Italy from North to South

Best of IgoUgo

A travel journal to Italy by MALUSE

Quote: From a town in the very north to an island in the South.

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Trento

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So you´re thinking of travelling to Italy and getting to know the country? If you like shock treatment, fly straight to the South, to Naples or Palermo, and throw yourself into the street life there, if you prefer things to move more slowly, though, it may be a good idea to start exploring the country from the town of Trento, 140 km south of the Austrian/Italian border.It is the first ‘real’ Italian town, the area north of it, South Tyrol, is more Austrian due to its history, it only became part of Italy after WW 1. Many people there are bilingual, if they want to become civil servants, they must know Italian and German.The valley of the river Adige on whose banks Trento is sit...Read More

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Venice

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I have to go from Germany to the South of Italy every year in summer. To shorten the long journey and to make it less exhausting I always put in a stopover in Venice. Is that true? No, it is what I tell my friends and acquaintances who feel the urge to advise me against it. Even if they have never been in Venice they know it is not worth seeing (any more) as it has become a kind of Italian Disneyland which the inhabitants have fled and where tourists only meet other tourists. They would rather abstain and preserve their dreams and complain the fact that they were born too late. Oh, had they lived when Byron stayed there and used to swim home after parties pushing a board with a candl...Read More

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Florence

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Are you really crazy about the art from the 13th to the 17th century? Must you see Gothic altar pieces, world famous Renaissance pictures, Flemish, French and German masters of the Baroque? If so, you *must* go to the Uffizi, of course. But certainly you don’t want to wait half a day to get in, you’ve got better things to do!Call the following number (from abroad): 0039/055294883, every day except Monday (on Mondays ALL museums are closed!) from 8.30 am to 9 pm, you’ll get the Florence museum service and can order a ticket in advance. When you’re there you can go to a special entrance for pre-booked tickets. If you haven’t been to Florence yet, you don’t know how valuable that advice is! ...Read More

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Urbino

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Should you ever spend your summer holidays on the Adriatic coast between Rimini and Ancona, tear yourself away from the beach for a day, travel inland for about an hour and visit Urbino, a town which is on the list of UNESCO’s cultural heritage.Urbino is situated on the top of a hill, it is completely surrounded by a high brick wall and dominated by a castle. Leave your car in the car park at the bottom and enter through one of the big stone gates from which a street runs straight up the hill. Looking right and left you’ll see other streets running up and down flanked by houses from the Middle Ages. It depends on the season you’ve chosen if you get a crammed feeling or not, but not only be...Read More

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Sardinia

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THE DEVELOPMENT OF TOURISM IN SARDINIAThe first time I was in Sardinia was in 1965, I’ve witnessed the transformation of Sardinia from a white spot on the map of tourism to the most sought after holiday region of Italy. In 1998 the tourist industry in Sardinia had the highest growth rate of all Italian regions and from then on the boom has been continuing.I got to know an Italian student from Sardinia when I studied in Heidelberg. When he had gone home in summer I decided to visit him there. I stayed with him and his family on the beach in a hut made of bamboo, wood and cardboard. The winegrowers have nothing to do on their fields before the vintage in September, so they...Read More

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Cagliari, Sardinia

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If you happen to be on the island in July or August, don’t even think of visiting Cagliari unless the weather forecast promises a chilly spell (which is not very likely) or you’re a mad dog or likewise Englishman. Cagliari is situated on the south coast of Sardinia, humidity is extreme, in summer it’s higher than 90%, combined with a temperature of 35° C (95° F) or more the city is a destination to avoid.Many tourists come already in April and May. Let’s assume you’re staying in Alghero in the north west, you’ve rented a car and started very early so that you can reach Cagliari still in the morning. I’d advise you to drive straight up to the old part of the city called Castello (Castle) f...Read More