I live in Italy, for 3 years now. And there is no better way to see the country side than by car. Preferably a Bimmer. These cars are made to go on these crazy mountainous roads. The alps, hills, dolomites, etc. are great fun. Good suggestion to get a map, and a car with sat.nav works great. From the rental company, see is english is available in the sat nav. Most hotels/resturants have english speakers. Some german is close enough to english to understand a small bit. If you come to northern Italy, write me a message and I will be happy to meet you and show you my town of Trento. Happy travels.