1.
Venice
–
Venice is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is situated across a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and these are located in the shallow Venetian Lagoon, an enclosed bay that lies between the mouths of the Po and the Piave Rivers. Parts of Venice are renowned for the beauty of their settings, their architecture, the lagoon and a part of the city are listed as a World Heritage Site. In 2014,264,579 people resided in Comune di Venezia, together with Padua and Treviso, the city is included in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, with a total population of 2.6 million. PATREVE is a metropolitan area without any degree of autonomy. The name is derived from the ancient Veneti people who inhabited the region by the 10th century BC, the city was historically the capital of the Republic of Venice. Venice has been known as the La Dominante, Serenissima, Queen of the Adriatic, City of Water, City of Masks, City of Bridges, The Floating City, and City of Canals. The City State of Venice is considered to have been the first real international financial center which gradually emerged from the 9th century to its peak in the 14th century and this made Venice a wealthy city throughout most of its history. It is also known for its several important artistic movements, especially the Renaissance period, Venice has played an important role in the history of symphonic and operatic music, and it is the birthplace of Antonio Vivaldi. Venice has been ranked the most beautiful city in the world as of 2016, the name Venetia, however, derives from the Roman name for the people known as the Veneti, and called by the Greeks Eneti. The meaning of the word is uncertain, although there are other Indo-European tribes with similar-sounding names, such as the Celtic Veneti, Baltic Veneti, and the Slavic Wends. Linguists suggest that the name is based on an Indo-European root *wen, so that *wenetoi would mean beloved, lovable, a connection with the Latin word venetus, meaning the color sea-blue, is also possible. The alternative obsolete form is Vinegia, some late Roman sources reveal the existence of fishermen on the islands in the original marshy lagoons. They were referred to as incolae lacunae, the traditional founding is identified with the dedication of the first church, that of San Giacomo on the islet of Rialto — said to have taken place at the stroke of noon on 25 March 421. Beginning as early as AD166 to 168, the Quadi and Marcomanni destroyed the center in the area. The Roman defences were again overthrown in the early 5th century by the Visigoths and, some 50 years later, New ports were built, including those at Malamocco and Torcello in the Venetian lagoon. The tribuni maiores, the earliest central standing governing committee of the islands in the Lagoon, the traditional first doge of Venice, Paolo Lucio Anafesto, was actually Exarch Paul, and his successor, Marcello Tegalliano, was Pauls magister militum. In 726 the soldiers and citizens of the Exarchate rose in a rebellion over the controversy at the urging of Pope Gregory II
Venice
–
A collage of Venice: at the top left is the
Piazza San Marco, followed by a view of the city, then the
Grand Canal, and (smaller) the interior of
La Fenice and, finally, the Island of San Giorgio Maggiore
Venice
–
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Venice
–
Photography of Venice at dusk
Venice
–
The Grand Canal seen from the bridge at
Ponte di Rialto
2.
Italy
–
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
Italy
–
The
Colosseum in Rome, built c. 70 – 80 AD, is considered one of the greatest works of
architecture and
engineering of ancient history.
Italy
–
Flag
Italy
–
The
Iron Crown of Lombardy, for centuries symbol of the
Kings of Italy.
Italy
–
Castel del Monte, built by German Emperor
Frederick II,
UNESCO World Heritage site
3.
Veneto
–
Veneto or Venetia is one of the twenty regions of Italy. Its population is five million, ranking fifth in Italy. The regions capital and largest city is Venice, Veneto was part of the Roman Empire until the 5th century AD. Later, after a period, it was part of the Republic of Venice until 1797. Venice ruled for centuries one of the largest and richest maritime republics. The Statute of Veneto describes Venetians as a people, besides Italian, most inhabitants also speak Venetian. The region is home to a notable nationalist movement, the regions largest party is the Venetist/Padanist Liga Veneta, a founding member of Lega Nord. The current President of Veneto is Luca Zaia, elected in 2010 with 60. 2% of the vote and the support of Lega Nord, The People of Freedom, Veneto is the 8th largest region in Italy, with a total area of 18,398.9 km2. At its northernmost corner it borders also on Austria, the north-south extension of Veneto is 210 km from the Austrian border to the mouth of the River Po. By area, 29% of its surface is mountainous, the highest massif in the Dolomites is the Marmolada-massif at 3,342 m. Other dolomitic peaks are the Tre Cime di Lavaredo and the Pale di San Martino, the Venetian Prealps are not as high and range between 700 m and 2,200 m. Fossil deposits are abundant there. The plain itself is subdivided into the plain and the lower plain. The lower plain is both a mainstay of production and the most populated part of the region. Several rivers flow through the region, the Po, Adige, Brenta, Bacchiglione, Livenza, Piave, the eastern shore of the largest lake in Italy, Lake Garda, belongs to Veneto. The coastline covers approximately 200 km, of which 100 km are beaches, the coasts of the Adriatic Sea are characterised by the Venetian Lagoon, a flat terrain with ponds, marshes and islands. The Po Delta to the south features sandbars and dunes along the coastline, the inland portion contains cultivable land recently reclaimed by a system of canals and dykes. Fish ponds have been created there as well, the delta and the lagoon are a stopping-point for migratory birds
Veneto
–
Venice, the primary tourist destination and the capital of Veneto
Veneto
–
Veneto
Veneto
–
Lake Alleghe near
Belluno
Veneto
–
Tre Cime di Lavaredo
4.
