One of the my favorite things about going anywhere is noticing the small differences in culture. In Italy, if you order hot chocolate you will get something a bit unexpected. What they call hot chocolate is more like uncooled pudding or melted chocolate than the relatively watery stuff we drink here. It reminded me of the delicious looking (and somewhat more powerful) concoctions in Chocolat. In Italy, of course, coffee is the drink of choice (okay, maybe tied with their excellent wines). So finding a cappuccino or espresso takes about 10 seconds in the cities. Simply go into a café or gelato shop or even a convenience store and you’ll be treated to excellent coffee at a reasonable price (no Starbucks-style gouging). Other little but noticeable differences are doorknobs that have buttons on top to open the door instead of twisting the knob, really small cars and waiters that don’t want to bring the check (well, I guess that one’s not that different).