Rome is the city, I know quite good. Therefore I would like to share with my you the information concerning safety and comfortable traveling. Because as in any big capital, there are certain issues in Rome we need to know in advance in order to be prepared for certain situations.
1If you go to a bar for a coffee in the very centre of Rome, first pay and after sit at the table. In case you sit and wait till the waiter brings you the menu, they get you. Instead of normal 1 Euros for a coffee you will have to pay 3. Why? Service! If you stay at the bar, drink and ready to go, you pay normal price.
2You never leave tips in the restaurants or cafes. In most of the places they are included into the receipt. Usually 2 Euros per person. Look carefully at the receipt and find the last line saying “Servizio”.
3Don’t ever take roses from strangers in the streets of Rome or in the restaurants. They tell you “It is a present, take it”. And if you take, the drama with the title “There Ain’t No Such Thing As A Free Lunch” begins.
4Avoid booking a hotel or apartments near Termini railway station. Rome is quite huge and there are plenty of variants in different neighborhoods such as Trastevere, for example.
5Don’t buy water while discovering Rome. Take an empty bottle and use any spring (Fontanelle Pubbliche) you see on your way. Locals always drink this water, since it is very clean and tasty.
6You will leave some 2-3 Euros as tips for a taxi driver even if you were not going to do so. It happens like that. You have a receipt of 12 Euros and you give the driver 15. I bet he will thank you and good buy with no change. Of course you can claim. But I really doubt that it could work out.
7Traffic in Rome is crazy. So you always have your head on the shoulders and eyes wide open when crossing a streets. Mind that even red light for some drivers means nothing. But even though the drivers are polite and absolutely non aggressive.
to be continued …
