It’s no wonder that it attracts so many visitors, however. Its stunning coastal scenery set in a picturesque backdrop of lemon groves and sunshine keep on drawing the visitors back year on year. Its location allows tourists to undertake many excursions and get to know the area a bit better. An excursion to Pompeii is well worth considering. A violent eruption of Mount Vesuvious in AD 79 left the village and villagers buried and preserved in around five metres of volcanic ash until its discovery in 1749. Pompeii is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is Italys most popular tourist destination, drawing in around two and a half million visitors a year. The resort of Sorrento is also well worth a visit for those who want to sample the well known and delicious limoncello liqour that is made here. The especially large, sweet and fleshy lemons that grow in this part of Italy are what gives this local drink its famous ‘sunshiney’ taste. A bottle of limoncello makes an excellent souvenir or gift.
Also close by is the island of Capri, which has been a resort since the time of the Roman Republic, surrounded by beautiful seas and with a rich and interesting history, its well worth a visit. This was the island to which the Emperor Commodus, played by Joachim Phoenix in the well known film Gladiator, banished his sister Lucilla in 182 B.C. There are surely worse places to be banished to! (although Lucilla, was executed soon after). The island includes some fantastic natural wonders such as the Blue Grotto, as well as historical sites such as the Villa Damecuta, which was built by the Emperor Tiberius in the First Century.
Further inland from the coast, lies the village resort of Minori which is set in peaceful and picturesque surroundings All along this glorious coastline there are gems to be discovered and new pleaces to experience. Its climate is warm and pleasant all year round, even in winter. For the sun seekers, however, summer would be the best time to go as the temperature averages at around 30 celsius.

Picture: christine zenino/ flickr.com

The unemployment rate amongst young people between the ages of 15-24 years old rose to 28.9% and experts say things are expected to get worse for 2011.

The effects of the recession are not only affecting young people; a recent report has suggested. Experts are predicting that unemployment rates could increase by 20% in 2011 as more companies are feeling the strain of the recession. It is estimated that around 400,000 people are at risk of losing there jobs in 2011 and joining the current 2 million Italians currently on the dole.

Employees in the construction and engineering sector are the most concerned at loosing their jobs, claiming that this key area of the Italian economy has felt the biggest strain throughout the recession. The tourism sector, however, remains at a steady pace, experts say. Thanks to cheaper European transport costs in and out of the country, a steady flow of tourism has been able to come and go within Italy, keeping the industry strong throughout the recession.

Health experts in Italy stress that although this is a good start, more needs to be done to push this initiative and reach even better results in forthcoming years. While the original smoking ban in public places was introduced in 2005, an further extension was brought in, in 2007 to also include train stations. Naples and Verona have also banned smoking in public parks.

Experts have called for more help from the media to push anti-smoking initiatives throughout Italy. More government initiatives such as lowering taxes on anti-smoking products and setting up specialised medical centres are expected to be introduced in the future.

It has been reported that the increase in binge drinking in the city is due to large bar crawls of 100-150 tourists often organised by other foreigners living in the city. It is also believed that many of the tourists involved in these pub crawls are underage.

At night the pictueresque Piazza Campo de’ Fiori has a whole different identity. Adolescents from both Italy and the rest of Europe, crowd round the Piazza late at night drinking alcohol, smoking marijuana and causing mischief in the centre of the city.

Locals say there are too few police patrols at night but local authorities claim they are doing the best they can to diffuse the problem. Gianni Alemanno, Rome’s centre-right mayor has banned public drinking in certain Piazzas and has order for more night patrols to be put in place across the city. A fine was also introduced earlier in 2010 of 450€ for any vendor caught selling alcohol to minors and to anyone underage caught purchasing alcohol.

Supporters of the ban say that the carriers take a lot of energy to produce and most importantly are an environmental hazard. The Italian Government hopes that this new initiative will encourage Italians to be more environmentally friendly and reinforce recycling within the community.

From the beginning of the month only bio-degradable, paper or cloth bags are allowed to be offered in stores.

I love skiing in the Aosta Valley and now others will also get the chance to see what the region has to offer as there will be a display at the British Ski & Board Show. In addition to the display, Leo Gerbore, one of the region’s best chefs, will be at the show to prepare traditional dishes which visitors will be able to sample. There will also be a selection of cheeses, meats, preserves and fine wines to test. For those of who don’t know where the Aosta Valley is, it’s between France and Switzerland in the north of Italy and is surrounded by the Matterhorn, the Monte Rosa and the Monte Bianco peaks. As well as the Aosta Valley showcase there will be displays of the latest skiing and snowboarding equipment. It starts on October 1^st at the NEC in Birmingham and finishes on November 1^st. Hopefully lots of people will go and get the skiing bug!!