Chiuso per ferie (closed for vacation)
Image via Binocle.
Ahhh, to live like an Italian and take the month of August off! This is a tradition with a long history in Italy as well as most of Western Europe.
On average, the Italian worker gets 42 days of vacation per year, and many of them take the bulk of it (if not all) in August. Ferragosto, August 15, is a national holiday in Italy, and generally marks the start of vacation season.
The productivity of the entire country declines as bodies lie sizzling in the sun to obtain that sought-after bronze glow that every Italian admires.
The risk of finding signs like the one above (chiuso per ferie means closed for vacation) but around such destinations as the Vatican in Rome and the Uffizzi Gallery in Florence you’ll always find restaurants, shops and hotels that accomodate travelers.
