You Know You Live In Italia When...

I have seen a few lists of this variety recently and I believe that my recent move back to Italia in a hope to make this wonderful country a permanent home gives me the right to create one all of my own. Let’s forget for a second that I am really struggling to remember the language (though I have the grammatical sussed!)

Enjoy!

1. You go into the kitchen with wet hair and everyone assumes you are just looking for a hairdryer  because you couldn’t possibly be thinking about just leaving your hair to air dry!
2. You get strange looks when you take off your shoes, even if you are in the house. 
3. Dinner time is a special occasion lasting up to or sometimes over an hour, everyday… where everything comes on separate plates and by the end of the meal you forgot what you started eating one hour ago. 
4. Having cake for breakfast is perfectly acceptable! 
5. You MUST remember to wrap up in a jumper, scarf, gloves, hat, coat, thick socks and of course outdoor shoes before even contemplating stepping outside for a second when its cold. 
6. If you don’t want a snack every other hour you must be sick and very genuine and urgent concern is paid.
7. Sleeping in past 9am is seen as well and truly alien. 
8. Being unsure about your religion is really dangerous territory (I don’t think I’m going to elaborate on that one!) 
9. The logic of being able to buy a bus ticket…. Heaven forbid! …on the bus! Is just insane… obviously you must find a tobaccoria and purchase said biglietti from said shop. 
10. You will realise that people will not understand your Italian (no matter how excellent) without appropriate and expected hand gestures. 
11. You begin to only drink coffee much in the way you would drink shots at a bar on your birthday. Down in one and ready for another!
12. Going shopping, for anything, is a full on ordeal involving several different shops for things you would find all under one convenient roof in other countries.
13. A push bike is once again an accepted and widely used method of transport (I especially enjoy this one)
14. You are automatically aware of what times it is appropriate to eat. For example: Eating Dinner before 7pm is pure madness! Not to mention trying to find an open restaurants for lunch after 1.30pm.. Good Luck!