How to do everyday things in Italy, for Americans

So exhausted from the frustration of constantly being lost and not knowing the language.
It takes all morning fighting the crowds to do the simplest errand. The stores here are not all-in-one like ours in the US: you go to one for a small selection of groceries, the outdoor market for fresh produce and fish, the pharmacy for toiletries and OTC medicines---and a small bottle of sunscreen costs 16-23 euros--- and another place for household goods and electronics (it's where you find electrical adapters).

I started out with the address of one such store this morning, hoping to buy a small cart before shopping, but never found the store, even with Google Maps. In 2 1/2 hours all I did was buy three things at the outdoor market. Then got lost on the way back, carrying fresh fish and a basil plant through the heat. Now I have to go out again, because I'm out of drinking water, and I will have to lug as many big bottles as I can carry back to the apartment.

Now I remember why I did not "do all the things" last time I was here.

#ENDofrant

TO FLUSH THE TOILET: Look for a likely button. Be creative, but don't use the wrong one.
Also, don't flush the TP! Put it in the little covered wastebasket nearby.

 

TO WASH THE DISHES: The drying rack is installed in the cabinet above the sink.

DON'T SHOWER WHILE THE CLOTHES WASHER IS GOING B/C IT DRAINS INTO THE TUB.

TO DISPOSE OF TRASH AND RECYCLABLES: Put them in separate plastic bags, with a label for "vetro/plastica/lattine" and then either wait for the collectors to ring your doorbell on the front of the building (and take the trash down to them from the 4th floor) or find the supposed barge in the canal to dump them in. 

To plug in one appliance, unplug another.