5 Mistakes I've Made Living in Italy. DON'T Buy These Things!

[@laurettecastellano2830]

I am French speaking. I remember when l first started to learn italian l would get the verbs "to discover" and "to f***" mixed up. When l was on holiday in Italie l would say ho scopato la città instead of saying ho scoperto la città. Humiliating!

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

😂😂😂. Ho scopato la città ! You’re not alone. My wife said “rape the bank” the other day. Rapinare la banca is what she was thinking !

[@michaelz6870]

The fines in Italy are no joke! About 7-8 months after getting back from Europe, I received a letter from Italy and instantly knew "Oh sh!t, this can't be good...", all to find out 2 parking tickets from Rome and two speeding tickets from Florance successfully followed me home. Damn you, Sixt in Zurich, for ratting me out!

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Wow that’s a long time after the fact. Did you pay them ?

[@Sashazur]

Same thing happened to us with Sixt in Italy, with about the same amount of delay. It was a traffic ticket for driving in a bus lane. The Sixt office where we had to return the car was in a train station with no obvious way to get there on normal roads, and the GPS was no help. I think they were in cahoots with the local cops!

[@sanfedista1361]

Traveling as a broke teenager with two friends who'd never left the US. I thought we'd save a few bucks by not paying the subway in Milan. Of course a vigile approaches my two friends who spoke zero Italian and they deferred to me. I kind of tried to play that I didn't speak Italian either but after seeing our documents she assumed based on my name that I spoke or understood some Italian and didn't call over a second English speaking vigile. Once I saw that she wasn't going to just let us walk I started speaking in Italian and she immediately was able to pick out my southern accent. I pleaded that I saw many others just walking through without paying and she let us off the hook with a warning. As you said just because others are doing it doesn't make it right.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

I think you making an attempt to speak Italian saved you there!

[@sanfedista1361]

After having visited and even living in the deep south. I traveled from the States to northern Italy for the first time and attempted to order a latte di mandorla on a hot day. The barista basically chuckled and explained that's a southern thing and it would be difficult to find in the north.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Eh no! I can't see a lot of coffee bars making that kind of coffee in the South! When you say deep South do you mean the USA?

[@sanfedista1361]

Specifically southern Calabria. It's actually a sweet almond milk commonly served cold throughout calabria and Sicily. It's a very refreshing treat in the summer. I just assumed at the time that it is served throughout Italy. Btw guessing that you're a Bruins fan if so your boys beat a very talented Carolina last night congrats. Buona giornata.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Ah you must mean Orzata. Yea it is tasty and it's mainly a Southern thing. Unfortunately I don't follow the Bruins anymore and it's really because I am so far away and I am never awake when the games are on. But anytime they beat the former Hartford Whalers I am happy!

[@jrthiker9908]

HAHA! I had the same run-in with Roman baristas when ordering a drink from another region of Italy. First was un caffe' in ghiaccio....from Lecce/Puglia, basically shot of hot espresso poured over ice with a packet of sugar in a highball glass, quick stir, and you down it quickly. Very refreshing in the hot summer instead of a caffe' normale. The Roman barista looked at me like I was crazy and said in no uncertain terms "we do NOT do that here in Rome!" The second was after working summers in Lucca/Toscana I fell in love with the Lucchese favorite macchiatone, basically a caffe' macchiato with a little more milk, but not as much as a cappuccino. Sort of weird in between drink when you don't want much milk but more than the foam of the macchiato. I got the "nnnno!" with a quadruple N raddoppiamento and the finger wave. Just discovered your videos, David...really great content and very helpful!

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

@@jrthiker9908 welcome to my channel ! Oh yes. Coffee culture here in Italy is sacred. Unfortunately I’m a traditionalist so I haven’t explored these regional differences

[@FrankFiorentino]

If you want to live in a city center, make sure you visit the area at night and specifically on weekend nights. You might be in for a surprise at the noise level difference and how late it stays noisy. My wife and I are both dual citizens and moved to Italy from the US 2 years ago (with no intention of going back) and made this mistake. Our failure was we moved during a covid red zone and when restrictions were lifted, everything changed.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Oddio mi dispiace! That's actually great advice. Thank you. I could say the same given that across from my building there is a pub and a pizzeria. When there are important soccer games it's a zoo. Where do you live in Italy?

