Skip to main content
Freshmen Study Abroad Rome

Life in Rome

Our Student Code of Conduct 

This is our specific program student code of conduct. You will be expected to adhere to it at all times. If you break this code of conduct, there could be disciplinary actions that will follow you back to the UW main campus. You have also signed the Study Abroad Standards of Conduct. Make sure you are familiar with both. The program leaders take both of these codes of conduct very seriously and so should you.

Your Safety

  1. When traveling in a group or independently, be alert and watch for pickpockets and other kinds of petty theft.  Do not leave your bag unattended.
  2. Avoid places that might compromise your safety.  Don’t patronize “American” bars such as Sloppy Sams, The Drunken Ship (both in our neighborhood), nightclubs catering to tourists and, if you do go to a bar, don’t leave your drink unattended, etc.  See #3 below.
  3. There is no drinking of alcohol beverages permitted on this program. That includes in student housing or on program activities. 
  4. Do not let anyone you don’t know into your apartment.  Ever.
  5. Do not allow overnight guests (friends, relatives, students from other programs) in your apartment (it violates the terms of our lease agreement).
  6. Do not ride public transportation without a ticket (you will be taken off the bus and fined on the spot if caught).
  7. Don’t accept a ride from someone you don’t know and don’t take an unauthorized taxi.  
  8. Be concerned about the safety of your fellow classmates. 

Class Conduct

  1. Class attendance is mandatory. Be punctual. If your itinerary says to be at the front door of the UW Rome Center at a certain time, aim to be there 5-10 minute early.
  2. Adhere to all rules established by the instructors and the UW Rome Center for the safety of the group.
  3. Maintain a sense of humor and sense of discovery.
  4. Tolerate unexpected changes in the schedule.
  5. Respect cultural, political, religious, and financial differences between classmates.
  6. Dress appropriately particularly when visiting religious sites. Cover your shoulders and your legs when entering churches. 
  7. Do not wear flip flops on any class field trip or outing. Shawn feels very strongly about this. Why? Interiors in Rome are largely made out of marble or tile. Flip flops are very loud on these surfaces. They are also very slippery and you don’t have good traction, especially if the floors are wet. 
  8. When walking around the streets of Rome together, practice situational awareness. Make sure you are not blocking the sidewalk or preventing people from moving around you. Watch out for cars and scooters.
  9. Keep your voices down. Especially when we are in a large group, voice volume tends to reach great heights. This is extremely annoying to locals.
  10. Do not climb on, lean on, sit on anything that looks like an ancient structure, work of art, even ancient rubble (i.e., broken Roman column), especially anything inside an ancient site, museum, or gallery.  Do not climb into or soak your feet in a fountain of any kind.  You may be arrested and/or fined.  Do not even think about writing or carving graffiti of any kind on any surface even though you might be surrounded by graffiti on walls.  You can be arrested, fined, and/or taken to the airport and sent home by the authorities.  You might even be banned from returning to Italy for ten years or more.
  11. If you act and behave in a manner that is in conflict with the class and your classmates as determine by the UW Study Abroad Standards of Conduct, the program leaders will contact UW Study Abroad arrange your immediate departure from Rome.

Shared Housing Conduct

  1. Respect the shared living space of your dorm.
  2. Respect quiet hours – 10pm to 8am.
  3. Do not leave any elevator doors open. The elevator cannot operate if the external or internal doors are open.
  4. Clean up after yourself. Do your dishes.
  5. Be respectful of other people living in your building (no loud noises in common areas such as stairwells, entry way, etc.).
  6. Greet people in your building or neighborhood (“buongiorno,” – good morning “buonasera” – good evening).
  7. Maintain a clean living space and share common expenses, conserve energy, recycle when possible, dump garbage daily, maintain a clean kitchen.

Roman Life 

Here are a few tips on how to “do as the Romans do.” Remember, you are not a tourist. You study in Rome. You live there.

