Republic of San Marino
I recently visited San Marino and I want to tell you a little about this small state, maybe it will be interesting to someone, or maybe someone will want to visit it. Of course, in this story I will pay attention only to what may be important for tourists.
So. The Republic of San Marino is a tiny independent state in Italy, which was formed by one of the Christian saints on Monte Titano back in the 4th century. Now this is the main mountain of this country, where all the main attractions are located, and it is here that all tourists are brought. The population of the country is slightly more than 30 thousand people who call themselves Sanmarinians, although they do not have any special nationality. Most Sanmarinians are representatives of different nations (mainly Italy itself), but they are all united by a common idea - freedom. In this, they are somewhat reminiscent of the Americans and also built their own statue of liberty, which stands in front of the government building on Freedom Square. Moreover, they live well and they don’t need anyone else there, so the requirements for candidates who want to obtain citizenship of this country are very high. In order to become a Sanmarinian, you need to live and work there for more than 30 years, and then wait a long time for permission from the authorities. Well, maybe this is right, a person must live in San Marino all his life in order to be imbued with the ideas of freedom! In general, you can read more about this republic on the Internet, and I will tell you about the trip there.
Politically, San Marino is part of Italy, so you can enter there with an Italian (or Schengen visa), documents are not checked anywhere and this country has no visible border as such. That is, their independence is more economic than political. (Their salaries are higher than in Italy, and taxes are lower, and therefore many Italians work and buy in San Marino). However, for those who want to get a visa for the Republic of San Marino, the government of this country has come up with a special stamp with a beautiful stamp, which can be obtained from the secretariat of the government on Freedom Square. Entrance there is free, but a visa costs money, as much as 5 euros. Such a visa does not give any advantages, it is just a memory of visiting this state (like "I was there") and nothing more. Although for the collection I still stuck this stamp on myself, as a keepsake.
Entry into San Marino can only be made from Italian territory. For example, there is a regular bus from the city of Rimini (every hour), as well as many excursions. If you go on your own, it is enough to get to the central railway station and find the stop of this bus. A ticket can be bought from the driver, it costs about 5 euros. In addition, in the summer, the route of this bus passes along the Rimini embankment and you can "catch" it at any stop where there is an inscription "San Marino". You can return back on the same bus (or the same one) from the same stop in San Marino, where he will drop you off. By the way, there is a schedule of regular buses San Marino - Rimini. It is better to familiarize yourself with it immediately so as not to be late for the last bus back.
It doesn’t make much sense to take an excursion to San Marino, since they won’t tell anything worthwhile there. Usually very brief and superficial information about the country is given (you can read all this in more detail yourself) and, most importantly, you will definitely be taken to some scam, where they will try to sell something at exorbitant prices (I do not advise buying! ) they'll splurge on money. Yes, and this tour costs much more than an independent trip and you can see much less, as you will rush to the return bus. Usually, about an hour and a half is given for the entire inspection of the state, and the tour itself takes about 20 minutes. So think about whether you need such an excursion...
As for attractions, there are not so many of them in San Marino. The fact is that the Sanmarinians themselves destroyed all their antiquities and used them as building material for houses and roads (they were too lazy to look for new stones! ). That is, they acted with their history as barbarians. However, when they came to their senses (already in the 20th century), they began to actively restore everything, and now their reconstructions have even been included in the UNESCO World Heritage Fund. Although, I personally do not understand how the models of fortresses can be included in the world cultural heritage fund. However, there are quite a few interesting museums in this country that I highly recommend visiting, especially the Museum of Torture. In addition, the famous international academy is located here, the working language of which is Esperanto. In addition to medieval fortresses and museums in San Marino, there are a lot of shops with various goods. Lots of really good stuff, but they are quite expensive. And everything that is cheap is Chinese junk for a lot of money (much more expensive than ours)!
Only Sanmarino wine (really good) is recommended to buy in San Marino, which you can’t buy anywhere else, well, jewelry, they are relatively cheap. From souvenirs, they usually choose cards with views of San Marino, magnets and a Sanmarine visa.
And for true tourists who travel not for shopping, but to see the world, San Marino is just a godsend. There are wonderful forest parks, rocks and simply a divine view from the top of the mountain to the valley and surroundings. For nature lovers, there are many small cafes where you can sit and relax and eat Italian pizza, while breathing in the aroma of the green forest.
So, if you are in the Rimini area, I recommend visiting this tiny and wonderful country.