Calabria

, formerly known as

Bruttium

or later as

Italia

, is a region in southern Italy, forming the "toe" of the Italian Peninsula . The capital city of Calabria is Catanzaro. The most populated city and the seat of the Calabrian Regional Council, however, is Reggio di Calabria.

It is bordered to the north by the region

of Basilicata, to the west by the Tyrrhenian sea, and to the east by the Ionian Sea. The region covers 15,080 km2 (5,822 sq

mi) and has a population of just over 2 million.

The cuisine is a typical southern Italian Mediterranean cuisine with a balance between meat-based dishes (pork, lamb, goat), vegetables (especially eggplant), and fish. Pasta (as in Central Italy and the rest of Southern Italy) is also very important. In contrast to most other Italian regions, the Calabrians have traditionally placed an emphasis on the preservation of their food.

Some local specialties include Caciocavallo Cheese, Cipolla rossa di Tropea (red onion), Frìttuli and Curcùci (fried pork), Liquorice (liquirizia), Lagane e Cicciari (ceci) (a pasta dish with chickpeas), Pecorino Crotonese (Cheese of Sheep), and Pignolata.

Calabrian Tarantella is a generic term to include different musical dancing expressions spread in Calabria peninsula and different from other southern Italian dances called simply Tarantella. It is played and danced during religious festivals and other social occasions. In recent times the tradition has been revived as new groups are taking an interest in instruments which had been falling into obscurity; they played "ad usu anticu" (in the old/traditional way) or they modernised the sound adding a Bass line or new sounds.

Reggio has commonly used popular nicknames: The "city of Bronzes", for the Riace bronzes which are testimonials of its Greek origins; the "city of bergamot", which is exclusively cultivated in the region; and the "city of Fatamorgana", an optical phenomenon visible in Italy only from the Reggio seaside.

Crotone is a city and comune in Calabria, on the Ionian Sea. Founded c. 710 BC as the Achaean colony of Croton it was known as Cotrone from the Middle Ages until 1928, when its name was changed to the current one. In 1994 it became the capital of the newly established Province of Crotone. As of July 2007, its population was 61,032.

The 16th-century Castle of Charles V houses the Town Museum, with findings excavated in the ancient site of

Kroton

. Notable are also the remnants of the walls, of the same century, and of various watchtowers .

Vibo Valentia is a city and comune (municipality) in the Calabria region of southern Italy, near the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital of the province of Vibo Valentia, and is an agricultural, commercial and tourist center (the most famous places nearby are Tropea, Ricadi and Pizzo). There are also several large manufacturing industries, including the tuna district of Maierato. Very important for the local economy is Vibo Marina's harbour.

Norman-Hoehenstaufen Castle, located most likely on the site of Hipponion acropolis, and built around 1000. For its construction materials from the Greek temples nearby were used. It was damaged by an earthquake in 1783. Today the castle is home to a state museum.

Cosenza is a city in the Calabria region of southern Italy. The city has a population of around 70,000. The urban area , however, counts over 260,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the homonymous Province of Cosenza, which has a population of around 733,000.

The Castello Svevo ("Swabian" or Hohenstaufen Castle) was originally built by the Saracens on the ruins of the ancient Rocca Brutia, around the year 1000

Catanzaro also known as the city of the two seas, is the capital of the Calabria region and of its province. The archbishop's seat was the capital of the province of Calabria Ultra for over 200 years. It houses the University "Magna Græcia", the second largest University of Calabria.

Catanzaro Bridge, a well known, one-arch bridge (Viaduct Morandi-Bisantis) one of the tallest in Europe.

Tropea is a municipality located within the province of Vibo Valentia.

The town is a famous bathing place, situated on a reef, in the gulf of St. Euphemia connected with the mainland by a narrow strip in the Tyrrhenian Sea, toward the south of Vibo Valentia and northward of Ricadi and Capo Vaticano.

Many villages around Tropea produce a particular quality of red onion. In Italy these onions are so famous that

cipolla di Tropea

("Tropea onion" or "Tropea's onion") has become an Italian synonym for all red onions.

One of the gelaterias in town even makes a red onion ice cream (as well as others based on squid ink and nduja, the local spicy salami).

Pizzo, also called Pizzo Calabro, is a seaport and comune in the province of Vibo Valentia), situated on a steep cliff overlooking the Gulf of Santa Eufemia.

Fishing is one of the main activities.

Pizzo is famous in the area for its Tartufo, a large ball of ice cream filled with molten chocolate.

Bergamot is a fragrant fruit the size of an orange, with a yellow colour similar to a lemon. Calabria is the world's largest producer of bergamot. 90% of the total production comes, in fact, from this region. The essential oils of bergamot, by virtue of their extraordinary fragrance, are employed in the industrial production of perfumes, sweets and liqueurs.

The Varia di Palmi is a catholic festival that takes place on the last Sunday of August,in Palmi,Italy in honor of the city’s patron saint and protector,theVirgin Mary,know as Our Lady of the Sacred Letter.

The Varia Palmi is officially Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity: the first well in the Calabria region that has ever achieved this recognition by UNESCO. The inclusion of the Varia in the Representative List of the United Nations was enshrined during the eighth session of the Intergovernmental Committee underway in Baku (Azerbaijan).

The

Varia

is a huge holy wagon that represents the Universe and the Assumption of the Virgin Mary . Above the sacred chariot, 200 "mbuttaturi" (carriers) carry 16 meter tall human figures: "Animella" (child representing the Virgin Mary) and human figures representing "Padreterno" God , the apostles, and angels.

In addition to the UNESCO recognition, the event is cataloged as "intangible heritage" of the regions of Italy by the Central Institute for Demoetnoantropologia and is organized by the City of Palms, under the patronage of the Province of Reggio Calabria, Calabria region and of religious institutions.