EVERYTHING about Italia is beautiful, historical and educational. I can’t begin to express the sadness we already feel in leaving Rome in three and a half weeks. Our life here has been a blessing for us all. However, living abroad has a few wee challenges. Here are just a few things we undoubtedly, will not miss.
Vehicle Alarms – as we live in the Centro, on the very urban Via del Babuino, our street is lined with the vehicles of lucky locals, who openly praise Jesus if they find a spot to park for the night. (There aren’t any underground garages [there are sure to be many a historic ruin below ground that are not allowed to be disturbed] or above ground lots in the Centro.)
Every now and then, in the middle of the night, the vibration of a large vehicle driving over the cobblestones affects a parked vehicle and triggers the vehicle alarm. The alarm wakes our entire neighborhood. We might as well all get up, have a cappuccino together and talk about soccer or mozzarella deliveries from Campagna while the poor sap figures out it’s his vehicle, finds the alarm key and shuts it off.
Instant Hot Water Heater – instant can mean many things in Italy – it can mean immediately, it can mean in 5 minutes, it can even mean in 20. So these particular tools are either instant, or they are not. We waste a tremendous amount of water, waiting for the hot water to kick on, stay on (this is key) and make it to the various destinations in our apartment. If our neighbors, back home in America, saw the amount of water we wasted, on a daily basis, we’d be shunned. Thankfully, the washing machine and dishwasher have internal hot water heaters.
Power Adapters – Italy, France, Britain… every country has their own power adapter. We found a heavy-duty adapter that has interchangeable pieces for each European country, which works great when we remember to pack it. We’ve heard a legend of a two-prong European adapter that is supposed to fit in every country. However, we’ve found, that’s just a legend.
Cobblestones – the soothing sound of the horses clip clopping over the cobblestones every day, as they pass our apartment, with excited tourists, is rather romantical. Cobblestones are beautifully textural, injecting instant charm into every photo.
Cobblestones.Chew.Up.Shoes.
Wear Vibram soles, and you’re safe. Enough said.
Hard Mattresses – Italians believe in an extra, extra firm mattress. There’s just no bounce. None. Whether in a pensione, hotel or apartment – you’re going to experience it. We really should have replaced our mattress the first week we arrived, or at least the second. Luckily, our kid’s mattresses are softer. I kid you not; I sleep on a bed of pillows.
Transportation Strikes – not always well communicated and sure to throw the entire city into a bad mood. These strikes rarely affect us, as our kid’s school offers a private bus service (thank you, thank you, thank you!) and my husband and I walk everywhere in the Centro. A couple times a week, we take a train to meet our son at baseball practice and that’s when we are majorly inconvenienced by strikes. Fortunately, we do have the option of using a taxi. Not many Romans have that option. I ooze empathy for the entire Roman population on strike days.
Warning: if you don’t want to read my rant and rave (I even swear a little) about Tour Groups, you can finish right here.
Tour Groups – they are a pain in the ass! My number one frustration in all of Rome. Tour groups clog the already thin and tiny sidewalks, stop and whip around unexpectedly for photos, and do not understand proper travel etiquette. Sure, all 20 of you go to the taxi stand, endear yourselves to the locals. Enter the little gelateria or forno demanding a taste of this and that. Gather around the cash machine, trying to take money out in Italian, rather than your mother tongue and make mistake after mistake giggling and showing your fellow tourists. By all means, speak slower and louder to the wait staff – that’ll make them understand whatever language you speak. Someone needs to create an umbrella use manual – the tour groups are the worst.
In Rome, there ought to be a law - a limit of 10 people in a tour group and each tourist should have to take a test after memorizing an instruction booklet on how to behave, and an oral exam on the use of essential Italian words. If you can’t pass, go to Disney World.
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