4 days ago
La Bella Vita: Signs summer has arrived in Italy and a guide to Italian bars and cafes
La Bella Vita is our regular look at the real culture of Italy – from language to cuisine, manners to art. This newsletter is published weekly and you can receive it directly to your inbox, by going to newsletter preferences in 'My Account' or following the instructions in the newsletter box below.
After weeks of changeable weather, showers, and unusually cool temperatures, especially in northern regions, sunny and hot conditions are expected across much of Italy this weekend.
But as parts of the country prepare for highs of 37-38C over this fine settimana, beach weather isn't the only thing you can look forward to.
At the start of summer, as the mercury soars, Italy suddenly starts to look and feel different in many different ways.
From loud music at bars and beach clubs everywhere to the return of summer footwear like sandali and infradito and supermarket shelves bursting with seasonal fruit, we listed just some of the signs that summer has well and truly arrived in Italy.
Whether you live in Italy or plan to visit this summer, you can expect to be spending plenty of time in Italian bars and cafes - either to cool down in the hottest part of the day or to bask in the late-afternoon sun while sipping on a refreshing tipple.
You may already know the difference between a caffè macchiato and a marocchino and the acceptable time of day to order a cappuccino, but there's more to Italian caffe-bar culture than knowing the correct names of the most popular beverages.
Here's a handy guide to the unspoken rules around visiting an Italian bar or cafe.
Italy is known for being a particularly religious country and for having a generous number of public holidays.
So you may find it strange that Pentecost Monday, which commemorates the descent of the Holy Spirit upon Jesus's disciples, isn't a national holiday, especially because it does grant residents a day off in several European countries, including Austria, Germany, France, Spain and Switzerland.
But why isn't Lunedì di Pentecoste a national holiday? We looked into the reasons for it in the article below.
