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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 Courtt
September 8th 2009

The First Few Days Europe » Italy » Tuscany » Siena

CIAO!! So I am finally here. It took forever to arrive but i am here. The plane had a few bumps here and there. That combined with my fear of flying and my nerves made it an unpleasant 8 hours. However, we arrived an hour early so that made up for the rest. I would rather be on the ground than in the air. Once I got to the airport and made it through customs I found some of the other girls from Siena and we waited for the whole crew to arrive. Because we were there at 7 am it [View Full Entry]

By AMV
September 7th 2009

"It's the possibility of having a dream come true that makes life interesting" Europe » Italy » Tuscany » Florence

Photo 1

Ciao Bella- Happy (American) Labor Day Everyone! We, unfortunately, do not celebrate and today is my first official day of classes. I am really excited! Last week, I was in Barcelona for the beginning of the week and then trucked my way on over to Florence. Barcelona was AMANZING! It is somewhere I will most definitely go back, if not this trip then sometime in the near future. Getting to Barcelona was not as easy as it could have been. My brother (Q) and I missed out flight from London to Barcelona. Being a first time traveler of Europe, I maybe [View Full Entry]

By bev barry
September 6th 2009

We're Here! Europe » Italy » Tuscany » Cortona

Our first night at the villa---sitting outside by the pool, glass of wine in hand (of course) sampling fresh pecorino cheese and italian bread, with a gentle breeze and the full moon rising. This is heaven! The villa is as beautiful as we hoped. Not the Ritz but lots of room, a functioning kitchen and hot water. We think we could get used to this! Shopping at a store (the Ibercoop) larger than a Walmart was an experience. The prepackaged rooster with head attached, fresh porcini mushrooms, and 10 eggs in a carton instead of a dozen, were all unique finds. [View Full Entry]

By SDaniels
September 5th 2009

First days in firenze! Europe » Italy » Tuscany » Florence

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caryn and i at our favorite sandwich restaurant

We finally moved in to our apartment yesterday!!! It's really cool but they said I can get electrocuted by my bed because the frame is metal and there's electrical chords around it, so I think I'm just going to sleep on the couches. It doesn't have a/c so that sucks but other than it's pretty cool. You can see the kitchen from the living room which is kind of weird. I also think that I have bed bugs which they warned us about but I didn't think would happen...I've got to go check it out later. We've just been having orientation [View Full Entry]

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By Kathy and Andrew
September 3rd 2009

Vino, Alabaster & Vampires Europe » Italy » Tuscany » Montepulciano

Tuscany - Cypress trees

August 25, 2009 - San Gimignano & Volterra, Italy I slept in today while Andrew took a bike ride. He said it was inspiring and beautiful - which means hilly and hard to me. We had a nice breakfast of .78 cent fruit flakes (cereal is very chap here), coffee and lovely juice and headed out to find our way to the northern hilltop towns of San Gimignano and Volterra just northwest of Siena. We passed tons of vineyards on the way. I didn’t realize how arid and dry Tuscany was. The soil that is not covered by grape vines, sunflowers [View Full Entry]

By Kathy and Andrew
September 3rd 2009

It's not the Destination... But the Journey! Europe » Italy » Tuscany » Montepulciano

Montilcino winery

8/26/09 South Tuscany - Montilcino & Montepulciano We left Siena today for Rome. On the way we are hitting the southern hilltop towns. The drive is amazing and a bit more green than the northern towns. Tree lined roads that kept climbing and hill after hill of vines and sunflowers. Montilcino is a town made famous by their wines - better be - because they have a ton of grapes here. Most famous is the Brunello which is very expensive and the Rosso di Monti. We went to an “entoeca” which is a wine bar for tasting. They charge for tasting [View Full Entry]

By Kathy and Andrew
August 30th 2009

The Roads Less Traveled Thru Tuscany Europe » Italy » Tuscany » Florence

Campground Fiesole

On our way to Firenze August 22, 2009 - Florence, Italy We left the heat and the smells of Venice and headed off on the small roads to Florence “Firenze”. The drive could have been through Illinois or Iowa with flat farmland and industrial buildings surrounding us. As we went through tunnel after tunnel, each valley after got hillier and hillier. One tunnel opened to this expansive view of Florence. It was like that “ah-ha” moment when you enter Las Vegas at night from the dark, desolate desert into the city of lights. Our campground was in a v [View Full Entry]

By Kathy and Andrew
August 30th 2009

Andrew's Bike Ride in Paradise Europe » Italy » Tuscany

getting back to camp

August 23, 2009 I buckled up my helmet, clipped into the & glided off for my 3rd and most anticipated ride in Italy. The first ride was a pre breakfast climb up the Gardenia Pass in the Italian Dolomites, 2150 meters (about 6500ft). My second was a quick jaunt in Frienze (Florence) - complete with my Aqua Al 2 jersey with San Diego and Frienze displayed - somehow I feel I belonged . My 3rd ride is the one that I wanted to describe. The ride was over the Chianti Road between Frienze and Siena. I left early in the [View Full Entry]

By jleclerc55
August 30th 2009

Toscane(suite) Europe » Italy » Tuscany

toscane au lever du jour

Hier(le 29) nous sommes revenus à Rome après une semaine de découverte en Toscane. Les petits villages perchés sur les collines se marient parfaitement au paysage.La température est toujours au rendez-vous ,avec un soleil de plomb et 34 celsius jour après jour.Nous nous préparons pour le départ en croisière demain. Ce sera la Grèce puis la Turquie,Israel, l'Égypte puis le retour.J essaierai de vous envoyer d autres photos si l internet le permet.Jacques [View Full Entry]

By Kathy and Andrew
August 30th 2009

Naked Marble Men of the Renaissance Europe » Italy » Tuscany » Florence

Baptistry doors

August 23, 2009 - Florence, Italy We are in Florence today. Once you get off the bus you immediately enter Piazza del Duomo featuring the ornate renaissance church. It was overwhelmingly large, colorful and crowded with tourists from all over the world looking amazed by the ornate marble and gold buildings in front of them. It was Sunday so they are having mass at Il Duomo so we can’t go in. They say that the outside is much more impressive than the inside. We went to the Baptistry, the Campanile and Bell Tower in the same piazza. It was built, or [View Full Entry]

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