PCS To Italy – Here’s A Chunky Guide Of What To Expect

UPDATED MAR 2020. I’m not going to write too much of an intro because the post is long enough as it is, but here’s my guide of tips for moving to Italy from America. It’s chunky and full of opinions just like me. I’m just sharing a lot of the things you can expect when you move here. There’s no sugar coating or judgment of what is ‘good’ or ‘bad’, just what ‘is’ and it’s based on my experiences as an Aussie who has lived in both America and Italy and loves both. Hopefully, it can help people who are preparing to PCS to Italy.

PCS To Italy – Here’s A Chunky Guide Of What To Expect

Disclaimer

There are affiliate links included in this post. This means at no extra cost to you, I earn a commission if you book through the link.

How to make the most of your time in Vicenza

When it comes to planning your adventures, you can spend hours upon hours sifting through Facebook groups or you can download my Ultimate Vicenza Bucket List. It’s got 50 town adventures, 50 outdoor adventures, 50 4-day weekend ideas, 7 leave block itineraries, and 10 unique events.

With that list you will be completely prepared to make the most of your chapter in Vicenza and maxmize your adventures!

Riposo

Riposo is like a really long lunch break. Many businesses close for a few hours during the middle of the day – anywhere from about 12-3ish.

If you’re in a big, touristy city then many places will be open, but if you’re in a smaller city you might encounter more lunchtime closures.

It’s something to keep in mind if you’re out for the day and want lunch or are used to running errands on your lunch break.

Trash

While you’re in Italy you’ll be separating your trash into paper, plastic, organic, glass, and everything else.

There are different trash pick-up days for each of these. Usually, paper, plastic, and glass get collected monthly, the ‘everything else’ bin is twice a month, and organic waste you take to a brown bin near your house (you’ll see them everywhere).

There’s a good app to use for reminders. If your town isn’t on the app, you can just ask your local council or search ‘servizio rifiuti’ and your town for the schedule.

Phrases

If you’re moving to Italy from America, it’s really important to learn a few phrases because it is highly valued with Italians. Duolingo is a great app for this.

Greetings:

Buongiorno – good morning

Ciao – hello (informal – try to use Buongiorno more)

Buonasera – good evening

Salve – hello (in between formal & informal)

Arrivederci – goodbye

Grazie – thank you

Grazie mille – thank you very much

Useful when you’re out and about:

Chiuso – closed

Aperto – open

Saldi – sale!

Mi spiace – I’m sorry

The one I use the most:

Non parlo Italiano bene – I don’t speak Italian well

Repeat business

One thing I’ve noticed is that loyalty is appreciated and rewarded, at least in my local town.

If I go somewhere once or twice, the service is usually fairly cold. But, if they see I keep coming back and make an effort with the language, they soften right up.

Of course, I’ve experienced either extreme of this with some places being super accommodating right off the bat, and some places being rude every time, but for the most part, I’d say repeat business has led to great experiences for me.

Driving

Driving is crazy! I’ve said it a million times but the slow pace of life does not apply once they get behind the wheel of a car.

I think the best way to adjust to this is to know what to expect.

Expect ‘yield’ to be a loose guideline and people to cut in at every chance. You might want to develop a little aggressiveness of your own while driving too.

Watch how the Italians interact on the roads and try to sort of mimic that. If you go by the standards of where you’re from or expect it to be like that, you might never get anywhere and you’ll just be frustrated.

Roundabouts

If you’re moving to Italy from America, you might not have much experience with roundabouts but they are just a way to control the flow of traffic without traffic lights.

In America, you have the four-way stop, in other countries you have roundabouts.

They are pretty easy to figure out, you can look up the rules on YouTube, but basically, just yield to the left.

Highway tolls

When you’re driving on the Autostrada you’ll need to pay tolls. When you get on the highway you take a ticket, then when you get off, you put your ticket in and pay whatever the amount is.

