Postcard from... Rome

They might have a reputation as world-class lovers, but Italian men come up short on aftercare, according to a top sex expert in Rome.

Instead of making the most of the precious moments after the act, many Italian stallions dash for the shower or switch on Facebook, says sex therapist Chiara Simonelli of Rome’s La Sapienza University.

Men tend to remain attentive at the start of a relationship. But after a while, their attention spans diminish, she says. “It’s as if, having made love, they’ve done their duty and that’s that... and this is typical male behaviour.”

La Repubblica reports from Simonelli’s study of young couples how Marta, a 28-year-old advertising executive from Bergamo, laments that her partner Stefano goes straight to the bathroom for a shower after sex. “It is a habit that always annoys me to death,” she says. Laura, a 48-year-old secretary from Catanzaro complains that her partner instantly falls asleep. “I don’t expect a long chat. But a couple of words would be nice,” she says.

Perhaps this is one area where Italians can learn from their libidinous ex-premier Silvio Berlusconi. In her 2009 kiss-and-tell tome, the call girl Patrizia D’Addario revealed how the then prime minister was the perfect gent after a sex session that lasted from the small hours till eight in the morning. “Coffee or tea?” he asked her.

Although he spoilt things a little by saying “next time we’ll need other women”, he did give her a parting gift: a tortoise, covered in precious stones.