I would like to add a new page to the Italy section on the website that gives reasons why people like to travel in Italy.

Anyone who would like to contribute should post their comments here and I will merge them all together to make a "Why Italy?" page.

I wrote a Why Switzerland? page last year.

Anyone who writes "I am only alive when in Italy" will not be added to the Why Italy? page. Too cheerful, too over the top, and technically not true.

I was concieved there.Italian-the most beautiful language in the world.Friendly people.Fooood!!!!.Wine! Urban planning-suburbs not as obnoxious as here.Mediteranean climate.Beautiful coasts,Mountains,Lakes.
Fabulous Design.Sense of peace in the countryside.RR

Although I live in Italy I still love to travel here because the country which is relatively small georaphically speaking seems gigantic. The incredible variety of customs, food, landscapes and dialects makes every region and almost every town something unique and exciting.

Because Telecom Italia are just in every way so damn good.

Because I am hoping to find some long lost relatives in the Ancona Region where my grandfather came from. He came to the US at age 16, alone with $40.00 (how brave!). I have found several people in that area with the same last name and have written to them. I am hoping to hear from some of them. How wonderful it will be if they are related and I can visit with them while I am in Italy this fall.

Pauline,

When I think of Italy, three words come to mind . . . family, revernt, sensuality.

There is a strong pull toward family that is seen everywhere. A mother's love and devotion is at the core of Italian life. This is especially evident during holiday celebrations, i.e., sitting down for dinner with family at Christmas Eve, Easter breakfast, etc.

During our first trip to Italy last May we were in awe when visiting the churches in Venice, Florence, Siena, and Rome. There is a strong sense of reverence and worship throughout Italy.

To me Italy is sensuality--wonderful art, food, wine and amazing views at every turn.

It's so similar, yet so different from California.

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Michael'nA2

1) The grandeur that was Rome.

2) Domes.

3) Michelangelo. And the rest of the Renaissance.

4) Religious sites (we're Catholic).

1.) The peaceful, beautiful countryside

2.) The food and wine

3.) The drivers - I know this seems odd since you read in guide books how intimidating it can be but I love how Italians drive. Maybe it is because I am used to Boston driving but when we were in Italy the drivers actually seem to cooperate. They use the passing lane to pass! If someone wants to go faster they are allowed to pass! It is amazing! Maybe it was because I was a clueless tourist but there didn't seem to be nearly as much road rage.

4.) The people - everyone was incredibly helpful and kind to us.

I love the Italian attitude. Just the way they live their daily lives is so different from our big mall,McDonalds culture.

I love that everything is so old. History around every corner. Not to mention art and architecture.

I love the whole concept of the Bella Figura. Everyday mundane done with such style,flare and confidence.

I love the small town culture.
Shopping daily in individual small shops appeals to me.
The no car zones(even though it is a bit of a pain in the neck)I see the benefit. People are out and walking everywhere.
The Piazzas. If I could build a town it would definitely have a great piazza!
The passeggiata. Everyone out and about to see and be seen.

Then there's the food. The ability to take the most basic few ingredients and turn them into culinary masterpieces astounds me.
I love that food and wine are savored and not at all rushed.

Well, I can see from my list here that I could be here all day so I will just say that my travels in Italy have enriched and influenced my life in so many surprising ways and that's why Italy.

quote:

Originally posted by Mat:
Because Telecom Italia are just in every way so damn good.

We chose Italy as it is the origin of contemporary western civilization’s art, language, law; and while not the origin of religion, it ain’t no slouch either. We figure there just might be something there to engage our curious minds.

The stunning improbability that is Venice.

Can driving through Tuscany be better than anything in the world? Getting the first view of Venice from a water taxi? Knowing that when you are standing in the Forum or Collisum, that you are surrounded by over a thousand years of history and they are preserving it so well? Ohh and the Gelato!!

We are in a medieval recreation society and we love the history. Walking in streets where people walked 2000 years ago is chilling and wonderful. We stopped on a street and looked a the Colliseum there at the end and discussed how someone, centuries before, had done the same thing - marveling at the view as we were. Regarding where St Lawrence was martyred in the Forum. Feeling St. Francis in the country side.

Colleen's list above all applies. The kindness of the people was amazing. Prosecco, gelato and the elixir of life, limoncello.

The people, the food, the history and the views.
My wife says that she feels a sense of belonging when she's there. I totally understand.

Pauline,
See my signature line quote.

Because an antique in Italy is 400 years old. Anything a mere 100 years old is just getting broken in.

Because an everyday meal is prepared with as much artistic reverence as a banquet.

Because the extraordinary sense of 'roots', that most Italians have. First they are their family; then they are their neighborhood; then they are their commune; then they are their region, ONLY after establishing those identities do they finally identify with Italia.
Because I love Italian cemeteries -- the graves of long-dead ancestors are tended with the same devotion as those of the newly departed.

Because the passeggiata is without a doubt the most civilized of traditions. And sadly lacking in our own culture.

Because I am still trying to perfect the secret art of "being in the moment". Something noone in the world seems to do better than the Italians.

