Sanremo

Sanremo,also spelledSan Remoin English and formerly in Italian, is acomune(municipality) onthe Mediterranean coastofLiguria, innorthwestern Italy. Founded in Roman times, it has a population of 55,000, and is known as a tourist destination on theItalian Riviera. It hosts numerous cultural events, such as theSanremo Music Festivaland theMilan–San Remocycling classic.
While it is often stated in modern folk stories that Sanremo is named after a legendarySaint Remus, the name of the city is actually a phonetic contraction ofSant'Eremo di San Romolo("HolyHermitageof Saint Romulus"), which refers toRomulus of Genoa, the successor toSyrus of Genoa. InLigurian, its name isSan ReumoorSan Reumoro.
The non-univerbatedspellingSan Remofeatures on ancient maps ofLiguriaand maps of theRepublic of Genoa, Medieval Italy, theKingdom of Sardinia, and theKingdom of Italy; it was used in 1924 in official documents underMussolini. This form of the name, now superseded bySanremoboth officially and in common usage, still appears on some road signs and, more rarely, in unofficial tourist information.
Once the Roman settlement ofMatutiaorVilla Matutiana, Sanremo expanded in the earlyMiddle Ageswhen the population moved to the high grounds.  The nobility built a castle and the walled village of La Pigna to protect the town fromSaracenraids.
At first subjected to the countship ofVentimiglia, the community later passed under the dominion of theGenoesebishops.  In 1297 they sold it to theDoriaand De Mari families. It became a free town in the second half of the 15th century, after which it expanded to the Pigna hill and at Saint Syrus Cathedral. The almost perfectly preserved old village remains.
Sanremo remained independent of theGenoese Republic.  In 1753, after 20 years of fierce conflicts, it rose against Genoese hegemonical attempts. At that time Genoa built the fortress of Santa Tecla, situated on the beach near the port. The fortress was used as a prison until 2002.  It is now used as a museum.
After the French domination and theSavoyrestoration in 1814, Sanremo was annexed to theKingdom of Sardinia. From the middle of the 18th century, the town grew rapidly, in part due to the development of tourism, which saw the first grand hotels built and the town extended along the coast. TheEmpress "Sissi" of Austria, EmpressMaria Alexandrovnaof Russia, and EmperorNicholas II of Russiatook vacations in Sanremo, while Swedish chemistAlfred Nobelmade it his permanent home.
TheSan Remo conference, 19–26 April 1920, of the post-World War I Allied Supreme Council determined the allocation of Class "A" League of Nations mandates for the administration of the former Ottoman-ruled lands of the Middle East by the victorious powers.  The most notable of these was theBritish Mandate of Palestine.
In 1972, the first public demonstration for the defence of the dignity and rights of gay people in Italy took place in Sanremo in protest against an international congress on sexual deviance organized by the Catholic-inspired Italian Center for Sexology.
Sanremo'sMediterranean climateand attractive seacoast setting on theItalian Rivieramake it a popular tourist destination. Besides tourism, the city is active in the production of extra virgin-gradeolive oil, whose regional"designation of origin"is protected (D.O.P.,Denominazione di Origine Protetta).  It is one of the agricultural commodities in westernLiguriaand in particular within the province ofImperia. Sanremo is known as the City of Flowers (la Città dei Fiori), this being another important aspect of the economy of the city. The nearby towns ofArma di Taggia,BordigheraandOspedalettiare also involved in the cultivation of flowers for the international flower market.
The MunicipalCasino, built in 1905, is an example ofArt Nouveaubuilding. TheAriston Theatreoffers an annual series of concerts, operas and theatre plays. The Symphony Orchestra is one of twelve symphony orchestras recognized by the state of Italy; it performs some 120 concerts throughout the year, most in the Municipal Casino's Opera Theatre.
The city is connected toGenoaand toVentimiglia, the border city withFrance, by theA10 motorway, whose last part is also known as theAutostrada dei Fiori("Motorway of Flowers"). It has a large number of elevated sections with viaducts that give a panoramic view of the coast. The A10 joins the FrenchA8 highwayat the border between Ventimiglia andMenton. Together these national routes are part of theEuropean route E80. The A10 motorway is atoll road, and the A8 demands a toll in sections, and some sections are free of charge. When travelling from Italy into France, one does not pay until after the towns of Menton and Monaco.
Other roads of importance are the SS1, the "Aurelia Bis", which connects Sanremo toTaggia. This is a non-tollbypass route. The coast road is thevia Aureliaor SS1 and follows the route of a Roman road. This can be heavily congested when it passes through towns, as it has only one lane in either direction for most of the way around Sanremo.  Atrolleybus linealong the via Aurelia links Sanremo with both Taggia and Ventimiglia.
The closest airport to Sanremo is inFrance, theCôte d'Azur International AirportinNice, 45 minutes away by car. The railway connects the city to other Ligurian cities like Imperia,Genoaand to Nice,Milan,TurinandRome.
Therailway lineused to be along the coast, running close to the sea, and providing a view for travellers.  The line has been moved further north and underground, which allows for faster trains;Sanremo railway stationwas relocated next to the City Hall. The city has refurbished the old railway line and converted it into a bike route and pedestrian area. There are several bike hire kiosks along the route and a choice of beaches to visit in either direction from San Remo. The path stretches 24 km (15 mi) between Ospedaletti in the west andSan Lorenzo al Marein the east.
Sanremo experiences a hot-summerMediterranean climate(Köppen climate classificationCsa).
TheAriston Theatrehosts the celebrated annualSanremo Music Festival, which has been held in the city since 1951. This festival inspired theEurovision Song Contest, which started in 1956, and has often been used to select the Italian entry for the European contest. The internationally notable song "Nel blu, dipinto di blu", popularly known as "Volare", was performed at this festival for the first time byDomenico Modugnoin 1958. The festival is so popular among Italians that it is often referred to simply as "Il Festival" (TheFestival). Other events include the Tenco Prize (autumn), a song contest for authors dedicated to the memory ofLuigi Tenco; the Flowers Parade in January/February in which every city of the Italian Riviera presents an original composition of flowers displayed on a Carnival/Mardi-Gras style moving car; and the summer Firework International Contest in the second week of August also calledFerragosto.
The culinary specialities of Sanremo and its environs includeSardenara, Focaccia, Focaccia alle Cipolle, Torta Verde, Farinata and Taggiasca olives.
TheSanremo Casino(Casino Municipale di Sanremo) opened in 1905 and has operated continuously since then with the exception of the years ofWorld War II.  For much of its history, the casino was tolerated or granted exceptions to Italian gambling laws in order to allow the resort to compete with the casino towns in nearbyFranceandMonaco.
Sanremo hosts an annual poker tournament as part of theEuropean Poker Tour.The city is widely accepted as the origin of thefive-card studvarianttelesina.
TheRallye Sanremois arallycompetition that was part of theFIAWorld Rally Championshipfrom1973to2003, when it was replaced byRally d'Italia Sardegnaon the island ofSardinia, in hosting the Italian round of the WRC. It is now part ofEuropean Rally Championship. Formerly a mixed surface event (tarmac and gravel), the rally has later been an all-tarmac event and takes place around the mountains.
Sanremo is the finish of theclassicMilan–San Remocycle race. It is considered to be a "monument" – one of the five most important one-day races of the cycling season. Milan – San Remo is traditionally held in March and is one of the first major fixtures of the cycling season. It is usually the longest professional one-day race in the cycling season, giving the race a unique character.
The most important localfootballclub is theSanremesewhich has played also inSerie Band inSerie C.
Sanremo istwinnedwith: