Civitavecchia is a town and comune of the province of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located 80 kilometres (50 miles) west-north-west of Rome, across the Mignone river. The harbour is formed by two piers and a breakwater, on which is a lighthouse. The name Civitavecchia means “ancient town”. The modern city was built over a pre-existing Etruscan settlement. The harbour was constructed by the Emperor Trajan at the beginning of the 2nd century. Civitavecchia today is a major cruise and ferry port, the main starting point for sea connection from central Italy to Sardinia, Sicily, Malta, Tunis and Barcelona. Fishing has a secondary importance. read more…
Positano is a village and comune on the Amalfi Coast (Costiera Amalfitana), in Campania, mainly in an enclave in the hills leading down to the coast. Today tourism is by far the major industry. Positano is also very popular for Limoncello and “L’Albertissimo”, an alcoholic tipple that can only be found at a small stall at the main harbour. The city is member of the Cittaslow movement. Positano was a relatively poor fishing village during the first half of the twentieth century. It began to attract large numbers of tourists in the 1950s, especially after John Steinbeck published his essay about Positano in Harper’s Bazaar in May, 1953: “Positano bites deep”, Steinbeck wrote. “It is a dream place that isn’t quite real when you are there and becomes beckoningly real after you have gone.” read more…
Milano Centrale is the main railway station of Milan, and one of the main railway stations in Europe. The station is a railway terminus and was officially inaugurated in 1931 to replace the old central station (1864), which was a transit station and could not handle the new traffic caused by the opening of the Simplon tunnel in 1906. The station has 24 tracks. Every day about 320,000 passengers pass through the station using about 500 trains, for an annual total of 120 million passengers. The station is served by national and international routes, with both long-distance and regional lines. read more…
Istria, formerly Histria (Latin), is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner. It is shared by three countries: Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy. read more…
Messina is the capital of the province of Messina. It is the 3rd largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 252,000 inhabitants in the city proper and about 650,000 in the province. It is located near the northeast corner of Sicily, at the Strait of Messina, opposite Villa San Giovanni on the mainland, has close ties with Reggio Calabria. read more…
Corleone is a small town and comune of approximately 11,000 inhabitants in the Province of Palermo. It is located in the valley between the “Rocca ri Maschi”, the “Castello Soprano” and the “Castello Sottano”. Corleone is the “city of the 100 churches”. Within the territory of Corleone, a short walk from the historic center of the city is the ” Natural Park of the cascade of two fortresses .” After going through a series of narrow streets in the district San Giuliano you come in front of a small church dedicated to Our Lady of precisely two fortresses. To the left of this church ‘ winds a path that leads between the poplars, willows and elms to the falls. Comfortably seated on the ancient square blocks in the shade of mulberry trees, nuts and frassinisi one can have the enchanting view of the waterfall. read more…
Sicily is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea; along with surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, and it is officially referred to as Regione Siciliana (Sicilian Region). Sicily is located in the central Mediterranean. It extends from the tip of the Apennine peninsula, from which it is separated only by the narrow Strait of Messina, towards the North African coast. Its most prominent landmark is Mount Etna, which, at 3,350 m (10,990 ft), is the tallest active volcano in Europe and one of the most active in the world. The island has a typical Mediterranean climate. Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature, cuisine and architecture. It also holds importance for archeological and ancient sites such as the Necropolis of Pantalica, the Valley of the Temples and Selinunte. read more…
