<<Black still seems to be the universal color>>

I love black and wear it a lot but not in summer, I agree with the advice of khaki, linen shorts and pants and lightweight fabrics.

Have fun.

<<I saw an elderly Italian woman in a long skirt denied entrance to the Duomo in Milan because her shoulders were exposed so they will stop anyone, not just tourists.>>

That's very strange, I can't imagine an elderly Italian woman not knowing her shoulders must be covered in a church.

<<That's very strange, I can't imagine an elderly Italian woman not knowing her shoulders must be covered in a church.>>

From the bits and pieces I understood from my Italian language classes, it sounded like it was an unplanned visit and she was trying to explain that to the fashion police.

I love the look and feel of linen but it wrinkles so badly. Is there some fashion trick or is it just fine to wear it wrinkled?

Yes, wear linen wrinkled and don't worry about it.

I prefer skirts and dresses to shorts (cooler and more comfortable) but in the very warm summer climate that you're going to encounter on this trip (and this is coming from somebody who lives in Atlanta) many women may have a problem with....


[okay, listen up---if you don't want to read about women's underwear you need to stop reading this posts right now]




[I'm not kidding here. Consider yourself warned]



...chafing. Unless you're very thin you'll likely find that your upper thighs rub together when you perspire, and it can be very, very uncomfortable. You can help by using either powder (baby powder containing zinc oxide is good) or solid deodorant in the area of interest, but the easiest fix is your underwear: either bike shorts style or something called pettipants. Pettipants are the very definition of little old lady style, but they are very comfortable in the summer: nothing tight, lots of "breathing" room.

"she was trying to explain that to the fashion police."

I do not consider these people fashion police. These are places of worship or religious significance and IMO deserve to be entered by people who dress respectfully. I think it's commendable personally.

In June we saw many skinny, young teenaged Italian girls wearing the shorter shorts. There are so many people walking around most of the places that you will fit in if you dress in what you would wear in summer back home. My son and DH wore knee length shorts and polos most of the time and my daughter and I wore sundresses and capris. The men wore tennis shoes (son also wore flip flops) and daughter and I wore flats or comfy sandals.

Thanks for reminding me, Therese - I use Body Glide to stop
that o-so-annoying problem. It comes in a deodorant-like
stick and is used by marathoners to ease their discomfort.
And used by me in a slightly more pedestrian application.

I completely agree kfusto... my comment was a tongue-in-cheek statement. I respect these places of worship as well which is why I instructed my daughter to treat our visits and her dress appropriately.

We are six Canadians arriving in Rome July 31. I do not feel comfortable unless I am wearing earmuffs. I hope this is not a problem at the Vatican, as we have a reserved tour there on August 1.

jolini~ BAsically I find all the assumptions in your post, simply (thankfully) not true.

There's nothing wrong with sneakers. European people wear them too! I take my regular white Nikes and a couple pair of nice looking but fairly sturdy sandals. I also pack flip flops to wear around for short periods of times.

Shorts are OK too, for everyone. Just pack nice looking ones, that come to the knee. Accept for visiting churches and cathedrals, when you may need to be a bit more covered up.

And you're absolutley right, August in Italy is WAY too hot for jeans imo.