Italy seems to exist as two counties in people's minds. On the one hand it's a place dominated by modern chic, with the seat of fashion in Milan, luxury sports cars that are astoundingly beautiful and cutting edge cuisine. On the other hand it's a place steeped in tradition, with ancient ruins and renaissance architecture dominating its looks, and fixed ideas about the way food should be.
Both images stand true for Italy. There are an incredible number of well preserved historical sites. In fact UNESCO give it more World Heritage sites than any other place. People from all over the world can instantly point out the Coliseum, or the streets of Venice. Ancient history is really important to the national identity. Te Roman Empire encompassed the Mediterranean at one stage, and left a legacy that has influenced the way the Western world has developed. Pompeii is a great place to see how the Romans lived day to day.
There's also the fact that everything in Italy is seen as a progression, helping to keep the past in its context alongside the new. The Renaissance is an example of how Italy shaped the world post-Roman times. It brought about a whole wave of fine art and ideals that continue to shape the world we live in today. Seeing pieces of da Vinci's work on display in Florence, within buildings which are themselves five hundred years old, produces a staggering feeling of old-world achievement at the heart of the new Italy.
Getting into how this lives on in modern Italy, you have to look at what's produced as practical art today. Cars are something that Italy does like nowhere else. Visit the car museum in Torino to see one of the biggest collections in Europe, and also some incredibly rare Ferrari, Alpha Romeo Lamborghini models. Or there's the other great modern art in the fashion world, which finds its home in the boutique-dotted streets of Milan. Here you'll find every major fashion brand in the world in one place, so that's some serious retail therapy opportunities.
Italy does feel strangely old and new at the same time, but it's not a bad thing. You get the best that the progression of time has produced being preserved, while new levels of excellence are pursued in other areas.
Both images stand true for Italy. There are an incredible number of well preserved historical sites. In fact UNESCO give it more World Heritage sites than any other place. People from all over the world can instantly point out the Coliseum, or the streets of Venice. Ancient history is really important to the national identity. Te Roman Empire encompassed the Mediterranean at one stage, and left a legacy that has influenced the way the Western world has developed. Pompeii is a great place to see how the Romans lived day to day.
There's also the fact that everything in Italy is seen as a progression, helping to keep the past in its context alongside the new. The Renaissance is an example of how Italy shaped the world post-Roman times. It brought about a whole wave of fine art and ideals that continue to shape the world we live in today. Seeing pieces of da Vinci's work on display in Florence, within buildings which are themselves five hundred years old, produces a staggering feeling of old-world achievement at the heart of the new Italy.
Getting into how this lives on in modern Italy, you have to look at what's produced as practical art today. Cars are something that Italy does like nowhere else. Visit the car museum in Torino to see one of the biggest collections in Europe, and also some incredibly rare Ferrari, Alpha Romeo Lamborghini models. Or there's the other great modern art in the fashion world, which finds its home in the boutique-dotted streets of Milan. Here you'll find every major fashion brand in the world in one place, so that's some serious retail therapy opportunities.
Italy does feel strangely old and new at the same time, but it's not a bad thing. You get the best that the progression of time has produced being preserved, while new levels of excellence are pursued in other areas.
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