Tourism

• The tourism in one of the sectors with more growth in the national economy with 43. 7 million tourists arrived per annum and a total of 42. 7 trillion generated dollars, being this way the fourth country with more tourism of the world

The tourism is one of the sectors with more growth in the national economy with 43.7 million tourists arrived by year and a total of 42.7 trillion generated dollars, being this way the fourth country with more tourism of the world. Rome, the capital, is one of the visited destinations in the world, with a stocking of 7 to 10 million tourists a year.

The coliseum of Rome with four million tourists, and the Vatican museums with 4.2 million tourists is the 39º and 37º more visited places of the world, according to recent studies.

Other places of great interest includes the vault of Agripa, the fontana of Trevi, the square Navona, San Pedro's basilica, the Roman forum, the castle Sant'Angelo or the archibasílica of San Juan of Letrán. The cultural interest of the country is also reflected since in all the Patrimony of the Humanity of the Unesco that possesses, it is the country that bigger number of places contains in the world with 44.

The humanity's patrimony

• The Agripa vault
• The Trevi fontana
• Navona square
• San Pedro basilica
• Roman forum
• Sant Angelo castle

Economy Tips

• According to the International Monetary Fund in 2008 it was the seventh world economy and the fourth of Europe. It belongs to the G8, to the European Union.

• The industrial activity has been the motor of the Italian development, and the current axis of its economy.

• Production of fruits like pears, peaches and apples. The second nation that produce olive oil in the world.

• The cultivation of the vine locates at Italy to the head of the world production of wines (68,6 million hl), grateful internationally for its quality.
• Foreign commerce: it is the sixth country of the world in export volume in 2008 with 546,900 million dollars

• Their PIB "per layer" it is of 29. 200 thousand million dollars. It is the 19º world country with higher index of human development

• Milan and Rome are the 11ª and the 18ª more expensive cities of the world

Religion

The 87.8% of the population is Catholic and 36.8%, trainee.

Christians (Catholics, Protestants, Orthodox, Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, etc..) Represent the religion of the majority. As in many Western countries, the process of secularization is growing, especially among young people, but not lack the presence of Catholic movements such as Catholic Action, the Franciscan Youth, the AGESCI, Communion and Liberation and Neocatechumenal trying to reverse or mitigate this process. The oldest religion in this country is Judaism, which has a continuous presence in Rome since before the arrival of Christianity. [67] Currently, the Jewish community has about 45,000 individuals.

Higher Education Institutions in Italy

The Italian system of Higher Education
The Italian higher education is structured in a binary system, which consists of two main branches:
- The university sector
- The non-university sector.

Currently, the university sector is composed of 89 universities classified:
- 58 state universities, 3 of which are technical universities (Politecnici)
- 17 non-State universities (legally recognized by the state)
- 2 universities for foreigners
- 6 schools / colleges specializing in university graduate
- 6 telematic universities.

The non-university sector includes, mainly, 5 types and their respective educational institutions:
- Higher education in the arts and music: polytechnics for the arts, fine arts academies, colleges of applied arts (design), music conservatories and music colleges recognized institutes of musical and choreographic studies, national academies;
- Higher education in language mediation (or languages applied):high schools to intermediate language;
- Specializing in psychotherapy education: institutes / private schools that offer graduate programs in psychotherapy officially recognized;
- Integrated higher education (FIS): higher technical education programs (IFTS);
- Some specific fields of study (eg archives, diplomatic studies, restoration, military studies, etc..) Together with their respective institutions, not under the supervision of the Ministry of Education but other ministries.

How to Study in Italy ???

Italy has played an important role in European higher education: one of the top four countries that drove the creation of so-called European Higher Education Area "(Sorbonne Declaration, May 1998), and thus began the reform types of higher education known as "Bologna Process" (Bologna Declaration, June 1999), which was then implemented throughout Europe.Today, Italy is among the 8 most industrialized countries. In addition to some big companies, both state and private, has developed a sound network of small and medium enterprises, has promoted science parks and is encouraging basic and applied research in a variety of disciplinary areas (biology, ICT, medicine, physical, etc.).

CULTURE

From antiquity to modern times, Italy has played a central role in world culture. Italians have contributed some of the world's most admired sculptures, architectural masterpieces, paintings, literature, and music (specially opera). Italians consider themselves the descendants of the ancient Romans and are very proud of their cultural heritage. Regional differences do persist mainly because of natural geographical boundaries and the disparate cultural heritage handed down from the Greeks, Etruscans, Arabs, Normans, and Lombards. Regional pluralism is evident in the local dialects, holidays, festivals, songs, and in the regional cuisine.The Culture of Italy revealed in the ancient relics and historical remnants, reflects the spirit of enlightenment and elegance existing among the people at that time.by the literature, architecture and music many globally recognized works were made by Italians such as Michelangelo's paintings, like Dante and Petrarch followed afterwards by Shakespeare for literature, among many others.Part of the allure of Italy and Italian culture is the sense of timelessness. Rome is the Eternal City where the ancient rubs shoulders with the present, Venice serenely passes the centuries amid its slowly sinking palazzi. The art and science of the Renaissance is still alive and visible in Florence while Vatican City's Sistine Chapel is as vibrant as the day Michelangelo's paint dried


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJZzMGrr9JA

ITALIAN AMERICAN FESTIVALS

For those of us who live in Italian American communities, festival time can be better than Christmas. Whether a festival for a patron saint, traditional foods or ethnic pride, Italian American festivals bring out the best in the community and in many places are the highlight of the year. Everywhere the early Italian immigrants settled they brought with them their traditions and the strongest of these bonds to the Old Country was the Catholic faith and its adherents to its calendar of saints feast days.
Besides the major religious feasts celebrated widely, there were also many feasts dedicated to local saints and these traditions were reintroduced once immigrants from the same parts of Italy starting forming their own enclaves in places like New York and Boston. Some were small affairs held in households or in the side streets, while others grew to huge celebrations complete with amusements and live performances all illuminated by multi-colored lights hanging above the streets.