For the first time since its institution in 2005, the IBCPC FESTIVAL will be held in Europe – in Italy!! The Florence 2018 Festival will involve 129 teams from 17 countries, and for the very first time all the continents are represented.
This journey through Tuscan art and culture begins with a rich and revitalising Breakfast at the Bernini Palace Parliament Hall. Once a venue for parliament and senate sessions during the Kingdom of Italy, the hall features a splendid frescoed ceiling.
The origin of this splendid vessel is still to be established, but it may date back to ancient times, when the more marshy waters of the Arno River and the narrower channel required a slimmer, flat-bottomed type of boat so as not to run aground in the shallows. The boat grew over the centuries in size due to the need to transport a large amount of materials for the construction of the city walls of Florence along the river, becoming the "barchetto boat" we know today.
