Geography
Italy (South Europe) is surrounded by French, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, Romania and Mediterranean Sea, With Some isles (Sicily, Capri, Sardinia).

Weather
Alps region have long winters, with humid and cold summers; seaside cities are humid and hot, because of hot and humid of African winds.

Background Information
Full Country name: Italian Republic
Area: 301,250 sq km
Population: 57.8 million
Capital City: Rome
People: Italian
Language: Standard Italian and numerous dialects
Religion: 58% Roman Catholic, 5% Jewish and the rest Protestant
Government: Republic
Economic Profile:
GDP: US $ 1045 billion
World GDP ranking: 5th
GDP per head: US $ 18,070
Annual growth: 4.0%
Inflation: 5.8%
Major industries: engineering, textiles, chemicals

Travel Information
When to go there: Italy is best at spring and autumn. During these seasons sceneries are beautiful, temperature is pleasant and there are relatively few crowds.

Visas: Residents of the USA, Australia, Canada and New Zealand Coming to Italy as tourists, do not need to apply for a visa before arriving in the country. Visitors from Europe countries only need a passport or national Identity Card, and can stay for as long as they like; the other Asians and Africans need visas.

How to get there
Most of visitors traveling to Italy by air some European visitors traveling to Italy by bus and train.

Getting Around
Air travel with Italy is expensive, making it a less attractive option than travel by train or bus. Bus travel is better than train because you can saw cities, villages and sightseeing's, with lower costs.

Time Zone
GMT/UTC plus one hour (tow hours a head in summer)

Transportation
Plane, train, bus for outside city transportation, and Metro, bus and taxi for city transportations, easily find.

Money and costs
currency: Lira
Relative costs: Cheap meal: US $ 3.50
Restaurant meal: US $ 15
Cheap room: US $ 12
Hotel room: US $ 30

Media
Magazine, radio and TV are in Italian, some limited English magazines, also find.

Languages
Standard Italian and numerous dialects

Weights and measures
Metric System

Electricity
220 V, 50 Hz

Business Hours
Government : 9-17
Shopping: 9-13 and 15-21
Weekend: Saturday and Sunday

Art and Culture
Italy is well-known for ancient history and culture, with unlimited monuments (Piazza Tower, Roman Republic Palace, ...). Italian culture is too near to Greece. Dante, Cicero, Petrach, Vid and Uirgil are most important Italian authors. Embassies

All countries have embassy in Rome.