There are a lot of things on this trip that have 'surprised ' me. I have come to realize that they were due to my personal generalizations of Italian culture more than anything.
For example yesterday Steph, Caitie, and I went to the public pool. It was the warmest day yet so we took advantage of it! I was expecting our day at the pool to be just like any other summer day back at home, however it certainly had an Italian twist.
When we arrived at the pool we saw a sign that said in order to get into the pool you have to wear a swim cap. I initially thought it may be more of suggestion than a rule however, as we waited in line we saw that the other customers were required to buy them. We paid just the admission and wanted to see the pool before we decided if we were going to swim. Sure enough, everyone in the largest public pool in Florence had a swim cap on. I was so surprised by this but after I got home I did some research and found that pools that require people to wear swim caps are more hygienic than those that don't . It is actually a law in Italy that everyone no matter how much hair you have must wear a swim cap while swimming in a pool. I also learned that some pools required men to wear speedos for hygiene purposes as well. This pool didn't go that far luckily!
Other surprises that I encountered was the gourmet quality of the poolside snacks and the extreme public display of affection. It was such a fun day and very different from a pool day in Nebraska!
Ciao,
Kate Peterson
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