TUSCANY is situated between the TYRRHENIAN sea and the APENNINE mountains which divide it from the PO valley with effects on the climate and the landscape.

Because of   the MEDITERREAN climate especially along the coast,  the landscape is characterised by plants such as pines, palms, cypresses, vines and olive trees.
Further inland TUSCANY is dominated by hills, while along the stream of main rivers (ARNO, CECINA, OMBRONE) many plains extend even if they aren't very big. Only along the coast, which is low lying and full of sandy beaches with some capes, the plains become bigger. The south coast, that was once swampland called "MAREMMA", today has been completely reclaimed, but it conserves a wild look, with well kept natural landscapes.

Our town GROSSETO, doesn't offer us a lot of entertainment because it is a small city. Anyway it has one merit: it is situated between the mountains and the sea .
So we can go to the sea and to the mountains in a short time. Our territory is famous for the beauties of the coast, of the inland countryside, of the hills, of the historical villages and cities. The country in the centre and in the south of TUSCANY is called " MAREMMA ". MAREMMA is made up of bush land, thickets swamps, pine forests, sand bars, mountains and rocks, seas, and lagoons, therefore it is a unique environment but with very different forms, colours and sensations.
It is for this reason that some of the most beautiful natural parks in ITALY are to be found here:" THE MAREMMA PARK ", " THE BURANO OASIS ", and " THE ORBETELLO LAGOON ". The Maremma Natural Park stretches from the pine forests to PRINCIPINA a MARE, it is the most varied and distinctive natural park in ITALY and it protects all the typical Maremma types of environment and wild life. The park is the original Maremma with preserved plants and animals.

 

ORBETELLO is situated in the middle of the lagoon. Orbetello dates back to the Etruscan period and it is very ancient. The first name of Orbetello was " Urbis Tellus " (land of the eternal city). In the year 1000 it was under the power of the ALDOBRANDESCHI and in 1414 Orbetello was under the control of SIENA and it was also possessed by AUSTRIA : the kingdom of Etruria and ITALY. In Orbetello there is a very old cathedral of gothic origins.
The LAGOON is a metre deep and it is limited by two sand bars: Giannella Tombolo and the Tombolo of Feniglia. It has salt water and is very rich in fish. A part of the Lagoon is a protected WWF area for the migration of birds and pink flamingos are often seen here.

 

Gruppo B: DEMOGRAPHY

 

           Grosseto’s province has an area of about 450.420 hectares and it’s predominantly covered by hills (80%),but there are also mountains and plains (20%).Where the inhabitants are about 215.807,while in 1997 there where about 400 people more .This people live especially in the countryside, because our province is characterized by many little villages ,and the main resource is agricolture. Therefore the only big town is Grosseto: that’s where we live .

           Our town has a “strategic” position, from the point of view of tourism ,because it’s near the seaside and also the mountain, so you can spend your holidays where you prefer .About 72.433 people live in Grosseto ,the average family is made up of 4 people ,in which there is usually one or two elderly people (grand parents) live in the family .

           The majority of the population has an age between 15 and 64,and the elderly people are 13% more than children :in the last years the average life is longer .The information we are sending you refer to 1999.They say that every 293 children 2 die for ealth problems or for difficult delivery.

           A small part of the population (26%for the province)is composed of foreigners the majority of them come from the East European countries. They come here to search for a job.

           In our province in 1998 the unemployment rate is 8,8is lower than in the other arts of Italy and 3,7%less than in 1997,while 41.888people are employed (in 1998).Most of them work in domestic factories typical of our area.

           In Grosseto’s province the crime rate is very low, the number of murders is about 0,92%one of the lowest in the country, it’s a very quiet and peaceful place!!

GROUP C
Life style and cost of living

We have done a survey in our school to find out how much our schoolmates spend  for their needs in a month. We have analized  their answers dividing them into three age groups: from 16 – 17, 17 – 18, 18 – 19.

Surprisingly, the youngest group is the most spendrift: they don’t spend less than 486.000 it.lire per month, against 400.000 it.lire of the other two groups.

They smoke more than the other groups: about 80.000 it.lire per month on  cigarettes and just  30% of them don’t smoke while in the other two groups the non-smoking people alternate between the 50% and 60%.