[@FrankFiorentino]

@@DavidsDoseofItaly We currently live in Torino but made an offer on a home in the city of Cuneo. We will know in the next couple of days if we are moving soon. Let me know if you ever find yourself in Piemonte.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Hey, that sounds pretty cool. I know virtually nothing about cuneo except that its close to France. Are you planning on visiting the city and spending some time there before you close on the house?

[@FrankFiorentino]

@@DavidsDoseofItaly About a year ago I got my Italian drivers license and we bought a car affording us easy access to exploring various locations. We knew we were set on Piemonte. We are outdoor oriented and like to be close to the mountains for winter sports and easy access to good cycling. Cuneo was the first city we visited after moving to Italy and after 1.5 years of exploration (via train and car), we decided that Cuneo checks off all the requirements for us. We have spent many days there and did some overnights. As a city it offers us all the services we need, keeps us close to our core group of friends in the region and brings us closer to family in Liguria. It is off the foreign tourist map which we also like.

[@buioso]

I can't help myself, every time i see your face i see a short haired Beinicio del Toro, who is by the way one of my favourite actors

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

You aren’t the first and last person to tell me that ! 😄

[@giovannimoriggi5833]

Dear David, I recommend you Raiplay and channel like Rai3, Rai5 (art. culture, nature), RaiStoria (history and culture), RaiScuola (culture, science and educational stuff). The last 3 has no Ads. Rai is a big cultural treasure, trust me!!!

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Sure I will agree that occasionally there are interesting things on Rai. That I could exist just fine with very little TV. I will admit, though that KZbin is a form of TV at least there we can hand pick what we want to see

[@giovannimoriggi5833]

@@DavidsDoseofItaly La differenza tra YT e un'emittente televisiva come la Rai (aldilà ovviamente dei contenuti premium) è che YT consiglia cosa vedere in base alle tendenze dell'individuo, per tutti gli individui (anche i più discutibili), mentre Rai sceglie e produce i contenuti in base a presupposti di servizio culturale. In pratica, Raiplay è un ottimo spacciatore, ed offre contenuti sulla cultura e sulla storia italiana che su YT non esistono, e non potrebbero nemmeno esistere per una serie di ovvî motivi. Perciò mi sono sentito in dovere di consigliartela, perché si tratta di qualità a metà strada tra servirsi di YT e leggere buoni libri, ed è un'industria culturale che è parte e simbolo fondamentale dell'Italia quanto Dante, il calcio, le lasagne e il Colosseo (ma li contiene tutti)

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Ti dico la verità Giovanni. Mi ha ispirato l’idea di non comprare la televisione o meglio guardarla perché per quanto ti programmi utili e interessanti ci sono sulla Rai ci sono altrettanto problemi inutili. Quindi tra quelli e programmi che ti potrebbero insegnare qualcosa sia sulla Rai sua su KZbin preferirei essere istruito e intrattenuto nello stesso momento.

[@chuckswaim]

That's cool you dig Star Trek! I'm a Star Trek fan too! Thanks for the tip on bike riding Rome. Good pep talk about living in Italy!🙂

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Absolutely! I could watch deep space nine voyager and the next generation repeatedly and I frequently do! Of course that’s more difficult when you have a toddler in the house. Yes seriously on the hole I am not a fan of bike riding in Rome. While there are plenty of good roads very often it is frustrating to ride a bike here

[@tinag7381]

