Driving in Italy - Part 2: On the Italian Roads!

Contrary to common belief (at least, I think it’s common, as I’ve gotten so many questions on it), the Italians do not drive on the “wrong” side of the road, they drive on the “right” side of the road. (And really it would be the “left” side and we would drive on the “wrong” side from their point of view, but that’s another issue... lol) Thankfully that was one less thing to get used to!

At the “Right Start” orientation they showed us this video: http://www.lifeinitaly.com/flash 
I recommend you give it a view, it’s super short and comical. I can’t attest to the accuracy of the entire video, but the first half regarding driving has been accurate in my experience. They are rather ridiculous here.

Comments from the Video

Do you recall that part about the Italian car reaching an intersection with tons of signs and being very confused? The signage here is veerry difficult to get used to. First, signs aren’t consistent. By that I mean, sometimes you’ll come to a road and it’s labeled, other times you’ll pass many roads/hwys with no signs indicating their title. We’ve also encountered many signs that simply have a nearby town name with an arrow pointing in the general direction and lacking the distance or any other such useful information. However, these aren’t always pointed in the correct direction. One day while driving back from Pordenone we saw a sign pointing left for Aviano. The road on the left did not lead to Aviano, it was sorely misplaced. After driving a long way and consulting a map, we went back to that location and took the road on the right. After some distance we saw another sign indicating Aviano up ahead.

Most people on base recommend purchasing a GPS, but many admit that they aren’t perfect and can often mislead you as well. Troy and I were loaned a GPS from the base for our house hunting and are considering purchasing an extensive map book of Italy for our travels, as we both prefer maps to a GPS. I can’t stand GPS systems, even when the bossy robot voice is shut off they can be just as misleading in small country towns, and I prefer the detailed maps that I can scribble personal notes into the margins.

Drivers are pretty crazy here, which everyone finds quite odd as Italians are so slow and methodical with everything else. They like to take their time, have many holidays and time off of work, and simply do things one at a time. However, driving is an exception to their laid-back life style, and when they’re on the road, they mean business. I’m quite certain the speed limit signs on the side of the road are invisible to them. I know my mother wouldn’t survive driving here; tailgaters were always a peeve of hers, and here EVERYONE tailgates. Despite going 10 kph over the speed limit myself, I’ll always have an Italian on my tail, sometimes flashing headlights to urge me faster. I don’t like to go more than 10 kph over the speed limit though, particularly because I’m told that Police like to target Americans and will give us less slack than speeding Italians. So I stick around the speed limit or 10 kph over and I will inevitably be passed the first chance they get. When you are being passed, it is your obligation to move as far over to the right as possible. This is really quite difficult as the roads are so narrow and there is really no shoulder. After the edge of the road (for often there is no "white boundary line" on the edge) that's it, and it will drop off or turn into dirt. This leaves cars a very small margin for error...

     Other differences include that it is mandatory for everyone to have either snow chains or snow tires for your car (we were unable to find them at regular stores because nearly all gas stations sell them). Headlights are required basically everywhere, and since there are so few exceptions to when you can have them off, it is advised to simply keep them on at all times. Everyone must also have reflective vests and a reflective road triangle in case of an emergency. Italy also seems to have a ton of roundabouts. They are everywhere and people zoom through them. There are also some different road rules. The one I struggle with most is NO right turns on red lights. I struggle simply because it’s automatic and habit from the states, and often it’ll be clear and I start to go before I (or my hubby) remind me that that’s not allowed here. Definitely going to have to remember that one.

Something else that I have to stop and remind myself of, is their rule of “right-of-way”. Generally in the states when you come to a four way stop, the person who was there first will proceed, someone will kindly wave you on, or the person on the right will go first. Here, the vehicle on the right has right-of-way, however if there are a line of cars behind him, ALL of them have the right of way and get to proceed before you do. So there’s no taking turns, you go, I go, sort of thing. If there’s a bunch of cars lined up on the right, they all get to go before you. Often when approaching an intersection there is a yellow and white diamond sign, which means that you on are the priority road and have the right-of-way.

