The Marche

In ancient German, "Mark" means "region of border," and Marche was so-called because the area bordered the Roman Empire. The region was divided by the nobles into la Marca di Fano, la Marca di Camerino and la Marca di Ancona; hence, the name of the region is plural.

The Marches region is inconsistent in its landscape, with hills, mountains, forests and beaches, and has been called, "Italy in One Region," by tourism offices. It is touched in the north by Emilia-Romagna; in the south by Abruzzo and Latium; in the west by Umbria and Tuscany; and in the east by the Adriatic Sea.

The two urban areas are Ancona and Pesaro, which both have about 110,000 citizens, and the less populated sections are farming villages. The temperature difference between seasons is considerable with very cold winters and hot summers. But there is somewhere to visit throughout the year in the Marches, including ski slopes in the winter, festivals in the spring, beaches in the summer and food fairs in the fall.

Links: http://www.regione.marche.it