Excellent video☆☆ The mistake that immediately came to mind is once I forgot to validate my train ticket! I was so tired and it was late coming back from SanRemo to Genova. The ticket checker/conductor (?) was quite funny and in my broken Italian I feigned that I was having a heart attack bcz I thought he said 50€ fine. Thankfully it was only 5€. I never made that mistake again. Also, good to know, as at one point I thought about renting a bicycle on one of my trips to Rome. It's bad enough when I was walking on a side walk in Trastevere, wasn't looking carefully where I was walking, and walked right into a small tree that was cut down to almost a stump. I've had lots of fun injuries whilst on my journeys over there. Barring any other changes the Health Ministry over there, I hope to be in Italy mid June and staying for a month. Lazio e Campania. Ciao.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Thank you Tina! I always appreciate reading your comments! Oh yes that is a reality if you are walking or riding a bike on the sidewalks here. You can expect to find some sort of bump tree or tree stump. Things are looking good for travel this summer so hopefully we can meet up! Take care

[@heloisaheng3189]

i wonder why there was no ticket gate at the train station, I didn't know the rule of validating my ticket at the yellow machine when i was in Milan. the officer stop me when i want to pass the gate to exit, and they checked my ticket saw no stamp and gave me a fine of €47! that was crazy, i don't know how you got only €5. It is too much for a poor asian. No where make the rule obvious, no signboard, how am i going to know the rule, but no one listen to my explanation and no mercy given .. sad.

[@cleliataylor4483]

Gracie David. Greatly appreciate your informative videos. Visiting for a month in April to explore towns in search of a place to call home along the Adriatic coast. Quite excited about the adventure.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Hi Clelia. Thank you 😊. That sounds like an awesome vacation ! I think a month is a good length of time to do this exploring and also I like that you are going to lesser-known places in Italy unfortunately, I haven’t seen much of the Adriatic side. Needless to say, I still have plenty of places I need to explore in Italy!

[@Swift_Kick_in_the]

Another great video. You spoke of teaching language when you first got there. What was that like and is it full time/part time, etc. If you already made a video, please let me know. I'll find it, but I'd love to hear about it. I'm a teacher here in CA so education is interesting to me. Thanks again.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Thank you! So when I first came here in 2009 I worked at a private language school in Naples. I don’t know if I can say if I worked part time or full time because when you teach here at a private school you can expect to work anywhere between 4 to 6 or even more hours per day. My average was always around five I believe but it has varied greatly from almost nothing to absolute chaos. My best advice to anybody who is looking to teach here is first and foremost, try and get into the public sector because if you can work in the public schools basically you have a job for life. The first thing to do is to validate all your foreign titles and degrees. Then you do a public examination and also you need to do a lot of substitute teaching to gradually work your way up the ranks where you have built up enough points and it puts you in a better position to be hired full-time and permanently. I worked briefly in the public schools however I was employed by a private school who had had contracts with public high schools. After a few years I decided that I couldn’t handle the stress of working in the local high schools and so I went back to small private schools and that’s where I am now. Now as far as long-term goals are concerned always make sure that you’re moving forward be it a promotion or becoming the Director of studies or something of a like. Eventually you should try and either open up your own school or market the skills you have as a teacher. The latter is something I have on my mind. Personally I am a bit burnt out but it’s because I’ve been teaching for 12 years and even from the beginning it never really was a passion of mine. I get much more satisfaction out of this KZbin channel! Anyway I hope I haven’t dissuaded you from teaching! I have made a small playlist of the videos in regards to teaching. Click on them and let me know what you think. Grazie!

[@jaimieoxford8212]

One thing you have to do is if you don't speak it at least become familiar with it: Romanaccio. A mistake I made was not understanding that in Rome open ended questions are never asked. I never made these particular mistakes but yep the beaurocracy stuff is enough to drive anybody fuori di testa and the vigili are a real nightmare too. Good video.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

The problem I have with the lingo here in Rome is that I never really learn it. The reason why is because I don’t really have a lot of Roman friends and the ones I do have I don’t see them as often as I’d like. Also my wife is from Sicily so another reason why my ears are not getting used to the way they speak here. Can you give me an example of an open ended question did that Romans don’t like? In regards to the fine I got in San Saba it actually went very well and my encounter with the ausiliari del traffico went well.

