Going back home: the differences

After two and a half years, a pandemic, a pregnant sister that I never got to see, a new nephew that I hadn’t met yet, two cancelled flights, and three failed attempts, I finally went back to the USA and got back to Rome last week. For the last seven years of living in Italy, I’ve visited “home” on average once a year and I’ve experienced reverse culture shock before. However, by now I’ve been Italianized so much and had been gone for so long that I’d almost forgotten the differences between Italy and the USA. Here are in my opinion the top five differences.

1. The first thing you notice the moment you step out of the plane and into the airport is the freezing air conditioner. I think only in the US do you have to put on a sweater indoors in the summer. And not just at the airport as a nice welcome but everywhere you go: the supermarket, restaurants, my mom’s house, etc.
2. The size of everything. Everything from food items, such as milk, pizza, and portion sizes in general; home appliances like the industrious washers, dryers, and air conditioners we have; to stores and supermarkets; and finally clothes, as an American small is a European medium, an XL is XXL, and XXXL probably just doesn’t even exist in Europe, all to accommodate the problem of obesity.
3. Which brings me to the third point, something that can be combined with the second point: the size of people. Obesity is in fact a problem, an increasing one at that. Sad but true.
4. Next is the clothes people wear – people just don’t care, especially in Florida where it’s hot and comfort is chosen over aesthetics. Coming from Italy, the capital of fashion, this one shouldn’t be a surprise. Italians always say they recognize American tourists a mile away because of our clothes: shorts, T-shirt, and sneakers or even flip flops. In South Florida, we often look like we’re going to the beach regardless of where we’re headed.
5. Last of course but not least is the food. This time around especially, I noticed how bland and chemical-ridden the food in the States is. I’ve gotten used to simple, fresh, and tasty cuisine that I found most of the food rather tasteless, even things I used to like. I guess we can also say that Italy is the food capital of the world so hard to beat.

There are a couple of things that the US beats Italy in by a long shot, and they are the two things that I miss most from home. So, props to the US for:

1. Customer service: People are so friendly everywhere you go! I mean sooo friendly. Ok, sometimes too friendly that it seems fake but they are genuinely nice and want to help you. I wish Italians would learn this from us. You don’t have to hate your job, you can make the best of it and help people out while you’re at it.
2. Efficiency: Ok, we’re probably number one in the world for this and I’m very proud of this. Let’s get things done people! There are other things to do, people to meet, places to see next! Stop wasting time.