Learn about Italy

Italy is one of those countries about which you probably have quite a number of preconceptions before you have put one foot into the country. A country of olive oil and mafia, pasta, wine and sunshine, roman ruins and renaissance palaces, Italy has a lot to offer its visitors. Although some of these images are appealing, it would be a shame if that was the only thing you come away with. Italy is certainly much more complex and interesting than that.

Italy is a modern country with deep Roman Catholic roots, full of interesting stuff for the casual tourist and even more for the educated visitor. It is easy to spend two weeks in major tourist centers without any reason to get bored, but it is equally simple to get off the beaten track. In the north, next to the Alps and the flatlands of the Po river, both cultural jewels and highly developed industrial cities attract. This is where Italy's economic heart beats, but even in the bustling cities, people live the "la vita Italiana".

In Lombardia's capital Milan, city of haute couture and business, you can easily spend weeks without being bored. Bergamo is only an hour away and has an upper Old Town. On every corner you will discover something new. The most famous tourist attractions in the north-east are Venice and Verona, that both let you think of romantic love affairs. To discover the beautiful landscapes around, for example, the Verona province may be even more fascinating. The north-west of Italy is a paradise for every culinary interested traveler. For wine lovers, Piemonte is directly connected with Barolo and Barbaresco, the most famous wines made out of the Nebbiolo grape. Piemonte's capital, Turin offers more than just a starting point to visit these wine regions. Lots of museums, modern art, book and music fairs make Turin one of the leading Italian cities concerning cultural life. At the same time it is a booming industrial and multimedia city.

The coastal region of Liguria is another highlight. The Riviera delle Palme has no reason to envy its French counterpart. Beaches, countryside, the right climate and old towns like Genoa make this region a must to visit. Mostly undiscovered valleys offer beautiful walking possibilities. The Lunigiana region, Albenga and Ceriale are worth a visit and an even longer stay. Gourmets should not miss the Emilia Romagna, Italy's culinary centre. Bologna, "La Grassa" like the Italians say, is a must see as well as Ravenna with its impressive mosaic works and the Byzantine architecture and last but not least Rimini, on the Adriatic Sea. For Tuscany words fail to describe its beauty: You have to go there to see, smell and experience the beauty of the old towns and lovely valleys yourself. Florence, Lucca, Pisa, Prato and Siena, offer more cultural highlights than some countries as a whole. The way of living does the rest to attract every year millions of visitors. Elba, the island of Napoleans first exile, is only one of seven Tuscan Archipelago islands.

What can we say about Rome? The Eternal City, with its monumental palaces, churches, squares, and fountains still fed by acqueducts with ancient water sources, has to be visited by every Italy traveler. To discover Rome, it is said, "A lifetime is not enough." The southern part of Italy fascinates the traveler with its great hospitality and gorgeous landscapes. Campania has attracted visitors over the centuries: Capri, Ischia, Sorrento and Amalfi became the chosen destinations of visitors from many countries. "To see Naples and then die" is not just an old spell. Try it yourself and even if you don't die, you will surely lose your heart. Sicily the largest island in the Mediterranean has been influenced by the culture of the Greeks, the Romans, the Arabs the Normans and many others. They all loved life on the island and left their marks. Italy has a great climate and the beaches to go with it. Look at the map and you will notice immediately that Italy has a very long coastline. Different mountain chains run through the country and you never have to travel far to find some excellent places to go hiking. Volcanoes like Stromboli or the Etna are still active and can be visited.

Museums in Italy

National Gallery of Ancient Art
Where: Via delle Quattro Fontane
In the sixteenth-century Barbarini Palace (see chart) one finds the National Gallery of Ancient Art, displaying the works of the Corsini-Colonna collections and the gatherings of Barberini, Chigi and Sciarra.
Among the most significant works are the tryptic of the Beato Angelico showing the Final Judgement, the Ascension and Pentacost; two works by Filippo Lippi, the Virgin with Child and the Annunciation; the Magdalene by Piero di Cosimo, the Fornarina by Raphael; a fresco by Andrea Sacchi, the Nativity and Baptism of Christ, by El Greco; Christ and the Adulteress by Tintoretto; the fresco by Pietro da Cortona decorating the ceiling of the main room of the palace (the Allegory of Divine Providence).

Capitoline Museums (Piazza del Campidoglio)
The Capitoline Museums are located in the Palace of the Conservators, built by Giacomo Della Porta according to the design of Michaelangelo in the second half of the fifteenth century, and in the New Palace, built by Girolamo Rainaldi in the seventeenth century (in front of the the Palace of the Conservators). .
In the Museum of the Palace of the Conservators are rows of rooms with works of great interest, including the Gallery of the Lamiani Orchards, with the Esquilina Venus; the room of the Magistrates, with statues from the fourth century; the Spinario, a bronze of the first century B.C.; the Wolf of the Campidoglio, an Etruscan bronze of the sixth century B.C. In the same building one finds the Capitoline Art Gallery, containing many paintings. The New Palace, northeast of the piazza of the Campidoglio, has a collection of many antique sculptures, including the so-called Capitoline Aphrodite, a Roman copy of a Hellenic statue, the Morente Galatea, copy of a work from the school of Pergamo of the third century B.C.; the Faun, a statue in red marble. Interesting also is the Room of the Emperors, with 65 busts representing famous people.

Vatican Museums (viale Vaticano)
The Vatican Museums contain the largest collection of antiquities in the world. This itinerary follows that adopted by the Museum Administration: From the Atrium of the Four Gates one arrives at the Gregorian Egyptian Museum, which has eight rooms. Among the most interesting of the works contained here is the immense statue of the Queen Tuia, mother of Ramses II, and the basalt statue known as Naoforo, from 525 B.C. In the Chiaromonti Museum, organized by Canova in a gallery of Donato Bramante, about a thousand Greek and Roman statues are exposed, including large statues of Minerva, Augustus and Tiberius. The Pius-Clementine Museum is dedicated primarily to sculpture, the art which most interested Clement XIV.
The Gregorian-Etruscan Museum, made up of objects coming from southern Etruria and from private donations, presents one of the most beautiful collections in the world of Etruscan remains.