Daylight saving time
–
Daylight saving time is the practice of advancing clocks during summer months by one hour so that evening daylight lasts an hour longer, while sacrificing normal sunrise times. Typically, regions that use Daylight Savings Time adjust clocks forward one hour close to the start of spring, American inventor and politician Benjamin Franklin proposed a form of daylight time in 1784. New Zealander George Hudson proposed the idea of saving in 1895. The German Empire and Austria-Hungary organized the first nationwide implementation, starting on April 30,1916, many countries have used it at various times since then, particularly since the energy crisis of the 1970s. The practice has both advocates and critics, DST clock shifts sometimes complicate timekeeping and can disrupt travel, billing, record keeping, medical devices, heavy equipment, and sleep patterns. Computer software often adjusts clocks automatically, but policy changes by various jurisdictions of DST dates, industrialized societies generally follow a clock-based schedule for daily activities that do not change throughout the course of the year. The time of day that individuals begin and end work or school, North and south of the tropics daylight lasts longer in summer and shorter in winter, with the effect becoming greater as one moves away from the tropics. However, they will have one hour of daylight at the start of each day. Supporters have also argued that DST decreases energy consumption by reducing the need for lighting and heating, DST is also of little use for locations near the equator, because these regions see only a small variation in daylight in the course of the year. After ancient times, equal-length civil hours eventually supplanted unequal, so civil time no longer varies by season, unequal hours are still used in a few traditional settings, such as some monasteries of Mount Athos and all Jewish ceremonies. This 1784 satire proposed taxing window shutters, rationing candles, and waking the public by ringing church bells, despite common misconception, Franklin did not actually propose DST, 18th-century Europe did not even keep precise schedules. However, this changed as rail transport and communication networks came to require a standardization of time unknown in Franklins day. Modern DST was first proposed by the New Zealand entomologist George Hudson, whose shift work job gave him time to collect insects. An avid golfer, he also disliked cutting short his round at dusk and his solution was to advance the clock during the summer months, a proposal he published two years later. The proposal was taken up by the Liberal Member of Parliament Robert Pearce, a select committee was set up to examine the issue, but Pearces bill did not become law, and several other bills failed in the following years. Willett lobbied for the proposal in the UK until his death in 1915, william Sword Frost, mayor of Orillia, Ontario, introduced daylight saving time in the municipality during his tenure from 1911 to 1912. Starting on April 30,1916, the German Empire and its World War I ally Austria-Hungary were the first to use DST as a way to conserve coal during wartime, Britain, most of its allies, and many European neutrals soon followed suit. Russia and a few other countries waited until the year
Daylight saving time
–
Ancient
water clock that lets hour lengths vary with season.
Daylight saving time
–
G. V. Hudson invented modern DST, proposing it first in 1895.
Daylight saving time
–
Retailers generally favor DST.
United Cigar Stores hailed a 1918 DST bill.
Daylight saving time
–
William Willett independently proposed DST in 1907 and advocated it tirelessly.
5.
Central European Summer Time
–
It corresponds to UTC + two hours. Other names which have been applied to Central European Summer Time are Middle European Summer Time, Central European Daylight Saving Time, and Bravo Time. Since 1996 European Summer Time has been observed between 1,00 UTC on the last Sunday of March and 1,00 on the last Sunday of October, the following countries and territories use Central European Summer Time. In addition, Libya used CEST during the years 1951–1959, 1982–1989, 1996–1997, European Summer Time Other countries and territories in UTC+2 time zone Other names of UTC+2 time zone
Central European Summer Time
–
light blue
6.
Istituto Nazionale di Statistica
–
The Italian National Institute of Statistics is the main producer of official statistics in Italy. Its activities include the census of population, economic censuses and a number of social, economic and environmental surveys, Istat is by far the largest producer of statistical information in Italy, and is an active member of the European Statistical System, coordinated by Eurostat. Its publications are released under creative commons Attribution license, Istat was created in 1926 as Central Institute of Statistics, to collect and organize essential data about the nation. It took its current denomination with the reform of 1989, since 4 August 2009, Enrico Giovannini, former Chief statistician of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, has been the President of the institute. In 2014, Istat was named the winner of that years Ig Nobel Prize for Economics after it began including estimates of illegal transactions in the size of the countrys economy. The center in Rome also offers data from Eurostat, the library collection includes 400,000 volumes and receives about 2800 periodical journals. There are also 1500 volumes printed prior to 1900
Istituto Nazionale di Statistica
–
Istat headquarters in Rome
Istituto Nazionale di Statistica
–
Istat
7.
