Bridge of Sighs, Venice, Italy

Venice's famous Bridge of Sighs was designed by Antonio Contino and was built at the beginning of the 17th century. Spanning the Rio di Palazzo (Palace River), the bridge  Bridge of Sighs, Venicewas intended to connect the Old Prison and interrogation rooms in the Doge's Palace to the New Prison, which was situated directly across the river.

There are a few theories as to how the bridge got its name. The first one involves the prisoners that walked across the bridge on their way to the executioner. The prisoners would "sigh" as they crossed the bridge, probably catching their last glimpse of the outside world, many believed.

Even though by the time the bridge was built summary executions at the hands of the inquisitors had ceased, many prisoners probably did cross the bridge and may have not seen freedom again... at least not for many years.

Another story says that if a couple kisses under the bridge Bridge of Sighs, Venicewhile drifting below on a gondola at sunset, they will enjoy eternal love. Thus, the "sighs" are said to come from lovers who are overwhelmed by the romance of the whole scene.

This romantic view was created by the Poet Lord Byron with his writings: "I stood in Venice on the Bridge of Sighs, a palace and prison on each hand".

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Beautiful Beach, Furore, Amalfi Coast, Italy

Another gem of the Amalfi Coast, Furore takes its name from the "the sound of the raging sea pounding against the valley below". It was, for its particular physical and geographical location, an impregnable stronghold, even at the times of the Saracen invasions. The fjord, one of the most picturesque and evocative in Italy, has always been a natural harbor, famous for its flourishing trade and the development of the old industrial plants, such as paper mills and mills.

It is also known by the nickname of "the country that does not exist" (the Italian Neverland), since there is not a real important centre but just small groups of houses that sprout isolated from the ridges of the cliffs. The "en plein air" art gallery is very singular: it is composed by over one hundred "walls of author" and features murals and sculptures that make Furore a "painted village". The municipal area includes the coastal area of the fjord, on the border between Praiano and Conca dei Marini, and grows up the valley up to an altitude of 600 meters above sea level, surrounded by the mountains of Agerola.

The town of Furore was a simple district of the Royal city of Amalfi: a place where the exiles and the outcasts of society lived, once sent away from city, in an inhospitable, sparsely populated area with no lands to cultivate. It is mentioned for the first time in a land registry of 1752. In the Fifties of the XX century, Furore was the set of a famous film "L'Amore" and, at the same time, of the passionate and tormented love affair between director Roberto Rossellini and famous Italian actress Anna Magnani.

But the most attractive thing about this village-non-village is its beautiful setting: the olive trees, the grapevines on terraces going up the mountainside, the bowers of lemons with nets stretched between poles, the red roofs and colorful majolicas on the small bell towers, the brilliantly colored flowers of the wild blackberry brambles, and the sea: blue, down below, in the corner of your eye, ever present.

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Florence, Tuscany, Italy

From the Etruscans to the Romans to the Renaissance, Tuscany is possibly the greatest repository of art in the world, from extraordinary paintings and sculpture to frescoes and architectural masterpieces.

Visitors to Tuscany come for many reasons. Many come in search of fine art, others to explore the extraordinary countryside. Gourmets and wine buffs descend on Tuscany to enjoy the simple yet wonderful cuisine and wine. Walkers enjoy the mountain paths, cyclists the rolling hills, summer vacationers the sea coast and islands. Students come to learn the beautiful Italian language and culture.

There is a lot to see and do in Tuscany, the difficulty is really where to start. Certainly most should start with Florence, then continue on to Siena and Pisa. The roll call of città di arte, cities of art, is daunting: Arezzo, Cortona, San Gimignano and Lucca are all striking. The more you come to know the region, the more extraordinary Tuscany appears. Enjoy your visit!

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Beautiful Canals Of Venice, Italy

The beautiful city of Venice is surrounded by water and is located in northern Italy. The capital of Venice is Veneto. It is commonly known as the city of lovers, the city of water or the city of bridges. It is spread over 118 Islands. Venice is very famous in the world because of its numerous canals.

The city has a total of 150 canals and the most important canal in Venice is called the Grand Canal. It is responsible for managing the traffic in water by corridor management. Rather than visiting areas of Venice by car, it is very common to find water buses and water taxis that are used for transportation.

During the day time, the city is very crowded with visitors all across the world trying to experience what the city has to offer. Narrow yet beautiful canals, bridges and streets give a very different feel than many other places.

