Contrade di Siena

In Siena, there are 17 different contrade, or districts, within the city. Each contrada is named after an animal:

 Aquila (Eagle)—Bruco (Caterpillar)—Chiocciola (Snail)—Civetta (Owl)—Drago (Dragon)—Giraffa (Giraffe)—Istrice (Porcupine)—Leocorno (Unicorn)—Lupa (She-Wolf) —Nicchio (Seashell)—Oca (Goose)—Onda (Wave-represented by a dolphin)—Pantera (Panther)—Selva (Forest-represented by the rhinoceros)—Tartuca (Tortoise)—Torre (Tower-represented by the elephant)—Valdimontone (Valley of the Ram) 

For Sienese people, their contrada is more important than their personal identity

When people in Siena introduce themselves, their first question is "What's your name?" and their second question is "What's your contrada?" It is an extremely important part of their identity. They become a part of their contrada when they are baptized, not in the church, but in their contrada's fountain. If two people marry from two different contrade, the husband chooses the contrada of the first child and the mother chooses the contrada of the second child.

Every summer, ten of the contradas are represented in a horse race, called the Palio

On July 2 and August 16 the Piazza de Campo is turned into a horse race track. The word Palio comes from the banner that the winning contrada  receives at the end of the race. Seven of the contrade who did not get to race in the last event automatically get a spot in the race, and the remaining three are chosen randomly in a ceremony, which I will be able to see at the end of May! 

For the people of Siena, the horse is more of a celebrity than the jockey. In fact, if the jockey falls of the horse in the middle of the race, but the horse still crosses the finish line first, that contrada still wins. Before the race, the horses are brought into each of the contrada's churches to be blessed, and it is good luck if the horse poops during the ceremony. Despite the importance of the horse to Sienese people, the race is extremely dangerous for them, with tight corners and steep terrain. Many of them break their legs or die during these races. Here is a video that displays the craziness that is the Palio:

Each contrada has their own church, museum, and government (including a prime minister) 

Our site director, Silvia, is a member of the porcupine contrada—and of course she will tell you it is the best contrada. Most of the time, museums and churches are closed to the public, but she was able to arrange a private tour for us to see the porcupine's center. The coolest thing displayed in the museum were all of the old palios, or banners from the years the porcupine district won.

The Porcupine's Shield

They also had a lot of cool costumes that people wear during the parade before the Palio

The importance of the contrada is unexplainable

According to Silvia, there are no words to describe the importance of the contrada to an outsider. People mourn for weeks (or months, or years) when they lose the Palio and sob joyfully when they win. It is a very emotional experience for every single member of the community. There is nothing in American society that even comes close to this, an institution and event in which every citizen is invested.