Not to do List 2022 in Italy

That applies to practically all major Italian cities. If you are visiting Rome, Naples, Florence, Milan, Bologna, Venice, or elsewhere, don't just wander around the historical centers but find out more about what to see outside them.

There is always something to see or learn. Just think of EUR or Coppedè if you are in Rome, Posillipo or Fuorigrotta in Naples, or Bicocca in Milan are all places with exciting things to see outside their respective historical centers. Always inform yourself and then explore!

Especially in big cities, the reason is that you must not get them too used to human food because they may not want anything else. Moreover, pigeons already nest in the city, and administrations often use hawks to keep them away, as they can carry diseases.  

Many Italian cities have ancient historic centres not designed for walkers. If you walk a lot, it is always better to choose comfortable clothing and avoid heavy boots and stilettos.

In Italy, we are not used to having huge meals for breakfast: the typical Italian breakfast is milk, coffee, cappuccino, biscuits, jam, rusks, cereals. Suppose you are not in a hotel, which generally offers an international breakfast. In that case, it is difficult to find bars or restaurants that can cook you sausages, scrambled eggs, beans or anything else in the morning.
Choose a croissant and cappuccino and prepare for a nice pasta lunch.

This prohibition applies to many monuments; we can understand the desire to touch the marble or stone of the sculptures and fountains scattered around Italy. We must always try to respect the places and avoid any behaviour that might accidentally damage the work.

One example is the statue of Juliet in the courtyard of Juliet's House in Verona. Touching the right breast is said to bring good luck in love and therefore many people do it, leading to wear and tear of the statue. For this reason, the original statue was replaced by a copy.

Many dishes abroad are treated as 'Italian' when in fact they are not part of the country's culinary tradition. There is no such thing as fettuccine "Alfredo" or Alfredo sauce, which seems to be best known on the American continent. If you order pizza, remember not to ask for pepperoni either, because instead of pepperoni, they might bring you vegetables. If you go into a coffee shop, don't ask for a Frappuccino because the baristas probably don't even know it exists.

Speaking of cappuccino, we advise you not to drink any coffee products during lunch or dinner, for an Italian, it is very strange, I suggest instead, a nice glass of wine to accompany meat and fish (ps. Never put parmesan cheese on fish). Coffee, on the other hand, you can ask for at the end of the meal, while cappuccino is exclusively for the morning or breakfast.

Although Italy is improving a lot in terms of digital payments, it is always good to have a good amount of cash with you, especially if you visit small towns that may not accept credit cards or payments below a certain amount.

It's true, the Mona Lisa is in the Louvre, and is almost the very symbol of the great museum in Paris. Leonardo da Vinci (extremely Italian, born in Vinci in Tuscany) lived the last years of his life in France and in 1517 he sold the painting to King Francis I, a cultured man and lover of Italian art. Since then, the painting has been in the Louvre practically all the time.

The typical sweet and sour tomato sauce of Asian origin is also very popular in Italy, but only on Chips and hamburgers. So be careful, don't put it on pasta and pizza, you may provoke public criticism of this action!

It is a very strange thing for us to see people in restaurants cutting spaghetti with a knife and eating it with a spoon. To eat like a real Italian you have to let the spaghetti wrap around your fork and then bring it to your mouth (without making a sound). 
If you really have difficulty, you can put the fork in a spoon as a support for the first few times (see photo). 

Although pizza in Italy is something you absolutely must try, it is not recommended in some places. Take Venice, for example, where there is a law that prevents the use of a wood-fired oven (necessary for a quality pizza). If you're visiting those areas, opt instead for a good fish dish (definitely unique to Venice). Italy is a country rich in regional diversity, always consider carefully the area you are visiting before ordering something. 

Europeans, but especially Italians, love the game of football, for some, it is almost a religion. If you decide to dress comfortably, perhaps in shorts, a football shirt, and sunglasses, it is better to opt for a foreign team. A rival jersey, especially in big cities, could guarantee you a few nasty looks.