Another option is to get a Telepass which will scan as you drive through and bill your account so you don’t need to take a ticket and pay each time.

This is a good site to estimate the cost of highway tolls for your trip.

When you drive to other countries, you might not be paying tolls. In some countries, you simply purchase a Vignette before you cross the border, usually at a gas station, and you have to display it on your windscreen. Here is a good site to find out which countries require a Vignette.

Train travel

Getting from city to city is pretty convenient with the trains.

I usually check Italo first because they tend to be cheaper, but you usually have to book a little in advance since they book up faster.

Otherwise, Trenitalia is my other go-to.

Here’s my full guide on how to catch a train in Italy to get you started.

Validate your tickets

If you buy your Trenitalia ticket at the station, don’t forget to validate it. There are small, green boxes around the station and you just stick the ticket in there (it’s pretty self-explanatory when you see it) and it will stamp your ticket to validate it.

If you’ve bought your ticket online, you don’t need to worry about this.

Here’s my guide on how to catch a train in Italy.

Cafe visits

At a cafe, you’d either take a seat at a table or stand at the bar to have your coffee. It’s not common to get a takeaway coffee and drink while you walk.

If you sit at a table, it’s usually slightly more expensive than standing, but not by much. I’m a massive tightass with money and even I sit down for my cafe trips. Many times you will place your order, sit down for your coffee, then pay at the end.

Latte

Latte in Italian is milk. Don’t order a latte if you want coffee. You could say ‘cafe latte’ instead.

Breakfast style

Breakfast, or ‘colazione’, at a cafe in Italy, is usually a coffee and sweet pastry, like a brioche. A far cry from the pancake stack with bacon and eggs you would get in America.

Tipping

You don’t need to tip in Italy unless you really love something and want to of course.

Usually, a ‘coperto’ or ‘servizio’ is charged when you eat out. You’ll see it on the receipt, and it is a service charge, kind of like a tip.

Take away

At some places that sell coffee and sandwiches in a takeaway type manner, e.g. at Autogrills or cafes at the airport or train stations, many times you will place your order at the cashier, then take the ticket to the side of the bar where the sandwiches are to pick up whatever you ordered.

If you’re unsure, just follow the flow of people.

Dining experience

One thing you’ll find when moving to Italy from America is that dining is much different. Most notably, it’s a much slower experience. You won’t be checked on a million times and rushed in and out.

You’ll be able to stay as long as you want and enjoy your meal. If you are in a rush, just keep that in mind and be a little more assertive in asking to order and for your check.

Where to eat

Look out for ‘Trattoria’ and ‘Osteria’ when you are looking for places to eat. At these you’ll usually find more traditional, homestyle meals – think just like mama made it, with bigger portions and cheaper prices.

At a ‘ristorante’ you usually pay more for less food.

The food is always good

We all expect Italian food to be amazing, and it is just as amazing as you would expect. Even the takeaway sandwiches at the Autogrill service stations are delicious.

The quality of the food at grocery stores is really good as well. If you want to try some new things, ask at your local deli counter and try a few new things.

The guy at my local deli is always giving me new food to try and even things I wouldn’t think I’d like are good.

Lack of food variety

The only downside with the food is the lack of variety available. Sometimes you get a choice between Italian or Italian, and when you live here sometimes you want something different.

In the bigger cities, you can usually find more variety but in a smaller place, it can be harder to find different cuisines, especially in places that are good.

Phone calls

One thing I’ve experienced is that sometimes it’s just easier to visit a place than call because it can be hard to get through to people on the phone.

Sometimes you have to call a few times before someone answers.

Buying groceries

When you are getting your fruit and veggies, you’ll put the food in a bag like usual, and take it to a sticker machine to weigh it and print the sticker.

On the sign for the food, there’ll be an item number and you put that number into the sticker machine and it will print you the sticker.

Bagging groceries

When you’re checking out at most grocery stores, you’ll bag your own groceries and pay for plastic bags if you don’t bring your own.

