I’ve had the privilege of visiting Italy three times, most recently this past June. Each time I’ve gone, I’ve visited distinctly different areas of the country. Besides the incredible quality of the food, the one consistency of my visits has been the fashion.

Fashion in Italy is definitely different than in the US. In some regards, Italians are more stylish than Americans; perhaps surprisingly, not everyone in the country wears the latest designer trends. Besides the one night I spent in a Milan hotel that was practically crawling with male models, ordinary Italians have their own sense of style that depends less on Versace and Gucci and more on European chains and local negozi (shops).

(Brief lesson in Italian: Versace is actually pronounced Ver-sa-chey, not Ver-sa-chee. Feel free to correct your friends the next time you’re feeling pretentious.)

This summer, I spent the majority of my time in Italy in Parma, a small city about an hour train ride away from Bologna. Though Parma is better known for its food than for its shopping, it had dozens of local clothing boutiques. Though there were more shops for women’s clothing than men’s, there were far more stores primarily devoted to men’s clothing than here in the states.

Men, whether they’re college-aged or middle-aged, do not wear athletic shorts or cargo shorts. In fact, Italians rarely wear shorts at all. Men’s pants are much more form-fitting than might be socially acceptable in America. Suits that businessmen wear are extremely well-tailored, and the suit owners are often much more adventurous with colors and patterns than corporate America.

Bold color choices and big, loud prints seem to be a common theme throughout Italian fashion. In the region of Italy I was in around Parma, the two most popular stores seemed to be Zara, a Spanish chain that is also in the US and Coin, an Italian department store.

One afternoon, I went into Zara to do a little shopping, thinking I’d find a similar clothing selection to the store at 329 Newbury St. I was wrong. Here, just like in Coin and many other Italian stores I visited, the clothes were brighter, the cuts were less traditional and the patterns bordered on ugly. I felt just a little awkward in everything I tried on, and didn’t end up buying anything.

That’s something that Italians have over Americans when it comes to fashion – confidence. I saw many young women wearing winter boots with miniskirts and men wearing light blue skinny jeans.

Italian fashion isn’t just about day-to-day looks, either. Even on the beach, Italians exude confidence about their swimwear and their bodies. Of the approximately 100 other women in my section of sand, I was literally the only woman not wearing a revealing bikini. Even the grandmothers strutted their stuff in string bikinis, which was definitely a sight I had to get used to. All men, from teenage boys to the elderly, wore Speedos or bathing suits that looked like boxer-briefs. Though Italy isn’t in the middle of an obesity epidemic like the US is, I was able to learn a lesson in self-confidence from my day at the beach.

I admire that Italians are able to blend classic pieces such as a nice suit with more adventurous items like a dress with clashing patterns and a giant logo on the front. Although I don’t aspire to wear a shirt with a cartoon drawing of Madonna on it, my time in Italy taught me that sometimes it’s okay to take risks in the name of fashion.