Italy is known for placing family above everything else, but is that the reality? And what does that mean for daily living?
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00:00I'm Giuseppe Galeano, and this is the Galeano family.
00:08The Galeanos live in Scalia, a town on the coast of Italy's southern Calabria region.
00:13Alessandra likes to dance, her brother Antonio plays soccer, and the youngest Irene loves
00:19drawing.
00:20Their father Giuseppe is a tax advisor, while Silvia works half days in a medical practice.
00:26In my mind, the concept of the classical family has changed.
00:29In raising the kids, we pay more attention to dividing up the jobs and doing this together.
00:38About 8 million Italian households have children.
00:41Statistically, 1.2 children are currently born per Italian woman, one of the lowest
00:46birth rates in the EU.
00:48So the Galeanos, with their three kids, don't fit the typical Italian mold.
00:53Many Italians blame the lack of state support for the plummeting birth rate.
00:59If you don't even think about having children until you're 35, it's understandable that
01:03the birth rate is so low.
01:05First you can't afford children, then you're no longer fertile, and you can be glad if
01:10you have even one child.
01:12Women still have to choose between a profession and motherhood, and in my opinion, that affects
01:17the birth rate.
01:20It's 7 a.m.
01:21So what's the Galeanos' daily routine?
01:28It may look a little chaotic, but this morning routine's been established through years of
01:32practice.
01:35Breakfast is milk and cookies.
01:37Alessandra and Antonio, the two oldest, like to have that.
01:41It's normally not an important meal for our family.
01:43I don't have breakfast at all, for instance, before I leave.
01:46My husband and I both just drink a coffee.
01:51They get dressed, have breakfast, pack their bags, and in 40 minutes they're ready to go.
02:02We don't think it's important for the kids to have trendy clothes for school.
02:06The main thing is, it's comfortable.
02:12The children have to wear a uniform for school.
02:14The collars indicate what grade they're in.
02:16Generally, it's Giuseppe who takes the children to school on the way to work.
02:29In Italy, it's still the exception for the father to take this on.
02:34But someone has to take the kids to school.
02:36Some Italian regions do not allow primary school children to come to school unaccompanied.
02:44I think that's going too far.
02:45I bring them as far as the school.
02:47They're in second and third grade.
02:49They can go the rest of the way.
02:50I don't have to take them to their classrooms.
02:54Actually, it's not usual for the kids to go to school by themselves.
03:00Silvia uses the time when her kids are in school to run some errands.
03:03She visits her father-in-law in his butcher shop and picks up some things for dinner.
03:15In Italy, there's always time for another cup of coffee, which Silvia drinks before
03:21she goes to work.
03:23She used to have a manager position, but now she works half days in a doctor's practice.
03:31Professionally, I had to give up everything when I became a mother, everything I used
03:36to do and everything I studied for.
03:41I did that deliberately and looked for a job that allowed me to be gainfully employed and
03:46also be a mother.
03:51School is out at four o'clock sharp, and the children have to be picked up, a problem
03:56for anyone who works later.
03:58Either the grandparents have to help out, which is customary in Italy, or other child
04:02care has to be arranged, and that can be expensive.
04:05Silvia is home with her children after school.
04:12The typical Italian mama is like a thistle, because she clings to her kids obsessively.
04:20A mama italiana clings to her kids until they're 30 years old.
04:27We do try to do it differently, even if it doesn't always work out.
04:31Yes, mama is a babysitter, an ATM, a clown, a teacher.
04:45But in one sense, the Galianos are a very typical Italian family.
04:49To Italians, mealtimes are the most important part of the day.
04:53They're a time of togetherness and sharing.
04:58After dinner, the children can watch TV while Silvia and Giuseppe have a little time to
05:02themselves.
05:03Family is the most important thing in the world.
05:07Without family, it just won't work.
05:12These are ties that give us lots of strength.
05:20Their bedtime ritual is also well-established.
05:23And so, another day for a more or less typical Italian family draws to a close.