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Ten Good Reasons to Visit Italy, with pictures.

Updated on December 10, 2014

Statue of David, Florence.

photo of the famous statue of David in the Italian city of Florence.
photo of the famous statue of David in the Italian city of Florence. | Source

Ancient Rome there is still much to visit and explore.

Photo taken in  Rome, The Forum area.
Photo taken in Rome, The Forum area. | Source

Why Visit Italy?

Ten Good Reasons To Visit Italy.

Reason One: For The Food. To Eat Authentic Italian Food.

It does not matter if you can only afford a pizza or a simple bowl of pasta you will almost certainly be served a meal that has been prepared with skill.

The pizzas are usually baked in a wood burning stove and there is nothing better than an authentic Italian pizza Margherita when you are hungry ( the Margherita is named after an Italian queen and its colours are red, white and green like the Italian flag. Red is the the tomatoes, white (is the pizza dough) and green ( is the basil topping).

Italian pasta cooked perfectly and al dente (firm ' to the tooth') in a tasty sauce sprinkled with the wonderful cheese made only in Parma, Italy .. Parmesan or Parmigiano Reggiano to give it its Italian name.

Reason Two: For The Wine… to drink Italian wine in Italy.

As wonderful as Italian wines are at home; for some reason they always taste better when you drink them in the country that they were created in.

Reason Three: To Eat Real Italian Ice Cream.

The variety of flavours will leave you spoilt for choice; we often have to ask them to serve someone else while we pick which flavour will be our favorite that day.

Crema, peach, lemon, strawberry, pistachio, coffee, chocolate, chocolate and nut,Nutella, pineapple, spagnola, tutti frutti, fruit of the forest, mango.

Not forgetting- trifle charmingly named Zuppa Inglese and here I will translate it from the Italian into English as I have been told it, it is called “soup of the English”.

There are many more varieties/flavours than I can list here.


Italian Ice Cream is Wonderful

photo: Gelateria. The sign over an Italian Ice cream sellers shop.
photo: Gelateria. The sign over an Italian Ice cream sellers shop.

Roman Temple Photo taken in Rome,Forum Area.

photo of an ancient Roman temple,  The Forum Rome
photo of an ancient Roman temple, The Forum Rome | Source

Italian towns and cities are interesting to explore.

autumn an Italian city - Parma.
autumn an Italian city - Parma. | Source
Rome, the modern city with a history.
Rome, the modern city with a history. | Source


Reason Four: The Cities & Towns.

Each city has a different atmosphere and the old (vechio) and modern architecture are both in their own way interesting to see.

For example Rome has ‘at its heart’ a bustling city of stylish shops and busy traffic but pause for a moment and look around you and you are surrounded by it’s ancient past you are but a few steps away the ruins of it’s The Forum, Palantine Hill, The Colosseum.

Walk through these places and yes the noise of the city is still therein the distance. But can you not also feel the hand of the past on your shoulder as you stare down into the place were the animals were kept beneath the Colosseum? When read of how much blood was shed in that one place hundreds of years ago, you can feel your blood run cold in the middle of Summer.

You can look up at the ancient columns around the Forum area and see the places on them where the once famous Romans had their names removed when thy fell from grace and favour.

Visit Florence for it’s art, Pisa for it’s tower & Venice because you will feel you have to for nowhere else is quite like it. But If you have the opportunity Bologna and Parma are both fine cities and you will not be at a loss for something to do or see there.

Reason Five: To Drink A Cappuccino... a real Italian cappuccino made by a barista.

Baristas in Italy have coffee making down to an art form; in Milan I was presented with a cappuccino with a perfectly formed chocolate (powder) heart resting on its froth, this was produced with a flourish and no stencil was used. Please see my Italian coffee page for more about this 'art'.

Reason Six: Beauty.. Italy is a beautiful country to visit.

The landscape, the weather, the good taste and style that the Italians live by.

Reason Seven: The Shops.

This does not need much of an explanation; even just window shopping is a pleasure there.  The quality of the displays in windows is amazing. The window displays range from a display of hats so magnificient you will think that you have stepped back in time to the most modern of designer shoes, clothes and bags in streets dedicated to famous designer names such as Prada and Jimmy Choo. There is a shop with leather gloves in all the colours of the rainbow on sale in a shop near the Spanish steps in Rome.

I can spend ours just looking in shop windows in Italy... I rarely buy anything because if the restrictions on luggage; we travel light.

For the most fantastic display of chocolate visit Turin at Easter and see chocolate making turned into tempting master pieces.

Reason Eight: The Lifestyle... families matter.

This is always pleasure to witness Italians are still mostly very good at getting together as families. Everyone will be included in a meal out at a restaurant from great grandma to the latest arrival. They all share a love of good food and company. They enjoy the camaraderie of dining together and of meeting old friends and stopping to talk when out and about walking or cycling in the town, In Summer the retired people sit in parks in the shade of trees and pass the time of day together.

Reason Nine: The People.

Watching the Italians go about their daily life with an air of gracefulness. Women ride their bikes elegantly no matter what they are wearing and shopping is no problem as it is put it in the basket on the front of the bicycle. Even in the heat of the summer in the city the men and women of Italian cities look unruffled and elegant.

Reason Ten: The Local Markets.

The Italians love a good market, it is a meeting place and a hub of activity. The Italian women will sort through a pile of clothes heaped on a stall. Suddenly she manages to pull out from the tangle of clothes a dress or skirt that looks unpromising. Then holding it up against herself she will judge if it is suitable; if they are lucky there is a mirror to look in. Then like magic you suddenly realise how well it does suits them; it is perfect for them size,style and price.

The fruit stalls are piled high with the most colourful and fresh fruit and vegetables, so well arranged they could be in a painting. The local markets are all slightly different they may be set in close proximity to historical buildings but when the market is in town it takes centre stage.

 

Italian's take great pride and care in the way they present their food.

 Italian markets sell a wide range of produce. mushrooms.
Italian markets sell a wide range of produce. mushrooms. | Source

Artisitc tiled images, adverts on shops..

 photo, a cheese shop with a tiled advert of the fabulous selection of Italian cheeses.
photo, a cheese shop with a tiled advert of the fabulous selection of Italian cheeses. | Source

Italy is a fascinating place to visit each town seems to have something special waiting to be discovered. The regional attitude to cooking ensures that each area you visit will have their own food specialties to tempt you.

The family life style of Italians is a pleasure to witness when they get together to enjoy a meal and seated around the table will be members of the family from the youngest baby to the nonna (grandma). There is usually much conversation and laughter at such gatherings.

We have fond memories of when we traveled in Italy with our children and Italian ladies would stop us in the street to tell us how beautiful our children were.

Photos of Rome.

 Rome
Rome
working

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