A boot shaped country Geographically, Italy is a boot shaped peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean sea. It is approximately 1,130 kilometres long and has a total area of approximately 301,238 square kilometres comprising some of the most varied and scenic landscapes on earth. Italy's land borders are with Switzerland, France, Austria and Slovenia. There are two independent states within Italy's borders: San Marino and Vatican City.

The Mountains Italy is mostly mountainous with ranges over 700 metres covering a third of the country. The best known ranges are the Alps, the Dolomites and the Appenines. The Italian Alps highest peaks: Mount Viso 3,841 metres ; Gran Paradiso 4,061 metres ; Monte Bianco (Mont Blanc) with a summit of 4,807 metres just over the border in France, Monte Cervino (Matterhorn) 4,478 metres, Monte Rosa with a summit of 4,634 metres just over the border in Switzerland, and Mount Ortles 3,905 metres. The Dolomites and Mount Marmolada 3,343 metres. The Apennines form the backbone of the country running down the full length of the Italian The range is about 2,000 kilometres long. The "Great Rock of Italy" (Gran Sasso d'Italia) provides the highest Apennine peak at 2,912 metres.

The Plains Between the Alps and the Appenines lies the Padan Plain. This is drained by the longest river of Italy, the Po, stretching for 652 kilometres eastward from the Cottian Alps to the Adriatic. Plains cover less than a quarter of the total area of Italy. Other notable plains include the Maremme of Tuscany and Lazio, the Pontine Marshes, the fertile Campania Plain around Vesuvius and the rather arid Apulian Plain. In Sicily the Plain of Catania is a good area for growing citrus fruit.

The Lakes There are about 1,500 lakes in Italy. Most of these are small Alpine lakes that are used for hydroelectric schemes. Other lakes, such as Bolsena and Albano in Lazio, occupy the craters of extinct volcanoes. There are also coastal lagoons, such as Lakes Lesina and Varano in Puglia, and lakes resulting from prehistoric faulting, such as Lake Alleghe, near Belluno. The best-known, largest, and most important of the Italian lakes are Lakes Garda, Maggiore, Como, Iseo, and Lugano. They are situated in the north of Italy around Milan. They have a semi-Mediterranean climate and are surrounded by groves of olive and citrus trees. Italy also has considerable areas in which, as a result of porous rock, the water systems run underground, forming subterranean streams, sinkholes, and lakes. These are often associated with caves, the most famous of which are those of Castellana, in Puglia.

The Coast Including islands, Italy has a total coastline of 7,600 kilometres, much of which is extremely varied. Along the two Ligurian rivieras, on either side of Genoa, the coast alternates between high, rocky zones and level gravel. The most famous of the rocky areas is called Cinque Terre. The coast southwards from Tuscany to Campania consists of long, sandy, crescent beaches mixed with higher, more rocky stretches. The Tyrrhenian coasts of Basilicata and Calabria are high and rocky, though sometimes broken by short beaches. The coast of Puglia is flat, as is most of the Adriatic coast of Italy, although it is dominated by terraced hills behind. The majestic delta of the Po River, extending from Rimini to Monfalcone, is riddled with the lagoons most famously around Venice. The Carso, the limestone coastal region between Trieste and Istria, is rocky

The Islands Italy is surrounded by sea on three sides. To the north west is the Ligurian sea, to the west and south west the Tyrrhenian sea, to the south and south east is the Ionian sea and to the east is the Adriatic sea. The two largest islands in the Mediterranean, Sicily and Sardinia, are both a part of Italy. There are many other island groups too: Tuscan Islands, Pontine Islands, Napolitan Islands, Aeolian Islands, Egadi Islands, Tremiti Islands, Pelagie Islands

The Italian Flag Il Tricolore, has been in use in its current form since the formation of the Republic in It was formally adopted a little while later, in It is made up of three equal bands: green, white and red, with the green band on the hoist side. The green representing the countryside, the white representing the mountains, and the red representing the blood spilt during the unification of Italy. Another, more religious, interpretation claims that the green represents hope, the white represents faith and the red represents charity The first version of the flag was created in 1797 by the Cispadane Republic, following Napoleon's successful campaign in Italy, and inspired by the French flag, created in 1790.

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