Let's discover Italy !
TOP 5 PLACES
ROME
This is probably the first thing that crosses your mind when you think about Italy and Rome. Made from stone and concrete, this magnificent monument was built with the man power of tens of thousands of workers. is the largest amphitheater (meaning “theatre in the round”) in the world! Oval in shape, it measures 189m long, 156m wide and 50m high (about the height of a 12 storey building). This ancient sporting arena could easily fit a modern day football pitch inside! This brilliant building had 80 entrances and could seat approximately 50,000 spectators who would come to watch sporting events and games. These events included gladiatorial combats, wild animal hunts and, believe it or not, ship naval battle! Last but not least, every show was free for the population and sometimes free food was offered too.
VENICE
Venice is a unique city placed in the northeastern of Italy. It is situated on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. Venice has been known as “La Dominante”, “La Serenissima”, “Queen of the Adriatic”, “City of Water”, “City of Masks”, “City of Bridges”, “The Floating City”, and “City of Canals”. The lagoon and a part of the city are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. If you’re looking for delicious seafood, breathtaking architecture and a romantic afternoon on the Gondola (the typical boat in the lagoon) Venice is a must to visit for you.
FLORENCE - UFFIZI GALLERY
The Uffizi Gallery is considered the most important Italian museum and one of the most beautiful art collections in the world. It is home to masterpieces by some of the greatest artists of all time, including Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, and Raphael, among others. The Uffizi sees around 2 million visitors each years, and is the most visited museum in Italy. It’s the kind of place that you can’t miss if you love art and history. 93 rooms filled with incredible masterpieces and, if you get hungry during the visit, the Antico Vinaio sandwich shop nearby will provide some of the best sandwiches you’ll ever taste.
AMALFI COAST
is a beautiful and renowned stretch of mountainous coastline south of Naples, in Campania. The southern end of the Bay of Naples stretches out in a steep and rocky peninsula that reaches towards the Isle of Capri. Sorrento, another major tourist destination, looks back towards Naples from the north coast of the peninsula. The southern side of the peninsula is dotted with picturesque villages and towns clinging giddily to cliffs; this is what is known as the Amalfi Coast. Turquoise seas and cinematic piazzas aside, the region is home to some of Italy’s finest hotels and restaurants. It’s also one of the country’s top spots for hiking, with well-marked trails providing the chance to escape the star-struck coastal crowds. if you want to experience some “bella vita” this coast is a must see.
THE DOLOMITES
If you’re into mountains you must google them! The site of the Dolomites comprises a mountain range in the northern Italian Alps, numbering 18 peaks which rise to above 3,000 metres. The nine components of The Dolomites World Heritage property protect a series of highly distinctive mountain landscapes that are of exceptional natural beauty. Their dramatic vertical and pale coloured peaks in a variety of distinctive sculptural forms is extraordinary in a global context. The Dolomites are renowned for skiing in the winter months and mountain climbing, hiking, cycling, and BASE jumping, as well as paragliding and hang gliding in summer and late spring/early autumn. After a long day of skiing or trekking you can visit the little cities of Cortina d’Ampezzo, Ortisei or Madonna di Campiglio known for beautiful hotels and fine shopping.
TRADITIONS & FOOD
The most difficult thing about eating in Italy is that you can’t try everything. Every day you have a finite number of meals, and a finite amount of space in your stomach, whereas there seem to be an infinite number of Italian dishes that you “absolutely need to try”. From regional specialties to the finest seasonal delicacies, you would need multiple lifetimes to sample all the best Italian food, and that’s before you even consider dessert and drinks. Carbs are our specialties: Pizza, Pasta in every way, Lasagna, bread, focaccia and so on… If you come in Rome you will love to taste some pasta Carbonara (made with Pork Cheeks and Eggs) or maybe you will like Supplì (a fried ball made of rice, meat, mozzarella and tomato). You crave for meat? no problems, go straight to a huge and yummy Florentine steak in Tuscany with some strong red wine from the region. you are in love with seafood? every seaside city you find on the way will offer you some delicious and fresh seafood like clams, shrimps, crabs or every fish you like from the mediterranean sea. The variety of our food cannot be described in few lines…you just have to visit, try it and enjoy it.
BY Stefano Pizzoli
Italy CR