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Answering the phone, or not
Italy has one of the highest mobile-phone penetrations in Europe and a correspondingly relaxed attitude to using one. Taking a call mid-meal, mid-meeting or mid-conversation is far more acceptable than in Britain or the United States, and the volume of a public phone conversation is not something anyone apologizes for. What has changed the landscape is WhatsApp, which has largely replaced both SMS and email for anything informal. Voice notes are used constantly and across all ages — sending a rambling two-minute audio message instead of typing three lines is completely normal, and receiving one is not considered an imposition. The result is the situation in this lesson: Giulia phoned three times, which is itself a signal, because an Italian who really needs you will keep calling rather than leave a message. Answering machines are little used and voicemail often not even set up. If you miss a call from an Italian friend, the expected response is to call straight back, not to text — and the opening line will be the pronto of Lesson 11, followed by an explanation in exactly the tense pattern this lesson teaches.