la dolce vita

After director Federico Fellini used the phrase as the title for his 1960 film documenting Rome's era of film stars and paparazzi, la dolce vita came to define Italy's boom years in 1960s, when cheap housing drew Sicilians and Calabrians to the north to staff the new factories turning out products such as the Fiat 500, which would make motoring accessible to all.

Austerity drive spells end for the dolce vita as Italians fear for their lifestyles 2011