Paolo, I don't know where that 42 came from (from the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, I presume), but I work in Italy at the moment and my contract contains 26 days + national holidays (actually it's pretty complex... in those 26 days Saturdays count, so you must "spend" 6 days to get a week off).
It varies a lot, or so I hear... I advise some thorough research before you update your resume.
Anyway, does anybody end up using all the vacation he/she is entitled to?