Since we spent so much time in the car, it's only accurate to show Steve completing one of many three-point turns on the narrow country roads of the Loire Valley. Note both the ominous clouds and our snazzy Opel Vectra station wagon - I felt like we should have a golden retriever in the back.

We picked up the car (with French plates) on the way out of Rome and drove it to Paris - no doubt giving French drivers a bad name throughout western Italy. Actually, I'm sure the Italians didn't even notice our driving - everything you've heard about the way Italians drive is true, and then some. In the cities, especially Florence, every day is like a grand prix, with swarms of scooters belching blue smoke as they whiz, gnat-like, around the only-slightly-bigger cars. On the highways, the lane markings are definitely only a guideline, and many drivers don't let them limit their self expression.

After experiencing Italy as both pedestrians and drivers, we decided the best symbol of the difference between Italy and America, at least on the roads, is the school crossing signs. In Italy, the children on the sign are sprinting pell-mell across the road, pigtails flying, in a scene we referred to as "Run, Francesca, run!". On the American version, the round-headed youths saunter casually across the street, the boy gallantly carrying the girl's schoolbooks.

The images here are from a web site whose proprietor collects and critiques ped xing signs from around the world. "Worse than Kyrgyzstan," he sneers at one example. "Iconization is threatening our children." Everybody's got to have a cause...He has some very interesting themes and theories - check it out.