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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.

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By Wacky
February 28th 2004

Chapter 27: Toarmina: Paradise island and a little too much vodka Europe » Italy » Sicily » Taormina

Toarmina

Chapter 27 Paradise island and a little too much vodka The night before meant they didn’t actually get up until 2.00pm. Today was never going to be fruitful. Everything was shut, the medical centre didn’t do vaccines (which they needed to boost) on any other day but Monday. All the travel agencies were shut on Saturday, and even the internet was closed. It was fairly fresh and windy in Toarmina thought the sun was shining so Martin suggested having a lazy day at the beach. There was a beach they hadn’t seen yet, which was desribed as very picturesque a [View Full Entry]

By Wacky
February 27th 2004

Chapter 26: Toarmina - An amphitheatre, a cable cart and a kind of Magic Europe » Italy » Sicily » Taormina

Toarmina

Chapter 26 An amphitheatre, a cable cart and a kind of magic They arose at a reasonable time and headed for the Greek amphitheatre in Toarmina. A huge theatre appeared around the corner, half the size of the one in Syracuse with Mount Etna and the Naxos sea providing the backdrop to the stage; truly stunning. The only negative was that there were no stairs, they had placed wooden seats enforced by metal to complete the semicircle, taking away the genuineness of the place, unlike Syracuse which maintained its original charm. Toarmina’s amphitheatre easily outweighe [View Full Entry]

By Wacky
February 26th 2004

Chapter 25: Toarmina - Paradise in the hills of Mount Etna Europe » Italy » Sicily » Taormina

Toarmina

Chapter 25 Toarmina - paradise in the hills of Mount Etna They managed to catch the 10.55am train from Syracuse to Toarmina which travelled along some majestic coastline; passing Catania as Mount Etna loomed forever closer. Two hours later they arrived at Toarmina, where no accomodation had been booked yet. First stop, the tourist office, who rather brashly suggested the Youth hostel, but did provide a list and map of the hotels. The bus took an eternity to come and when it did, the driver turned out to be a real nutcase. The 15 minute journey up the hill was terrifying [View Full Entry]

By Wacky
February 25th 2004

Chapter 24: Syracuse- A Greek tragedy and the mines of Moria Europe » Italy » Sicily » Siracusa

Syracuse

Chapter 24 A Greek tragedy and the mines of Moria They arose at a reasonable time and headed for the archaeology park about twenty minutes walk from the town (having bought another map and consumed breakfast). A section of the park, right next to the athletics track, was a Greek amphitheatre. Set in well-kept grounds, the theatre lay in front of them. A cosy well-preserved theatre dug from the rock arose from the stage, with steps rising up onto a hill. At the top of the hill, small caves and a natural spring provided the backdrop. An excellent place to visit, [View Full Entry]

By Wacky
February 24th 2004

Chapter 23: Syracuse in times of carnival Europe » Italy » Sicily » Siracusa

Syracuse

Chapter 23 Syracuse in times of Carnival They arose round 11 o’clock, having missed breakfast again and headed for the bus station to catch the inter-bus direct to Siracusa (3 ¼ hours) which lies on the south east coast on the completely opposite side of Palermo. The coach took them right across the island, at a speed which made Maya a little apprehensive as the oncoming traffic was at times coming a little too close for comfort. The journey cut through rolling hills, mountain sides, a rather barren landscape for the most part, and only one personal needs break (c [View Full Entry]

By Wacky
February 23rd 2004

Chapter 22: Cefalu - On top of the world and some very dead people Europe » Italy » Sicily » Cefalù

Cefalu

Chapter 22 Cefalu - On top of the world (and some very dead people) The receptionist had recommended Cefalu as a good place for a day trip, but Maya first wanted to see the Capuchin monks’ catacombs just off the Piazza Indipendenzia. Three buses later, they reached the house of the dead. Martin had been a little reserved about seeing dead people on display, not so much because they were dead but the fact that they were on display. A monk in traditional attire let them into the crypt. The tombs were originally for the Capuchin monks, the first of whom [View Full Entry]

By Wacky
February 22nd 2004

Chapter 21: Sicily Part 2 Europe » Italy » Sicily » Palermo

Palermo

Chapter 21 Sicily: Part 2 The journey to Palermo had been truly exhausting, so a little lay in was required. Once they finally did arise, they decided to explore Sicily’s capital city, a much larger city then anticipated. Palermo had been an Arab Emirate but became a Norman Kingdom. Described as Europe’s most beautiful city in days gone by, several conquests and the second world war had, like so many Italian cities, given it that familiar tired look. Some describe this look as rustic, which would suggest a certain charm, most of the [View Full Entry]

By Wacky
February 21st 2004

Chapter 20: Sicily Europe » Italy » Sicily » Palermo

Sicily

Chapter 20 Sicily - Part 1 They awoke at 6.45 am, ready at 7.15 for breakfast with Anna-Maria and her family. The train was at 7.55am so when Anna-Maria was trying to download a floppy disc for our two showing various pictures of Villa Pane, Martin was beginning to regularly check his watch. After saying their goodbyes, her husband gave our two a lift to the station. With 5 minutes to spare before the train left, Maya got stuck with her rucksack in the barriers, finally unravelling herself with just a minute to spare. Once they sat down, two Canadians they [View Full Entry]

By Temoris
May 11th 2001

Storie della Sicilia e delle Isole Eolie Europe » Italy » Sicily

Romina en el Tempio de Giunone

11 DE MAYO DE 2001 Carissimi amici: Maravillosa. Así es Sicilia. "La Sicilia", pronunciando la "c" como "ch", al estilo italiano. ¿Qué imágenes nos vienen a la cabeza cuando se piensa en la Sicilia? Inevitablemente, mafia: Don Corleone, pistolas, vendettas. Bandidos en cada esquina, sonrisas amenazadoras, hurtos repetidos e inevitables. También tradicionalismo católico severo: pueblitos de casas blancas, muy soleados, mujeres siempre vestidas de negro, familias que casan a sus hijas sin pedirles opinión, hombres aferrados a un exigente sentido del honor, y todo en un amb [View Full Entry]

By Temoris
May 11th 2001

Storie della Sicilia e delle Isole Eolie -Segunda parte Europe » Italy » Sicily

Stromboli desde el Strombolicchio

11 DE MAYO DE 2001 Martedi, otto’ Maggio. Lipari-Panarea-Stromboli-Lipari Eso, eso, sí, que atentos... ahora sí fuimos... pero no, no hubo ascensión. Na. Amaneció soleado, pero, como el manoseado dinosaurio de Montarroso, la bruma seguía allí. Fuimos temprano a Marina Corta, Diana nos dijo que las nubes no se habían movido, y no tenía esperanzas de que mejoraran las cosas en esa semana. Así que ni modo, decidimos hacer, por lo menos, la excursión sin subir al volcán. En el tiempo que nos quedaba antes de la salida, aprovechamos para visitar Il Castello, que alberga [View Full Entry]

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