Italy

1. History of Microbiology

1.1. Francesco Redi (1665) was an Italian physician who showed that maggots that developed in putrefying meet were larvas from flies. This made it difficult to prove that microorganisms do not arise spontaneously. Lazzaro Spallanzani was an Italian scientist who challenged that life could form spontaneously. He redid John Needham’s experiement and used the correct sterile techniques. Spallanzani’s experiment did not have any microbes grown in the sealed flasks.

2. Medical Requirments

2.1. Must be up to date with vaccines. Including MMR vaccine, diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine, varicella (chickenpox) vaccine, polio vaccine, and your yearly flu shot. Also it is recommended that we get a vaccinated for Hepatitis A and B and Rabies since there will be a greater chance of exposure in rural areas. For Tickborne encephalitis there are available vaccination in the U.S. so it would be better to get vaccinated in Europe.

3. Current Outbreaks

3.1. In April 2017 it was reported that there was an outbreak of measles in Italy. As of October 2017 there has been an outbreak of chikungunya in four different places in Italy.

4. Global Parameter

4.1. United Sates: Life expectancy is 79.1 years. GDP is 53.5K per year. Child death mortality is 6.5 per year. Italy: Life expectancy is 82.2 years. GDP is 33.3K per year. Child death mortality is 3.4 per year.

5. Fermented foods

5.1. The most popular fermented foods of Italy are wine and bread. A famous place that wine is fermented is Tuscany.

6. Purpose

6.1. I am traveling to Italy to learn about Roman history and see what Italy has to offer. The best time to go is June, when the temperature is comfortable.

7. Flight/Trainl/Hotel

7.1. Nonstop flights on Alitalia are about $1250. The roundtrip flights are from Miami to Venice. To travel within Italy I will use the train. A one way train ride will cost about $30-$50. Hotels will cost about $130-$180 per night depending on the city.

8. Places to Visit

8.1. Trip Itinerary: Milan, Verona, Venice, Cinque Terre, Pisa, Florence, Siena, Rome, Sorrento, Naples, Pompeii, and back to Rome

9. Language/Currency

9.1. The major language spoken in Italy is Italian. 93% of the Italian population speaks this language. The tourist places of Italy also speak some english. Italy's currency is the euro. €1.00 (euro) is equal to about $1.17 (American dollars).

10. Total Budget for Trip

10.1. Eating: $25-35 per day Plane:$1250 Hotels:$180 per night Train/transportation: $50 per ride one way Total estimated budget is about $7,000-$7300.

11. Passport/Visa

11.1. Since Italy is part of the Schengen Agreement, U.S. tourist may enter Italy for up to 90 days as a tourist. Passport must have at least 6 months remaining validity beyond the departure date.