Accessing Money

  • The Euro is the currency of Italy. You can look up exchange rates online.
  • Rome is full of ATMs, which is the primary way to access money.
  • Call your bank to let them know your travel dates, so your card doesn’t get shut off or suspended.
  • Ask your bank if they have partner banks in Italy. If you use a partner bank ATM, it’s possible you will pay less in foreign transaction fees.
  • We suggest purchasing some Euro ahead of time, so that you arrive with some cash in case you are not able to access an ATM right away.  There are ATMs at the Rome airport and at whatever international airport you are traveling through prior to landing in Rome. The ATMs at the airport tend to have high exchange rates.
  • When pulling money out of an ATM, think about taking out larger amounts at once. Store whatever you don’t need for the day in your apartment. This will help you will avoid hefty foreign transaction fees.
  • Italians love to get exact change or receive small bills for payments. If you try to pay for small amounts with large bills, e.g. a coffee with a 50 euro bill, you will get some guff and they might even refuse to take it.

Phones

All UW Rome Center students are required to have a cell phone able to receive/send calls in Italy for program and emergency purposes. Your program director will compile a list of all student cell phone contacts within the first few days of your program.

Cell phone options

  • Bring your US phone (unlocked) and buy an Italian phone chip (costs about 25 euros including 1st month phone/data plan; monthly plans cost as little as 15 euros.)  Here’s how it works:  if you come to Rome with an UN-LOCKED U.S. phone, you can swap your SIM card (with your U.S. provider) and purchase a local SIM card. You can purchase one from any of the three Italian providers: Wind, Vodafone, or TIM (shop closest to the UWRC).
  • Purchase an Italian cell phone in Rome, for about 50 euros including SIM card and 1st month phone/data plan. 

Note: It is also possible to rent cell phones through agencies operating online or in Rome/Florence, but there are currently none that we could recommend to our students or faculty.

Receiving calls

  • Telephone calls should be directed to students’ cell phones. Emergency messages may be left with the UWRC Office.
  • Please note that unless specifically authorized, Rome Center staff cannot give out students’ addresses or home Rome phone numbers to family or friends calling.
  • Students can make international calls with an American AT&T, MCI or Sprint calling card.
  • Making International Calls

Italy Country Code: +39
To call the U.S.: +1.Area Code.Number or 001.Area Code.Number
To call an Italian number from the U.S. or from a U.S. number while in Italy: +39.Area Code.Number or 011.39.Area Code.Number

See HowtoCallAbroad.com for more assistance.

Ordering a Coffee

  • FYI: Sitting at a table in a café or bar (as coffee shops are called in Italy) can cost up to 3 times as much.  Don’t sit unless you are prepared to pay extra or have time for a long and leisurely break. This is often the perfect place to sit and people-watch – well worth the extra euros!
  • In Italy you often pay the cashier first. You will get a receipt which you take to the counter where you place your order and then stand to drink it.  Italians are less likely to take their coffee “to go,” like we do here, although this has changed through the pandemic. You can get it to go if you like, but you rarely see Italians drinking or eating anything while walking other than gelato.  
  • When you order a “caffé” you will get what we call in the US an espresso; a small dark shot of rich, strong coffee – only so much better than you have ever tasted.
  • If you want a latte – don’t order a “latte” or you will just get a glass of milk.  Order a “caffè latte.”
  • A macchiato is an espresso that is cut by a “stain” of milk. If you like more milk than coffee you can order a “latte macchiato,” a small glass of steamed milk with a “stain” of coffee.
  • People often leave a very small tip for the barista, such a 10 cents, even if you’re standing up at the counter rather than sitting at a table.  If you sit at a table, you may want to leave a slightly larger tip.
  • Tip: Italians consider cappuccino, or any drink with milk, a morning drink.  Ordering one after dinner will immediately identify you as a tourist (but that shouldn’t stop you if you really want one!).
  • FYI: If you are in Naples someday, your caffé will have a thick layer of sugar at the bottom.  Don’t stir it, rather just gulp it down con gusto!

Gelato

  • Most of the time when you order gelato, more than one flavor can be selected for the same price.  
  • If you order only one flavor, you will just get twice as much of it. In my mind, two is better than one – and there are so many flavors to try and so little time!

