own.

The procession on the first evening, the feast day of the Patron Saint, is particularly evocative: Saint Michael is carried on the shoulders of the faithful through the narrow, steep streets of the upper part of the village and along the simple, picturesque paths of the little harbour. At dusk, as if by magic, all the cliffs suddenly light up with countless flickering flames. This striking spectacle is made possible by the hard work of a group of local young people who, in preparation, place torches on the rocks and light them over these two days as Saint Michael passes by.

On the morning of 30 September, the statue of Saint Michael is moved to the village square, where it remains until the evening, before being carried once again in procession – this time by sea – both towards Punta Chiarito, in the nearby Forian hamlet of Panza, and towards Maronti Beach in Barano. Each year, the Saint’s arrival there is welcomed by a message spelled out in the sand with many small torches, arranged by local tourism operators.

A river of boats, large and small, arrives from all over the island, following the “Pellicano”, the fishing boat honoured with carrying the Saint, escorted by all law-enforcement authorities. It is an endless spectacle stretching from Punta Chiarito to Maronti Beach: a shimmer of multicoloured cascades of light which, blended with the flames illuminating the cliffs, creates a truly enchanting atmosphere.

After the Holy Mass celebrated in the square and the brass band concert, a thunderous finale of lights, sounds and colours floods the sky above Sant’Angelo.