Salve,

I was wondering if the LIRE is still in circulation?

Or.. Did the EURO take over the Lire, and the Lire is no longer used in sicily and italy.

Grazie,
Dominick

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Dominick,

Turkey is the only country still using the Lira. Italy switched over to the Euro.

Sicily = Italy.

We use the 500 lire for the grocery cart - so there is at least one coin still in circ. hahaah

I went ahead and laminated my last 1000 lire bill. Now it's framed over my desk in my office!

WARNING WARNING WARNING!!!! Grammar police! Could someone PLEASE change the title of this thread to "What ARE Italy and sicily using now?"? Thank you for your cooperation.

topic changed. Hehe...Barb (and Art) you will have to excuse my Brooklyn Grammar - Thanks for the Alert.



Umm American girl in italy,
YES, I know Sicily is italy, thanks for pointing that out to a Sicilian.

Your too kind Hehe...

OK, just checking.

There is a line in Sex and the City where this guy asks another guy if he is Italian (because his last name sounds Italian) and the other guy answers, completely offended, "I'm Sicilian!" And the first guy says, "But, isn't that the same thing?" hehe

quote:

Originally posted by American Girl in Italy:
There is a line in Sex and the City where this guy asks another guy if he is Italian (because his last name sounds Italian) and the other guy answers, completely offended, "I'm Sicilian!" And the first guy says, "But, isn't that the same thing?" hehe

Not according to the Sicilians I know!

I want to go to Sicily. I have heard it is beautiful (in some parts). Has anyone been? Did you like it?

Yes Nick Turkey uses Lira as thier currency but it is the Turkish Lira and has no connection to the old Itlian Lira.

It was a bit of humour. Actually I've always wondered how the two countries ended up with the Lira. I did a bit of a search today and it seems at one point the Turkish Lira, Italian Lira and the Britsh pound all had the same value. One troy pound of silver. Silver standard I guess.

Hi American Girl in Italy,
All of my relative's from mom's side love Sicily-having been born there[nono] but our friend visited there a few years ago and said it was gorgeous. Especially the north east along the coast line. We are looking foward to a visit there ourselves.

quote:

Originally posted by American Girl in Italy:
I want to go to Sicily. I have heard it is beautiful (in some parts). Has anyone been? Did you like it?

It is beautiful, but very different than the rest of Italy. It is very similar to Greece. Nothing like Tuscany, but food is just as good. I lived for >20 years in the northeast part of Sicily and it is a lot less violent (=mafia) than the rest of the island. Natural beauties are everywhere and the coastline is gorgeous. If you like greek and roman ruins, there are numerous theaters there that continue to perform ancient and modern pieces. Magnificent biennial theater season in Siracusa (every june, even years). Same in Tindari and Taormina. Travel with friends, possibly locals, avoid being alone if you are a woman, especially at night and when nobody is around. Do not stare at men, period. Everybody will be friendly, but it's up to you to decide when to stop. Accomodations can be expensive and frugal (no A/C) if you cannot stay with friends in summer time. Best is to rent a car and stay in small villages.
Good luck,

Oooh sounds good. I think my hubby and I might drive down this August.

I have applied for my carta di soggiorno and was told I can't leave Italy for a year. I have an appt. on may 30, so maybe I will get it then...? If not, looks like we are staying in Italy in August! Sicily sounds like a great place to spend our vacation.

How come you can't stare at the men? I am a people watcher... I might need to keep my dark shades on at all times. haha

Thanks for the input!

So, you are from Sicily and your name is Godfather...? I guess you really do know Sicily! hehee

Nick, and the pppound in Italy is called "libbra". Now, drop the "BB" and you get... (By the way, British pound in good Italian is "lira sterlina", although everybody just says "sterlina".)