Ooooh, those Italian bees! The former Mr. Fivecatsandadog kept bees and the Italians would chase me all over the yard, right up to the back door - and then hang around waiting for me to come back outside.
Each hive has a different personality , based on the Queen.
The more aggressive bees were always the most productive honey makers.
Best to avoid loud noise (lawn mowers), big hair, dark shirts and fuzzy sweaters, or being around the hive with an approaching storm as that seems to aggrivate the bees.
Italians are the most docile; I was just removing my queen excluder last night with no problems what so ever. Now, if you eat a banana and get around a hive, you will have some problems. Banana's have the same make up that bees use to convey threats to one and other and ID an attacker. The guard bee's (usually six-seven per hive) are the first to kick things into high gear.