Italy is NOT a developed country

• It takes two years just to get a building permit.

• The government has too many people employed in it. Some government posts are unnecessary, but the people in these posts say, "Ah, but that's how we get paid". So unnecessary posts slow down the system, also costing the taxpayers their precious Euros.

• The people are generally not civic minded. The drivers park their cars on road corners, on pedestrian crossings and block cars parked in legal parking areas. Most pedestrian crossings in Rome don't have signal lights, so you cross the street and hope that some kind soul of a driver stops for you, which doesn't happen because most Roman drivers are soulless monsters (haha, pls don't take this literally).
  

• As a result of the above, people get hit by cars all the time. Even the sidewalk isn't safe, there was an article on the news about someone who got killed by a car that drove up onto the sidewalk. That's why you hear ambulances all the time, and they take ages to reach the hospital because of bad roads.
  

• Art is more appreciated than practicality. You get beautiful water taps that don't work.

• My experience at the airport (Grrr! Will elaborate on the next post)