Although I am a staunch anti-smoker in America (with the except of the occasional drunken indiscretion), when I am abroad I accept the local custom of smoking everywhere.
I never sneer when I see an Italian woman pushing a baby carriage while lighting a cigarette, and am forever patient when motorini drivers almost mow me down while smoking and talking on their cell phones with typical gesticulations.
Since Italy went non-smoking in 2005, I wondered if the bars and Trattorias would be empty and smelly, as were so many south side watering holes in Chicago. Especially the Wabash Tap,which reeks like the Dunkin Donuts next door so much that sometimes I wonder if they’ve got a black market donut operation going in their own kitchen.
Anyway: good news. The smoking “ban” in Rome makes bars and restaurants more pleasant to sit in, while the Romans have maintained their penchant for multitasking while lighting up. I think everyone wins in this arrangement. Except maybe the babies…but they’ll understand when they’re older.