Italian language
–
By most measures, Italian, together with Sardinian, is the closest to Latin of the Romance languages. Italian is a language in Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City. Italian is spoken by minorities in places such as France, Montenegro, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Crimea and Tunisia and by large expatriate communities in the Americas. Many speakers are native bilinguals of both standardized Italian and other regional languages, Italian is the fourth most studied language in the world. Italian is a major European language, being one of the languages of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe. It is the third most widely spoken first language in the European Union with 65 million native speakers, including Italian speakers in non-EU European countries and on other continents, the total number of speakers is around 85 million. Italian is the working language of the Holy See, serving as the lingua franca in the Roman Catholic hierarchy as well as the official language of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. Italian is known as the language of music because of its use in musical terminology and its influence is also widespread in the arts and in the luxury goods market. Italian has been reported as the fourth or fifth most frequently taught foreign language in the world, Italian was adopted by the state after the Unification of Italy, having previously been a literary language based on Tuscan as spoken mostly by the upper class of Florentine society. Its development was influenced by other Italian languages and to some minor extent. Its vowels are the second-closest to Latin after Sardinian, unlike most other Romance languages, Italian retains Latins contrast between short and long consonants. As in most Romance languages, stress is distinctive, however, Italian as a language used in Italy and some surrounding regions has a longer history. What would come to be thought of as Italian was first formalized in the early 14th century through the works of Tuscan writer Dante Alighieri, written in his native Florentine. Dante is still credited with standardizing the Italian language, and thus the dialect of Florence became the basis for what would become the language of Italy. Italian was also one of the recognised languages in the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Italy has always had a dialect for each city, because the cities. Those dialects now have considerable variety, as Tuscan-derived Italian came to be used throughout Italy, features of local speech were naturally adopted, producing various versions of Regional Italian. Even in the case of Northern Italian languages, however, scholars are not to overstate the effects of outsiders on the natural indigenous developments of the languages
Italian language
–
Dante Alighieri (above) and
Petrarch (below) were influential in establishing their
Tuscan dialect as the most prominent literary language in all of
Italy in the
Late Middle Ages
Italian language
–
The geographic distribution of the Italian language in the world: large Italian-speaking communities are shown in green; light blue indicates areas where the Italian language was used officially during the Italian colonial period.
Italian language
Italian language
–
Pietro Bembo was an influential figure in the development of the Italian language from the Tuscan dialect, as a literary medium, codifying the language for standard modern usage
8.
Metropolitan cities of Italy
–
The metropolitan city is an administrative division of Italy, operative since 2015. In 2009, amendments added Reggio Calabria to the list, the metropolitan areas individuated by the autonomous regions were, Trieste in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Cagliari in Sardinia, Catania, Messina and Palermo in Sicily. On 3 April 2014 the Italian Parliament approved a law that establishes 10 metropolitan cities in Italy, the new metropolitan cities have been operative since 1 January 2015. The metropolitan city is composed by the municipalities that before had been members of the same province, each metropolitan city is headed by a metropolitan mayor assisted by a legislative body, the Metropolitan council, and by a non-legislative assembly, the metropolitan conference. Members of the Metropolitan council are elected and chosen by mayors and city councilors of each municipality in the metropolitan city, the metropolitan conference is composed by the mayors of the municipalities closest to the capital. The main functions devolved to the new cities are, local planning and zoning, provision of local police services, transport. Regions of Italy Provinces of Italy Municipalities of Italy Media related to Metropolitan cities of Italy at Wikimedia Commons
Metropolitan cities of Italy
–
Metropolitan cities of Italy.
9.
Province of Venice
–
The Province of Venice was a province in the Veneto region of northern Italy. Its capital is the city of Venice and it had an area of 2,467 km², and a total population of 846,962. The province became the Metropolitan City of Venice in 2015, the area was settled by 11th century BC. According to legend, Antenor fled from Troy, leading the people of Eneti from Paphlagonia to inhabit the shores of the Adriatic. The Romans defeated the Cimbri and the Germanic tribes in the area, at that time, the territory of the province was part of the Byzantine Empire, belonging to the Exarchate of Ravenna. Over the centuries, Venice became more independent and in 697 it had its first Doge, with the destruction of Eracliana in 805, the capital was moved to Rialto. In the Middle Ages, Venice became an important maritime republic, completely independent from Byzantium, in 1260, the Ezzelini family were defeated. Threatened by the expansionist ambitions of the Visconti of Milan, in 1365, in 1797, Napoleon invaded the Republic and, following the Treaty of Campo Formio, it was ceded to Austria. After the final defeat of Napoleon, the Austrian Empire founded a province of Venice on the Adriatic, the municipalities of Chioggia, Cavan and Cona constituted an exclave separated from the rest of the province, bordering the provinces of Padua and Rovigo. The Brenta and Livenza rivers flows through the former province, the Piave River flows into the Adriatic after passing the town of Eraclea. The 174 kilometres long Brenta runs from Trentino to the Adriatic Sea just south of the Venetian lagoon and it was first channeled in the 16th century when a long canal was built from the village of Stra to the Adriatic Sea, bypassing Venetian lagoon. A branch of the Brenta, named Naviglio Brenta, was left to connect directly Venice, the river runs through Stra, Fiesso dArtico, Dolo, Mira, Oriago and Malcontenta to Fusina in the north-east. In areas that bordered the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region, it is estimated that 29% of the population speaks fluent Friuli, the language is officially recognized and has been protected as a minority language since 2006. Statistics recorded since 1871 show that the population of the Province of Venice increased from some 341,000 inhabitants in 1871 to almost 847,000 in 2011. It rose steadily in each of the ten-year statistical periods until 1981 whereafter there were declines until 2001 when the population dipped to 809,586. Finally, there was an increase of 4. 6% in the period from 2001 to 2011 when the number of inhabitants reached 340,913. The average age per inhabitant was 44.8 years in 2011, in 2012, there were 72,284 foreigners residents in the province, mainly from Romania, Moldova and Albania, representing 8. 5% of the total population. In the academic year 2012 to 2013,23,677 students were enrolled at university of which 61. 8% were women and 38. 2% male, the most popular fields of study were economics, foreign languages, letters and philosophy, and architecture
Province of Venice
–
Venice
10.