The three groups don’t look very cultured because all of them spend less than 55.000 it.lire per month on music and books. A small minority (6%) spends more than 100.000 it.lire per month.

On the other hand the older ones love travelling; they go abroad during the Christmas and Easter holidays, and 20% spend more than 2.000.000 it.lire a year in jouneys.

The youngest spend under 500.000 it.lire per year and they prefer travelling to study a foreign language.

The most fashionable object between the people in our school is the mobile phone:  70% of  the people interviewed have got one and  50% of them spend more than 50.000 it.lire a month on phone cards.

We love clothes too because almost everybody buys them at least once a month and the oldest reach the highest peak of expense with  20% who spend over 300.000 it.lire a month!

In our city going out in the evening seems to be cheap, because the greatest majority (76%) spends less than 30.000 it.lire a week. If you go to the disco you always spend from 30.000 it.lire to 60.000 it.lire or more.

The last data we want to communicate is the expense for motorbike petrol which is quite cheap because it is under 10.000 it.lire a week.  
Italian families usually choose to spend their holidays at the seaside or in the mountains. Young people usually prefer spending holidays at the seaside, while old people prefer going to the mountains.

Nowadays Italian families also choose  holidays in the country in contact with nature, where they can  relax in tranquillity.
In our region, “agriturismi”(i.e. farm stay holidays) are very important, because people can enjoy nature and animals, and they are very “in”.

The car is the favourite mean of transport for the Italian family for short journeys and  the camper and going camping is very popular too.  However people usually dream of travelling far away and the favourite destinations are: the USA, Great Britain, Spain and tropical isles, where there is always  sun and warmth.

 Grosseto is not a big city, but there are some differences between it and the other towns in the province. For example, in my town, Castiglione della Pescaia, there is only one primary school and one secondary school, so every young person knows  the others, because they all attend the same school. On the contrary it is difficult to know almost all young people in Grosseto, because there are a lot of primary or secondary schools.

In a little town there aren’t many possibilities of entertainment, because there are only a lot of pubs; we always have to go to Grosseto if we want to spend some time at the cinema. I think living in a small town has its advantages, but also its disadvantages: for example there is not so much traffic as in a  city, but if you need some special documents or something like this, you have to go to a bigger city.

 In Grosseto there aren’t many possibilities to work, because industry is not developed. Here only in summer new jobs come up , because camp sites and seaside resorts open for the season and here  young people can work as waiters, bathing attendants or in the field of entertainment.

Last summer I worked as a shop-assistant in a fruit-market, in a small seaside village near Grosseto. This job was very hard and I had to wake up at five in the morning. I  undoubtedly prefer studying.

GROUP  D

CLIMATE

 

In Tuscany there are three climatic regions that correspond to territorial regions:

-On the coast the climate is temperate and hot and the minimum temperature is about 5°C in winter, while the maximum temperature is about 35°C in summer;

-In Further inland, where the hills are, the climate is temperate and the temperature is about 0°C in winter, while the maximum temperature is about 25°C in summer;

-In the Apennine mountains the climate is fresh and quite alpine. The minimum temperature is –10°C in winter, while the maximum temperature is about 20°C in summer.

In all Tuscany the rainfall isn’t over 1000 mm. in a year; the more frequent winds are: “tramontana” (northern), “grecale”(north-eastern) and “libeccio”(south-western).On the coasts there is often “scirocco”(southern),a hot wind.

In the province of Grosseto, we can find all kinds of climates; in fact, in the Mount Amiata zone, there is an alpine climate: so in summer it is fresh and the temperature is about 15°C,while in winter the temperature is almost always below zero and it often snows. In the central part of the region, where we can find hills, the climate is continental: in summer it is very hot (about 25°-30°C),while in winter it is rather cold and it sometimes snows(the temperature is about 0°-5°C). Instead, Albinia is a small town that we can take as example of coastal climate: in summer, the temperature is always above 30°C, it never rains and a lot of tourists come on holiday, while in winter it often rains and the temperature doesn’t go above 15°C. 

