Holiday Lights and Lighting

All right, cut the complaints--I know that Natalie already did a holiday lights post over at Bella Cinghiale, but I figure you can’t have too much holiday cheer. And trust me, I know about these things. With that in mind, here are some of my favorite holiday lights and lighting seen recently, starting with street light from Umbertide, first from a street off the main square:

and then down another bustling Umbertide street:

Not Christmas lights per se, but we saw some absolutely amazing lighting in the center of Citta di Castello, too, where the Piazza Comunale had giant projections going on on every side of the square (it’s a large square by the way, and often used for markets and festivals). On one side was projected a huge blue ornament (as an aside: in front of it was a big hollow “tree.” Kids, or adults I suppose, could make a small charity donation, then get a balloon with their “wish” inside. Then, they could put the balloons into a tube into this giant “tree”—the tube had a sign that said “Insert Here Your Wish”—and then the balloons would float around and to the top):

and on the other, a replication of a Madonna and child (not sure who it’s by, but isn’t this fairly breath-taking):

Finally, a little star seen in the country on the way home:

Here’s to a happy and bright holiday season!