What to do in Italy for the first time? Europe's most beautiful towns and scenic spots

Preface

Hey! Hey! Have you noticed that Xinjiang is always used as a substitute for other places?

#Central Asian Scenery Seen in China#Morocco filter Xinjiang out of the film#Xinjiang Little Switzerland...

Ili Grassland@Flying

Beautiful Xinjiang has been the site of "substitute literature" 10,086 times. 😭 So this time, we're going the other way! I won't let Xinjiang become anyone's substitute; it's the source of the universe!
Looking around, the place most similar to Xinjiang is actually Italy. 🤏🏻 Don't be fooled; you'll find the clues in the most everyday details.

🔹 Xinjiang people are very gesticulating when talking, while Italians are even faster with their hands. They can almost finish a quarrel with just gestures. This is one similarity;

🔹Xinjiang has pulled noodles and braised naan, while Italy has pasta and pizza. These are two examples.

Xinjiang pilaf is fried with onions, Italian stews also have a lot of onions, and all kinds of spices are used generously. These are the three images;

🔹The Xinjiang mosque is the center of local life, and so is the Italian church. These are the four images;

🔹The uncles and aunts sitting in the sun on the streets of Xinjiang are exactly the same as the old people who "do nothing" in the Italian squares. These are the five similarities!

🌟I told you so! Italy is Xinjiang's overseas spiritual branch!

One map, multiple civilizations

Italy is not big, but it is very fragmented.

Xinjiang is the largest province on the map of China and a typical example of "vast land and abundant resources + mixed culture" - from alpine snowfields to desert oases, from Uyghur folk songs to Kazakh horseback culture, it encompasses everything!

Do you think this kind of geographical span and cultural complexity is rare? In fact, on the other side of the world, Italy is also such a place that "contains multiple civilizations on one map.
" Although Italy's land area is small, its north-south span is very strong.

🔸To the north are the Alps, with glacier meadows resembling Switzerland (💥Continuously on Fire! 📢Little Switzerland of Italy!);

🔸The central part is Tuscany with rolling hills, dotted with wineries and churches;

🔸The southernmost island of Sicily already has light and language similar to those in Africa

The cultural aspect is even more exciting!

Italy did not become unified until 1861, after centuries of separation.

👉🏻Venice was a republic, Florence was the engine of the Renaissance, Naples was a kingdom, and Sicily is like a heritage site of Mediterranean civilization. Language, architecture, religion, cuisine—everything has its own distinct system.

This country spans not only the north and south in geographical terms, but also the historical timeline: on one side are the ruins of ancient Rome, on the other side are the canvases of the Renaissance, and modern design, opera, football, and handicrafts coexist.

So, it can be said that Italy is not just a "destination," but a living theater where multiple civilizations are packed into one country. And its charm lies precisely in this diversity.

@Zhou Chao

The scenery of snow-capped mountains and islands changes along the way

If Xinjiang's topography is described as "horizontally magnificent," with the Gobi Desert in the east and oases in the west, every hundred kilometers feels like a switch of time zones.

Italy, on the other hand, is a kind of "vertical variation": starting from the Alps and heading south, the scenery and culture are constantly changing.

📍North: Dolomites

The Dolomites, near the Austrian border, are Italy at its calmest and purest.

Snow and mountains, cable cars and mountain villages, hikers and sheep coexist in a fairy tale.

The language here is a mixture of German and Italian, the food tends to be cheese and game, and the pace is very "highland-style".

Just like Yili in Xinjiang - it is not a passionate and unrestrained character, but the extreme scenery always heals people's hearts.

📍Central: Florence & Rome

Going down to the middle, the style of painting changes ♻

Florence is the heart of the Renaissance, where Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci once passed each other; Rome is the survival and continuation of the ancient Roman Empire, where history is not preserved but people live directly on it.

Churches, fountains, open-air sculptures, Baroque squares, and alley restaurants where tourists and locals mingle—history, art, and everyday life are all present, reminiscent of the "daily feeling of living in history" in Turpan, Xinjiang.