For the climate, the tourism is one of the most important things of province: in fact, on the coastal part we can swim in sea  from April to October. Then we can do many sports: beach volley, beach soccer, street basketball and sailing(in fact Punta Ala Yacht Club has sent in New Zealand the boat “Luna Rossa” that is winning the America’s cup of sailing).In summer there are a lot of German people that in our region find a hotter climate. Instead, in winter, there are many Italian tourists that ski on the Mount Amiata.

 

Group E

                                                        TRANSPORT AND COMUNICATION

 

 BY SEA

In Tuscany most of the harbours are used as tourist ports: the sole trading and industrial ports are Piombino and Livorno. To visit the beautiful Tyrrhenian and Mediterranean islands in general, like the island of Giglio, Elba, Mt. Cristo, Capraia and Sardinia. There are smaller ports with ferry services and they offer tourist cruises for example the Porto Santo Stefano and Ferraio harbours, in the province of Grosseto and the bigger harbours of Piombino and Livorno.

 

 BY BUS

For a long time in maremma the buses was used to reach all the villages of the hinterland or other places where the railway line didn’ t arrive. Also nowadays the bus, which is more modern confortable and fasten, is often prefered to other means of transport. In Grosseto the Rama company, which was founded in 1913, offers its services all over the province and also connects Grosseto to Siena and Florence with a daily service.

 

 BY TRAIN

The station of Grosseto is fairly large. The rail links in Tuscany are divided into 2 main lines: a coastal railway and an inland line. To go to Rome by an intercity, eurostar or pendolino train takes about 2 hours while to reach Florence using regional and local trains the journey can last about 4 hours. Tuscany is connected by rail to other regions of Italy and also to foreign countries such as France. For young people under 26 years old who want to travel all over Europe there is a special EURO DOMINO JUNIOR and INTER RAIL TRAIN TICKET.

 

BY CAR

Three important motorways connect Tuscany with the other regions. The “ autostrada del sole” links at south Florence to Rome and Naples in the south and to Bologna and Milan and Rosignano Marittima in the north. The A 11 Genova- Ventimiglia and Firenze mare connects Florence to the coast. Grosseto is connected in the north to the A 11 coastal motorway, which begins Livorno, by a “superstrada” (a dual carriageway). However, if you want to travel to Florence or Siena there is a main road but few chances of being able to overtake until you get to Siena. To the south of Grosseto there is a dual carriage way which lead to Civitavecchia and than becomes a motorway to Rome. Apart from these main roads, Tuscany is characterised by narrow windy country roads which allow you to enjoy the beautiful counties sides and let you explore this interesting area.

 

BY AIR

In Tuscany there are only 2 international airports: one in Florence and one in Pisa. These airports connect Tuscany to all part of the world but also offer internal domestic flights too. Here in Grosseto the military airport is going to open a civil airport section in the year 2000 and so we will be able to fly from Grosseto to other parts of Italy.

GRUPPO  G:

 

 Italian television can be divided into : state “owned” channels, (RAI), and private channels (Mediaset, Telemontecarlo, etc.); the main difference is that RAI broadcasts fewer advertisements, we have to pay a tax every year, and Mediaset is based on advertising. Moreover there are also two important music channels which are MTV and TMC2.

RAI broadcasts a lot of films, Disney cartoons, national festivals, (like Sanremo music festival), sit-comedies and documentaries, while Mediaset broadcasts all kind of films, especially foreign ones, entertainment programmes, quiz shows and sport events. Music channel broadcasts only videos and concerts; it’s important to say that every channel has a particular news.

People usually watch Tv  at 1:00 o’clock and at 20:00, because everyone is at home with his family, and wants to relax after a long working day; surely unemployed people and children watch TV more, but students and adults don’t do it very often. The average Italians prefers to watch quiz-shows, soap operas, music channels and news, but they don’t like very much educational programmes, maybe because they’re too boring!!  

In our region there aren’t many local media especially for what concerns television. In fact we have only two channels: (which are) Telemaremma and TeleHeba.

            The first channel broadcasts low-quality soap operas, old cartoons, and local news. It is interested in cultural events happening in our region, and it often reports about theatre, schools, but also festival, (our region is one of the richest regions in Italy for what concerns the setting of medioval recalling.   Telemaremma organises   also some talk- shows with our mayor, Mr.Antichi, who can answer citizens’ questions through television.

