Let's get to know Italy

After focusing on more serious and comprehensive topics I decided to devote some time to something that we often associate with Italy – wine. In Italy wine is drunk a lot and often and the percentage of alcohol consumption has remained at a similar level for years – 54%. The most famous red wines are Barolo from Piedmont region, Brunello di Montalcino and Chianti Classico from Tuscany, Taurasi from Campania region. The Chianti wine is one of the best known Italian wines in Poland. It’s produced in the Chianti region in the central Tuscany between Florence and Siena. Currently, as many as 1,500 manufacturers of Chianti wine are registered! Therefore, while choosing wine we have to pay attention to what we choose. The Chianti wine is divided into classic and “other”. The Chianti Classico refers to vineyards near the villages of Gaiole, Castellina and Radda that in 18 th century were in so-called Lega del Chianti . And only Chianti from that area can use the mark of black roster which ...

The date of its creation dates back to 25 BC when the Romans founded a hamlet called Augustus Pretoria. When they left, it fell into decline, but in the 11 th century it became the seat of feudal and church lords. The city was a stopping place for pilgrims who came to Italy from northwestern Europe. Today it is known especially for its numerous ski resorts as well as Roman and medieval monuments. Aosta, sometimes called “Rome of the Alps”, is located in the north-western tiny region of Val d’Aosta, close to the French border. The town is over 2,000 years old but the street layout has not changed much over the years. Aosta preserves very important monuments of the Roman city. TEATRO ROMANO The theater was built in the Augustan age on an area on the outskirts near the city walls. Its facade is 22 meters high. The stands were probably covered and there could seat about 3,000 spectators. source: https://viaggi.corriere.it/weekend/dove-academy-di-nuovo-insieme-alla-scoperta-di-aosta...

We have already visited Naples in the footsteps of Elena Ferrante and this time we are moving to Tuscany. Now I invite you on a journey around Florence and our guide will be Dante Alighieri himself and his work "The Divine Comedy". While exploring Florence I stopped next to the so-called "Casa di Dante", where an outstanding Italian poet supposedly grew up. Opposite is located Badia Fiorentina (an abbey and church) and next to the entrance there was a plaque nailed to the wall with a quote from “The Divine Comedy” (the quote is on the photo below). During the trip I did not pay too much attention to it but after returning home I decided to find more information on this subject and find out if there are more such signs. Yes, there are. The quote is located next to Badia Fiorentina In all Florence there are thirty eight stone plaques with fragments of „The Divine Comedy” - 9 are from Hell, 5 from Purgatory and 20 from Paradise. The idea for these plaques originated...

According to the archaeologists only 10% of the underground Rome has been discovered yet. Beneath Rome there are hidden many secrets of the bygone ages but by following the oldest Roman road, Via Appia, we can enter the underground city and go back to the time of the first Christians. Archaeologists know today about 64 catacomb complexes but they claim that there could be many more. The two catacombs complexes are unbelievably large and are located on Via Appia - the Catacombs of St. Sebastian and Catacombs of St. Callixtus. The second ones are larger and the corridors are approximately 20 kilometers long. There were buried around a half million dead, including fifty martyrs and sixteen popes. source:https://opusdei.org/pl-pl/article/katakumby-sw-kaliksta/ HISTORY OF CATACOMBS In the 5th century B.C. a law was introduced that forbade burying the dead in the city. The Romans burnt the bodies of the dead but some buried them on their property. Therefore the burial places were establish...

The Swiss Guard has been with the Pope for over 500 years and during this time has become an indispensable element of Vatican. Already at the beginning of the 16th century the Swiss were known for their bravery, loyalty and they were often enlisting as mercenaries. When Pope Julius II decided to regain the territory of the Papal States, he asked the Swiss for support. At the Pope's request a troop of people who wanted to serve him was organized. They entered Rome on 21 st January 1506 under the command of Kaspar von Silen and a day later on January 22 they made a vow of loyalty to the Pope. Since then, the Swiss Guardsmen have served uninterruptedly the popes. In memory of this event on January 22 is remembered the formation of this army. On the other hand, on 6 th May the Swiss Guard has its own celebration in memory of the only one battle fought by the guards - in 1527 during the so-called Sacco di Roma (when the armies of Emperor Charles V invaded and sacked Rome) the major...

Located high on the hill of Monte Titano, San Marino is one of the smallest countries in the world with a population around 33,000 people. It is also the oldest republic and the origins of this city-state date back to the thirteenth century and was recognized by the papacy. San Marino was founded in the 4th century by the hermit Saint Marinus who sheltered on the top of Mount Titano running away from the persecution and he founded a Christian community there. Apparently, the saint on his deathbed called for maintaining the independence from the civil authorities and the pope. Fortunately for the republic, the popes have always championed its independence, and in the 18th century Pope Clement XII confirmed its independence. During the Napoleonic era, San Marino maintained the independence of its republic thanks to one of the captains, Antonio Onofri, who managed to gain the friendship of Napoleon. During the period of Risorgimento (the reunification of Italy) San Marino welcomed th...

I associate Verona primarily with the crowds of tourists, rush and fear of getting lost there. When in 2018 I was standing packed like sardines, pressed against the wall and I was watching tourists who wanted to get close to the figurine of Julia to paw her or to take a photo of the balcony, I asked myself – “What I’m actually doing here?”. I definitely didn’t notice the charm of this town. However, while browsing the photos from my trip, I found some interesting things. And one of them are the so-called Case Mazzanti. Well, at first glance, the frescoes do not make a great impression Case Mazzanti are located in Piazza delle Erbe, which is one of the famous and must-see tourist spots of Verona – by the afternoon there is a market where you can buy local products or souvenirs. Case Mazzanti are quite nonhomogeneous in form, built from the Middle Ages to the 16th century. They are one of the oldests buildings in the town. What is extraordinary about them is that on the walls there are p...

Epiphany is a Christian feast day celebrated on 6 th January and it is also called Three Kings' Day. On this day Christians remember the Three Kings (or the Wise Men) who visited Jesus. In Italy on 6 th January children are awaiting the arrival of a kind old woman called Befana. According to the folk legend, on the way to Jesus, the Wise Men lost sight of the star for a moment and stopped at the house of Befana to ask for directions. In acknowledgment of her help they wanted to take her with them to Jesus but the old woman refused. However, she later left home with a sack of presents but did not find the Wise Men. Since then, she has been flying on the night of January 5-6 from house to house and putting in socks small gifts for children with hope that one of them is baby Jesus. Befana was known mainly in the vicinity of Rome and in other regions of Italy it became known only in the twentieth century however nowadays the Befana is celebrated throughout all of Italy and has be...

Today is the 89th anniversary of the birth of one of the greatest and the most famous Italian writers of the twentieth century about whose the best-known book "The Name of the Rose" you surely heard about and some of you may have also read it. Umberto Eco was born on 5 th January 1932 in Alessandria in Piedmont in the north Italy. He was a professor at the University of Florence and the University of Bologna. He was a well-known essayist, intellectual and literary theorist. He became a world famous author thanks to the novel "The Name of the Rose" published in 1980 for which in 1984 he received the prestigious Italian literary award - Strega Prize. His novel was also adapted in 1986 and one of the lead roles was played by Sean Connery. He reportedly predicted that he would sell around 3,000 copies of the book and in fact it was translated into 44 languages and more than 30 million copies were sold! The writer died of pancreatic cancer on 19 th February 2016 at t...