ITALY
Capital: Rome
Population: 60 420 000
Language: Italian
Currency:Euro
Religion: Roman Catholicism (97%)
Useful information:
Country code: +39
Emergency phone: 112
Police: 113
Ambulance: 118
Fire: 115
Electricity:
Italy’s standard electricity supply is 220 Volts, 50 Hz. Sockets in Italy have three plugs, arranged in one line. A special adapter is needed!
Payment cards:
Master Card and Visa are widely accepted.
Italian cuisine:
Italian cuisine is famous for its pasta and pizza. However, it offers a wide variety of tasty dishes and beverages. Among the most popular are bruschetta (small slices of bread topped with garlic, onion, tomato, and ham), focaccia (pizza-like Italian bread, which may be topped with herbs, olive, and other ingredients), and Tiramisu, a famous Italian dessert, made of ladyfingers dipped in coffee.
Typical prices:
Coffee in a bar – 0,80-1,50 euro
A meal in a restaurant – from 6 euro
Mineral water (1.5 l bottle) – from 0,40 euro
A scoop of ice cream – 1,20-3,00 euro
Bread roll – 0,30 euro
Weather conditions:
Northern Italy has a harsh climate, with long, cold winters, and hot summers. Central Italy is wet, with milder winters. Rome has hot summers and mild winters, and the further you travel down south, the hotter and drier it gets. In southern Italy, it may get up to 32 degrees C in July and August, so best time to visit is in the spring and autumn.
Places to see:
Assisi – spiritual capital of the region of Umbria, and the birthplace of St. Francis. The town has hardly changed since the times of the founder of the Franciscan religious order.
Florence – the capital of the region of Tuscany, famous for the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Flower (Santa Maria del Fiore), with the largest brick dome ever constructed. Another famous church, the Basilica of Santa Croce, is the burial place of such personalities, as Michelangelo, Galileo, Machiavelli, Foscolo, Gentile and Rossini. Other sights are the Baptistery with the Gates of Paradise, and the Piazza della Signoria square, with a copy of David, and the Fountain of Neptune.
Lanciano – known for the first recorded Catholic Eucharistic Miracle, in which the bread changed into living flesh and the wine changed into live blood. It took place in ca. 700.
Loreto – with the basilica of the Santa Casa, containing the house in which the Virgin Mary lived. As legend says, the house was carried by angels through the air and deposited in Croatia; in 1294 the angels carried it across the Adriatic to Loreto. The Santa Casa contains a small image of the Virgin and Child, in Lebanon cedar, which grows in Vatican gardens.
Manoppello – famous for having a church which contains an image known as the Holy Face of Manoppello. According to a legend, it is the face of Christ on a piece of cloth.
Monte Sant Angelo – a town in southern Italy, with a famous Sanctuary of Monte Sant’Angelo, built in the 13th century, and the Grotto of St. Michael.
Monte Cassino – a rocky hill about 130 kilometres southeast of Rome, with a Benedictine Monastery and a Polish military cemetery.
Naples – the main city in the south of Italy. Located in the shade of Mount Vesuvius, it has several attractions, such as Cattedrale di San Gennaro (Naples Cathedral), Palazzo Reale (Royal Palace of Naples), and a medieval castle, Castel Nuovo.
Pompeii – an ancient Roman city near Naples, buried in the year 79 A.D. under a blanket of ashes from Mount Vesuvius. The town also has the Shrine of the Virgin of the Rosary.
Rome – the capital of Italy, and the cradle of European civilization. This city is filled with world-famous historic sites, such as the Colosseum, the Forum Romanum, the Capitoline Hill, Fontanna di Trevi, and the Spanish Steps.
San Giovanni Rotondo – a town in southern Italy, where Padre Pio spent most of his life and where his tomb can be found. Pilgrims offer their prayers and touch the golden mosaic crypt as they walk by.
Vatican – the capital of Christianity and the smallest sovereign country in the world, being only around 43 hectares in size. The Vatican City is an enclave in Rome, and it boasts magnificent museums, gardens, and the Sistine Chapel, adorned with frescoes, figures and images. The massive St. Peter’s Basilica is part of the city, here pilgrims will find the tomb of Blessed John Paul II, and other Popes.
Venice – a city built by sinking thousands of wood piles deep into the water. Venice has a great number of canals and gondolas, and among its interesting sites there are Piazza San Marco, St Mark’s Basilica, the Doge’s Palace, the church of San Giorgio Maggiore, the Bridge of Sighs, and the Grand Canal.
Mini phrase book:
Good morning – Buon giorno
Good afternoon – Buon pomeriggio
Good bye – Arrivederci
Hi – Ciao
How are you? – Come va?
Good – Bene
Yes – Si
No – No
Please – Per favore
Thank you – Grazie
Excuse me – Mi scuzi
You are welcome – Prego
Help! – Aiuto!
Where is the restroom? – Dov’è il bagno?
How much does it cost? – Quanto costa questo?
Do you speak English? – Parla inglese/polacco?
I don’t understand – Non capisco
