San Marino

The Most Serene Republic of San Marino is a country in the Apennine Mountains. It is a landlocked enclave, completely surrounded by Italy. One of the European microstates, San Marino has the smallest population of all the members of the Council of Europe.

San Marino is the oldest sovereign state and constitutional republic in the world, having been founded on 3 September 301 by Marinus of Rab, a Christian stonemason fleeing the religious persecution of Roman Emperor Diocletian.[citation needed] The Constitution of San Marino, enacted in 1600, is the world's oldest constitution still in effect.

Geography

San Marino is an enclave in Italy, on the border between the regioni of Emilia Romagna and Marche. Its topography is dominated by the Apennines mountain range, and it has a rugged terrain. The highest point in the country, Monte Titano, is situated at 749 metres (2,457 ft) above sea level. There are no bodies of water of any significant size. San Marino is the third smallest country in Europe, with only Vatican City and Monaco being smaller. San Marino has no level natural land; 100% of the nation/state is built on top of the range.

Municipalities

Administrative division.San Marino is divided into the following nine municipalities, known locally as Castelli -castles- (sing. castello, each on a different hill, as depicted on the republic's coat of arms), that are also towns to the world.

The City of San Marino (Città di San Marino) is the capital. There are also eight minor municipalities:

• Acquaviva
• Borgo Maggiore
• Chiesanuova
• Domagnano
• Faetano
• Fiorentino
• Montegiardino
• Serravalle

The largest town of the Republic is Dogana, which is not an autonomous castello, but rather belongs to the Castello of Serravalle.

Each castello, like Italian comuni, includes a main town, called capoluogo, that is the seat of the castello, and some even smaller localities known as frazioni.

Climate

The climate is Mediterranean with continental influences, with warm summers and cool winters. The National Center of Meteorology and Climatology of San Marino provides local forecasts. Proposed weather services for business and the public include Web cams and Online meteorological and climate data of San Marino. Meteo San Marino - The National Center of Meteorology And Climatology of San Marino 

Cuisine

The cuisine of San Marino is strongly similar to Italian, especially that of the adjoining Emilia-Romagna and Marche regions, but it has a number of its own unique dishes and products. Its best known is probably the Torta Tre Monti ("Cake of the Three Mountains/Towers"), a chocolate layer cake depicting The Three Towers of San Marino. The country also has a small wine industry.

Unique

The San Marino Grand Prix was a Formula One championship race which was run at the Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in the town of Imola, near the Apennine mountains in Italy, between 1981 and 2006. It is called the San Marino Grand Prix because there is already an Italian Grand Prix, and the republic of San Marino is itself too small to host a grand prix.