DO's
1- Open your eyes
Italy is the place of many
contradictions, spanning from the South of Europe to the North of
Africa, it could not be different.
You will feel and see how it is
different to speak to someone from Milan or Trento, rather than with
someone from Rome, Naples or Palermo.
Looks also are kind of different,
though you could find as many blondes with blue eyes in Sicily as in
the North-east, that's because the normands conquered that part of
the country centuries ago.
Italy usually is Rome, Florence,
Venice, two days to visit each city and then maybe, if you have some
days left, a visit to the Chianti region or to Rimini and the
seaside.
This leaves the rest of Italy
completely unknown, which is a pity.
Thanks to low cost airlines, now it is
easier to go many times to the same place, so if you don't manage to
see le Cinque Terre or Sicily on your first visit, then you should
definitely keep it in the agenda for the next time.
A little treasure which is becoming a
must-see in recent years is the Giardino dei tarocchi
in Capalbio, south of Tuscany.
Created
by artist Nikki de Saint-Phalle, it is a coloured counterpart to the
Parco dei mostri in
Bomarzo, Viterbo, which is 2 hours from Rome.
Hippy
sculptures guide your way through the garden, which is open only from
April to October.
If
you do both gardens, then, once in Viterbo, you could take a train or
a bus to Calcata, a medieval village inhabitated by artists.
2- Trust public transportation
Though
every single Italian, including me, would complain about the National
train company or the rather awful public transportation service in
Rome, use it, because it will take you almost anywhere.
For
example, if for some reason you are staying in a hotel close to the
airport in Rome, you could save lots of money to spend in the trashy
gift shops around the Vatican by taking the local train which
connects Fara Sabina to Poggio Mirteto that stops in Roma S.Pietro.
It is a nice ride in the middle of the city, usually with a seat
available which is not always the same in the underground or on
buses.
If
you want to go to other cities, you just have to browse the different
choices you have, because maybe, if you want to go to the sea, you
will only have to take a train and a bus instead of jumping from
buses to taxis.
I am
presuming you are on a budget, if you are not, go take taxis, our
economy will be grateful!
3- Try to think out of stereotype
Most of Italians are loudmouth, fashion
addicted, overly tanned. But not all of them.
You will find the usual stereotype in
the usual places, but if you just move a little, you will be probably
suprised to find more hippy-like communities, this applies to places
like Pigneto in Rome and i Navigli in Milan or Piazza Santa
Margherita in Venice.
So, have your choice.
4- Be curious
Though it happens that people get
scammed or robbed, Italy is as dangerous as any other western
touristic place, so chill out and behave as you will do at home.
Be careful with your belongings as you
would be in Pittsburgh and feel free to go and check the only alley
which is not undersieged by tourist and souvenir sellers, it would
probably be a suprise.
Most of the cities in Italy have a Time
Out edition in English with things to do, and some of the major
cities have a free press magazine called Zero, which reports all the
nice things to do in Rome, Florence or Milan, and most of them are
free! So look out for those magazines, check the walls to see posters
of events, and you will add a different taste to your holiday.
DON'Ts
1-Go around in flip-flops
This is not because Italians are
fashion addicted, but it's because on the first place, flip-flops
worn in the city are ugly, and it implies that your feet are bound to
become dirty in five seconds and that they are open to whatever
accidents there could be around.
It is a must to avoid to wear them at
night if you want to get inside a decent place to eat.
Even Birkenstocks are better, but
please, not with socks.
2-Know your limits
This is a costume of some kind of
tourist, or students, who are not allowed to drink in their
homecountry and so decide that since there is not such a prohibition
in Italy, well, it is the time to go out of control.
Well, this does not give a good image
of you and your country, I have to say.
I mean, partying is great and Italy is
the place to be to do so, but please, know your limit.
If you feel that you want to throw the
last bottle you finished in the air to see what happens, then, maybe
that's a signal to stop drinking.