Padua
–
Padua is a city and comune in Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic, the city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, which has a population of c. Padua stands on the Bacchiglione River,40 kilometres west of Venice and 29 km southeast of Vicenza, the Brenta River, which once ran through the city, still touches the northern districts. Its agricultural setting is the Venetian Plain, to the citys south west lies the Euganaean Hills, praised by Lucan and Martial, Petrarch, Ugo Foscolo, and Shelley. It hosts the University of Padua, founded in 1222, where Galileo Galilei was a lecturer, Padua is the setting for most of the action in Shakespeares The Taming of the Shrew. There is a play by the Victorian writer Oscar Wilde, titled The Duchess Of Padua, the original significance of the Roman name Patavium is uncertain. It may be connected with the ancient name of the River Po, additionally, the root pat-, in the Indo-European language may refer to a wide open plain as opposed to nearby hills. The ending -ium, signifies the presence of villages that have united themselves together, Padua claims to be the oldest city in northern Italy. According to a tradition dated at least to the time of Virgils Aeneid and to Livys Ab Urbe Condita, Padua was founded in around 1183 BC by the Trojan prince Antenor. After the Fall of Troy, Antenor led a group of Trojans and their Paphlagonian allies, the Eneti or Veneti, thus, when a large ancient stone sarcophagus was exhumed in the year 1274, officials of medieval commune declared the remains within to be those of Antenor. Nevertheless, archeological remains confirm a date for the foundation of the center of the town to between the 11th and 10th centuries BC. The Roman historian Livy records an invasion of the Spartan king Cleonimos around 302 BC. The Spartans came up the river but were defeated by the Veneti in a naval battle, still later, the Veneti of Padua successfully defended themselves against the aggression of Etruscans and Gauls. According to Livy and Silius Italicus, the Veneti, including those of Padua, formed an alliance with the Romans by 226 BC, against their common enemy, men from Padua fought and died besides the Romans at Cannae. As the Romans advanced northward, Padua was gradually assimilated into the Roman Republic, in 175 BC, Padua requested the aid of Rome in putting down a local civil war. In 91 BC, Padua, along with cities of the Veneti. Around 49 BC, Padua was made a Roman municipium under the Lex Julia Municipalis and its citizens ascribed to the Roman tribe, at that time the population of the city was perhaps 40,000. The city was reputed for its excellent breed of horses and the wool of its sheep, in fact, the poet Martial remarks on the thickness of the tunics made there
Padua
–
Remnants of Padua's
Roman amphitheatre wall.
Padua
–
The unfinished façade of
Padua Cathedral
Padua
–
Last Judgment by
Giotto, part of the
Scrovegni Chapel.
11.
Treviso
–
Treviso is a city and comune in Veneto, northern Italy. The city is home to the headquarters of clothing retailer Benetton, Sisley, Stefanel, Geox, Diadora and Lotto Sport Italia, appliance maker DeLonghi, and bicycle maker Pinarello. Treviso is also known for being the production area of Prosecco wine. For some scholars, the ancient city of Tarvisium derived its name from a settlement of the Celtic tribe of the Taurusci, others have attributed the name instead to the Greek root tarvos, meaning bull. Tarvisium, then a city of the Veneti, became a municipium in 89 BCE after the Romans added Cisalpine Gaul to their dominions, citizens were ascribed to the Roman tribe of Claudia. The city lay in proximity of the Via Postumia, which connected Opitergium to Aquileia, Treviso is rarely mentioned by ancient writers, although Pliny writes of the Silis, that is the Sile River, as flowing ex montibus Tarvisanis. During the Roman Period, Christianity spread to Treviso, tradition records that St. Prosdocimus, a Greek who had been ordained bishop by St. Peter, brought the Catholic faith to Treviso and surrounding areas. By the 4th century, the Christian population grew sufficient to merit a resident bishop, the first documented bishop was John the Pius who began his epsicopacy in 396 AD. According to tradition, Treviso was the birthplace of Totila, the leader of Ostrogoths during the Gothic Wars, the latter was especially important during the reign of the last Lombard king, Desiderius, and continued to churn out coins when northern Italy was annexed to the Frankish Empire. People from the city played a role in the founding of Venice. Charlemagne made it the capital of a march, i. e. the Marca Trevigiana. Treviso joined the Lombard League, and gained independence after the Peace of Constance and this lasted until the rise of seignories in northern Italy. Among the various families who ruled over Treviso, the Da Romano reigned from 1237 to 1260, Treviso and its satellite cities, including Castelfranco Veneto, had become attractive to neighbouring powers, including the da Carrara and Scaligeri. After the fall of the last Caminesi lord, Rizzardo IV, Treviso notary and physician, Oliviero Forzetta, was an avid collector of antiquities and drawings, the collection was published in a catalog in 1369, the earliest such catalog to exist to this day. After a Scaliger domination in 1329–1339, the city itself to the Republic of Venice. From 1318 it was also, for a time, the seat of a university. Venetian rule brought innumerable benefits, however, Treviso necessarily became involved in the wars of Venice, from 1381–1384, the city was captured and ruled by the duke of Austria, and then by the Carraresi until 1388. The many waterways were exploited with several waterwheels which powered mills for milling grain produced locally
Treviso
–
Piazza dei Signori
Treviso
–
City walls.
