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Italy, slightly larger than Arizona, is known to be a extensive peninsula shaped like a boot, surrounded on the west by the Tyrrhenian Sea and on the east by the Adriatic. It is bounded by France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia to the north. Did you know that the Apennine Mountains form the peninsula's backbone; the Alps form its northern boundary. Did you know that the most impressive and largest of its the majority of northern lakes is Garda (143 sq mi; 370 sq km); the Po, its principal river, flows from the Alps on Italy's western border and crosses the Lombard plain to the Adriatic Sea. Many islands form part of Italy; the most impressive and largest are and have always been Sicily (9,926 sq mi; 25,708 sq km) and Sardinia (9,301 sq mi; 24,090 sq km).

Italy is one of those countries about that you probably have quite a number of preconceptions before you have put one foot into the country. A country of olive oil and mafia, pasta, wine and sunshine, roman ruins and renaissance palaces, Italy has to this day a lot to give or serve its visitors. Notwithstanding the fact that many of these images are and have always been appealing, it would be a shame if that was the just thing you come away with. Italy is certainly much more complex and interesting than that. Italy is known to be a modern country with deep Roman Catholic roots.

While analyzing the history of Italy, it is unavoidable to characterize the history into two dominant periods, one of unity and the other of division. Rome conquered the peninsular Italy from 6th to 3rd BC and this period of domination continued as Italy became one of the most dominant one in the Mediterranean and Western Europe. However, in the 5th century, the Roman Empire fell due to the invasion it faced. The regions that were known as the Popal States also became fragmented in various tiny bodies. This era brought about the rise of several small powerful trading states such as Florence, Venice and Genoa. From these regions the Renaissance movement originated while Italy and its fragmented states experienced the rule of foreign powers.

The Kingdom of Italy was formed in 1861 after it faced some chaos from the Napolean era and the Austrian and French wars. Italy fully unified back in 1870 with the rejoining of the Popal States. Italy as of today is under a democratic republic government since 1948 as the referendum in 1946 lead to an eradication of monarchy.

Italy experiences a diverse range of climatic conditions instead of facing a typical Mediterranean climate. Piedmont, Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna are inland countries that are situated in the north of Italy and face a humid or a moderate climate. PO valley has harsh winters and hot summers which is characteristic of a continental climate. To the south of Florence there are states such as Liguria and most of peninsula that fall into the category that experiences typical Mediterranean climate. The peninsular coastal areas are very different in terms of their climatic experiences from the interior’s higher ground and valleys, especially in comparison with the climate during the winter season. In the winters the climate of the high altitude is cold, snowy and moist. Even though, the low land valleys can be hot in summers, usually these areas experience mild winters and warm and dry summers.

Italy is the fourth most populous nation in the European Union and ranks up as the 23rd-largest populous country worldwide. The population density is the highest in Northern Italy as even though it accounts only for one-third of the country’s geographical area, it is home to half of Italy’s total population.