Look for local farms, wineries, markets

It’s a good idea to make an effort to check out the local farms, wineries, and markets because you will usually be able to find some great local products.

Some of my favorites include Enomas winery, Azienda Agricola Desy, and there are a bunch of markets around the place as well.

Sometimes you see signs out the front of a property with ‘verdure vendita’ or something similar, and those places are selling fresh vegetables from their farm.

Church bells

I love the church bells because they are a reminder that I’m somewhere new and different to what I’m used to. You’ll hear them each hour and half-hour, as well as special rings for other times like the start of the workday and funerals.

Each hour they ring one bell for each hour of the time (10 bells = 10 o’clock), and on the half-hour, there’s just one bell. If you don’t have a watch, it’s pretty handy.

Stink bug invasion

If you’re moving to Italy from America, get ready for stink bugs. Tanzania has the great wildebeest migration and Italy has the great stinkbug migration.

Around October, they migrate into your house. Lots of them. They’re trying to find warm places and you’ll get them everywhere.

They leave again after winter, and that’s when the great mosquito migration begins, but mosquitos happen everywhere so that’s not quite as unusual as the stinkbugs.

Customer service

The customer service in Italy is much different to America. In my experience, in America, you walk into a place and can expect to be greeted straight away and have someone ready to help you.

In Italy, you usually don’t get help unless you ask for it so you need to be a little assertive and just ask if you need anything.

Pets are allowed everywhere

You can take your dogs pretty much everywhere – on trains, in shopping centers, in restaurants, and even in many hotels. Expect to see lots of cute dogs out and about pretty much everywhere you go.

People are really nice to dogs too. Everywhere I’ve been people are always interested in my dogs and nice about them being there.

One of the coolest things about moving to Italy from America is that you can take your dogs just about everywhere.

Public toilets

Always keep a little change in your pocket because you need to pay to use some public toilets while you are out and about, usually only 50 cents to 1 Euro.

Also, don’t be surprised if there are no toilet seats – that’s fairly normal and you’ll get good at doing air-squat-hold maneuvers.

Nothing happens fast

Aside from driving, there is a slower pace of life in Italy.

You might have already heard about it because it’s overly romanticized in movies and travel blogs, and it’s a beautiful thing especially when you are on holiday, but it can be difficult when you live in Italy and need to get things done.

You’re already a step up by reading this because now you know to expect things to take longer than you’re used to. My other piece of advice is to constantly follow-up on things because it’s the only way things actually get done.

Petty crime

As far as crimes to be aware of, it’s mostly petty crime like car break-ins and pickpocketing.

Nothing major. Just keep your belongings close to you and zipped up in a bag when you are out, keep your car empty, keep your house locked up, and be vigilant in your area.

The Dolomites

If you love nature, you’ll love the Dolomites. It’s an absolutely stunning area of Italy and a must-see in my opinion!

For ideas of where to go, here’s my post on the best hikes in the Dolomites.

Agriturismo

Staying at Agriturismo’s can be a great way to travel, especially for weekend trips away.

At an Agriturismo you’ll get to stay on a farm, they usually offer meals and use and sell products that were produced on their farm. Two of my favorites are Agriturismo La Fontaccia in Tuscany and Berry House in Trentino.

Don’t expect it to be like where you’re from

My biggest tip for moving to Italy from America is to let Italy be Italy. I think it’s so important to manage your expectations. Don’t expect it to be the same as where you are from because it is a different country.

Accept it for what it is and be open to experiencing it as it is – the good, the bad, and everything in between, and try to be grateful for the experience.

Life is what you make it.

Other posts you might enjoy

• My Favorite Local Businesses In Vicenza That Will Make Your Life Better
• Cinque Terre Itinerary And How To Plan A Weekend Visit
• Don’t Miss This Amazing Italian Cooking Class In Umbria
• Day Trips From Vicenza – 5 Easy Public Transport Friendly Outings

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