📍South: Sicily

Finally, we sailed into Sicily in the south, where the climate turned scorching and the pace of life seemed to have slowed down. Once ruled by Greek, Arab, and Spanish people, each town resembled a patchwork of history and religion.

Olive trees, sea breeze, open-air markets and singing in the breeze are simply the end point of Italian romance!

Amber of time, condensation of history and art

Rome and Florence are the fulcrums of civilization.

Xinjiang is a rare culturally diverse region in China, with more than 10 languages coexisting within the province, as well as diverse religions and lifestyles. Many civilizations converge and grow here.

The same is true for Italy! Looking at the map, it is just a long and narrow peninsula, but the internal differences are huge——

🔸It borders Austria and Switzerland to the north, with German-speaking and Italian-speaking areas coexisting.

🔸The south is deeply influenced by Arabia and Spain, even the domes of the buildings have an exotic style

🔸The central region is the core area where Catholicism and the Renaissance coexisted, and its language, festivals, clothing, etc. were deeply influenced...

In Italy, every city has its own unique cultural style and personality!

And if you want to find the most extreme expression of this stack of civilizations, you must look at Rome and Florence!

🏛 Rome

It's not a "city of monuments," but a capital city constantly writing new histories. From the Roman Empire to the Papal States, from the Colosseum to the Pantheon, from classical statues to Catholic worship, Rome makes you realize that civilization isn't just something to be preserved; it can be inherited and used.

🎨 Florence

This was the epicenter of a cultural renaissance, home to Dante, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Galileo, and countless other figures. Behind each building lie breakthroughs in painting, architecture, philosophy, science, and more. The Uffizi Gallery, the Ponte Vecchio, and the Baptistery are more than just attractions; they are the starting points of the modern European spirit.

📌So: In Italy, culture is not a "heritage" permanently sealed in a glass cabinet, but an everyday occurrence that happens naturally in street corners, churches, and family dinner tables.

Every piece of land has its own flavor

Italian cuisine is an extension of its geography.

Xinjiang cuisine is direct, with fierce fire, rich fragrance, and freshly made by hand. Every bite is passionate and unrestrained, as if you want to eat the landscape and human feelings into your stomach.

The same is true for Italian cuisine! Every town, every piece of land, and every grandmother has her own recipe.

Pasta is Italy's "language system." Rome's Carbonara uses egg yolk and bacon to evoke the city's richness, Florence uses fettuccine to carry a rich meat stew, and small towns in the south insist on hand-rolled orecchiette shaped like ears. Change your zip code, and you'll find a different approach.

🍕Pizza has a geographical identity. Naples' pizza, with its high sides and thick center, conveys a fiery heat; Rome's thin-crust pizza is more restrained and balanced. Every bite captures the rhythm of local life.

🧀Cheese and olive oil are practically part of Italian culture. There's so much variety here that you could even create a cheese map. Parmesan, burrata, ricotta...each represents the flavor of a different land, climate, and family craftsmanship.

🍷Red wine and vineyards represent Italy's understanding of time. Nearly all 20 regions in the country have their own wines: Tuscany's Chianti, Piedmont's Barolo, Sicily's Marsala...
Wineries are nestled among hillsides and olive groves. What you drink isn't the wine, but the stories of terroir, history, and community.

The cuisine of the northern mountains presents a different take: higher in calories, heavier in cheese, and more German-Austrian in flavor. The sausages, stews, and polenta of the Dolomites are hearty and filling, with the same earthy, rich texture as the snowy mountains.

😋In Italy, food isn't just a menu; it's an extension of geography, language, and lifestyle. Every bite is a form of identification! "Where do I come from? What land do I belong to?"

Here is the vastness you want

If you have always loved Xinjiang, then you will probably fall in love with Italy as well. Here, there are also rich landscapes, cultural collages and a relaxed rhythm. Follow Xiaoxia, all roads lead to Italy 😘

@fly