Would you believe that the proper full name is actually the ‘Most Serene Republic of San Marino’. Difficult to even make something like that up! This little microstate is surrounded by Italy and if its 30,000 inhabitants want to call it the Most Serene Republic, who are we to stop them. It boasts the world’s oldest constitution (1600’s) and has for the most part retained its independence since its inception around 300 AD.
The country is not short on history and there are many museums to keep the academically minded occupied, not least of all a Torture Museum with over 100 sadistic items on display.
If you would rather punish your credit card then hit the shops which observe the same long lunch as their big brother Italy, i.e. are closed between 12h30 and 15h30. They use the same currency also, i.e. the Euro.
Of course, they speak Italian too but they are not Italian, they are Sammarinese. Fortunately, their cuisine is very similar to you-know-who’s… A few dishes are local to San Marino, not least of all the Torta Tre Monti which is a cake tribute to their mountain. Wines and liqueurs are of course done with their own flair.
Apart from celebrating the Fall of the Fascists (28th July) most of the national festivals in San Marino are based on Catholic religious events.
Obviously soccer is also popular although because of their population size they generally do not feature much. They do however hold the record for the fastest goal scored in a Soccer World Cup at just 8.3 seconds into play!
