Meeting the Locals
 

Do any of you know of an organization that supports meeting locals in Italy? I would love to meet some people or families and learn more about their culture, on a personal level. I have seen all the museums and art and now want to see how the people live today. Any ideas?

Yes, someone please answer. I would like to know also.

It's not specific to Italy, but Servas (affiliated with the UN and founded 50+ years ago to promote peace) gives travelers around the world a chance to meet. Members can host travelers in their homes or just meet for dinner, a day of sightseeing, or whatever. The URL is www.servas.org. There is a screening and approval process for participation.

I live in southern italy and have noticed after two years that in general italians aren't big on "formal" meetings, my best advice for seeing how the locals live is to strike up some conversation, italians are usually very friendly and use meal times as their big social gatherings, of course if you do not speak the language this could prove to be an obstacle..

Get a train, talk to the person opposite.