Tag Archives: Italy travel

Italy travel

Dressing for Italy: Revised

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I may have to eat my words about Italians not wearing shorts. I’m seeing more and more of them doing exactly that. And men in baggy capri-length pants, with big clunky sneakers, yet! What is Italy coming to?

Fabrizio said something to me years ago that always stuck in my mind (though it took me years to act on it): In Italy, dressing well is considered an act of courtesy towards others.

Not every Italian thinks this way, nor abides by it all the time, but, as cultural markers go, I’d say that this is a sign of an advanced civilization. When somebody goes out in public dressed like a slob, what are they saying about their attitude towards you, who have to look at them?

I am permanently scarred from the vision, 20 years ago, of an American woman in a supermarket in Jakarta (Indonesia) wearing sloppy clothes, with her hair in curlers. Maybe going shopping in curlers was normal where she came from, but I cringed at her doing it in a country where she was a guest, and, by shared nationality, implicated me in her rudeness.

Share your own tips on dressing for Italy

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Lake Como

The Lake Como Car Ferry

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In the evening, we took the car ferry back from Cadenabbia (on the west bank of the lake) to Varenna, on our own side. This saved us the drive north around the tip of the lake and all the way down the eastern shore.

map: Gestione Navigazione Laghi

The Ferry Arrives

The ferry came across from Bellagio, and unloaded two Smart cars.

54 secs, 2.6 MB

Loading and Departing

42 secs, 2.1 MB

Our car had to be loaded backward, because we would be getting off at Varenna (the second stop) instead of Bellagio (the first). This is why I avoid driving in Italy as much as possible – it often requires maneuvers that I just can’t manage!

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Italian culture, Italy travel

Summer Fun, Italian Family Style

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video shot July 27, 2004 – 3.2 MB

Roseto degli Abruzzi

Most Italians spend at least part of their summer vacation at a beach somewhere. Many have vacation homes, others stay in hotels. The cheapest option is camping, but Italian campgrounds have little in common with the KOA campgrounds I remember from some American parts of my childhood.

An average Italian campground has (of course) designated areas for campers and/or tents (some also have bungalows with small kitchens and bathrooms, which you can rent in lieu of bringing a tent or camper – those cost more, of course). There are central bathrooms with toilets, sinks, and showers with hot water. Most also have a restaurant and coffee bar, and a small market where you can get camping necessities as well as food. Some have swimming pools and other recreational facilities – at the very least, table soccer and a few arcade video games. Some have swimming pools, and of course beach access.

The upscale campgrounds also have organized activities and entertainment, such as karaoke, discos, and dance lessons. These are run by animatori (“animators”), young people hired for the summer who all seem to be good-looking, talented, energetic, and endlessly cheerful.

This video was shot at a friend’s campground in Abruzzo, you can probably recognize the young man and young woman who are this year’s animatori. They and the dance class participants (mostly kids) had worked up a little show; parents and other spectators were sitting in rows of chairs to watch.

NB: The word written across the underwear is SO-RP-RE-SA (surprise).

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Italian food

Eating Cheaply in Italy

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Someone asked in one of the travel forums about how to eat cheaply in Italy, and whether it’s possible to take a "doggie bag" from a restaurant.

To answer the second question first: I’ve only once taken away the remains of a meal from a restaurant in Italy (a steak that was larger than anticipated). Italian restaurant servings are of a reasonable size, so usually if you clean the plates on a first course (carbos: pasta or rice) and second course (protein + veg), you will be comfortably full, but not bursting. But if you did have anything leftover, I’m sure they wouldn’t mind wrapping it for you.

The restaurants that also (or exclusively) do takeaway – look for the sign "asporto" – often serve Chinese food, kebab, or pizza. Best of all, however, are rosticcerie, which make rotisserie-grilled chicken (which you can buy whole or in parts), roasted potatoes, and a large or small variety of other dishes. They are better equipped with take-away containers, and will give you napkins and plasticware as well.

There are other ways to eat cheaply. Most supermarkets and some smaller stores have a prepared-foods counter with both hot and cold food ready to go. You could also buy fresh bread, cheese, prosciutto, salame, etc. and make your own sandwiches. Buy some olives, pickled onions, and other goodies to round out your meal. You can buy fresh focaccia and pizza at bread bakeries (panetterie); most will heat it up for you (in a real oven, not a microwave, so be prepared to wait). If you buy rolls for sandwiches, you can ask the baker to slice them open for you, ready to receive the sliced meats from the butcher next door.

what are your tips for eating cheaply in Italy?

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