San Marino
I visited San Marino with my daughter, both of us travelling for the purpose of adding to our ambitious target of visiting a 100 different countries. Although I am well ahead of her she does have at least one country over me, Liechtenstein, and she doesn’t let me forget it.
We travelled to San Marino from Rimini, a seaside resort on the Adriatic Sea. This too was a place I wanted to tick off, mainly because I still possess a postcard from Rimini sent to my parents by a friend over 50 years ago. In those days it seemed such an exotic place to a young child who had never travelled beyond the boundaries of the UK.
Rimini was not exotic at all; it was roughly the Italian equivalent of Blackpool - a vibrant tourist resort with a magnificent beach, streets full of restaurants, cafes, cheap hotels, amusement arcades and souvenir shops, although beyond the front it was a town full of history and well worth exploring.
It was a short, crowded bus ride to San Marino, with tickets purchased from a shop near the bus stop. Most of the place was indistinguishable from any other ordinary European provincial town but what sets it apart are the fortifications on the top of the hill from which there are magnificent views of the surrounding countryside and in the distance the Adriatic Sea.
As for the two pieces of tourist tat pictured here I have no idea why the castle at San Marino is perched on top of a turtle, it is just bizarre, which was one of the reasons for purchasing it. Extensive research on the internet revealed only one tenuous connection between turtles and San Marino which is that turtles feature on San Marino stamps.
The other piece, a figurine depicting a full figured nurse, has nothing to do with San Marino at all. My partner at the time was a nurse and I bought it for her as a joke. Needless to say she was not impressed. It has remained at the back of my collection and is not referred to in good company.
The Real San Marino
Facts about San Marino
San Marino is the fifth smallest country in the world (and the third smallest in Europe) with an area of about 24 square miles
It has a population of 33,000
It is landlocked by Italy
It was officially founded in the year 301 and is the world’s oldest continuous republic.
The constitution of San Marino, enacted in 1600, is the world’s oldest constitution still in effect
San Marino is not a member of the EU but it uses the Euro as its currency
The sale of collectible stamps and coins constitutes about 10% of the economy.
You don’t need a passport to enter San Marino but if you want your passport stamped you can get one for €5 at the tourist information office
Abraham Lincoln was an honorary citizen of San Marino
Attractions in San Marino