The Italians are eminently practical, and everything must have its use. Italian homes tend to be small and beautifully looked after, with the number of rooms kept to a minimum. Most homes have one room where visitors can be welcomed and which contains all the best furniture and pictures. However, this is usually off-limits to the family and so rarely used that in winter it is freezing cold; there seems no sense in heating it.

Many Italian families have a second or even third home, at the seaside or in the mountains. These are generally small, one-or tworoom apartments with bunk beds, where the whole family can sleep on holiday.

Land tends to be considered much too valuable for growing flowers and the Italians are brilliant at growing large quantities of wonderful fruits and vegetables on tiny plots of land, or even on their balconies.

意大利人講求實際是出了名的，一切都要物盡其用。他們的家一般都比較小，收拾得漂漂亮亮，房間的數量保持在最少限度。大多數家里有一個房間供來客使用，這個房間里放著最好的家具，掛著最好的畫，但家里人一般是禁止入內的。由于很少使用，所以到冬天冷如冰窖；似乎也沒有供暖的必要。

許多意大利家庭都有兩個甚至三個住處，或在海邊或在山里。一般都不大，僅有一個或兩個房間，里面放上雙層床，供全家人在假日里使用。

土地太珍貴了，不可能用來種花，意大利人便技藝高超地在小塊土地甚至自家的陽臺上種植大量美味水果和蔬菜。