Gratuities

  • Many guide books will tell you that it is unnecessary to leave a tip, but leaving a few coins on the counter if you are drinking coffee in front of the barista never hurts—10 cents, 25 cents—especially if you go back to the same bar or restaurant often.  
  • If you are having dinner at a nice place, a modest tip is expected, perhaps a euro per person. BUT, check the menu to be sure that the gratuity is not already included in the price. It often is.
  • Taxi drivers also expect a small gratuity if their service is good. Rounding the bill up to the nearest 5 or nearest euro. FYI: If the cabby so much as touches your baggage, you will have to pay additional charges. However, it is difficult to avoid this as, no matter what, they seem to charge you just for having baggage.

Restaurants, Bars, Etc

  • Restaurants come in all forms in Rome.  If you choose a restaurant near a tourist site, it will be more expensive than a restaurant on a side street. For example, the highest price restaurants and cafes would be right on the Piazza Navona, facing the Pantheon, or similar tourist destination.  
  • If you’re going to one of those places, you should plan on sitting there for a couple of hours to get your money’s worth of people watching and relaxing. Small out of the way places with ready-made food and little stand-up counters are the least expensive.
  • There are even cafeterias if you look carefully that have great food and they’re fast and inexpensive.
  •  If you go to a real restaurant with tablecloths, waiters and the whole deal, expect to spend a lot of time there. Eating, for Italians, is a social activity and you should eat leisurely. 
  •  In places that know you well, they treat you like they invited you to dinner.
  • Waiters will never bring you a bill until you ask them and even when you ask them, it’ll take them a long time to get around to giving you the bill.  When you want the bill, you say, “il conto.”
  • Consider avoiding eating at restaurants where there is someone standing outside holding menus and asking tourists to come in. 

Water Fountains

  • Throughout the city you will encounter fountains resembling hydrants, with water freely flowing out of faucets.  This water is perfectly fine to drink and is great for re-filling water bottles or washing your hands, etc.
  • To drink from the fountain like an Italian, plug the faucet with your finger, which will create a small (but powerful!) arch of water through a small hole in the top of the faucet – like a typical drinking fountain.
  • It will take a little practice to master your technique but it is much easier than sticking your head under!

Vendors & Flea Markets

  • There are street vendors everywhere in Rome, selling everything from handmade crafts to fake Gucci bags.
  • If the vendor isn’t in an established stall or kiosk, it could be that they are not a legal vendor. You could get fined by the police for purchasing goods from this person.
  • You can bargain with almost any street vendor.
  • The best way to bargain is to simply decide what you’d buy the item for—what’s fair for you rather than what’s fair for the vendor.  
  • Beware of scams. Two students a few years ago thought they were buying a brand new iPhone for $60, but it was a bait and switch and they ended up with an iPhone box with a rock in it.
  • If it’s too good to be true, it’s a scam.

Riding the Bus

  • Rome is very walkable, but sometimes it’s can save you time and energy to ride the bus.
  • Bus tickets are available in the tabacchi shops (recognizable everywhere by the sign above the entrance featuring a large white “T” on a black background) or at the kiosk style newsstands, and cost 1.50 Euro.  
  • Italian buses run on the honor system so once you get on the bus you should validate your ticket immediately by stamping it in one of the convalida machines on board (usually yellow or orange).  
  • After you have stamped the ticket, it is good for bus or Metro rides within the next 75 minutes (but only one Metro journey.)  
  • If the on-board machine isn’t working, you must write on your bus ticket the time and date you boarded. Although tempting, it is strongly advised that you do not risk riding the bus without a ticket.  
  • Officials are often on board (often undercover) and/or will make random ticket checks. They tell the bus or tram driver to lock the doors as they walk through and check passengers.
  • The penalties are very stiff.  If you claim that you don’t have money, they will walk with you to an ATM machine. Being a tourist is no excuse.  
  • To keep the older Italians from screaming obscenities at you, remember one thing: enter the bus through the back or front doors and exit through the middle doors.
  • Buses are one of the prime target places for pickpockets.  
  • Be sure to hold your purse securely across your chest and put your wallet in your front pocket.
Skip to toolbar