We travel to Italy fairly frequently (although not near as much as I'd like) and in telling a coworker about our upcoming trip the other day he asked me, "why do you always go to Italy, what draws you there?" I began to list all of the reason mentioned above- the food, the people, the beautiful scenery, etc. and he just replied with a nod and a look as if, "hmm, sounds nice, but doesn't sound that unique and special in a world with so many places to visit."
This got me thinking- can you explain "why Italy" in a meaningful way to someone who hasn't been there? And does the question matter if you have been there?
In the end, I'm not sure the question "why Italy?" is a useful question. If you haven't been there, the answers to the question don't mean much. If you have been there, the answers are so self evident and obvious, they become superfluous. Sure, everyone will have their favorite reason for visiting, but I think we visit Italy (and long to return) because of an overall experience of feelings, emotions and senses that is greater than the sum of all its parts (all those listed in this discussion thread). And that 'experience', in my view, is difficult if not impossible to describe or convey to someone who hasn't been there, and unecessary to describe for someone who has.

My maternal grandparents were born outside Bologna. After reading Lynne Rossetto's cookbook "The Splendid Table", I had to go. It took me back to my grandmother's kitchen and the people who gathered there. I had visited Italy before, but on that trip something clicked, and I have returned again and again with family and friends as well as on my own.

I am particularly interested in the many strong and talented women from the Emilia-Romagna region (e.g. Mitilda of Canossa, Catherine Sforza of Imola, and Lucrezia Vizzana and Lavinia Fontana both of Bologna). I particularly enjoy researching these women's history and then visiting sites (e.g. the long-neglected ruins of the convent in Bologna, now being restored by the University, where the composer Vizzana was cloistered most of her life and where the nuns were known for being rebels as well as outstanding musicians). These women overcame huge obsticles and achieved a great deal.

---Marlene

For it's warm and friendly people, it's food, it's style, the extarordinary beauty of it's countryside, rolling hills and coastline, it's piazzas, the history, art and architecture, wine, suberb craftmanship, ceramics, fountains, gelato, language, festivals, passeggiata, chanting monks, and THE place to go for a foodie. I would be happy to spend the rest of my life's vacations exploring all the nooks and crannies of this truly lovely country.

All of the above and more--

That special feeling you get breathing in the air in Tuscany, Umbria, the streets of Venice--ancient, yet often cutting edge, liberating, sensual, full of passion for life. And then there's the light...

There could be a whold additonal "foodie" list: Proseco, Lemone gelato Chianti, bacio gelato, pecorino, pistacchio gelato, tartufi, coconut gelato,cafe macchiato, those rolls from the bakery in Greve; I would go on but my mouth is watering too much.

jan

I will be going to Italy in May for the first visit since 1969, discounting a brief layover in a Sicilian airport on the way from Bahrain to Ireland in 1991. From 1967 through 1969 I spent roughly three months, total, in various parts of Italy, and my recollections, filtered by time, of course, are all positive. I love the culture, I love the food, I love the natural scenery, and, most of all, I love the people of Italy. I visited big cities and small towns, north, south, Sicily, and Sardinia, and was warmly welcomed and marvelously pampered by everyone I encountered. At least that is my memory.

Since 1969 I have been engaged in activities that dictated where I would go and when, and Italy was not included. Now that I have the time and the treasury to pick my own destinations, I am eager to return to Italy to see if my recollections are still accurate, and to show my wife some of the places I recall so fondly.

As the signature line of one of the other posters says, "That's my story, and I'm sticking to it!"

This is a hard question because I can never explain. But when I try to articulate it it becomes this: Italy somehow manages to capture the essence of a life that I haven't experienced before (or since!). It represents to me a parallel life that is simpler, slower, more grounded, richer and fuller in a place that is breathtakingly beautiful.
(Let me amend this by adding that by "life" I mean I spend several weeks there at a time so I really get to live in the community rather than a two week vacation.)

This message has been edited. Last edited by: jnini,

I visit Italy to “touch” history. I like the sights, the feel and the sounds of Italy! I marvel at its beauty, I enjoy the passion and warmth of the Italian people and I love to hear Italian being spoken. I could sit at a piazza or small town café for hours just people watching and listening to people chatting. Last but not least, Italian food and Italy’s fine wine! My favorite!

Good question, Pauline...
I've never been to Italy, so why has she always held me in her spell? I won't know til I've been there and returned home again...after I've had time to let the experience percolate inside my soul a little bit. Then, I'll maybe have a more definitive answer...

In the meantime, what intrigues me and pulls me toward a country I've never visited? The actuality of being present in places soaked with the history and mystique that is Italy...walking on roads that have been there for more time than I can comprehend, living for a short while in rooms that are hundreds of years new...

Maybe it has something to do with my living in a relatively young country...Canada is an infant compared to Italy and the other European countries. When we talk about antiques, as Deborah says, we talk about a piece being 100 years old, or so. I have 2 antique pianos in my home, both of them over 100 years old, and they are truly beautiful pieces of work. I have trouble comprehending that furniture, statuary, art and sculpture can be many hundreds of years old, and I want to see that for myself.

...oh, and the food! I've always looked for authetic Italian restaurants wherever I am...mostly small places, where a few family members own and operate a homely warm space for us to sit for awhile, eat luscious food and visit til way late. Now I'm about to spend time in the place where these lovely little restaurants and diners have their beginnings...where their owners have their origins.

"A ogni uccello il suo nido è bello."
Brenda