On another thread (see Rookie Mistakes) areinert asked that we start a thread regarding the do's/don't's in Italy as he/she didn't know about not touching produce.

Here is my answer. There are a million others that those of who travel to Italy often know about. I'll just start the ball rolling as I am sure many of you want to jump in and give your two cents worth.

In replying to not knowing about touching produce or merchandise without permission here is a phrase to know when you enter any little shop (don't try it at large places like Ferragamo. They won't be amused!)

1. Enter, make eye contact, smile and say either Buon Giorno or Buona Sera, depending on time of day (after 3 p.m. say Buona Sera)

2. If you see things you want to examine, simply smile politely and say
"Posso tocchare?" (Pron: Poe-so Toe-car-eh)

That means "May I touch?" I nearly always get a "prego" or "certo" as a reply, but if they don't want you to touch, they will come over and remove it from the stack, shelf, cabinet or whatever and hand it to you. N-E-V-E-R be presumptious and touch merchandise before asking first.

In grocery stores, in the produce section, they have little plastic gloves (disposable) you must put on before touching produce to put in your cart or basket. Don't just reach and grab. I've seen people tsk-tsked and shooed right out of shops for doing this. No kidding.

In ANY small store or informal restaurant that you go into, say "Buon giorno" or "Buona sera" (as the case may be) to the first staff person that you see.

If you are buying fruit or vegetables in a grocery store, weigh the fruit and get the price sticker before bringing to the check out line.

kangamom, excellent point. Thanks for adding that!

Put on a plastic glove before you touch the produce.

Don't point at people.

Don't take someone's pic without asking permission.

Something that most people are not aware of; showing the soles of your shoes is considered impolite. I often think of that if I watch Oprah (which I rarely do) as she always sits with the sole of her shoe pointed toward the audience and camera.

"(after 3 p.m. say Buona Sera) "

I found that most Italians don't know when to start saying Buona Sera either. I don't think it is a hard and fast rule Some said it at 2 pm. Others were saying Buon Giorno at 4 pm. We actually did start saying Buone Sera at 3 pm, but only to make it easier for us to ease into the cocktail hour.

My addition to the list:
Do look at your gas tank before pumping!
Do NOT put Super gas in a Diesel car!

Maitaitom: Hilarious about the Super in a Diesel. I am giggling. Only because I see me doing that.

Well said LoveItaly, that bothers me too, lol.

And Ira's suggestion about pointing... a great etiquette tip in ANY culture.

I'll add mine, never use the informal "Ciao" unless it is spoken to you first. You all taught me that!

"Hilarious about the Super in a Diesel. I am giggling. Only because I see me doing that."

How many Americans does it take to screw up putting in fuel? In our case, it was four. Don't know if you read my trip report, but we did exactly that. Fortunately, the story had a happy ending.

I'll read your trip report, I hadn't seen it so thank you for telling me about it!

Hi wanderlust,

Definitely go read maitaitom's trip report. It is one of the funniest I have read. Ever. He's a master story teller

wanderlust, here's the blog site with pics.

http://travelswithmaitaitom.typepad.com/travels/

texasaggie - I am now blushing (although it could be the wine)

The buon giorno - buona sera question is not as arbitrary as you are obviously thinking: it depends (like almost everything else in Italy) on the region where you are - regions are soooo different in Italy! In Venice, it's still regularly buon giorno at 5 p.m. In Rome, they are ready to call an ambulance if you walk into a bar at 5 p.m. at say buon giorno - in Rome, buona sera is starting at 2 p.m.!

thanks so much for the link to the blog!

Here's a whole long threzad on the same subject: http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34552639

And some other threads touching on the same topic:

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34540990

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34528522

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34440795

http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34422455

How about take off your hats/baseball caps when entering a church or chapel. grrrr can't believe there are actually people around who don't automatically do this.

The question that always bothers me is when does a Signorina become a Signora?