Treviso
–
A bridge on the Sile river in Treviso.
12.
Caorle
–
Caorle is a coastal town in the province of Venice, Veneto, Italy, located between the estuaries of the Livenza and Lemene rivers. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea between two other famous tourist towns, Eraclea and Bibione, the ancient name of the city was Caprulae, Caorle was founded in the 1st century BC by Romans. Many archeological findings confirm this attribution, for instance the sacrificial altar called Ara Licovia, a safe zone between the estuaries of the Livenza and Lemene rivers, Caorle gained importance when people from Concordia Sagittaria arrived as refugees during the Barbarian Invasions. In that period was built a Paleo-Christian church, some remains of which are kept in the cathedrals museum. In the 11th century was built the cathedral we see today, no longer a residential bishopric, Caorle/Caprulae is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see. Caorle was an important strategic location during World War I, until the Italian Army started its counteroffensive from the Piave, since the beginning of the 20th century the territory around Caorle has been deeply modified. Most of the woods of the Selva Lupanica were cut to give room to fields for cultivation, rivers were embanked and this brought a landscape of wide flat areas, with no trees even along the rivers course. Along the coast, interment and erosion constantly modify the scenery, the landscape is still rather wild, with changing sandbanks and the fishing valleys. The Cathedral of St. Stephen was built in 1038, an example of Romanesque and it contains many masterpieces of the Venetian school of art, the most important of which is The Last Supper, painted by Gregorio Lazzarini. The central apse has the remains of a 17th-century fresco, above the see there is the Pala doro, given by the queen Catherine Cornaro when, after a shipwreck, she found refuge in the Caprulan coasts. It is made up of a set of six panels, two for the Annunciation and the four for the prophets and Christ. From the roof, a 15th-century crucifix hangs above the high altar. Outside, the bell tower, dating to 1048, rises to a height of 48 meters. It is an example of Romanesque style, but it has a cylindrical structure, and it is surmounted by a cone-shaped cusp. When he became Pope, his servants were two Caprulan brothers, another important piece of the museum is the St Stephen reliquary, which contains the skull of Saint Stephen, Patron of Caorle. The Church of Blessed Virgin of the Angel is built on a promontory on the sea. In ancient times, the church had three naves, but the sea repeatedly destroyed one of them, so in the 18th century the church was rebuilt, with the structure that it has today. The legend says that one day a number of fishermen saw a light on the sea, when they approached it, they found a statue of the Virgin Mary with the Child, Caorle is a small city, but is frequented by tourists in all seasons
Caorle
–
Cathedral's bell tower
Caorle
–
The cylindrical bell tower of the cathedral.
Caorle
–
The Church of the Blessed Virgin of the Angel on the sea.
Caorle
–
Some coloured houses of the old town centre
13.
Jesolo
–
Jesolo is a seaside resort town and comune in the province of Venice, Italy. The town lies north of Venice, between Eraclea and Cavallino-Treporti, Jesolo gives its name to a lagoon of 22 square kilometres on the Adriatic Sea between the rivers Sile and Piave. The urbanized area lies on an island of sorts, delimited by the rivers Piave and Sile, in Roman times the lagoon extended over the area now occupied by the town. There were several islands in the lagoon, the biggest of which was known as Equilium and it is thought that Jesolo represents a corruption of this name. The citys economy is based on tourism. Jesolo is a resort with abundant holiday facilities and its 15-kilometre beach called Lido di Jesolo. At the height of its life, Jesolo was hosting 6 million tourists per year. Currently these have dropped to around 4.5 million tourists per year due to the competition from new resort towns, petrus de Natalibus, bishop of Equilio from 1370 to his death, and author who compiled the widely circulated book Legends of the Saints
Jesolo
–
The beach of Jesolo.
14.
Chioggia
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Chioggia is a coastal town and comune of the Metropolitan City of Venice in the Veneto region of northern Italy. The population of the comune is around 50,000, with the town proper accounting for half of that. The municipality, located in south of the province, close to the provinces of Padua and Rovigo, borders with Campagna Lupia, Cavarzere, Codevigo, Cona, Correzzola, Loreo, Rosolina and Venice. Chioggia and Sottomarina were not prominent in antiquity, although they are first mentioned in Pliny as the fossa Clodia, local legend attributes this name to its founding by a Clodius, but the antiquity of this belief is not known. The name of the town has been changing depending on the period, being Clodia, Cluza, Clugia, Chiozza. The most ancient documents naming Chioggia dates from the 6th century AD, Chioggia was destroyed by the King Pippin of Italy in the 9th century, but rebuilt around a new industry based on salt pans. In the Middle Ages, Chioggia proper was known as Clugia major, although the town remained largely autonomous, it was always thereafter subordinate to Venice. Until the 19th century, women in Chioggia wore an outfit based on an apron which could be raised to serve as a veil, Chioggia is also known for lace-making, like Pellestrina, but unlike Burano, this lace is made using bobbins. Chioggia served Carlo Goldoni as the setting of his play Le baruffe chiozzotte, one of the classics of Italian literature, a baruffa was a loud brawl, Goldoni took his setting seriously, the play is replete with lacemaking, fishermen, and other local color. Chioggia is a version of Venice, with a few canals, chief among them the Canale Vena. Chioggia has several churches, much reworked in the period of its greatest prosperity in the 16th and 17th centuries. The church of S. Maria, founded in the century, became a cathedral in 1110. The church of St. Andrew has a tower from the 11th-12th centuries. The interior has a Crucifixion by Palma the Elder, fishing is historically the livelihood of the port, and remains a significant economic sector. Other important modern industries include textiles, brick-making and steel, and Sottomarina, Chioggia is twinned with, Lamia Saint-Tropez Chioggia gives its name to a variety of Beetroot, Radicchio, and Pumpkin. Chioggia railway station A. C. Chioggia Sottomarina Official site Port of Chioggia Chioggia
Chioggia
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Aerial view of Chioggia
15.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
Geographic coordinate system
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Longitude lines are perpendicular and latitude lines are parallel to the equator.
