'Bel Paese' aka beautiful country (Italy 2009)

The name Italy comes from the word italia, meaning “calf land,” perhaps because the bull was a symbol of the Southern Italian tribes

With almost 40 million visitors, Italy is the fourth most visited country in the world.

In a limited time (5 full and 2 half days) we visited most of Sicily, Rome, Vatican City  and Florenze. It can be done, but its very tiresome. I would suggest you to spend more time in each destination.

Date	Place	To do
06. sept	Rome	Colosseum, Roman Forum, The Arc of Titus, Capitoline, Venice Square
07. sept	Rome	Vatican City (museums, gardens, Sistine chapel). Pantheon, Trevi fountain, Spanish steps, Piazza Navona.
08. sept	Rome -> Palermo, Trapani, Ribera, Agrigento	Palermo:Capuchin catacombs              Botanic Gardens Trapani: Museo delle Saline Ribera: orange trees
09. sept	Agrigento, Buscemi, Siracusa	Agrigento: Temple of Valley – Hera, Concordia, Herakles, Zeus temples Siracusa: Parco Archeologico della Neapoli, Latomia del Paradiso Nymphaeum at Greek Theatre
10. sept	Etna, Taormina	Etna: vulcano Taormina: Ancient Greek Theatre
11. sept	Pompei -> Florenze	Pompei:
12. sept	Florenze	Museo Stibbert - and our time was up :S.

Sicily

Most people in Sicily see themselves as Sicilians first and Italians second. Sicily has their own parliament and president, but politically it remains as part of Italian Republic.

Over 75% of Italy is mountainous or hilly.

Field of gold (melons)

"Ars longa, vita brevis" is a common saying in Italy. It means "art is long, life is short" and reflects the Italian love of leisure. 

 The colors of the Italian flag represent three virtues: hope (green), faith (white), and charity (red)

The average Italian consumes 25 kilograms of pasta and 26 gallons (almost 100 litres) of wine per year.

Fishmarket

We found winery beside the road, stopped and picked some grapes!

No other country in Europe has as many volcanoes as Italy. This is because the Italian peninsula stands on a fault line. Three major volcanoes (Etna, Stromboli, and Vesuvius) have erupted in the last hundred years.

On top of Etna - it was raining so the view was not great

But then you turned the rockminerals you could find many little ladybirds sleeping under

Mount Vesuvius last erupted in 1944, destroying several neighboring villages and the city of Pompeii. We visited this site, and it was captivating. However, we had a sleepless night behind us, and we were scattered. Even getting there was tough for us because we initially missed our stop (as we were all asleep). Funny enough, the place we got out was called as follows:

We were indeed angry! It's because we took a night train and thought we bought sleeping compartment tickets, but instead, we could not find a place to sit at all. Finally, we squeezed into one compartment and slept sitting, six of us on five seats!


Italy has the highest number of cultural sites recognized by UNESCO world Heritage

Perekond Sõnajalad

 
Vatican City is the only nation in the world that can lock its own gates at night. It has its own phone company, radio, T.V. stations, money, and stamps. It even has its own army, the historic Swiss Guard.

Most of Italy’s natural flora and fauna has disappeared due to centuries of cultivation. Most of its natural wildlife has also disappeared due to over-hunting.

Orange trees

Bitter almonds

Seasalt from Trapani

Formation of salt

The official language is Italian which is derived from Latin, but German and French are also spoken in some parts of the country.

"Porte si chiudono" - doors are closing.
"Arrivederci" - Goodbye!
"Buon divertimento miei amici" - Have fun my friends!

"Ars longa, vita brevis" is a common saying in Italy. It means "art is long, life is short" and reflects the Italian love of leisure. - See more at: http://www.lifeinitaly.com/potpourri/fun-facts.asp#sthash.hi8pHSih.dpuf

With almost 40 million visitors, Italy is the fourth most visited country in the world. - See more at: http://www.lifeinitaly.com/potpourri/fun-facts.asp#sthash.hi8pHSih.dpuf

With almost 40 million visitors, Italy is the fourth most visited country in the world. - See more at: http://www.lifeinitaly.com/potpourri/fun-facts.asp#sthash.hi8pHSih.dpuf

With almost 40 million visitors, Italy is the fourth most visited country in the world. - See more at: http://www.lifeinitaly.com/potpourri/fun-facts.asp#sthash.hi8pHSih.dpuf

With almost 40 million visitors, Italy is the fourth most visited country in the world. - See more at: http://www.lifeinitaly.com/potpourri/fun-facts.asp#sthash.hi8pHSih.dpuf