Originally Posted by slawecki
Don't bother if you have better things to do. Knowing some Italian will not change your degree of uglieness, and the vast majority of tourists there do not know gracia, prego, alora, multa bene, or bon gourino, which is just about enough to get by. All seem to know chao.
This is the same in most anywhere -- learn these basics and you are leagues above the ability of most other tourists.
BTW -- it's Ciao, not Chao.