No smoking – the penny finally drops

Italy has been a very different place since the 10th of January 2005. On that day the law was passed banning smoking inside bars and restaurants. (article here) Most commentators at the time expressed disbelief that the law would hold and that smokers would change their habits of a lifetime. instead believe it or not just three years later all of those smoky bars and restaurants are gone. They are a thing of the past. Statistically there are fewer smokers now in Italy but the real change has been not less smokers but where they go to smoke.

Outside bars and clubs and restaurants right through Italy you will now find small groups huddled together under awnings, blinds and umbrellas sheltering from the rain or hiding from the sun as they continue their habit.

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One of the other things that they do is think of new games to keep themselves amused. it’s great if it has something to do with smoking .  It helps too if chance plays a part in the game and if you could throw in a possibility of a “brutta figura” – the possibility of looking silly or losing face at the same time, the more the better.

This evening at the end of season party at the L’Osteria in Piazza Angelio (site here) all of the above came to a head with a game suggested by one of the local artists, Leslie Millar (article here)

The contestants had to burn a hole in a sheet of tissue paper holding up a coin over a glass of water.

The last person burning the tissue paper and making the coin fall was the winner – or actually the loser*, as he or she had to pay.

In this case running through the Piazza barefoot with their hands over their heads shouting loudly – much to the delight of the assembled partygoers.

Dowhex2trlk

*the loser this evening – “Pecio” is  known in the area for his dramatic short films such as this one – a parody of Pulp Fiction  – “ironico cortometraggio liberamente ispirato ad una delle straordinarie sequenze del film Pulp Fiction, quella in cui Butch torna a casa a prendere L’orologio , consapevole di quello che gli può aspettar”