[@jaimieoxford8212]

@@DavidsDoseofItaly Can you give me an example of an open ended question did that Romans don’t like? It's not that they dont like them but it's more formal. As an English speaker you always expect an open ended question from a stranger in the street. In Rome this almost never happens.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Heh, sorry. At times I use the voice recognition to type my questions and it spits out random words! I still don't quite get the concept. What kind of open ended question would an English speaker expect?

[@22Jeffreyb]

Thanks David. When we meet, I would like to chat about me buying a place in Italy to call my own. See you soon.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Sure I’ll do my best to try and point you in the right direction. Take care!

[@rosaliegalasso791]

I was a student in Rome, many years ago, I bought a train ticket for Torino, and I thought that got me a seat! NO it didn't, I just got on a very crowded train and had to stand up most of the way! It was a long train ride too. No one told me to buy a ticket AND a seat reservation. Now on the Freccia Rossa ecc.... it isn't necessary. But in 2012 while in Perugia, I got on a very crowded local train and had to crowd in and stand up all the way to Firenze.....I had thought that problem was solved!?

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

That's contorted logic. I buy a ticket and NOT a seat? there has to have been a logical reason. Maybe there was limited space and so they also sold standing room only seats.

[@rosaliegalasso791]

@@DavidsDoseofItaly This was 1975, who knows, but I got on a crowded train in Roma, without one seat available, they had those side seats on the isle where one would walk from car to car and I pulled one of those down and sat for a little bit, my relatives told me when I got into Torino, to buy a seat reservation too along with the ticket, the ticket was just for the ride with no guarantee of a seat... they would stuff those trains like sardines in those days....and it took 9 hours to get from Roma to Torino in those days....some trains were 11 hours. I love Rome!

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Oh yes I know the kind of train that is. That’s why now I always pay bit extra and take the fast trains

[@poemseinsteinpoems]

I love love Italian tv especelly the reklam (reclam?)they always sounds so exited!When we were in northern Italy they only had german channels and I wanted to cry it was so boring i wanted the italian language to explode in my ears at evning when coming home..

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Explode in your ears 😄. I have never heard that before!

[@hbp_]

haha, I have done a lot of biking in Rome. Imo many drivers give a lot of way compared to some other countries. Though, I prefer to go outside of Rome. Areas around Tivoli or Parco dei Castelli Romani are very cycling friendly and hundreds of people go there every day 😁

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

This is true. Roman drivers don't on purposely aim for the bike riders even though they are annoying.

[@lidiahass2925]

My mums family originate from Sparanise. I used the word( phonotactally sharshelle ) and my uncle burst out laughing! It was mommas name for carne as a child and also must use Ban y o for toilet/cloakroom

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Hi Lidia. My family was from Camigliano. Not too far away. I am not familiar with the word you mispronounced. Must be from dialect.

[@mojitobevandanazionale7059]

Ganzo!, mi diverto a vedere i tuoi video. Bravo!

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Ganzo ! Se non mi sbaglio queste parole si dice di più in Toscana. Vero

[@mojitobevandanazionale7059]

@@DavidsDoseofItaly Si, Toscana.

[@gueyshart5476]

When I was in Italy with my husband the mistake we made is not letting the bartender know we want our coffee to go 😂 they don’t ask. So when we decide they are so mad 😂😂

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

😂😂. Well they don’t get that request too often !

[@ehulbert5]

You need to let that American habit go, drink it on the spot and be done with it.

[@vasquezadventures]

I didn't know you were a Trekkie! Me too, TNG.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Totally! TNG is my favorite followed by voyager Id say. Although I love them all really

[@vasquezadventures]

Agreed! I hope you've seen the new Picard series. Season 3 debuted on the 16th.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

I saw the first season more or less but something put me off. I think it may have been a detachment from the original next generation series. Next generation episodes, always dealt with some sort of moral issue, or a humanistic topic. I didn’t quite get that from Picard.