            The second channel broadcasts especially in Monte Argentario, explain what is and its programmes are dedicated to that area. It broadcasts news, and cultural documentaries.

            The two channels help people to know our region better and they’re a useful documentation of our events which are very important for tourism, (for example, until two years ago, the “Palio” in Siena has been broadcast only in our local channels). They’re based on advertisements of local shops or like pubs and restaurants and a lot of time is dedicated to commercial.

           

            In Italy a recent research shows an expansion of radio broadcasting with new stations in the cities. We have a lot of radio stations, with different programmes, different kinds of music, entertainment , documentaries, news, etc..

            The most important station is RTL, which addresses young people: there is every kind of music, (more commercial, pop, rock, etc…), and a lot of entertainment: for example you can telephone and if you’re lucky, you can get tickets for concerts, CDs, journeys, etc.. This Radio station organizes concerts for famous singers and groups, with other important radios, for instance RDS o Radio DJ; the last one broadcasts especially dance music, the one you listen to when you’re in a disco. They organize a lot of parties everywhere, even in Grosseto! Moreover there’s a radio station, “Radio RAI”, which includes three national services. There’s Radio One, which broadcasts mostly news and sports; Radio C with educational programmes, documentaries and debates; finally there’s Radio 3, which broadcasts only classical music and we think it’s very boring! Moreover there’s a lot of advertisements in every Radio station.

            In Grosseto we have Radio Grosseto, which was born in 1975 and is situated in the old part of the city; it has 30.000 listeners especially during the afternoon; there are about ten speakers who works until midnight and you can telephone and ask for a song. Radio Grosseto organizes concerts in our city and it takes part every year to our national music festival in Sanremo . The speakers broadcast every kind of music, especially more commercial one, but also old Italian songs. We think this Radio isn’t very stimulating, but sometimes there are subjects for young people, which deal with drugs and other social problems in Grosseto.

 

 

 In Italy all daily newspapers are quality papers. The most important is “Il Corriere della Sera” for home and international news. There are also “Il Giornale”, “L’Unità”, and “Il Manifesto” directly linked to political parties, (Conservative and Progressive); another newspaper is “Il Sole 24 Ore” which deals with economic and financial news.

The difference between “quality papers”and “popular papers” can be applied only to magazines: there are a lot of magazines like “Novella 2000”, “Gente”, “Eva 3000”, which concentrate more on the spectacular and scandalous aspects of VIP life and events; they’re full of photos, gossips, flirts between actors, infidelities, but there are also serious magazines like “L’Espresso”, “Panorama”, “Focus”, which deal with politics, economy, discoveries and science. We are used to read musical magazines like “Rock Star” and some local newspapers.

These ones, which are present in Grosseto, are “Il Tirreno”, “La Nazione” and “Lo Spicciolo”. The first two discuss about topical subject, for example sport, financial world and economy and every event which takes place here in Grosseto and province; a big part of these newspapers are dedicated to society events; in the last page there are TV programms for the evening and  radiophonics shows. Furthermore there are theatre and film reviews with a little space for the Horoscope. The newspaper “Arturo” and “Lo Spicciolo” advertise in different fields, for example, if you want to sell or buy a flat or many other things , you can write them and your ad will be published.   

AGRICULTURE: GROUP”G”.

