Cypress-studded hills and roller-coaster cliffside roads. Towns unchanged since their Renaissance heyday, and villages where a car couldn't fit if your life depended on it. Life-changing art, life-enhancing fashion and life-affirming food. All of this is Italy.
Little wonder its nickname is the bel paese -- the beautiful country. Italy really does have everything: piste-carved mountains, sunny lakes, classic Mediterranean coastlines and volcano-studded horizons. Rumpled hills slope down to sandy beaches. Misty plains give way to powerhouse cities. Towns perch on mountain crags, sprawl at the feet of volcanoes, and float on water.
What people don't always realize before they go to Italy is just how varied it is -- and we're not just talking about the landscape. Italy only unified as a country in 1861, meaning that each region -- and, usually, each town -- has its own culinary, cultural and linguistic traditions that define it, even today. As Stanley Tucci realizes in his CNN Original series, "Searching for Italy," every region is a whole different entity.
I'm with Tucci. I've been reporting on Italy for 15 years, having lived in the Marche region as a student, traced my ancestors across Tuscany and Liguria, and now settled in Venice. This country never fails to amaze -- every single village is unique. Every weekend away is another heart-swelling Italian reality.
So how do you pick for your dream trip? That's where Unlocking Italy comes in. Over the next eight weeks, we'll send you expert newsletter guides to the three Italian cities and five regions we think best crystallize what this country is about. Then, we'll send you a bonus edition -- a rundown of every other region -- so you can get planning for your ultimate Italy vacation.
The aim? To show you the real Italy, whether it's your first time or your 20th visit. Of course, we've got some classics in there -- Rome, Venice, Florence and Tuscany -- but for these, we're keen to show you the lesser-known sides, where you can get under the skin of the destination. We've paired these with four regions that are less visited yet equally gorgeous. Together, they'll show you why Italy really is the bel paese.
Each emailed edition will tell you where to go, stay and eat in the destination of the week, while a featured local insider will provide top tips, exclusively for CNN readers. To unlock la dolce vita at home, we have movie and book recommendations, while Stanley Tucci has shared a favorite recipe to suit every region.
The first package from Italy will be hitting your inbox soon. If you have any suggestions on how this newsletter series could be better, please email us at unlockingitaly@cnn.com.
Otherwise, ciao for now and see you Saturday!
Julia Buckley
CNN Travel
