CHRISTMAS IN ABRUZZO This Christmas... PLAY TOMBOLA!

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Tombola: history and traditions
In Italy tombola is a very common family game played at Christmas, and is similar to bingo, the English version so popular in the United Kingdom, Ireland and, under many forms all around the world. In Italy at Christmas Eve playing tombola is a must, with all the relatives united around grandparents and small children shouting when they win a prize (adults usually don't call a prize if there are children around, to let them win). Modern tombola cards are in plastic and have on the numbers small plastic slots that can be closed down when the number is called, but traditionally they were closed by beans ("fagioli") or by pieces of orange peel, that you had to eat while playing.

What you need to play:

a tabellone with squares containing all numbers from 1 to 90;

numbered cards, each one containing blank squares and 15 squares containing random numbers, arranged in tree rows, each containing five numbers; this cards are bought by the players

90 wooden or plastic"tombolini" with numbers from 1 to 90, which are kept in a container (usually a cloth sack).

How to play:
Fix a price for each card (ex. 1 dollar). The players buy the cards, and one of the players buys the "cartellone . The money is divided into five prizes, from lowest to highest, with tombola being the jackpot:

• the "ambo", two numbers on the same row
• the "terno", three numbers on the same row
• the "quaterna", four numbers on the same row
• the "cinquina", five numbers on the same row
• the "tombola", all numbers on the card

Then the one who has the cartellone takes the numbers out of the sack, one at a time, calling them loudly, and placing them on their box in the cartellone, and leaving time to the players to mark the number on their card. For more color each number has also a nickname, either local or from the "Smorfia" napoletana - 77 is for ex. the "gambe delle vecchie (legs of old women)".

The Smorfia
For more color each number has also a nickname, either local or from the "Smorfia" napoletana (77 is for ex. the "gambe delle vecchie (legs of old women)") -

1 Il maschio 2 L'amore 3 Il malanno 4 Il piacere 5 La mano 6 Lo specchio 7 Le corna 8 Il petto delle donne 9 La rabbia 10 Il cannone 11 Gli imbrogli 12 I soldati 13 Il bellimbusto 14 I cornuti 15 Fidarsi 16 L'asino 17 La disgrazia 18 La tradizione 19 Arrossire 20 Le feste 21 La donna 22 Il parroco

23 La suocera 24 Gli occhi 25 Il natale 26 I maccheroni 27 Il carceriere 28 Il matrimonio 29 Le castagne 30 Lo sciocco 31 La scopa 32 La gelosia 33 Gli anni di Cristo 34 L'adulterio 35 La gobba 36 La testa 37 Il frate 38 La folla 39 La smorfia 40 La pelle 41 Buffone 42 I pidocchi 43 La gioia 44 l'inganno 45 I pazzi

46 La serenata 47 Il morto che parla 48 La castità 49 Lo sforzo 50 Il pane 52 La gabbia 52 I muscoli 53 L'acquavite 54 Le bastonate 55 La salute 56 La caduta 57 I vizi 58 La calugna 59 La casa 60 La lite 61 Il ghiottone 62 I complimenti 63 La carovana 64 Le toppe 65 La pancia 66 Il successo 67 La pettegola 68 La minestra

69 L'elemosina 70 La sorpresa 71 La novità 72 La virilità 73 Il cappone 74 Il vagabondo 75 Il tempo bello 76 La chiave 77 Le gambe 78 L'ubriaco 79 Le frittelle 80 La bocca 81 Il bordello 82 L'onore 83 La coscienza 84 La chiesa 85 L'anima 86 Lo spiantato 87 Il palato 88 Trafficare 89 L'invidia 90 La paura

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