16.
Metropolitan City of Bari
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The Metropolitan City of Bari is a metropolitan city in the Apulia region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Bari and it replaced the Province of Bari and includes the city of Bari and some forty other municipalities. It was first created by the reform of local authorities and then established by the Law 56/2014 and it has been operative since January 1,2015. The Metropolitan City of Bari is headed by the Metropolitan Mayor, since 1 January 2015 Antonio Decaro, as mayor of the capital city, has been the first mayor of the Metropolitan City. It has an area of 3.825 km2, and a population of 1,261,152. The province of Bari was formerly a part of the region of Terra di Bari, which once included the towns of Fasano and Cisternino, now in the province of Brindisi. The area is dominated by the Murgia hills in the inner part, only the Bari hinterland and the coastal strip are flat. The north of the province, with Bari, Altamura, Bitonto, Corato, Gravina in Puglia, the south, on the contrary, is characterized by the absence of these large centers, the only municipality to be around 50,000 inhabitants is Monopoli. In the southern part of the province, on the border with that of Taranto, is the Itria Valley, the province is largely devoid of rivers and lakes, although underground rivers in the karst landscape has formed numerous caves, including those of Castellana and Putignano. This left the remaining Province of Bari with 41 comuni and a population of 1,248,084 as of the 2005 census. The arable land in the Province of Bari is exploited with the cultivation of olive and grapes but also cherries, peaches, from that agricultural activity is derived olive oil, wine and table grapes. Bitonto is especially noted for its extra virgin olive oil, and Corato, the centers of wine production are mainly concentrated in Gravina and Ruvo di Puglia, in the north of Bari, and Adelfia, Noicattaro, Rutigliano and Locorotondo, in the south of Bari. Also important is the production of cherries, the Apulian red is especially prevalent in the countryside of Turi and Putignano
Metropolitan City of Bari
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Bari Harbour
17.
Metropolitan City of Milan
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The Metropolitan City of Milan is a metropolitan city in the Lombardy region, Italy. Its capital is the city of Milan and it replaced the Province of Milan and includes the city of Milan and other 133 municipalities or communes. It was first created by the reform of local authorities and then established by the Law 56/2014 and it has been operative since January 1,2015. The Metropolitan City of Milan is headed by the Metropolitan Mayor, since June 2016 Giuseppe Sala, as mayor of the capital city, has been the mayor of the Metropolitan City. The spatial spread of the Milan metropolitan area has accelerated over recent decades. A single, large and increasingly widespread conurbation with the city of Milan at its hub defines the area, however. The Milan metropolitan area contains a population of 8,123,020 in 2013, the Milan metropolitan area is part of the so-called Blue Banana, the area of Europe with the highest population and industrial density. Milan metropolitan area is one of southern Europes key transport nodes and its five major railway stations, among which the Milan Central station, are among Italys busiest. The Azienda Trasporti Milanesi operates within the area, managing a public transport network consisting of an underground rapid transit network and tram. Overall the network covers nearly 1,400 km reaching 86 municipalities, besides public transport, ATM manages the interchange parking lots and other transportation services including bike sharing and car sharing systems. Milan Metro is the transit system serving the city, with 4 lines. The recently opened M5 line is undergoing expansion and the construction of the M4 line has been approved. The Milan suburban railway service comprises 10 lines and connects the area with the city centre through the Milan Passerby underground railway. Commonly referred to as Il Passante, it has a train running every 6 minutes, the city tram network consists of approximately 160 kilometres of track and 17 lines. Bus lines cover over 1,070 km, Milan has also taxi services operated by private companies and licensed by the City council of Milan. The city is also a key node for the road network. Milan metropolitan area is served by two international airports, Malpensa International Airport, the second busiest in Italy, is 45 km from central Milan and connected to the city by the Malpensa Express railway service. Linate Airport, which lies within the city limits, is used for domestic and short-haul international flights
Metropolitan City of Milan
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The metropolitan area of
Milan
Metropolitan City of Milan
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Milan's skyline.
18.
