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I have a question about the following text, which is supposed to give information about the "Festa di Sant'Anna", which apparently takes place on the island "Ischia":

La festa si svolge sul mare. C'è una sfilata di barche decorate che vanno al Castello Aragonese e c'è un premio per la barca più bella.

Ok, so this festivity takes place at a coast (next to the sea), and there are boats in the water and the most beautiful one gets a price. But what is meant with "sfilata di barche" exactly? So are the boats going by the people on the coast or are people walking by and the boats stand still? Or is it simply not clear from that piece of information?

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    I would say that people are on the coast watching the boats as they pass by, similar to what a "sfilata di moda" (fashion show) is. treccani.it/vocabolario/sfilata – Denis Nardin♦ Sep 29 '15 at 12:54
  • The acceptation described in Andrea's answer and in Deins Nardin's comment is correct in this case, as the boats are described as navigating towards some place, but in general mind that "sfilata" might refer also to any "still" sequence of something, hence being more of a "showcase" then a "parade"; not sure if "parade" itself may assume this other acceptation in English as well though. – kos Sep 29 '15 at 18:47
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    You can tell it's the boats moving because it says "una sfilata di barche that go to the Castello Aragonese" – laureapresa Oct 2 '15 at 7:38
  • If you are satisfied with the answer to your question, please consider the option to "accept" it by clicking a checkmark next to the answer. – I.M. Oct 24 '15 at 9:07
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The dictionary (this version, in particular) reports, as the main definition of "sfilata": "Passaggio di persone o di mezzi in successione, perlopiù ordinata", translatable as "Passage of people or vehicles, one after another, mostly in an organized way".

So, boats are navigating the sea, and people can look at them from the coast. This definition lets "sfilata" be translatable into "parade", in English.

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