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In Ravenna , for some reason, they do it on bicycles .

Absolutely. So is napping in the afternoon and closing a shop two to three times a day

Passaggiata is good

I wonder if it is weather related?

It was surreal walking around Amsterdam and seeing people just sitting around shooting the shit with other people, at all hours of the day

I was in Scotland last week and was out for dinner in Glasgow on a Saturday night - I live in Minneapolis and can't think of a single restaurant here that would have a similar capacity, and it was one of many in the area that was totally packed. Car culture?

This is why I'm pro-city. There are bars, restaurants, office parties and random festivals/cultural events and just good ol' community centre activities at all times. I never felt more alone than I did while I lived in a small town. All you ever see is co-workers and the same handful of people.

When my sister and I were in Melbourne (AU), we took a walk in the Domain every morning, and every person we passed said good morning to us with a smile. We were gobsmacked. It's not just Europeans who are culturally and socially superior to US citizens.

“Many small parks that sell snacks and coffee and wine” is a development pattern I would love to see adopted as a cause célèbre

If I see someone other than my wife in a week it’s usually just passing at a shop or something. It’s hard. It’s very possible to be alone in the middle of crowds.

Being social is a hell of a lot easier when most of the people around you live in a shared reality.

Tucson had some of this in Covid. My local park filled up with folks every evening and it was great.

100 percent! Just came back from there and they’re so much happier and well adjusted. It’s such a civil, caring way to do life. When you get back to the states and see how we do it it’s so jarring.

. . . and only the plastic chairs and the modern clothes (and the good health) betrayed that this scene wasn't from, say, the late 16th century, or whenever the abbey construction ended.

i spent a week in a small italian town like an hour north of rome and that they all come out and smoke and drink at a restaurant together is probably better than what ours are doing

The people in Cuba gathered at night in parks with boom boxes, chess games, bevvies. Young couples flirted, women danced together, old men gabbed. It was wonderful. 🇨🇺

This happened when I visited Plymouth years ago, except it was ice creams instead of coffee.

In southern Italy, "la passeggiata" is a whole concept

We do it once a year for Halloween and that, crossing the street, is the scariest part.

Venice. Saffron ice cream

Hey, if you're hanging down there for a bit I will be in Trastevere from Nov 14-21.

Welcome to the war on cars

Spent a month in a villa halfway between Pisa and Florence learning to cook from a Nonna back in the teens. We’d tool into town most evenings and partake and it was amazing.

No, a Barker will show up with an Amp and start reading Revelations at you poorly, while stepping OVER said sleeping homeless person

I’d be down for trying that here as long as we still said “ciao.” I don’t like the idea of a gaggle of people saying “hi.” Sound like a bunch of birds or something

My experience in Coastal San Diego neighborhoods is lots of people congregate along the seawall around sunset, often with a joint or an adult beverage.

Applies to an extent to big cities too. I was raised in Milan, living in NYC. Seeing my friends when I'm in Milan can be an impromptu day-of decision. In NYC, gotta plan a long time ahead, people work long hours, etc. So people hang out with their friends in Milan way more. Much better for humans.