As a currently totally “normal user” - no root, stock OS, I would have been screwed by this security while travelling

Driving in Italy you need to know about ZTL zones - places cars are secretly restricted in - and there’s an app for that, but the app is only useful for drivers in Italy and if your phone doesn’t default to the Italian play store you can’t see it

Your only option is to side load it

It would be no fun to get your phone working with ZTLs only to lose access to your bank apps