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Cortina d'Ampezzo (German: Hayden) is a town and comune in the southern (Dolomitic) Alps and the province of Belluno, Veneto, northern Italy. Located in the heart of the Dolomites in an alpine valley, it is a popular winter sport resort known for its ski-ranges, scenery, accommodations, shops and après-ski scene. After the scheduled 1944 Olympics had been canceled because of WWII, it hosted the 1956 Winter Olympics as well as various world cup events and motion pictures. Much of 1963 classic The Pink Panther, the progenitor of the series, was filmed in Cortina. One of the memorable James Bond stunt sequences in 1981's For Your Eyes Only, gunners on spike-wheeled motorcycles chasing Roger Moore on skis, was filmed on its slopes, as were several scenes in the film Cliffhanger.
[edit] Geography Cortina is situated to the center of the Valle d'Ampezzo in the Dolomites, and is positioned between Cadore (to the south) and the Val Pusteria (to north), Val d' Ansiei (to east) and Agordo (to the west). It is encircled to 360° from the Dolomites. Amongst the more famous mountains are Tofane to the west, Pomagagnon to the north, Cristallo to the northeast, and Faloria and Sorapiss to east, and Becco di Mezzodì, and Croda da Lago and Cinque Torri to south. The city center is located at an alitude of 1,224 m, although the highest summit is that of the Tofana di Mezzo which towers at 3,244 m. There is a significant water presence in the territory, under the form of torrents, streams and little lakes (Ghedina, Pianozes, d'Ajal...), which fill particularly during the summer snow melt season. Fauna include marmots, roe deers, chamoises and hares. [edit] HistoryIn the Middle Age, Ampezzo fell under the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Aquileia, and of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1420, the village was conquered by the Republic of Venice. In 1508 it was conquered by Austria, and by 1511 people of Ampezzo swore loyalty to the Emperor Maximilian. Although remaining a Habsburg's possession until 1920, Ampezzo never turned into a German-speaking territory and conserved its original language, Ladin, a Rhaeto-Romance language. When Italy entered the World War in 1915, most of the male inhabitants were fighting for Austria on the Russian front. 669 male inhabitants, most of them under 16 or over 50, tried to fight the Italian troops. Outnumbered by the Italians, they had to retreat. After the Austrian recovery 1917, the town was occupied again by the Tyrolian Standschützen. Following Italy's victory in World War I, Ampezzo was finally given to Italy. After the war the city was renamed "Cortina d'Ampezzo", adopting the name of one of the six villages that made up the territory of Ampezzo, located in the middle of the Ampezzo valley. Already an élite destination for the first British tourists in the late Eighteenth century and early Twentieth, after World War I Cortina d'Ampezzo became a favourite resort for upper-class Italians as well. After the winter Olympics were held here in 1956 Cortina had became a world-renowned resort, increasingly experiencing mass tourism. [edit] CityscapeCortina is situated more or less to the center of the Ampezzana valley, encircled nearly completely on four sides by the high Dolomites. Originally it was composed of numerous frazioni, isolated villages and hamlets, but with the advent of the tourism it grew rapidly from the 1950s. Only the furthest villages and hamlets in the commune have remained secluded and isolated from the main town, which today is known for its shopping. Cortina is home to some of the most prestigious names in fashion including Bulgari, Benetton, Gucci and Geox and various artisan shops, antiquarians, and craft stores. It is also home to many stores which specialize in mountaineering equipment.  However, the symbol of Cortinese shopping remains La Cooperativa di Cortina, founded on June 28, 1893 under the name of Consumverein Ampezzo. In this shopping center many trades can be found, from confectioners to newspaper vendors, from toys and gift shops to skiing stores and blacksmiths. The building is divided in three layers (more a raised plan and a balcony). The cooperative in Cortina was one of the first cooperatives founded in the Italian Peninsula and currently it provides employment to approximately 200 people. Near the bridge on the Bigontina river is the Town Hall, an elegant palace in the Tirolese style. Piazza Venezia houses several popular spots. The Ciasa de ra Regoles is one of the more important legal buildings in Cortina, where the "regolieri"-- a council for the local villages that stood before the town merged—trained the community and gave administrative orders. In the same building today is found also the office of the Scuola Sci Cortina, Cortina's skiing school. [edit] ClimateThe Ampezzano climate is typically alpine, with long summers, and winters that vacillate between frigid, snowy, unsettled, and temperate. Between the end of December and first of January of every year, some of the lowest temperatures recorded in Italy are in this region, particularly in heights of the Cimabanche steppe, the area of the border between the province of Belluno and Bolzano. The average seasons are generally rainy, cold, and very windy. [edit] FrazioniAcquabona (Agabòna), Alverà, Bigontina (Begontina), Cadelverzo (Cadelvèrzo), Cademai, Cadin (Ciadìn), Campo (Ciànpo), Chiamulera (Ciamulèra), Chiave (Ciàe), Cianderìes, Coiana (Cojana), Col, Cortina, Crìgnes, Doneà, Fiames (Fiàmes), Fraìna, Gilardon (Jilardòn), Gnòche o Gràa, Guargné, Lacedel (Lazedèl), Manaigo, Majon, Melères, Mortisa (Mortìja), Pecol (Pecòl), Pezié, Pian da Lago, Pocol (Pocòl), Rònco, Salieto, Socol, Staulin (Staulìn), Val, Verocai, Vera (Vèra), Zuel (Zuèl) [edit] Culture Cortina d'Ampezzo was the host town of the 1956 Winter Olympics. The 1944 Winter Olympics were also scheduled to be held in Cortina, but were canceled because of World War II. The 1927 Nordic, 1941 Nordic and 1941 Alpine World Skiing Championships were held in Cortina as well, although the 1941 Nordic championships were withdrawn by the FIS in 1946. The region lost the bid for the 1988 Winter Olympics to Calgary, Canada. Cortina was the home of Olympic bobsledder Eugenio Monti, who was the first winner of the de Coubertin medal for fair play. The surroundings of Cortina have been the location for a number of movies, including mountain climbing scenes for Cliffhanger, Krull and The Pink Panther. The resort was a major location for the James Bond 007 film For Your Eyes Only, including action sequences set against a backdrop of various winter sports and one of the most famous ski chase sequences in film, where Roger Moore as Bond has to escape a crew of assassins on spike-wheeled motorcycles, his route taking them all onto the bobsleigh run. Audrey Hepburn was a frequent visitor to the slopes of Cortina. Close to Cortina d'Ampezzo is San Vito di Cadore. [edit] PoliticsAccording to BBC News, the town voted in October 2007 to secede from the region of Veneto and join the neighboring region, Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol.[1] Cited motivations include cultural ties with the small Ladin-speaking community in Trentino and a desire for lower taxes. [edit] Twin towns[edit] References
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