Something which has always struck me as a strange, but very real, phenomenon, is the idea that you can fall in love with a country. It may sound corny, cheesy, tacky and over the top, but I have witnessed it many times. In fact, quite a few articles have been written discussing this very subject. One, entitled "Love on the Run", even goes as far as to say that it often happens: "It's commonplace to fall in love with a country you're visiting for the first time. Unfamiliar sights, sounds, and flavors can make any traveler swoon."

I guess it starts with a simple "holiday romance"; perhaps you visit the country for a week or two, do the usual touristy things, eat well and then feel reluctant to leave. You decide to visit again, but for a longer period, maybe a few weeks or a couple of months. You start to get to know the city, the area, the language, the culture. You make friends and begin to settle in well. Life seems like one long holiday and the day-to-day reality you knew before is a distant, vague memory. When you eventually do have to go back to your roots, you dream of getting back to that place where the sun always shines and everything seems far less complicated. Before you know it, you're desperate to find a job there and have a reason to stay more permanently.

At least, that's pretty much how it was for me. Of course, some of that is often a case of "rose-tinted glasses".  I remember weekends during my first stay in Milan, during the summer of 2007, when I was quite low and wished I was back in the UK with my family and friends. On the other hand, there were plenty of times when I was studying in my room at Durham University and would think "I'd give anything to be back in Milan right now!" It just goes to show that anyone can play the "anywhere but here" game when feeling blue.

But what are the factors that attract people to a foreign land? I recently read that people tend to fall in love with a country based on 3 things: the air, the food and the people. That is certainly the case for me, as you'll see from my little list of things I love about Italy:

Air
- the weather - as a Brit, I can assure you that knowing you won't need a jacket, jumper or gloves for at least 4 months in a row is a MAJOR advantage.

Food
- risotto, pasta, pizza, meat, fish, polenta, tiramisu…need I go on?

- aperitivo - buy a cocktail and get unlimited access to the buffet – what could be better? In the UK, eating whilst you drink is often a foreign concept, unfortunately.

- coffee – not just the fact that it is unarguably better, but the whole culture of it – drinking it stood up at the bar (which was annoying to me at first, but now I love it), the near-obligation to have one after a meal, grabbing a quick espresso at work with colleagues for a 5 minute break…just fabulous.

People
- the focus on family – very admirable, although the "mummy's boy" tendency (known as mammoni, see this interesting article for more information) for people to live at home until they are in their thirties is going a bit too far for my liking.

- independent shops – not everything revolves around chains and supermarkets – there are still plenty of independent craftsmen (grocers, cobblers, butchers, bakers, hardware stores, etc.), "like England was fifty years ago", as my Mum says.

- greetings and "best wishes" – when you wish someone Happy Birthday, Happy New Year (which continues for months, by the way), or any other general forms of best wishes, you have to give them a kiss on either cheek – so much more personal, though admittedly it can be uncomfortable with people you don't know too well…

Miscellaneous
- national holidays and the so-called "bridges" - if a national holiday is on a Tuesday, why not take the Monday off too and connect the weekend to the official holiday?! Everyone else will. Genius.

- architecture – very traditional and typically Italian esp. piazzas, balconies, churches (much more ornate), residential buildings (fewer huge tower blocks, at least in the more central areas of towns)

- quaint traditions – e.g. carnival in Milan is celebrated on the Saturday after Shrove Tuesday, because the patron of Milan, Saint Ambrose, didn't make it back to the city in time one year, so the whole town waited until he arrived. Cute!

And I'm sure there are many, many more. These may seem silly, but for the moment they are the kinds of things that tie me to Italy, things that make me want to stay and things that I miss when I'm not here.

However, I don't think it's always the country itself that draws you in, so much as it is the fact that it's somewhere different. Plus it works both ways: an Italian woman I work with, Alessandra, spent 16 years in London and she absolutely loved it. Naturally, I've known people come to Italy from other countries and stay for a long period of time, my Portuguese ex-flatmate Rafaela, who spent around 3 years here, being just one of them. Many other people I know have moved to foreign countries, such as France, Germany, Sweden, America, Canada, and even from one hemisphere to another (New Zealand to Canada). Some of them have since returned home, and I do wonder what it was that made them realize that they couldn't stay forever. Others are still living abroad, and I'm not sure if they will ever return to their homeland. I often get asked that very same question: how long do you think you'll stay in Italy? The answer is quite simple: I have no idea.

©Holly Carlile