The siesta is still a serious business in Europe’s south

That is, if the shop is open. But many American travellers to the south of Europe, especially in smaller towns, will find to their dismay that just as they are hoping for a little post-prandial retail therapy, they are confronted with a wall of iron shutters. The charming town that was so lively at ten that morning has now apparently closed for business. It is, of course, time for the siesta. In countries from Spain through France and Italy all the way to Greece, the workday is very different from the northern European and American one. After lunch comes the long break that divides the day in two. Some sleep. Others merely read the paper or visit friends. Only late in the afternoon do the shutters rise again; refreshed by their breaks, owners of even small businesses may stay behind their counters until nine, refreshed by their riposino, messimeri, or siesta.