Another difference is the intersections. I have found that, for the most part, intersections in the states are where four roads meet in one location. Here, there may be four roads, but they don’t line up. I’ve been at a stop light on a hill where I wasn’t able to see the roads to the left and right; after it turned green and I traveled up the hill further, I’d pass them with their stop lights. Because the roads don’t always meet up, you personal stop light is generally off to the road and on your right, instead of hanging in the middle of the intersection (since not all the roads would be able to see it if it were). Furthermore, the intersection lights aren’t always green, yellow, and red. The first time we came to an intersection with different colors, we were quite confused, as they had failed to mention this in our driver’s training. Instead, they will have all white lights and the shape of the light indicates whether or not you can go. We quickly observed that a vertical white bar meant we could proceed, and a horizontal white bar was equivalent to a red light.

Gas:

If you are hoping to go on a weekend trip in Italy, you have to plan ahead for your gas, because Italian gas stations are not open on Sundays, and have very limited hours on Saturday mornings. So I would recommend purchasing it the Friday before, unless you are sure of a gas station’s Saturday hours.

Gas in Italy is also really pricey. For the military, we purchase gas coupons, which is at a discounted rate determined by the DOD. It basically means that we pay gas at the average American cost, not the average cost dependent on the Italian economy. Below are pictures of what our gas coupons look like. 

The coupons have different amounts in liters.

On the left you must fill out the date and sign it, in order for it to be valid.

When you arrive at a gas station, you pull up to an empty pump and wait for a gas attendant to come and assist you. You tell them how much you would like, pay for it (in our case, with the coupons), and then they fill your tank.

Parking in Italy:

            Italian cars are far smaller than American cars. My DH and I thought we were purchasing a small car when we got our Toyota Camry, but after arriving here we realize it’s rather large compared to Italian cars. Everything from cars, to roads and parking spaces are much smaller here. We have great difficulty squeezing into parking spaces. Parking spaces are also different colors. Blue means it requires payment and you must go in search of the often elusive ticket area. White is free parking, and pink is for expectant mothers! Below is a picture of my favorite parking spot! Well, spot plural I suppose, as this sign designates them in various locations. On base my designated parking spot is even closer than the general's. aw yea...

I feel like I see far more of these here than in the states. Why aren't there more?? lol

Police in Italy:

Police, or Carabinieri as they are called, are also different here than in the states. Although they do have cars with sirens and lights, the most common form of being pulled over comes from being flagged down. The Carabinieri are generally pulled off to the side of the road and standing outside of their vehicle. They flag you down by waving a sign that people have nicknamed “the lollipop”, as it’s a stick with a red circle on it. (see pic below. I did not take this pic but found it online, not sure how to site it…)

Picture not mine! stolen from google images... lol.

Once they have waved it at you and you pull over and talk with them, if they decide to fine you, you must pay it then and there (and I’m told fines are at least € 40). And yes, I’m told they have card swipe machines if you don’t happen to have enough euro on you.

 

 

Accidents:

            In Italy, if you see an accident or anything happen, you are required to render assistance (Hence the mandatory reflective vests and road triangles in your car). If a military member gets into trouble, a scrape or what have you on the road, we were given a number to call so they can send a translator to our location. (Thank goodness! I was concerned how I would communicate with someone if trouble arose…)

  

Alright, I believe that should cover just about everything. I’m sure I’ll remember something else odd later and wish I’d stuck it in here, but we’ll also gain more driving experiences the longer we’re here so a part 3 may happen many months down the road. I hope this was informative and helpful :) We have a three day weekend this week! So expect an update on our weekend adventures sometime either Tuesday or Wednesday. Enjoy your weekend!!!

Eating out in Italy - Part 2

See now I knew there would be a part two! This is a much shorter entry though. First off, the hot chocolate (cioccolata calda) here is amazing! It is more like pudding than what I’m used to in the states. It's almost as if they melted down a thick chocolate bar and put it in my drink. It is very delicious! (so naturally I took a picture)

I have learned that the price of your food in Italy can vary, depending on where and how you take it. For instance, if I go into a restaurant or café with a counter and order a drink, it will cost me less if I stand at the bar and drink it. If I sit it can cost more, and if I go further into the restaurant to a table and chairs, it will cost the most. The same applies to food. You can order food at the counter, but if you take it to a table and sit down, you will be charged more. So for the cheapest eating, simply stand at the bar.

Eating out in Italy - Part 1

I say part one, because I haven’t had too much experience with eating out yet, but I’ve already learned so much! I’m sure there’s much more to know and that is why I feel confident I can entitle this post “Part 1”, as more will follow.