Motor boats are not allowed to travel in small canals that are narrow. The city has almost 400 bridges and the Grand Canal cuts the city equally into two proportionate halves from the north to the south. The total length of the Grand Canal is three kilometers. One of the constant threats that the city is the weakening infrastructure of the buildings.

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Colorful Venice, Italy

Venice  is a city in northeasternItaly sited on a group of 118 small islands separated by canals and linked by bridges. It is located in the marshy Venetian Lagoon which stretches along the shoreline, between the mouths of the Po and the Piave Rivers. Venice is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. The city in its entirety is listed as a World Heritage Site, along with its lagoon.

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Tuscany, Italy

Tuscany is a region in central Italy with an area of about 23,000 square kilometres (8,900 sq mi) and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (Firenze).

Tuscany is known for its landscapes, traditions, history, artistic legacy and its influence on high culture. It is regarded as the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance and has been home to many figures influential in the history of art and science, and contain well-known museums such as the Uffizi and the Pitti Palace. Tuscany produces wines, including Chianti, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Morellino di Scansano and Brunello di Montalcino. Having a strong linguistic and cultural identity, it is sometime considered "a nation within a nation". Seven Tuscan localities have been designated World Heritage Sites: the historic centre of Florence (1982); the historical centre of Siena (1995); the square of the Cathedral of Pisa (1987); the historical centre of San Gimignano (1990); the historical centre of Pienza (1996); the Val d'Orcia (2004), and Medici Villas and Gardens (2013). Tuscany has over 120 protected nature reserves, making Tuscany and its capital Florence a popular tourist destinations that attract millions of tourists every year. (In 2007, the city became the world's 46th most visited city, with over 1.715 million arrivals).

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Venice, the romantic city. Italy

Venice is a city in northeasternItaly sited on a group of 118 small islands separated by canals and linked by bridges. It is located in the marshy Venetian Lagoon which stretches along the shoreline, between the mouths of the Po and the Piave Rivers. Venice is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. The city in its entirety is listed as a World Heritage Site, along with its lagoon.

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Campigna National Park - Italy

The Parco Nazionale delle Foreste Casentinesi, Monte Falterona, Campigna is a national park in Italy. Created in 1993, it covers an area of about 368 square kilometres (142 sq mi), on the two sides of the Apennine watershed between Romagna and Tuscany, and is divided between the provinces of Forlì Cesena, Arezzo and Florence.

It extends around the long ridge, descending steeply along the parallel valleys of the Romagna side and more gradually on the Tuscan side, which has gentler slopes, especially in the Casentino area, which slopes down gradually to the broad valley of the Arno.

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Rome, Italy

Rome is a city and special comune (named "Roma Capitale") in Italy. Rome is the capital of Italy and also of thehomonymous province and of the region of Lazio. With 2.7 million residents in 1,285.3 km² (496.3 sq mi), it is also the country's largest and most populated comune and fourth-most populous city in the European Union by population within city limits. The urban area of Rome extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of around 3.8 million. Between 3.2 and 4.2 million people live in Rome metropolitan area. The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber within Lazio (Latium). Rome is the only city in the world to contain in its interior a whole state; the enclave of Vatican City.

Rome's history spans more than two and a half thousand years, since its legendary founding in 753 BC. Rome is one of the oldest continuously occupied cities in Europe. It is referred to as "The Eternal City", a notion expressed by ancient Roman poets and writers. In the ancient world it was successively the capital city of the Roman Kingdom, the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, and is regarded as one of the birthplaces of Western civilization. Since the 1st century AD, Rome has been considered the seat of the Papacy and in the 8th century it became the capital of the Papal States, which lasted until 1870. In 1871 Rome became the capital of the Kingdom of Italy, and in 1946 that of the Italian Republic.

After the Middle Ages, Rome was ruled by popes such as Alexander VI and Leo X, who transformed the city into one of the major centers of the Italian Renaissance along with Florence. The current version of St Peter's Basilica was built and the Sistine Chapel was painted by Michelangelo. Famous artists and architects, such as Bramante, Bernini and Raphael, resided for some time in Rome, contributing to its Renaissance and Baroque architecture.

Rome has a status of the global city. In 2007, Rome was the 11th-most-visited city in the world, 3rd most visited in the European Union, and the most popular tourist attraction in Italy. The city is one of Europe's and the world's most successful city "brands", both in terms of reputation and assets. Its historic centre is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Monuments and museums such as the Vatican Museums and the Colosseum are among the world's most visited tourist destinations with both locations receiving millions of tourists a year. Rome hosted the 1960 Summer Olympics.

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