Background: Italy became a nation-state in 1861 when the city-states of the peninsula, along with Sardinia and Sicily, were united under King Victor EMMANUEL II. An era of parliamentary government came to a close in the early 1920s when Benito MUSSOLINI established a Fascist dictatorship. His disastrous alliance with Nazi Germany led to Italy's defeat in World War II. A democratic republic replaced the monarchy in 1946 and economic revival followed. Italy was a charter member of NATO and the European Economic Community (EEC). It has been at the forefront of European economic and political unification, joining the Economic and Monetary Union in 1999. Persistent problems include illegal immigration, organized crime, corruption, high unemployment, sluggish economic growth, and the low incomes and technical standards of southern Italy compared with the prosperous north.
June 15th 2008Europe » Italy » Lazio » Civitavecchia Hiya everyone!
I've just spent a lovely day in Civitavecchia. It's about 2 hours from Rome. I laid on one of the small beaches around the harbour, & sunbathed for a n hour but soon got itchy ... [full story]
May 9th 2008Europe » Italy » Lazio » Civitavecchia Day 11 Back in Rome
Well the cruise has finished and when we set out we weren't sure whether we'd love it or hate it.
The 11 days were enough to convince us that saving for another cruise would ... 1 photos[full story]
April 30th 2008Europe » Italy » Lazio » Civitavecchia The first of the cruise days and after killing some time around the neighborhood near our hotel, our hire car driver made good time (Italian drivers are maniacs) to the port city of Civitavecchia.
... 4 photos[full story]
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