I’d like to start by saying; we have an awesome sponsor family! When a military member or family moves to a new base, they are assigned a sponsor, someone who is already at the base and can assist them with questions and in-processing. As I mentioned in a previous post, arriving was a whirl wind, I was massively sleep deprived, still overcoming a cold, and super sore from general pregnancy aches emphasized by too many hours on various planes. After some rest I was doing much better and ready to take on tasks.

Yesterday evening our sponsors offered to take us out to dinner. We were excited to get off base and into the town and to get some real food, as we only had snacks in our fridge. They drove all the way to base to pick us up (as we don’t have a vehicle oor the ability to drive yet) I don’t recall the name of the place they took us to, but it was yummy!

It was most definitely a different eating experience than the ones I’ve experienced in the states, and I’ll highlight the differences here and hopefully give you some handy tips in case you get the chance to eat in Italy.

Firstly, Italians generally eat later than the average American, or at least, earlier than what I have been used to. The restaurant was just opening at 6 pm and stayed fairly empty while we were there. When we were leaving around 9 pm families were coming in with their small children, only just starting dinner! You may have noticed the time difference. We were there for a few hours. Italians generally have courses, and expect you to sit down, take your time, relax, and socialize while working your way through the courses. The menus I’ve seen generally have the appetizers, options for first course, options for second course, and then desserts.

At this restaurant (though I don’t know if this is common practice in Italian restaurants or just the one we went to) the owner and head chef, Mario, came out to give us his specials. In the states, specials were items already on the menu that had simply been marked down for the evening, however, here they seemed to be items he had invented for the day, as I wasn’t able to find them on the menu. He had come up with specials for each course and we could accept one, all, or none. Several of us at the table opted for his specials, and Troy and I got his appetizer special, which was eggplant with tomato and mozzarella cheese. 

After taking our order and returning to the kitchen, a waitress came to take our drink order. In the states, water is generally free. I believe it is law in many places to give people water. Here water costs, and if you ask for a water they will usually give you carbonated water. If you want un-carbonated water, you must specify your desire for “acqua naturale”. Water, both carbonated and un-carbonated alike, come in large sealed glass bottles. They gave me an entire liter, opened it in front of me, poured some into a very small glass, and then left the bottle at the table. Despite the tap water being perfectly fine and delicious, it is customary to serve bottled water.

         Bottles of both carbonated and natural water.                   

A full liter of water.                  

           

Also, there is really no such thing as “take-out” or “doggy bags”. I’m told that in more touristy towns they will oblige, and that Aviano, as it is close to base with so many Americans, is more understanding and won’t be offended if you ask, however, most places will get offended that you did not finish your food in the restaurant. Our sponsor family shared stories of this happening to their friends, and one woman even got kicked out and basically asked not to come back after she asked to take her wine and food home with her. In short, do not ask to take your food home, and do your best to clean your plate regardless of whether you like it or not. To leave food behind is considered rude and they may get offended then as well.

When I asked my DH for things to add to this post, his bit of advice was, "Share pizza". haha, short and to the point. Keep in mind that if you order a pizza, they generally come in one size only. The size seems about the size of a medium pizza in the states as you can get 8 large slices out of it. You can ask to share your pizza and they will give you split plates. (thankfully! Conquering one by yourself is rather a lot of pizza)

They do not bring a bill to your table or have you pay from your seat. Instead, at the end of the meal you go up to a cash register to pay. If they did not write it down, you inform them what you order. Also, you do not tip. Gratuity is generally already included in the bill. The only times when one might tip, is if it’s a restaurant or location that you visit often and are very familiar with, and you were provided exceptional service. In that case if you wish to tip you give the money directly to the person you wish to tip (and you’d likely be on a name basis with them as you frequent that restaurant).

At the end of our eating experience Mario came out and asked how we liked the food and if we’d like some Sgroppino. Sgroppino is a very common dessert drink in Italy. They are generally served in small glasses and are a very thick foamy white. Being pregnant I couldn’t have one, but Mario whipped me up something similar, just without the alcohol. However I did sneak  a small taste of the original, and it is quite delicious! It's got a lemon and light minty flavor, with a consistency as light as drinking cool whip. I can’t wait till the kid comes out and I can order them after dinners! Sorry I didn't get a picture, I will get one soon! In the meantime, if you go to google images you'll get an idea of what they look like. 

Hope that gave you some insight into eating customs in Italy =)