I have noticed those things too. I've been to a number of European countries.

In Ireland, everyone stops at the pub for lunch or for dinner, always with a pint or two, before going home. But I also saw many older couples having dinner together at the pub. And I saw that people also hung out with their neighbors and friends at the pub.

England was a bit like that to a lesser extent. Pubs are the popular place to hang out and have a pint but not quite as much a part of every day as in Ireland.

But in Italy, I don't remember any places that were specifically for drinking alcohol. Instead they were restaurants and bistros everywhere. I remember specifically staying in the little Chianti Region town of Ruffino and we went down to the little local restaurant on a Saturday night. The whole town was there. There was a table of young teenage girls, no parents just like going to the mall in America. The girls were eating Pizza (like you'd expect of teenagers), but they each had a small glass of Chianti. No they weren't drunk and they didn't drink their wine very fast, but it was the beverage that went with pizza. In fact, everywhere in Italy, you are strange if you drink anything else but wine with your dinner. Anyhow, the villagers spent their Saturday night sitting around a table at a little local restaurant eating and drinking wine and talking. And then at the end of dinner, to cleanse your palate instead of having a mint you are offered a shot of various liquers.

Dear Prof. Peele,

As I said before, since I live in Portugal and have lived in Spain my perception differs from yours. Actually, I must say I agree with your critics on believing that things are as we think they are, when, in fact, they might not be.

Let me be more specific. In Portugal you have one of the highest highway accident rates in whole Europe (due to alcohol), when they tryed (the Gov.) to change the laws on alcohol drinking the lobbies came after it and the Prime Minister had to get a step back. In Spain the problem increases because of what they call "Botellon", kids (from 13s to 30s) get bottles of different drinks and stick together in the middle of the street: they meet to drink. Actually, I've seen people meeting to drink everywhere (south, north and central Portugal and Spain): they go to burs (where there is almost no laws on alcohol restrictions), buy and drink, drink and buy alcohol and their non-alcoholic friend here was always the one who took them home... (or hospital!).

The lack of social consciesness here doesn't mean a lack of social reality. We have (Portugal), in every single town with university, one week (usually in May) with concerts (10pm-7am) where the thing you find at most is alcohol... In here, people do meet to drink and, year after year, they keep on not learning.

I am sorry to, apparently, desconstruct the ideas you have exposed, but, as we both agree: turist and resident are two different realities!