A strong aspect of Italian culture that I have experienced since my time abroad has been their differing concepts of time — which often influence various aspects of their life including their work/life balance, dining, and others. Even in a large city like Rome, locals tend to live slower-placed lifestyles that allow more time for leisurely activity than what I’m used to in the States. For instance, when going out to eat, it is typical to spend more time digesting your food, enjoying multiple courses, and also taking pleasure in chatting and conversing with your companions. Italians will typically spend a significant amount of time during meals, and to wrap up their meal and pay for their food, it is expected for the customer to ask for the check from the waiter/waitress. Even moreso, the wait staff hardly addresses the table in the way that they frequently do in the US; where they constantly check-up on their guests. This is not to say that the customer service is poorer, but there seems to be a mutually understood relationship between the customer and the restaurant that they are not expected to rush through their dining experience, and that they may stay at the restaurant for a couple hours at least.
In a different perspective, Italians tend to physically move slower (not because they are incapable of walking fast, though). It is easy to spot a foriegner, especially an American, on the street based on their pace of walking, which typically is much faster than any native Italian or local person. I’ve concluded personally that this literal difference in pace has something to do with the more relaxed work/life balance that is widely practiced and understood across the country. For this reason, you will also hardly ever see a local carrying a to-go cup with them anywhere. Instead, coffee or refreshments are either enjoyed sitting down at a cafe, accompanied by a cigarrette, or, a coffee is drank and finished standing up at the counter within the cafe before the customer goes on their way.
I’ve spoken to many of my professors about this change in pace, and amongst some of my peers, and it seems like this cultural difference is mainly equated to the fact that an Italian (and often, a European) lifestyle does not demand such high expectations from their workers. And, that private, leisurely time, is considered as an equally, if not a more important aspect of one’s life in comparison to their worklife. While I mentioned that this more relaxed pace is commonly practiced throughout the EU, it seems like this way of life is particularly prevalent in southern parts of the EU, namely Spain, Italy and Greece. While Italy does not have a formal ‘siesta’ culture, like Spain does, they do find ways of adopting this ‘break’ into their days which also contributes to this slower pace of one’s day. Often times, local restaurants and stores will close during the afternoon for a siesta-like period, and many Italians will also take this time to spend time outdoors (thanks to the great, sunny weather) or to go back home for a break before the evening.