Rastignano is an hamlet of the town of Pianoro, in the western side of Romagna, next to the border with Emilia. The tourney was established five years ago; it’s an one day Team Tourney which in the last edition has gathered the amazing number of 73 teams. Seventy-three teams is a participation that in Italy is only overtook by the Città di Milano, Montegrotto and the Città di Bologna; what’s more, the 100 per cent of the registration fees go to prizes, another rare feature in all the world, not only in Italy. And there go people as Alfredo Versace and Arturo Franco, for example.
The tourney format is by seven eight-board matches to be played in the afternoon and evening, with dinner between them.
Admittedly, the dinner right could be a problem: everybody knows that the Romagna is the country of the best cookery in the world – sorry for the Parisienne cuisine, but here was born Pellegrino Artusi – so whoever is yearning for win should be careful with eating in order to not be squeezed by his own belt. The right measure is to take just a little of all, also because it’s important, when at table in Romagna (eating table), to enjoy all and do not become full up too soon.
In Romagna was born Giovanni Pascoli (1855-1912), one of the greatest Italian poets:
“There’s something new in the sun to-day – but no
More like something old…”
So begins his moving verse “The Kite”, translated in English by the Irish poet Seamus Heaney, 1995 Nobel prize.
It now needs to know that Pascoli always had a tie contact with is country and his people, sometimes going inns to dine and have card game with friends. A popular card game in Romagna, then verisimilarly the one played by the poet, was and still is the “Maraffa”, a forty card deck game usually played by four in two pairs, but can be played by two to five players. It scores the card values in the trick, not the trick itself, but its rules are almost the same of whist, with the duty to follow the suit, the chance to ruff when empty, and the honour scoring as well: who holds the three higher value sequence 3-2-Ace of trump, the so called Maraffa, scores points for his side. The trump is selected by the player left to the dealer, who does it after have seen his cards; in the ancient whist it was decided casually turning up the last card of the dealer. What’s more – we are now talking of bridge origins – the three and four player variants can be featured with dummy, that is a Bridge-Whist feature.
The 2012 winner – now back to Contract Bridge – has been the team of the Italian Federation, with the same president Gianni Medugno as playing captain (Medugno, Rinaldi, Venier, Tanini).
We cannot ensure you that the Maraffa is actually played in Rastignano, as it’s more spread toward the south-east of the region, where Pascoli was born; nonetheless the place, the guys, the cooking, and the sheer bridge we are playing there deserve the journey.
The next edition of the Bridge Team Tournament of Rastignano is scheduled for September 7, 2013. There are no restrictions for foreign players.
More info at official website: click here >>
***
Paolo Enrico Garrisi
[We thanks MrMaurizio Sintini, owner of the Maraffa Osteria Pub of Cesenatico, for courtesy information about playing Maraffa.]