[@ChiaraDBrown]

@@DavidsDoseofItaly Have you checked out Season 3? They make a complete 180 - it's Star Trek again!

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

@@ChiaraDBrown no I haven’t. Thx for the tip!

[@hbp_]

About mistakes. I think the biggest mistake I have made was to not immediately get an Italian ID card. A passport or EU ID cards are technically sufficient but it always makes things harder because it's harder to verify foreign IDs and on top of that you can't use CIE. Now you can use SPID ofc, but what **** show it was when my old passport expired and the SPID stopped working just before the census. Another added benefit is that you look less outsider whenever you need to present your ID. Even the police/carabinieri will drop the tourist mode when they see your Italian ID.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Yeah I waited a few years before getting my Italian ID. Very true. Italians prefer Italian documents for the most part. How did you SPID stop working ?

[@hbp_]

@@DavidsDoseofItaly so once the passport expired my SPID started to show an authentication error. Then I logged in to the website of the provider and it was requesting a new Italian ID 😁 I went to Poste and they told I'll need either an Italian ID or a passport. At that point I didn't have either.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

@@hbp_ oh that is a nightmare. So what did you do?

[@hbp_]

@@DavidsDoseofItaly I just lost the SPID and never tried to fix that. I got the Italian ID card a few months later. Like you might have heard it was really hard to get one during the worst time of the pandemic. I already had one appointment more than a year ago but their computer system crashed. Then about 8 months ago I booked a new appointment and finally got the ID some weeks ago. Now they have those kiosks where you can do everything in a few hours without an appointment 😁 About the census... nothing. The deadline passed and they never showed up at our door, which I understood should have happened 🤷🏼‍♂️

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Oh Lord, what a nightmare! Yeah. What should have happened and what actually happened are two different things in Italy!

[@meditationbreath]

ciao David thanks for posting--- lol car park--- and internet --both your replies are in my defense oh david--there is NO defense lol

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Hey Paul. No defense ? How come ?

[@angelobruno8798]

Your accent is perfect

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Thank you 😊. Although I have plenty of days where I clearly sound like an American

[@pompey333]

Oh wow that parking meter is almost the same as the one in my city.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Where is your city?

[@norma8686]

I don't know why you included buying a TV as a mistake. Maybe you should've said that anyone that owns a TV in Italy has to pay the canone to the Rai television, no exceptions (there are a few but most people have to pay). I'm Italian and we have 2 TVs in our home, I don't watch it much but my husband does as do many Italians. I think buying a TV or not is just personal preference, doesn't matter where you live.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Buying a TV is definitely personal preference yes. I decided to include this one because I truly believe that all we need for entertainment in News is an Internet connection. I also think that we should all be reading more than watching TV but that’s a whole other discussion. I also mention Netflix in the video but to do that all we need is a computer and not a TV or we are forced to pay the annual tax. Granted the tax isn’t hugely expensive but it is avoidable. If you’re looking at a description of the video I did explain a bit more as to why I included TV in this video. But yeah I figured not everyone was going to agree with me on this one! In the end I don’t judge anybody who watches TV absolutely not. However I don’t think it should be our only source of entertainment.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Exactly. Pure Italian TV for me is boring (most of it) and there are too many talk show style shows. I also don't like Italian music so that alienates me from a lot of what gets put on the air. Viva internet!

[@CandyBimatic]

Ohh David, you were very lucky with those fines and this is because you are in Rome !!! If you were here where I live, parking in the lane divider area, for sure you would not have found any fine on the windshield of your car ... but only because you would not have found your car anymore, it would have been removed and taken to a deposit and to get it back you would have paid: the fine, the tow truck for removing the vehicle and even the time the car was left in the deposit! Considering the habits of drivers in Rome, if there were our traffic police in Rome, applying our standards, I guarantee you that 90% of car owners would lose sleep for the amount of fines they would have to pay every day! Traffic and bad driver habits were two of the reasons I refused to live in Rome ...

