Articles: Culture
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Tipping
What you need to consider when tipping in Italy
Italians aren’t big tippers, and it isn’t usual to tip all and sundry. Many people don’t tip taxi drivers, porters, hotel staff, car park attendants, cloakroom staff, shoeshine boys and cinema ushers, although you can give a small tip if you wish or, in the case of taxi drivers, round up the fare to the next euro or say ‘keep the change’ ( tenga il resto).
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Population in Italy
Who are the Italians?
The population of Italy was around 59.5m in early 2007, roughly the same as the UK and France, with a population density of almost 200 inhabitants per km2, which makes Italy the fifth most densely populated country in Europe, after the Benelux countries and the UK.
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The Italian Police
Carabinieri, state police and local police
There are various police ( polizia) forces in Italy, most of which are armed (some even brandish machine guns). All police come under the Ministry of the Interior, apart from the carabinieri, which come under the Ministry of Defence in certain matters.
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Cinema in Italy
History and programming
Italy has one of the healthiest film industries in Europe and has produced many great film directors, including Bernado Bertolucci, Federico Fellini, Vittorio Gassman, Sergio Leone and Luchino Visconti, as well as actors and actresses such as Sophia Loren, Gina Lollobrigida and Marcello Mastroianni.
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Music & ballet
An introduction to Italian music
Italians are great lovers of classical and popular music (as well as opera – see above). The country has produced many great classical composers, including Donizetti, Monteverdi (the father of modern opera), Puccini, Rossini, Scarlatti, Verdi and Vivaldi.
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Museums, Galleries & Churches in Italy
What you should know
Bellini, Botticelli, Canaletto, da Vinci, Donatello, Giacometti, Giotto, Michelangelo, Palladio, Raphael, Tintoretto, Titian ... of all the European nations, Italy has made the greatest contribution to painting and sculpture, and the country’s fragmented political history has led to a rich regional diversity in the arts.
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