Metropolitan City of Naples
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The Metropolitan City of Naples is an Italian Metropolitan City in Campania region, established on January 1,2015. Its capital city is Naples, within the city there are 92 comune and it was first created by the reform of local authorities and established by the Law 56/2014, thus replacing the Province of Naples in 2015. The Metropolitan City of Naples is headed by the Metropolitan Mayor, since 1 January 2015 its head is Luigi de Magistris, as mayor of the capital city. Due to the presence of Vesuvius and Campi Flegrei, the city is vulnerable to seismic and volcanic activity, the city is 96th out of 110 Italian provinces and metropolitan cities by landmass, with an area that his smaller than the core comune of Rome. Municipalities in the Metropolitan City vary in size, ranging from 1.62 km² to 117, the Mayor of Naples thus also has powers as Metropolitan Mayor, presiding over a Metropolitan Council formed by 24 mayors of municipalities within the Metropolitan City. The first Metropolitan Council of the City was elected on 28 September 2014
Metropolitan City of Naples
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Areal view of the Metropolitan city of
Naples
19.
Metropolitan City of Palermo
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The Metropolitan City of Palermo is a metropolitan city in Sicily, Italy. Its capital is the city of Palermo and it replaced the Province of Palermo and comprises the city of Palermo and other 82 municipalities. It was first created by the reform of local authorities and then established by the regional law 15 August 2015. and it is part of the Metropolitan City also the island of Ustica. There are, finally, various road routes linking all the countries of the hinterland to the capital, Metropolitan City of Palermo official website
Metropolitan City of Palermo
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Metropolitan City of Palermo
Metropolitan City of Palermo
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Location of the Metropolitan City of Palermo
20.
Metropolitan City of Turin
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The Metropolitan City of Turin is a metropolitan city in the Piedmont region, Italy. Its capital is the city of Turin and it replaced the Province of Turin and comprises the city of Turin and 315 other municipalities. It was first created by the reform of local authorities and then established by the Law 56/2014 and it has been officially operative since 1 January 2015. The Metropolitan City of Turin is headed by the metropolitan mayor, since 1 January 2015 Piero Fassino, as mayor of the capital city, has been the first mayor of the metropolitan city. It has an area of 6,830 km2, and a population of 2,306,676. There are 315 comuni in the metropolitan area – the most of any province or metropolitan city in Italy, the second province with the highest number of comuni is that of Cuneo, with 250. The territory consists of an area to the west and north along the border with France and with the Valle dAosta. The mountainous part is home to part of the Hautes Alpes, the highest point in the Metropolitan City of Turin is the Roc, located in the Gran Paradiso massif on the border with Valle dAosta. Several wildlife reserves are located in the province, including the Sacro Monte Natural Reserve in Belmonte, the Residences of the House of Savoy, located in Turin and several other towns in the province, as well as the Sacro Monte of Belmonte are UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The Metropolitan City currently has a number of rail and road work sites. Although this activity has increased as a result of the 2006 Winter Olympics, one is the Spina Centrale project which includes the doubling of a major railway crossing the city, the Turin-Milan railway locally known as Passante Ferroviario di Torino. The railroad previously ran in a trench, which will now be covered by a boulevard running from North to South of Turin, in a central position along the city. Porta Susa, on this section, will become Turins main station to substitute the terminus of Porta Nuova with a through station. Other important stations are Stura, Rebaudengo, Lingotto and Madonna di Campagna railway stations, the other major project is the construction of a subway line based on the VAL system, known as Metrotorino. The first leg of the system linked the nearby town of Collegno with Porta Susa in Turins city centre. On 4 October 2007 the line was extended to Porta Nuova and then, in March 2011, to Lingotto. A new extension of the so-called Linea 1 is expected in the near future, furthermore, an alleged Linea 2 is in the pipeline and it is supposed to cross Turin from North to South. As of 2010 also a bicycle sharing system, the ToBike, is operational, the metropolitan area is served by Turin metropolitan railway service
Metropolitan City of Turin
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Turin metropolitan area
Metropolitan City of Turin
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Location of the Metropolitan City of Turin
Metropolitan City of Turin
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Metropolitan area of
Turin.
21.
Cagliari metropolitan area
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The Metropolitan City of Cagliari is a metropolitan city in Sardinia, Italy. Its capital is the city of Cagliari and includes 17 comuni and it was established by law in 2016, and replaced the Province of Cagliari. Its population comprises 432,000 inhabitants circa, the current president is the mayor of Cagliari, Massimo Zedda. The Sulcis Range is to the west and includes Monti Arcosu, Monte Serpeddi, to the east is the Monte Linias Range, including Punta Serpeddì and Sette Fratelli. These mountains are composed of Ordovician shale and Carboniferous granite, an exception is Monte Is Caravius which is 1,116 m. The most part of the Metropolitan City of Cagliari have a Mediterranean climate with hot, dry summers, the extreme values in summer are over 40 °C, often with high humidity, while in winter, the record lows are below zero. Heavy snowfalls occur, on average, every thirty years. - Extremely hot summers, the average temperature of the coldest month, January, is about 10 °C, and that of the warmest month, August, about 25 °C. However, heat waves can occur, due to African anticyclone activity, from mid-June to mid-September, rain is a rare event, usually storms in the afternoon. The rainy season starts in September, but the first cold days come in December, winds are frequent, especially the mistral and sirocco, in summer days a marine sirocco breeze lowers the temperature and the humidity. On the surrounding mountains, the climate is different, with plentiful averages rainfalls, cold winters. As 470 km² are covered by forests, lagoons, ponds and salt marshes, so the real population density rises to 553 Inhab. /km². In 1861, the municipalities of the current metropolitan city had 67,063 inhabitants, since then the city had a population growth of 461%, while the metropolitan municipalities as an all had an increase of 644%. In that year Cagliari had a population that was the 50% of the metropolitan area, the 26% of the island population that lives in Cagliari Metropolitan City, produces 31% of the islands GDP, and the urban-area income is greater than that of the rest of Sardinia. According to Eurostat, in 2009, the area of Cagliari had a per capita purchasing power standard of 21.699 euros. On the other hand, the Metropolitan City suffers a high unemployment rate,17, 7%, higher not only of that of the one,12, 2%. The traditional economy is based on agriculture, the cultivation of wheat, olive groves and vineyards, gardens, the mountains were exploited for firewood and coal that were sold at Cagliari. There were mines, particularly the Iron mine of San Leone in the territory of Assemini, there are, also, large salt pans east and west of Cagliari. Currently, the city holds most of the administrative offices, the retail trade, financial services, professional offices
Cagliari metropolitan area
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Cagliari metropolitan area by night
Cagliari metropolitan area
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Satellite view
Cagliari metropolitan area
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Aerial view
Cagliari metropolitan area
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Saras oil refinery
22.