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Ya know what? I prefer that system. The biggest problem here and elsewhere in Italy is a lack of consequences for illegal actions. What's to stop you if no one else is going to hold you responsible for your actions? It reminds me of Pinocchio and the kids he was with when they went to pleasure island. They wrecked the place. And why not? There were no adults to stop them.

[@CandyBimatic]

@@DavidsDoseofItaly For sure with "our" system Rome would be more livable... I don't see any positive "cultural" thing in that mess... cars averywhere and mad traffic... for sure one, if not the most beautiful city in the world deserves much more attention and respect from its inhabitants and I am not talking about cars parking issues only!...

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Yes. It is neglected. There are cultural corners and places where it exists but Rome certainly has its rough edges.

[@RicMorn]

The problem is that Rome is simply not equipped for sustaining such a large population and there’s no real solution about it, unless you stop caring about the history and start destroying things, which is not a very good plan.

[@CandyBimatic]

@@RicMorn A good plan would be that if you want to live in an Historical centre you HAVE TO put in mind that you HAVE TO give up to many comfort that modern cities can offer such as parking your car in front of your home door, stop driving big SUV thatvdo not fit into the intricate narrow streets, being free of modifying buildings or build new ones ect ect. Living in an historical city should be a choice and not a fact just because family is from the place... you as a person must be ready to fit in an historical city because the city to be preserved as a monument will never be modified around your needs!

[@Brancato8]

Does Italy recognize the handicap placard from California? When I was in Sorrento I put the handicap sign on the car I parked in the handicap spot and still received a ticket what do you think I did wrong?

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Interesting question. I think officially they're supposed to give you a ticket because it's not a handicapped placard that they recognize even though the image is universal. So they did their duty, however you could also encounter a cop who looks at things logically and thinks, "handicapped is handicapped everywhere".

[@CandyBimatic]

You should go to any police office in Italy or whithin the EU and ask them for a copy of the document based on the one you have that state you have the right for it... then you'll have the European version valid through all European Union and Shengen area countries. 😊

[@daviderossi5871]

Wow, il tuo italiano è davvero perfetto, sembra che tu sia madrelingua

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Grazie! Faccio i miei errori ogni tanto.

[@noeyg9457]

So let me ask you, if I moved to Italy 🇮🇹. Can I bring my stuff list my bike, tvs, kitchen stuff and even the bed. Like bring everything to Italy????

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

That depends if you’re rich ! I wouldn’t to be honest. Just take clothing and some personal belongings like your PC and stuff. Don’t forget your Tv might not work with the European electric current.

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

What mistakes have you made in Italy or where you live?

[@fabianpatrizio2865]

working out where to park! No matter which city in the world...it's always an arduous journey trying to find a spot and seeing if it's legal to park there :)

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Exactly! Just the other day I had to make three passes before I settled on parking in an area where I risked getting a fine!

[@simonezampa9239]

it' much more convenient to not pay blue lines in big cities. they often don't check every day and even if you take fome multe at the end of the year probably you spend less than paiyng every ticket every time

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

I prefer to pay them asap. I hate having them above my head

[@nadir8804]

Some bar tenders/ business owners near the parking places often warn their customers when they see the vigili arrive for ticket inspection and so customers rush to buy their tickets only then.

[@nunziawright6442]

They should have said put your ID on it. This is Italy. ouch hated it

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Yeah seriously. It would have been much more helpful

[@it7686]

Lol. Try riding a bike in Amsterdam

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

I did that in 2015. It was a very nice experience, and I like how the city is set up for bike riding.

[@hope7237]

ok i'm starting to think you live in my neighbourhood

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Yeah ? I’m in Trastevere

[@hope7237]

@@DavidsDoseofItaly ah no , i thought Eur

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

@@hope7237 I work in Eur

[@Greg-yw7io]

9:20 biggest mistake I made was being born here

[@DavidsDoseofItaly]

Where would you prefer to have been born?