APPROACHING FRIULI VENEZIA GIULIA

Friuli-Venezia Giulia is a small region in the north-eastern extremity of the Italian Peninsula washed by the Adriatic Sea in the south and bordering with Austria, Slovenia and the region of Veneto. Despite its small size it is one of the most varied regions in Italy. The writer Ippolito Nievo defined it a "small digest of the universe" and indeed Friuli-Venezia Giulia - a land of passage and invasion, a meeting point of people with different traditions and cultures - offers plains and hills, sea and mountains, unpolluted and amazing countryside and important artistic centres of different architectonic style. All reachable within the space of one hundred kilometres. And within the two bordering countries reach: Slovenia and Austria, which boast of marvellous places to see, going from the enchanting Postumja grottoes and the wild and marvellous nature of Slovenia to the Austrian elegant towns, picturesque little villages and uncontaminated mountains. A great chance for people who wish to see out Italy's unbeaten paths and exclusive itineraries.

Origin of the name
The name Friuli-Venezia Giulia has Roman origins. Friuli comes from "Forum Julii", the Latin name of the ancient town of Cividale and Giulia comes from gens Julia to which belonged Julius Caesar. The name Venezia-Giulia was born in 1863 to include in one region the provinces of Trieste and Gorizia and the Istria region with the towns of Pola, Fiume (today Rijeka) and Zara. After the treaty of peace in 1945 many of these territories were assigned to Jugoslavia and the province of Trieste and Gorizia were joined to the western part of Friuli to form the new region.

Natural environment and climate
In Friuli-Venezia Giulia we find a mountainous area to the north (the Carniche Alps and the Julian Alps) and a hilly and plain one to the south. The coastline is low to the west, where the lagoons of Marano and Grado open, but becomes craggy to the east, where the rocky cliffs of the Karst plateau plunge into the sea. The region has two types of climate: Alpine in Carnia and Julian Alps and mild in the plain and along the coast. Typical from Trieste is the "Bora", a strong cold wind blowing in winter and coming from north-east.

Culture highlights
From the Roman and early Christian era in Aquileia and Grado to the numerous traces left by the presence of the mysterious and highly evolved culture of the Longobards in Cividale. From the Venetians presence, which could be seen for example in Codroipo-Villa Manin and in Udine - which boasts the most beautiful venetian piazza on dry land - to the Hapsburgs traces in Trieste and Gorizia. Not forgetting the numerous castles, which rose up during the Longobardy Dukedom of Cividale and around 900 AD under the Saxon emperors to defend this strategic land and the battle sites of the first world war.

Nature highlights
Among the many nature highlights worth to be mentioned is the Karst region, which is one of the most famous areas in Italy for surface and underground phenomena giving rise to the typical Karst topography (dolinas, caves, pools, furrowed and rutted fields). Another typical and most unpolluted environment is that of the lagoons. The Marano and Grado lagoons, though separate from each other, from a fairly homogenous stretch of water covering 16.000 hectares, very rich in wild life (among the aquatic birds mallard and coot). Worth a visit is the Natural Sea Park of Miramare, near Trieste: an area particularly suited to marine plants and animal life.

Other information
The region is divided in four provinces, two of which are Giulian (Trieste and Gorizia) and two are Friulian (Udine and Pordenone). It could be easily reached from any direction by highway and train as well as thanks to the numerous domestic flights provided by the Trieste airport-Ronchi dei Legionari.