Italian Regions Part 2 Trivia Quiz

Answer: Valle d'Aosta (Aosta Valley)

As you will have probably derived from the name of the mountain I mentioned, we were looking for a region near the French border and near the Alps. It is the smallest Italian region, named Valle d'Aosta. This region borders France, Switzerland and the region Piemonte and the capital city is Aosta. Valtournenche is a village near the Swiss border, known for its ski facilities. Many houses and establishments in Valtournenche are built in a typical style well known for the Alpine regions.
Mont Blanc is the highest peak with part of the slope in Valle d'Aosta, but as the French-Italian border runs over the summit, I chose to pick another mount. The Mont Tout Blanc ("All White Mountain") is fully in the Italian region Valle d'Aosta, and measures 3,248 m. This mountain is part of the Parco Nazionale di Gran Paradiso.
The Buthier river is 40 km long and springs from two glaciers. It mouths in the Dora Baltea, a tributary of the Po river.

Answer: Molise

Molise is a small region comprised between (clockwise from the north) the region Abruzzo, the Adriatic Sea, the region Apulia, the region Campania and the region Lazio. It is divided into two provinces: Isernia near the beach and Campobasso in the mountainous part. Both provinces share their names with the respective provincial capitals, and Campobasso serves as regional capital.
The Lago di Guardialfera is a man-made lake, created in the 1960s by damming the river Biferno. Totalling an area of about 7.45 km², it is intended to provide drinking water for the province of Campobasso.
Monte Mutria reaches an altitude of 1,822 m and is situated on the border between the regions Molise and Campania. In ancient Roman times, It was the habitat for the Samnite tribe, who had a sacred place on the slopes.

Answer: Liguria

Liguria is a region on the Ligurian Sea and furthermore bordered by France, the region Piemonte, the region Toscana and the region Emilia-Romagna. Genoa is the capital city and one of the four provinces, the other being Imperia, Sapona and La Spezia (home to the touristic highlight Cinque Terre).
Monte Castello, with a summit on 1,092 m, is situated in the north of the region Liguria, on the frontier with the region Piemonte. This Apennine summit was included in a national park in 1989.
The Bisagno river (length about 25 km) flows through the city of Genoa and has given its name to one of the five districts of this city. The SS45 highway follows closely the valley of the Bisegna.

Answer: Friuli-Venezia Giulia

Friuli-Venezia Giulia borders Austria (hence the German name for the mountain I've mentioned) and Slovenia, the Adriatic Sea and the region Veneto (which latter region includes the city of Venice). Part of the region's name refers to the Julian Alps, a prominent division of the Alps in this region.
Friuli-Venezia Giulia is divided into four provinces, of which Udine and Pordenone are by far the largest. Gorizia and Trieste have a significantly smaller area, but a quite larger population density. Trieste is the capital city. This seaport did not always belong to Italy: after the First World War, the city was attributed to Yugoslavia - until a group Italians led by the poet Gabriele d'Annunzio invaded the city and briefly established an autonomous republic.
The Kellerspitzen is a mountain of 2,774 m on the Italian-Austrian border. The name translates rather oddly to "basement peak", an oxymoron I was not familiar with before writing this quiz.
The Isonzo (internationally known as the Soca, its Slovene name) is a river of about 138 km that flows from Slovenia into Italy. Only the last third of the river is in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, where it mouths in the Adriatic Sea near the village of Monfalcone. It was the site of a bloody battle in the First World War.

Answer: Umbria

Umbria is the only Italian region without a coastline that does not border any neighbouring countries. It is surrounded (clockwise from the north) by the Italian regions Marche, Lazio and Toscana. The capital city is Perugia, and one of the main touristic cities is Assisi - the birthplace of Saint Francis, founder of the fraters minor.
Lago Trasimeno (Trasimene Lake) is one of the five largest lakes in Italy, with a surface of 128 km² but quite shallow. It is the natural habitat for large swarms of mosquitoes and thus not the most pleasant place to live. Historians will recollect that this lake was one of the main battle sites during Hannibal's invasion of Italy.
Monte Vettore reaches 2,476 m and once was rumoured to be the dwelling place of an ancient Apennine sibyl. According to early Christian lore, this prophetess was jealous of the virgin Mary for having being chosen as mother of Jesus Christ, and the prophetess was condemned to sulk eternally in a cave on Monte Vettore.

