It's been exactly one week since we arrived in Italy, and I thought I'd share some of my observations on life in Italy so far. Here's my take on Letterman's top 10 list....
You know your in Italy when:
1-No matter where you are-a supermarket, strolling down the street, in the hotel lobby, or at the mall, you see at least 3 couples making out. This truly is a country where Amore is alive and well!
2-The best way to transport a mattress is by asking your friend to carry it with his arms outstretched while riding on the back of your moped, so that you can hold the 2 pillows and the handlebars while weaving in and out of traffic
3-Pizzeria's and gelaterias instead of Starbucks are on every street corner.
4-You have to call the front desk of your hotel in a panic at 6am on a Sunday as your knees are knocking because you are certain bombs are going off or gas line is continuously exploding towards your hotel, only to find out from the Receptionist "ahhh..Madam, is no problem, today is Santa Lucia celebration"...me--so I don't have to be scared? .."No Madam, festivities last about 10 minutes, no problem"..as he laughs at me. (This happened to me this morning. I woke up to sounds as loud as dynamite explosions, flashes, smoke..but from my viewpoint, couldn't see any fireworks. I was SO scared, and thought Italy was under attack and that I'd have to evacuate Evan. I thought our whole hotel was shaking, but it was literally my knees knocking!! Our hotel is in Santa Lucia, so they really went all out w/the dynamite to celebrate their Saint's day. I wish someone had warned me that was going to happen!! I'm sure the hotel staff had fun laughing about the panicked Americana!
5-If you go to dinner at 6pm and you are the only ones in the restaurant.
6-When "in a minute" translates to at least an hour later...or in some cases, such as our lost luggage was on the way and would be delivered to our hotel in a few minutes, really meant 6 hours later.
7-A 3 laned road, quickly turns into 6 or 7 lanes , with every nook and cranny of road space used up...cars packed in like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.
8-Everyone is dressed to the nines regardless of time of day or what they are doing. If jeans are to be worn, you can bet that they are designer jeans, well tailored and paired with the perfect shoes, shirt and coat. My Seattle fleece might just not cut it here!
9-A bottle of wine cost less than a bottle of water here or in the US
10-My baby's first word is Ciao~ :)
Some other interesting observations or ways of doing things here:
-You pay 1 Euro to free a shopping cart from the stack for your use in the store. Then, after you check out, you return it to the stack and get your Euro back. Seems pretty smart to me!
-Self scanning guns (like when you are doing a baby/wedding registry) are available as you go into a large supermarket so that you can scan your purchases as you go, and have a speedy self check out. All groceries are bagged by you, and the cost of reusable bags range from about .18 Euro to .99 Euro each.
-Most cars are Deisel
-When there hasn't been much rain, the city will call for a traffic ban, banning all cars older than a certain year from the road. Only newer cars w/ good emmissions or 3 person carpoolers are allowed to drive. The ban usually lasts for a few hours.
-Most people seem to airdry their laundry outside their balconies
-Breakfast is usually an espresso and maybe a pastry done standing up in a "Bar"--a casual walk up restaurant.
-I still need to become better about telling time w/ military time, temperature w/ Celcius, and speeds with Km/hr vs. Miles/hr.
-Restaurant tabs include Coperto--a 'cover charge' which basically is for your bread and linens. Service charges are also often added, plus usually a little extra tip is desired/expected.
You know your in Italy when:
1-No matter where you are-a supermarket, strolling down the street, in the hotel lobby, or at the mall, you see at least 3 couples making out. This truly is a country where Amore is alive and well!
2-The best way to transport a mattress is by asking your friend to carry it with his arms outstretched while riding on the back of your moped, so that you can hold the 2 pillows and the handlebars while weaving in and out of traffic
3-Pizzeria's and gelaterias instead of Starbucks are on every street corner.
4-You have to call the front desk of your hotel in a panic at 6am on a Sunday as your knees are knocking because you are certain bombs are going off or gas line is continuously exploding towards your hotel, only to find out from the Receptionist "ahhh..Madam, is no problem, today is Santa Lucia celebration"...me--so I don't have to be scared? .."No Madam, festivities last about 10 minutes, no problem"..as he laughs at me. (This happened to me this morning. I woke up to sounds as loud as dynamite explosions, flashes, smoke..but from my viewpoint, couldn't see any fireworks. I was SO scared, and thought Italy was under attack and that I'd have to evacuate Evan. I thought our whole hotel was shaking, but it was literally my knees knocking!! Our hotel is in Santa Lucia, so they really went all out w/the dynamite to celebrate their Saint's day. I wish someone had warned me that was going to happen!! I'm sure the hotel staff had fun laughing about the panicked Americana!
5-If you go to dinner at 6pm and you are the only ones in the restaurant.
6-When "in a minute" translates to at least an hour later...or in some cases, such as our lost luggage was on the way and would be delivered to our hotel in a few minutes, really meant 6 hours later.
7-A 3 laned road, quickly turns into 6 or 7 lanes , with every nook and cranny of road space used up...cars packed in like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.
8-Everyone is dressed to the nines regardless of time of day or what they are doing. If jeans are to be worn, you can bet that they are designer jeans, well tailored and paired with the perfect shoes, shirt and coat. My Seattle fleece might just not cut it here!
9-A bottle of wine cost less than a bottle of water here or in the US
10-My baby's first word is Ciao~ :)
Some other interesting observations or ways of doing things here:
-You pay 1 Euro to free a shopping cart from the stack for your use in the store. Then, after you check out, you return it to the stack and get your Euro back. Seems pretty smart to me!
-Self scanning guns (like when you are doing a baby/wedding registry) are available as you go into a large supermarket so that you can scan your purchases as you go, and have a speedy self check out. All groceries are bagged by you, and the cost of reusable bags range from about .18 Euro to .99 Euro each.
-Most cars are Deisel
-When there hasn't been much rain, the city will call for a traffic ban, banning all cars older than a certain year from the road. Only newer cars w/ good emmissions or 3 person carpoolers are allowed to drive. The ban usually lasts for a few hours.
-Most people seem to airdry their laundry outside their balconies
-Breakfast is usually an espresso and maybe a pastry done standing up in a "Bar"--a casual walk up restaurant.
-I still need to become better about telling time w/ military time, temperature w/ Celcius, and speeds with Km/hr vs. Miles/hr.
-Restaurant tabs include Coperto--a 'cover charge' which basically is for your bread and linens. Service charges are also often added, plus usually a little extra tip is desired/expected.
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