ITALY Marta Nieborak, Alex Coppinger, Carmela Villasenor

Where is Italy?

Italy lies in Southern Europe, a flight to Rome takes roughly 2.5 hours from London/England, 8 hours from New York/USA Italy is easy to recognize on any world map, as the country is shaped like a high- heeled boot.

Fact File ◦ Population: 61,680,122 (July 2014 est.) ◦ Area: 301,340 sq km ◦ Capital City: Rome ◦ Time Zone: (UTC+01:00) ◦ Location: Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia ◦ Climate: Predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south ◦ Currency: Euro. Euros (EUR) per US dollar – (2014 est. ) ◦ Language: Italian (official) ◦ System of Government: Republic ◦ Head of State: Prime Minister Matteo RENZI (since 22 February 2014) ◦ Telephone Country Code: 39 ◦ Life Expectancy at Birth: years ◦ Flag : The colors represent these virtues: hope (green), faith (white), and charity (red). ◦ National Anthem: Il Canto Degli Italiani

Geography ◦ In the North, the mountain range of the Alps separates Italy from the other European countries like France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia. ◦ The highest mountain of Italy can be found in the Alps. It is Mont Blanc, which is 4,807m high. ◦ The Apennines are another big mountain range which go all along the boot and separate the East and the West of the country. ◦ In the South of Italy you will find Italy’s three active volcanoes: Vesuvius near Naples, Etna on Sicily and Stromboli off the Coast of Italy.

Table Manners ◦ Remain standing until invited to sit down. ◦ Table manners are Continental -- the fork is held in the left hand and the knife in the right while eating. ◦ The host gives the first toast. ◦ An honoured guest should return the toast later in the meal. ◦ Do not keep your hands in your lap during the meal; however, do not rest your elbows on the table either. ◦ It is acceptable to leave a small amount of food on your plate. ◦ Pick up cheese with your knife rather than your fingers. ◦ If you do not want more wine, leave your wine glass nearly full.