Since landing in the south of Italy in January, we have been keen observers of Italians and Italian culture. When you travel, you think you get a good sense of a place and its culture, but as we expected, living in Italy as a local definitely offers a more in-depth, authentic perspective.
I’ve previously shared some observations on Italian life from our North American perspective and have since gathered a few more insights. There is no end to the idiosyncrasies of Italian life, but these are some that have opened our eyes and, in some cases, have us still scratching our heads.
Lunch Break
So this is one oddity that’s difficult to understand as a North American where “lunch hour” often means 10 minutes at your desk shoving bites of a sandwich in your mouth and scanning emails (sigh). Italians take the lunch break (pranzo) as a sacred time to go home, eat lunch with family and then take a needed siesta. This is a multi-hour lunch break! Sounds nice, right? I’m not sure about you, but if I’m resting comfortably at home with a bowl of pasta and a glass of wine followed by a snooze, there is zero chance I’ll be returning to the workplace to finish my shift. But that is exactly what they do. We’ve been sipping wine on a patio when the proprietor shuts down the restaurant (fully closing a metal shutter over the whole front window), races home to get in a bite and a nap, all to return in the early evening to open back up and resume business. The best part is they will leave you sipping your wine with their glasses, plates and cutlery on the table so as to not miss a second of this coveted break. I’m sure in larger cities a 3 hour break isn’t normale as it’s harder to get home, but in the smaller towns we frequent, it is very common.
Driving Etiquette
My favourite way to describe Italian drivers is a group of individuals who are perpetually in a huge hurry to get nowhere and do nothing. Seriously. Remember, operating hours are quite unusual, infrequent and unpredictable, plus most businesses are closed around lunchtime until early evening. So typically drivers will be found speeding along country roads just to get home or to the only open establishment – either the cafe or tabaccheria. If you drive, you’ll frequently encounter a car riding your bumper and at the first available opportunity you’ll be passed at double the speed limit so the driver can pull into a roadside cafe to slowly consume an espresso. No one does anything quickly here (and much of that has to do with the excruciating heat in the summer) with the exception of driving. During the week, we’ve walked through towns that are for all intents and purposes closed, dead, finito. Nobody going anywhere, nobody doing anything, but drivers are still darting everywhere pedal to the metal. I can only assume a lot of this hustle comes from the sanctity of the lunch break (above). Speed is required when a home cooked meal is on the table, I guess.
Parking
By far the most fun observation you’ll make when becoming a local in Italy (or, let’s face it, even visiting for an hour) is the total disregard for parking rules, signage or, well, regard for pedestrians. In the south, car transport is almost essential as transit isn’t great, so everyone and their dog has a car. Hence, parking in a town can be a nightmare, especially in the high season when the panic to get to one’s destination is heightened by tourism. 
The basic parking rule, we’ve observed, is that there is no parking rule that cannot be violated with ease. If you are Italian (or bold enough to park like an Italian) you’ll be happy to know that where you need to be is exactly where you will find parking. It’s no coincidence. Cars park on either side of the street in the wrong direction, on a diagonal, on the curb, on a corner, jutting out at major intersections, perpendicular to all the other cars, in front of other cars (double or triple parking)…it all goes here! I have seen parking enforcement officials, but they are obviously few and far between so the risk isn’t too high if you want to stop at your favourite gelato place but need to park blocking a driveway and hoisted up on a curb to do so.
All in all, these are not hindrances to living in Italy, nor are they complaints, just observations that are keeping us entertained day in and day out. Living la dolce vita comes with constant amusement!