Italian flag or …?
Some time ago we had guests at our bed and breakfast that arrived in a classic Italian cabriolet. They had toured the whole of Italy in it and to show their love of the country there was a small flag at the front of the car. It friendly waved at all the inhabitants of the small Italian villages they passed through. Some of whom had a look of surprise on their faces, though. Our guests noticed this, but without understanding why. When they drove onto our parking I immediately saw it: their little friendly flag had the right colors, but the green white red bands were arranged horizontally! As bad luck has it, this arrangement also exists, as the flag of Ireland, not the flag of Italy. Touring the whole of Italy waving the Irish colors, no wonder people looked at them wondering.
Gli Azzurri
Apart from green, white and red of the Italian flag there is another color that designates Italy: sky blue or azzurro. This is probably because of the everlasting clear blue skies of the Italian summer. The Italian national soccer football team is dressed in a sky blue shirt and white shorts as well. And do not forget the text of the most famous Italian popular song, Domenico Modugno’s Volare: „Nel blu, dipinto di blu”. Horizontal, vertical or even diagonal, that doesn’t matter.