by InTrieste
Residents of Friuli Venezia Giulia have been stepping outside this week into an unexpected gift: soft sunlight, mild breezes and temperatures more reminiscent of early autumn than approaching winter. The region has been firmly in the grip of the Estate di San Martino, a warm spell traditionally associated with St. Martin’s Day on November 11.
For centuries, Italians have looked to this brief November thaw as a seasonal grace note before winter. According to legend, its origins trace back to the fourth century, when Martin, a soldier stationed in Gaul, encountered a shivering beggar and cut his cloak in two to share with him. The skies cleared, the air warmed and, as the story goes, the “summer of St. Martin” was born. That night, Martin dreamed of Jesus wearing the cloak, inspiring him to be baptized and later devote his life to helping the poor. He would eventually become bishop of Tours, remembered as a protector of both people and animals — from soldiers and tailors to geese and horses.
While the tale lives largely in folklore, its climatic echo feels tangible this year. Trieste’s seaside promenades have filled with walkers and cyclists, and vineyards across the Collio hills — still lined with autumn gold — have been basking under clear skies. Cafés spilled onto piazzas last weekend and are expected to do so again, with forecasts suggesting the sunshine will hold through Saturday and Sunday.
In Friuli Venezia Giulia, St. Martin’s Day also resonates through local customs. In many towns, children mark the date with songs and paper lanterns; bakeries prepare seasonal sweets; and families uncork the first bottles of new wine. The warmth adds to the sense of celebration — a fleeting reprieve before chilly bora winds and mountain snows inevitably return.
Whether credited to a saint’s kindness or simply seasonal weather patterns, the effect is the same: a pause in the year’s march toward winter, bathed in gentle light. And for now, in Italy’s far northeast, that is enough.
