After Three Months – Is Italy Still Perfect?

Living in Italy for three months has been invaluable. In some ways it is analogous to dating and considering marrying someone. Initially on the first few dates, one can be enamored with another person and they are perceived as perfect. With the passage of time, infatuation evolves to a deeper, meaningful, and accurate relationship. This is what we have found over the past three months.

Does Italy still hold the magical charm for us? In short, yes. Over the last three months we’ve found a new rhythm in life that holds a strong appeal. Our daily routine typically included discovery of new places. Italy is rich in history and natural beauty, so we seemed to have unlimited new places to discover and explore. In the evenings, we usually took a long walk around the pedestrian friendly historical center. Afterwards, we joined others in the piazza for an aperitivo outside. Interaction like this made meeting people an easy thing. Dinner was a bit later and was always a relaxed time to enjoy the food and talk.

As the end of our three months started to get close, we both found ourselves sad about leaving Italy. To be honest, we also had a longing to go back home to Texas. So, we ended up with conflicted emotions about returning home. Our mood would frequently bounce around with both excitement and periods of sadness. In the last week, we decided to make firm plans to return to Italy for another two months in the fall. Once we purchased airline tickets and made a commitment on an apartment to rent, a notable lightening of our conflicted emotions resulted.

Just like a potential partner in life will never be perfect, the same holds true for Italy. While we feel the positives aspects of Italy and her culture are overwhelmingly positive, there are a few things that we do not find as positive. 

One thing we have noticed is that a small subset of drivers tend to drive extremely fast and aggressively, which seems to us to be a bit paradoxical. Surprisingly, the fatal road accident rate is less than half that of the U.S. (~ 5.2 per 100,000 people in Italy versus ~12.0 in the U.S.). Perhaps Italian drivers are less distracted and less likely to be  intoxicated since Italian law has far more severe consequences and a lower acceptable blood alcohol limit for DWI.

Smoking is significantly more common in Italy than in the U.S. While prohibited for inside spaces, many outside seating areas are spaced closely together. This is part of the charm and facilitates social interaction. Most people that smoke are aware of this and will step away to an open area to take a smoke break.

Italy is very dog friendly. In historical centers, green spaces are sometimes limited. So, it is not uncommon for dogs to “do their business” in a pedestrian pathway. Almost all owners carry bags and clean up after their pet, but it is disappointing that there are some owners that do not do this.

 Excessive tourism can be a problem – yes, we are talking about ourselves too. Some cities have become even more popular and crowded. As a result, the city then changes to accommodate tourists. The authentic shops (ex. pasticceria, macellaria, tabaccheria) gradually become replaced with tourist souvenir shops. The city loses a part of its identity and authenticity. However for us, this is not a factor. For the three months we lived in Italy, we choose to live in a town that has some degree of tourism but is more off the beaten path. It is also easy to find places to explore that are not widely known  – non molto conosciuto.

Bureaucracy is frequently mentioned as a negative aspect of living in Italy. We really were never bothered by this. We did encounter it at times, but we always went in with the attitude that things would sometimes take more time and paperwork than we were accustomed to.

Taxes are substantially higher than in the U.S., but this is balanced by the lower cost of living. We found eating out and grocery shopping to be significantly less expensive that in the U.S. Perhaps being in a not highly touristed region (Umbria) and town is a factor in what we observed.

Despite Italy having a few things that we have found to be less than perfect, we still see it as a highly desirable country due to so many amazing attributes. We both think that the Italian culture and way of living are hugely positive. 

For now, we have decided to do the Schengen Shuffle. This allows us to spend up to three months in Italy, twice each year – without needing to obtain a visa nor becoming subject to Italian income taxes. Doing the shuffle is simple and uncomplicated.

Will we do the shuffle indefinitely? At this point, we really do not know. Experiencing three months back in Texas now, after having lived in Italy the prior three months, will give us a contrasting experience and another data point. 

Will we eventually decide to move to Italy full-time? We will see! – Chi sa, vedremo!