Answer: Marche

The Marche is a region on the east coast of Italy. Starting in the north and exploring the borders clockwise, we find San Marino, the region Emilia Romagna, the Adriatic Sea, the region Abruzzo, a small stretch along the border with Lazio, the region Umbria, a small stretch along the border with Toscana, and Emilia Romagna once again.
The capital city of Marche is Ancona. I picked the second city in Marche, Pesaro, known for its excellent cycling environment and also known as the birthplace of Gioacchino Rossini. Since 1980 this composer is celebrated each summer with an eponymous opera festival.
The San Marino River is a very small river (only 8,7 km long) It springs in the north of Marche, enters the autonomous republic of San Marino after less than half a kilometre, and flows further north through San Marino and the region of Abruzzo. For about half of its (short) stretch, the San Marino river forms the border between the two countries.
The Montagna dei Fiori (Mountain of the Flowers) is a group of mountains on the border between the regions Marche and Abruzzo. Its peak is at 1,894 m, and one of the main ski resorts In that vicinity lies at an altitude of merely 1,110 m.

Answer: Basilicata

Basilicata is a region in the south of Italy, between Puglia (the heel of Italy), the Gulf of Taranto, Calabria (the tip of the boot), the Tyrrhenian Sea and Campania. Basilicata is divided into two provinces: Potenza and Matera, both sharing their name with the respective provincial capital. The regional capital is Potenza, also the most populous city. Matera is the second most populous city in Basilicata and was chosen as one of the European Capitals of Culture for 2019.
The Bradano river runs for 120 km mostly in a north-south direction. A small part of the river's stretch is through the region of Puglia or forms the border between the regions Basilicata and Puglia.
The Serra Dolcedorme is the highest peak of Baslicata, reaching up to 2,267 m. In the same mountain group is the Pollino (elevation 2,242 m) that gave its name to the local national park established in 1992. These mountains are close to the border with the region Calabria.

Answer: Abruzzo

Abruzzo is a region in the east of Italy. It borders (starting in the north and clockwise) the region Marche, the Adriatic Sea, the region Molise and Lazio. Capital city is L'Aquila, but the largest city is Pescara. Pescara is a port city and the birthplace of the poet Gabriele d'Annunzio (1863-1938, infamous as a precursor to Mussolini's fascist party). Since 1969 Pescara holds a yearly jazz festival with pan-European fame.
The Gran Sasso is an Apennine mountain massif. Its three summits are the Corne Grande (2,912 m, the highest peak in Italy outside of the Alps), the Corne Piccolo and the Pizzo d'Intermesole.
The Sangro river is about 122 km long. It springs in the south of the region Abruzzo and flows roughly to the north, making a north-eastern turn near the confluence with the river Aventino.

Answer: Campania

Campania borders the regions Lazio, Molise, Puglia, Basilicata and the Tyrrhenian Sea. The capital city is Napoli (Naples), traditionally quoted as the birthplace of the pizza. Napoli is also the most populated city in Campania, and has served as the backdrop for several movies (for instance "Matrimonio all'Italiana", 1963) and TV series such as "Gommora" (started in 2014).
Vesuvio (Vesuvius) is a volcano that erupted many times in history. The eruption of 79 AD covered all of the cities Pompeii, Herculaneum and Stabiae with pumice, ash and other debris. Vesuvius is one of the very few European volcanoes that still was active in the Twentieth Century: it erupted in 1906, 1926, 1929 and 1944.
The Volturno river springs in the region Molise and flows for 175 km in a very winding way (parts of the river flow north, other parts flow south, some parts flow to the east and some to the west). The general direction of this winding river tends however to be a south-western course. The Volturno forms the border between the regions Campania and Molise for several kilometres.

Answer: Trentino- Alto Adige

Trentino - Alto Adige is one of the most northern regions of Italy. It borders Austria, the regions Veneto and Lombardia, and Switzerland. There is a large minority which speaks German, and these people name their region Trentino- Süd-Tirol (South-Tirol, which borders the Austrian land Tyrol). The capital city is Trento, in 1545-1563 the meeting place for the major clergy.
As the name indicates, Trentino- Alto Adige is divided in two provinces: Trentino in the south and Alto Adige (Süd-tirol) in the north.
Bolzano (in German Bozen) is the provincial capital of Alto-Adige. It is well known for the trilingual university (with courses in Italian, German and English) and for the Ferrucio Busoni international piano competition. In the winter season Bolzano offers a Christmas market that attracts over a million visitors.
Lago di Garda (Lake Garda) is the largest lake in Italy. Only the small north part of the Lake is in Trentino - Alto Adige, while the larger part is divided between the regions Veneto (eastern shore) and Lombardia (western shore). It is sometimes also known as Lago Benaco, after the original Latin name.
The Cimon della Pala is one of the highest peaks in the Dolomites: at 3,184 m it is surpassed only by the neighbouring (lesser known) Cima Vezzana. The Cimon della Pala is entirely in the region Trentino-Alto Adige, while the border with the region Veneto lies on the slopes of the Cima Vezzana.