A Few Italian Pecularities

Entrances to banks work like this: you put your bag/backpack in a locker and keep the key. You walk up to the one-person-at-a-time-entrance-door and push the button. The door swings open and you walk into a little cylindrical cell and the door closes behind you. At this time, air may or may not be blown at you ...to see if you have bomb particles ...no clue. Then you push the button for the other side of the cell and you are allowed to walk in to the bank. All the bankers I have encountered speak English.

Handicapped entrances are not very prevalent. Evidence: a guy in a wheelchair was at the entrance when I walked out of a bank. I asked him if "I would like to tell them that you are here?" And he said, "yes please". As I was walking into the little cell again, I turned around and corrected myself and said "oh, would you like..." he said yup and laughed as the cell door closed. Then inside the cell I realized that I should have actually used the formal form! ...silly but "mistakes welcome!" (Papa/Yamamori Sensei). Then they let him in through a special side door.

Toilets almost always have two flush buttons, one for a little flush and one for a big one. For the toilet to flush better, simply press the button and release quickly ...unlike in the states when you would usually hold it down longer. In all private bathrooms that I've seen there is also something that is between a toilet and a sink near the toilet. It is like a wide shallow sink with running water that is shaped like a toilet and is low to the ground. It is used to wash up, probably instead of taking a shower. It is also great for washing your feet in after you get back from walking around in sandals.

One type of sandwich, most similar to the American-white-bread sandwich is called a tramezzino here and the bread never has a crust. They must cut the crust off before they sell the bread. Sounds like something you'd do for a spoiled kid ...but then i never did like the crusts much myself ...heh.

Nutella (chocolaty-hazelnut spread) is their peanut butter and peanut butter is hard to find.

At the farmers market, you can't pick your own fruit or even touch anything.

At the grocery store, you have to use a plastic glove to pick out your fruit and veggies. And then you weigh them yourself on a scale and press the number that is found on the sign by that fruit and it prints a price tag for you.

You almost always have to pay for a plastic bag. It is 5 centessimi (cents)per bag. It is funny how this makes Italians bring their own bags. While in America, we are basically charged 10 cents extra for all our bags each shopping trip at stores like Ralph's etc. This is not evident on the bill, but if you've ever brought your own bags and bagged your own items, you know that they take 10 cents off of your bill. Funny how the same rule, in two different ways results in different responses.

Also, the farmers market here happens 6 days a week and Italians almost never buy more than they can carry at a time. You rarely see shopping carts being used in grocery stores. ...meaning they go to the store often and get lots of fresh food.

At the shoe store, you cannot just take your shoe size and try it on. You have to ask the sales person, even if the boxes are on the shelf in front of you and they will open the box and hand you the shoes. Silly but maybe this reduces theft?

At gelaterie (ice cream places) they don't really do the whole tasting-before-you-buy thing.

At hotels you have to leave your key at the front desk when you leave your room. It is mandated by the Fire Marshall so that if something happens, they know who was in their room and who was out. Kind of smart but also kind of annoying but keeps you from losing your keys or getting them stolen.

For breakfast they usually have a pastry and a cappuccino or espresso with lots of sugar (you have to put sugar in it, otherwise it is so bitter that it's undrinkable). A classic Denny's breakfast is basically unheard of.

The pizzas here are really amazing. I think it's the cheese and the light tomato sauce. Seems like the uniformity of cheese spreading on top is due to using cheese crumbles instead of grated cheese.

Kebab places are popular and delicious.

The only mozzarella you can buy here is a ball or balls of it in water and it is really cheap, even accounting for the unfavorable exchange rate.

Their name for the forehand throw in Ultimate Frisbee is tre-ditta meaning three finger. Their word for break is buca meaning hole. An outside-in throw is called a parabola meaning parabola. To give someone a ring on their cell is fare uno squillo sul cel ...cute huh?