Do Locals REALLY wear Fleece?

Cracky pants? What are they?

I think fanny packs are probably the most "tourist" identifiable clothing, since most people don't wear them around their hometown, opting instead for briefcases, purses, messenger bags, etc. Everything else is pretty much going to blend in.

To be sure, if you are wearing a LA Dodgers baseball cap, people might get the idea you're from the the U.S. but it won't attract stares unless you're doing something else (swearing loudly, running around with nothing BUT the cap on, etc.)

Odd question. Yes, but not all do; it's not a uniform or anything -- and only when it's cold or chilly. Then again, not everyone wears a national name tag so it's hard to tell.

If the question is would you stand out in fleece, the answer is still yes, since the rest of your american clothes make you stand out anyway.

Wear what you want. Everybody else does.

Ed... I assume by 'American clothes' you are referring to what is normaly commented within as fanny packs, baseball caps, nikes and jeans? Or are there other things that make us stick out? I read where in Paris (which is where we are headed for our 1st time) that anything unusual will cause stares like purple hair (I don't need to worry there since I am follically disabled), loud clothes. But I wonder about khaki pants, driving caps, non-collared shirts and ??? for women? What makes us stand out?

Thanks in advance

Dave - You will not attract stares in Paris. It is a highly cosmopolitan city quite used to tourists from around the world (more than you can imagine wearing white kneesocks with black shoes and umbrella hats). Native Parisians wear a variety of clothing styles, including saris and turbans.

Wearing a ball cap will hardly attract notice. If you want to get an idea for what people look like on the street, spend some time with Google Maps' Street View.

OMG!!!!! I LLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLove this Helpline!

PS: Andrea--I think Dave meant khaki!

Thanks Darcy. I wasn't sure if he was talking about cracky pants. You know, low rise pants that when you bend over you see...well, you know... :-0

steve, I just looked at your links. I don't think that the sweatshirt that says Italy (not Italia) is what they are wearing there. And really, who cares what Paris Hilton is wearing?????????????

how about wearing sweats? I plan on jogs while in Rome...and not sure if the locals actually go running??

Actually, it was phonetically spelled--cacky pants. Unfortunately that makes me think of the kids' word ca-ca which would be worse than pants that expose the crack, imo!

To answer the jogging question, I saw some people jogging around the Villa Borghese park area but didn't note what they were wearing. I doubt anyone will notice/care unless you run into them!

okay....okay... my bad. Not only am I "follically" disabled, but I now appear as lexicon challenged. Thank you all for defining the nexis between what I meant but actually wrote (now edited).
With that said... what do you all find as the best walking shoes for women? I found a great mens shoe from Ecco that has high arches and great padding. They are also oiled so will hold back the wetness. My wife is struggling finding a good walkin shoe with good arches that are not a sport shoe. My daughter feels that the US is 2 years behind the European styles so we should wait till we get there. We remember a cute Sweedish couple on our recent Alaska cruise that stood out in their sport shoes with huge springs in the heels (???). Not sure my wife is up for that!
I guess anything goes these days.

Can't see Steve post; he must have pulled it. Figures.

Not only did Steve pull the post I referenced, but the other post referring to cracky pants appears to have been edited as well. It now mentions khaki pants. I am just glad no one is walking around with pants that show crack!

Dave, Go to the Graffiti Wall and look at the post on walking shoes. There are also numerous posts on the helpline about this. I think sports shoes are the best -- I like Nikes and New Balance. The best non-athletic shoe I have found is Merrills. However, this is an individual thing since we all have different feet. But the one thing I will say that applies to everyone -- your wife should not wait until she is in Europe to get her shoes. She should get them well in advance of the trip so she can wear them first to make sure they are comfortable for long walks.

...adding to the other advice, pack some moleskin, just in case the new shoes cause surprise blisters. It takes up almost no room and can save a lot of pain.

For men, it seemed the most common jacket was a sports warm-up jacket (in October/November timeframe).