Amalfi Coast – The most famous stretch of the Italian coastline lies south of Naples. It takes its name from the town that during the Middle Ages was one of the Italian Sea Republics and vied for supremacy at sea with Venice, Genoa and Pisa. The area is dotted with tiny little villages and larger towns like Positano, Ravello and Sorrento, located on hilly slopes facing the Tyrrhenian Sea. The visual impact is breathtaking as the colors of the houses create a unique contrast with the deep blue color of the sea.

Pompeii – Just imagine: its late in the evening, people are either going to sleep or doing their ordinary chores at home and all of a sudden there is a terrible noise, ashes and gas invade streets and houses; in a matter of minutes the whole city is dead. People have been caught unprepared and their bodies will remain forever in exactly their position at that time. This is what happened in Pompeii about 2000 years ago and now you can see casts that have been made of both men and animals, in addition to whole streets with buildings particularly well preserved.

Rome – Rome, Caput Mundi, or the Eternal City! You pick the name you wish; they all fit perfectly this wonderful city. It dates back nearly 3000 years, but if you tour Rome you will be surprise to see how well antiquity mergers with modern living. The Colosseum and the Forum sit next to the Monument to the Unknown Soldier, Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps are located close to the main thoroughfares of the city and St. Peters Basilica is in the vicinity of a railway station, while the Pantheon is only at a very short distance from the present Senate.

Florence – If you speak of Florence your mind immediately associates its name with history and elegant design. This is because this city as it is today is the direct result of the Renaissance, which was born and developed here. Walking around Piazza della Signoria you cannot help admiring the wonderful buildings enclosing it and the monuments and statues decorating it. Close by are two museums – Galleria dell’Accademia and Uffizi – which have worldwide renown for the quality and quantity of their exhibits.

Chianti Region – A flask or bottle of Chianti may be found anywhere around the world. Its flavour is appreciated by millions of enthusiasts everywhere. This is really where the action is. A tour of the Chianti area will reveal to you what its vineyards look like, how the vines are trained and looked after and what wine production techniques have been developed to achieve such excellent results. Needless to say, the tour must comprise a wine-tasting event so that you may savour the best quality Chianti wine at its very origin.

Pisa – Piazza dei Miracoli, or Miracle Square, is a Unesco World Heritage Site. Once you are there, you realize why. In addition to the world-known Leaning Tower, three other marvelous buildings share the privilege of looking on to the square. They each represent a stage in mans life: the Baptistery, birth, the Cathedral, maturity, the Cemetery, death. The whole picture is extremely impressive and leaves visitors absolutely stunned for its impeccable layout and design.

Siena – Siena and its famous Palio, or Horse Race, are one and the same thing in peoples minds. Its true, the Palio is so important for Siena that the people from the various contrade, or wards, support their horses and jockeys to the extent that sometimes a wife and a husband will have disputes over their reciprocal representatives. However, there is much more to Siena than just the Palio. Its layout and the style of its buildings are typically Medieval. So, if you wish to see a city that is as close as possible to what it was like centuries ago, simply go to Siena.

Venice – Known the world over on account of its canals, Venice was established in the early Middle Ages and since then it has grown on the strips of land that, jutting out into the sea, form its canals. Venice had its heyday between the late Middle Ages and the 18th century. Small wonder that most of its finest buildings date from that period. It is really pointless to make an extensive list of them, but we must at least mention St. Mark’s Square which is the heart of the city and offers a splendid spectacle, with its Basilica, Clock-tower and Bell-tower.

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