Here we are!!!! So, we are going to tell you about our region’s agriculture and industry. It’s a difficult subject but...we are ready...!!!! Let’s start with agriculture, which has always been important in Tuscany. It is based on farming (this means land cultivated by a farmer and his family) and mixed crops. In the plains of Valdichiana, Valdarno and Maremma (our city, Grosseto, lies here!! ).We produce vegetables, sugarbeet, potatoes, Tobacco, sunflowers and cereals. Olive trees, that give high quality oil, and vineyards are typical features in the Tuscan countryside. The red Chianti wine is famous all over the world; the vineyards are worked using both modern and traditional techniques and international companies have bought some of them. Ok...we are done it!! Now let’s talk about industry. A typical activity is mining extraction: lead, copper, pyrites and iron. The marble from the Alps Apuane is very important and precious especially “the white Carrara” and “Volterra alabaster” which are famous because of Michelangelo sculptures. Tuscany has also sources of geothermal energy: Larderello’s boraciferous fumaroles (near Pisa) emit natural vapour, which is used to produce electrical energy. Along the coast chemical, iron and steel and mechanical factories use crude petroleum that is imported through the port of Livorno. However the most typical Tuscan industry is based on craftsmanship. The textile sector is very well developed; for example the city of Prato (near Firenze) is one of the most Italian centres for the production of wool and the manufacture of leather is very important for the clothing industry and shoe factories near Pisa. Other products are glass, pottery and furniture. We also have various artisan activities supported by tourism such as the linen, hat and strawbags, which are sold in Florence, and the wrought iron articles sold in Siena. In conclusion an important economic sector is tourism (this is obvious, our region is fantastic...why don’t you come here??).Tuscany has beautiful artistic cities, straordinary beaches and we mustn’t forget the thermal baths of Chianciano and Montecatini. In particular we would like to tell you about Maremma, the land in the southern Tuscany where we live. Here the economy is based on food, mechanical and building industries, fishing, horse breeding, vineyard,

Olive groves and ...tourism. German tourists cannot resist our fantastic beaches, hills, nights-spots and farm holidays. And also Tuscan people are irresistible!! Ok...we have finished... finally ...we hope we have been exhaustive and we’re looking forwards to your answer. If you have any questions, just let us know...Bye Bye.. Big Kisses...

 GIULIA, ANNA, FRANCESCO, ROSALBA, BEATRICE, FRANCESCA. CIAO!!!!!!   

 

Group H :Tourism and services

Tourism

 

 

 

 In Tuscany tourism is one of the most important economical resources. This region is visited by tourists because of its artistic heritage, especially in cities like Siena, Pisa, and Florence.

In our area, which is called “Maremma”, you can visit interesting ruins of Etruscan, Roman and medieval cultures and civilisation. Other kinds of tourism are based on the beautiful natural attractions of the area; tourists can be far from the confusion of cities, in suggestive and peaceful places, where they can relax.

A lot of people come here to visit the countryside or the seaside or enjoy the beautiful hot spring spas.

 

 Marina di Grosseto is a little town not too far from our city. Its coast has been recognised as one of the least polluted in Europe, lots of tourists choose to spend their holidays there. During this period our coast is also famous for its connection to an important international sailing event, the America's Cup. In fact, the Italian boat Luna Rossa was built in Grosseto and represents the Punta Ala Yacht Club, which is situated at the southern end of the Gulf of Follonica. Thanks to its geographical position Follonica is one of gathering places for lots of different kinds of migratory aquatic birds like: flamingos, herons and stilt-walkers. This little town is surrounded by a large number of pinewoods where people often go cycling and have picnics.   

 

 Mount Argentario is one of the best-known spots in Tuscany and it offers visitors a craggy shoreline rich of untouched picturesque natural sights. Here, like in Punta Ala, a lot of V.I.P.s have their second homes and moor their yachts in the marina of Cala Galera or in Porto Ercole. They also enjoy spending their evenings at the various bars and nightclubs which abound in this area.

   

 Tourists who prefer to visit the countryside, can find some protected areas like the “Parco dell’Uccellina”, where there are lots of different animal species and a flourishing natural habitat; visitors love walking through the woods to reach a small bay. There’s also the possibility of finding   accomodation in hospitable and well equipped farm-houses, in which you live in contact with nature and animals and go horse riding. Here you can observe how local products, like olive oil or wine, are produced.

 

 Mount Amiata, situated in the northern part of Maremma, it's the highest mountain of the province. It offers a network of walking, trekking and skiing itineraries  in all seasons of the year. This area is popular with visitors who like visiting a typical mountain landscape, in fact there's the "Amiata Faunal Park", an uncontaminated area where animals are protected.

 

     

Services '998

 

Here there are some data taken from a statistic made by the local council of Grosseto:

 

 

 

As you can see from this scheme the most developed activity in our province is Agriculture and Fishing although Trade is very important too. Tourism is one of the main resource of "Maremma"  because in this area Industry isn't so developped and the environnement is  unpolluted. Because of tourism Services are very important therefore lots of people are employed in banks, transports, agencies and museums.   

 

sito ottimizzato per una risoluzione 1024x768 pagina aggiornata al 19/02/2006