Strait of Messina metropolitan area
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The Metropolitan Area of Strait of Messina, is the urban agglomeration around the Strait of Messina, and is one of the most populated and important areas of Southern Italy. It includes part of the Province of Messina, in Sicily, Messina, is a city situated in the extreme north-eastern tip of Sicily, also called gate of Sicily, in ancient times was called Zancle and Messana. Ancient city, has reached the pinnacle of his greatness, in the Late Middle Ages and in the century, when contending with Palermo. Rebuilt since 1912, the city presents a neat and regular mesh with wide straight streets. In recent years, there are ongoing projects aimed at regeneration of the city through such as the waterfront, a new headquarters for the railway station. Messina is a city with a based on services, trade, tourism. Its port is the first in Italy for the number of transit passengers, Reggio Calabria is the first municipality in the Calabria region for residents. Major functional pole in its region, has historical, cultural. Its urban system, represents a major centers and regional service and transport. Reggio Calabria, with Naples and Taranto, is home to one of the most important archaeological museums dedicated to Ancient Greece, of two young universities and the Regional Council of Calabria. The center, consisting primarily of Liberty buildings, has a development along the coast. Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto, populous tofnthe close to Milazzo, it is characterized by an activity in, agriculture, trade. Milazzo is a peninsula, situated the Tyrrhenian Sea, in a strategic place, located 43 km from Messina, is the benchmark for other little cities, job, trade, services. Originally a Greek city, and from 36 BC recognized as a Roman civitas, Milazzo is now a tourist destination and a starting point for the Aeolian Islands. There are numerous examples, symbols of the ancient history of the city, plans are in progress aimed to enter the Castle, the fortified town and the ancient village in the UNESCO sites and to form the Marine Reserve of Capo Milazzo. The Metropolitan Area of Strait of Messina is connected to the Autostrada A3, A18, the Strait of Messina Metropolitan Area is served by air links with the Reggio Calabria Airport. Also known as Aeroporto dello Stretto or Tito Minniti Airport, is located at south of Reggio Calabria, the first track of the airport was built in 1939 with military purposes. On 11 July 1943 a USA air raid razed the structure, the first flight took place on April 10,1947 with a twin-engine propeller-driven Douglas DC-3 on the Turin - Bologna - Florence - Naples - Reggio Calabria - Palermo
Strait of Messina metropolitan area
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View of Strait of Messina, from the Sicilian coast
Strait of Messina metropolitan area
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Strait of Messina from satellite
Strait of Messina metropolitan area
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Messina
Strait of Messina metropolitan area
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Reggio Calabria
23.
Milan metropolitan area
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The Milan metropolitan area, known as Grande Milano, is the metropolitan area of the Metropolitan City of Milan, Italy. The spatial spread of the Milan metropolitan area has accelerated over recent decades. A single, large and increasingly widespread conurbation with the city of Milan at its hub defines the area, however. The Milan metropolitan area contains a population of 8,123,020 in 2013 ISTAT, the Milan metropolitan area is part of the so-called Blue Banana, the area of Europe with the highest population and industrial density. The metropolitan area is statistical and does not imply any kind of administrative unity or function. Another definition is synonymous with the province of Milan, with 3,869,037 inhabitants distributed over an area of 1,982 km2, according to Eurostat Urban Audit program, the larger urban zone of Milan has a population of 3,076,643. Finally, an Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development territorial review of 2006 takes a more inclusive definition based on socioeconomic patterns, the overall population under this definition is about 7,400,000, dispersed over an area of about 12,000 km2. The most important of these by population are Monza, Busto Arsizio, Sesto San Giovanni, Legnano, the total land area of the greater urban area is 2944.53 km² with a population of 5.246.000 the largest in Italy by population. 27% of this population resides in the city of Milan, the density of the Milan urban area is 1,651 per km², one of the highest in Europe. This table shows the main Italian urban areas by population, the Milan urban area is the largest Transport in Milan Larger Urban Zones in the European Union Largest European metropolitan areas
Milan metropolitan area
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The Milan metropolitan area as seen from the
International Space Station (North roughly on the top side)
Italy
