Italy 3 - Siena /Black and whie zebra/illuminated books/good and bad government
May 26th 2008 May is a lovely time to visit Italy,the sun is shining and the spring flowers coming out. Umbertide didnt prove a pleasant place. There was a medieval heart to the small town although this wasnt easy to find. The town had been obliterated by bombs during the 2nd World War. We sat over breakfast thinking about what we wanted to do during the week. Places to see and things to do were divided into wh
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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 establis... ... read more 
