Scenes from an Italian Bathroom

When in Rome, squat as the Romans do.

Believe it or not, this is one of the nicer public bathrooms you will find in Rome. Here are the criteria I use to make that judgement:

1. toilet paper is supplied

2. Toilet brush is only slightly brown

3. There is a sink (not visible in photo) with running water and soap

Rome is not the city of plush public restrooms. Rather, it is the land of practicing the Crouching Tiger, hidden dragon pee. No toilet seat to be found. And don't be surprised if you get charged 30 or 50 cents to use one of these bathrooms either.

Your Way, Right Away, The Roman Way

Top ten reasons to live in Rome:
1-10: BURGER KING.

There are now ten Burger King locations in and around Rome. If the thought ever crossed my mind to move away from Italy, the option is now off the table.

I love the ad for the new Bacon Caesar Steakhouse sandwich, but I would never order it because the whopper cheese is and always will be my tried and true BK burger of choice.

Took this photo during a When In Rome Tours housecall at a hotel near Via Nazionale this morning, where this newest location just opened.

If you want your house cleaned properly, ask an Italian.

Italians are the biggest neat-freaks in Europe, according to a recent reportbuyer poll. This comes as no surprise to me at all, given how for years I have felt nothing short of inadequate when it comes down to it. While I like to keep a tidy house, and even have household help to assist a few times a week, somehow there is always a hairball (from the dog-I hope) in the hallway or laundry basket that has spilled out onto the floor.

When I visit Italian friends I just sit and admire their spotless floors, sparkling appliances, and clean-as-a-whistle windowframes, doorframes, shutters, you name it. A few friends have admitted that if you open up cabinets or drawers, all hell breaks loose as toys, clothes and other incriminating evidence spill out all over the place. Yet still they manage to keep up with the appearance of an impeccably clean casa.


According to the study, Italians clean their house (not tidy, CLEAN) four times a week. There are very few things I manage to do four times a week. Cleaning the house, sadly, is not one of them. Hence it will be a long time before I get my house in gear and challenge any of them to a Betty Crocker clean-0ff.

On another note, the obsession with cleanliness does not count once the threshold to the outdoors has been crossed. At least in Rome, the streets are still a public dumping ground. The north of Italy is a bit less dirty, but still covered with graffiti and trash.


Study results from Reportbuyer.com

Mafia Crocodile

Anyone who has seen the great mob hits like the Godfather, The Sopranos, Goodfellas, etc knows that Italian mafiosi will go to great lengths in the name of extortion.

From the $600,000 horse head in the bed of Godfather character Jack Woltz to the baseball-bat beatings dished out by the likes of Tony Soprano and friends, when it comes to making someone pay up, common sense should tell you that you don't want to mess with these guys.

In modern Italy, the mafia remains a reality but a subdued one that is often talked about but rarely actually seen. Once in a while, it rears its ugly head and when this happens, it does make headlines. Recently a 5.5 foot Crocodile was discovered near Naples in the home of a Caserta known mobster while police searched for arms and other implicating evidence.

According to the police, the crocodile is capable or snapping off a man's limb (or worse) with a single bite. Presumably the mobsters would take the animal along on occasions where more traditional money collection methods failed.

The suspect has now been charged with illegal animal posession, and the "pet" has been taken to an animal rehabilitation center.

photo care of elvis santana

When in Rome, Do as the Romans. When in Ghana, PLEASE Don't Poop on the Beach

Imagine you are sunbathing on this beautiful beach when a couple of guys stroll by, stop, squat, and "drop some friends off" on the sand next to you. Don't laugh, this could happen to you!

Most Africans are understandably not concerned with working on their tans. Despite the fact that the ocean is beautiful and the sand soft, the beach is there for taking the occasional swim, sometimes sleeping, and yes, public crapper.

Since they put up these signs (don't you love the visual?) the situation may have improved mildly, but there is still a ways to go. Must remember to think of this next time I start complaining about the public bathrooms in Italy.

Sorry for the segue from our usual When In Rome subject matter. I couldn't resist.

Italy: History, Food, Culture, and Toxic Waste?

The news from Italy today is by no means good. The associated press has reported that a shipwreck has been discovered off the coast of Calabria containing 180 barrels of toxic waste. The waste is believed to be tied to the Calabria Mafia , known as the 'Ndrangheta. According to the AP article, former mobster Francesco Fonti has told authorities that the 'ndrangheta has made millions of euro by sinking ships of radioactive waste on behalf of Northern Italian companies since the laws surrounding waste disposal became increasingly stringent and costly to comply with.

While this toxic discovery is truly bad news, it suggests that there is probably even worse news. Where there is one, there are probably many. Who knows how many ships full of radioactive material have been sunk in Italy without ever being detected? Since searching for them is extremely costly and difficult, we may never know. In the mean time, the radioactive waste will seep out into the water, make its way into the food supply of the ocean life and subsequently our own. Cancer, birth defects, and a whole slew of known and unknown dangers could result. In other words, our children (and most likely we too) are screwed.

image © Copyright Chris Allen and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence

The Gucci of Balsamic Vinegars...

Bertani balsamic vinegar that has aged for 40 years.

Amazing. The kind of stuff that makes me think why on earth did this sit in my cupboard for 3.5 years before I finally opened it and drizzled in on some fresh strawberries... Next will be over vanilla ice cream.

This is the kind of thing I would really miss if one day I didn't live in Italy.