1When you think about Italy, what comes to mind?
2Maybe it's pizza or the Roman Colosseum but there's so much more to the country than just that.
3You can definitely spot Italy on a map by finding a giant boot.
4It's located in South Central Europe neighbored by France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia and the beautiful Mediterranean Sea.
5Italy is roughly the size of Arizona, my home state, but it has eight times the population.
6That is 59 million people who call Italy their home.
7The vast majority of locals speak Italian with some communicating in English, French and Spanish.
8It depends on your education level and which part of Italy you are from.
9The biggest cities in the country are Rome, Milan and Naples.
10When you explore any street in the country, you'll notice the beautiful Italian national flag.
11But there's more to it than meets the eye.
12The green symbolizes freedom. The white represents faith. And the red means love.
13Like many of its neighbors, Italy's currency is the Euro, which is worth just over one dollar.
14That is one US dollar equals one Euro but sometimes it changes up and down.
15When it comes to food, from cheesy pizza to creamy pasta,
16it's no surprise that Italy is very famous for its cuisine.
17You cannot go wrong with spaghetti, lasagna risotto and potato dumplings called gnocchi
18and of course Pizza.
19Did you know that some Italians eat cow tail?
20It's called Coda Alla Vaccinara and it's served in a tomato stew.
21Out of all the desserts in Italy, I would say Gelato is the superstar.
22You also have Italian ice cream which is a fluffy sweet and refreshing snack especially on a hot summer day.
23Now that you know the basics, it's time for some fast facts
24In Venice, People don't drive cars, they take boats instead.
25Yes that is right, instead of roads the city is filled with beautiful waterways and canals that are only accessible by boat.
26Did you know that the world's smallest country is located inside of Italy?
27It's called the Vatican. It has a population of just a few hundred people
28and the pope actually lives there.
29In the year 79 A.D, a volcano called Mount Vesuvius erupted near the city of Pompeii
30killing thousands and thousands of people.
31The ash preserved much of the city and to this day, the archaeologists are still studying what happened.
32Believe it or not, pasta isn't originally from Italy,
33many people think it originated in China before becoming the spaghetti that we love and know today.
34Whether you know it or not, many items in your house were invented in Italy:
35the piano, the battery and the newspaper.
36Now it is time for a fun story about Italy.
37On my first trip to Italy about seven years ago,
38I went to the beautiful city of Florence, which is in the northern part of the country
39and there there's a pizza place called Gusta Pizza
40and it was my first time having a pizza experience in Italy, where pizza comes from.
41I'm so used to eating pizza in other countries or even in America where they, they serve it in, you know, regular pizza slice
42but in Italy they serve it in a big circle
43and they put all the ingredients on it and they cook it.
44And the bread gets really good, the dough gets really fresh and crispy.
45They put all the mozzarella and cheese and olives on top of it and olive oil and pepperoni.
46And you eat it.
47They don't cut it into pieces. You have to literally either cut it yourself or take the whole thing and eat it.
48And I remember sitting there in that little restaurant thinking:
49"Wow! this is truly one of the best meals in the world".
50Pizza originated in Italy so if you get the chance to eat it there, it's phenomenal.
51Not to mention the spaghetti and the pasta in Italy is superior to anywhere in the world.
52To be honest, pizza in America is very good,
53pizza in Italy's very good, so they're both almost equally good in my opinion.
54However the spaghetti and the pasta in Italy is outstanding and so much better than you can find anywhere else in the world.
55They make the noodles so fresh, they cook it overnight,
56they put all the right spices and sauces on it and they serve it in a beautiful bowl with Parmesan cheese
57and the sauce and the olive oil and all of it mixed together. It's so good.
58I love Italy, it's a country I'll always go back to in the future. It's beautiful, the people are amazing.
59And I can't wait to head back to Italy sometime very very very soon.