There aren’t a lot of public toilets in Florence. Take advantage of museum stops! Bars are required to provide bathrooms, so our basic strategy is to stop for a caffè (espresso) as needed. Or maybe, for my afternoon to be complete, a caffè corretto, corrected coffee, which is a regular caffè with a shot of brandy or grappa. Great idea, amici!

Before you get on the train, you must validate your tickets at a yellow convalidare machine, found on each platform. When boarding a city bus, smaller bus-style convalidare machines are on the bus aisle.

Say you’re moving through a crowd and you want to express Excuse me. Say “Permesso“.

A simple and gracious utterance in numerous situations is Prego; literally, I pray. Say it often, in situations like please, you first, of course, no problem, etc.

In a restaurant, ask the waiter Che ci (mi) consiglia?; What, to us (to me) do you recommend?

To ask What is your favorite, say Che è il suo preferito? Avoid using the “false friend” favorito, which means something like favored in the sense of advantaged.