Archive for November, 2015
Italian False Friends Posted by Geoff on Nov 30, 2015
Falsi amici, false friends … we’ve all had them! You think you’re a ‘good judge of character’, or perhaps you just want to believe that life is simpler than it really is. And then … dammit, screwed again! Well dear readers, your guardian angel has arrived. I’m here to forewarn you that the Italian language…
Translation: Carmela’s Cat Posted by Geoff on Nov 27, 2015
For those of you who need a bit of help with the dialogue from Carmela’s Cat here’s the story once again with my English translation Bianchina first appeared one cold November morning. Carmela opened the shutters of her living room window letting in the slanting autumn sunlight and found the kitten stretched across the window sill…
Carmela’s Cat Posted by Geoff on Nov 26, 2015
Previous Chapters in Carmela’s Story Carmela’s Story Chapter 1 Carmela’s Story Chapter 2 Carmela’s Story Chapter 3 Carmela’s Story Chapter 4 Bianchina first appeared one cold November morning. Carmela opened the shutters of her living room window letting in the slanting autumn sunlight and found the kitten stretched across the window sill next to the geraniums…
At the Pharmacy in Italy Posted by Serena on Nov 24, 2015
The setting: a pharmacy in an Italian town The characters: the pharmacist and a family of tourists (mother, father and their child) Farmacista: “Buongiorno, desidera?” Chemist: “Good morning, how can I help you?” Signora: “Buongiorno. La bambina è stata morsicata dalle zanzare e si gratta sempre” Wife: “Good morning. My daughter has been bitten by…
Italian Style Preserved Olives Posted by Serena on Nov 23, 2015
Suddenly our normally quiet little village is very busy. People who don’t live here, but have land in the area, are coming and going every day: it’s time for the olive harvest. The first step is to clear the terraces on which the olives are planted of dead leaves. Then the nets are spread beneath…
A Walk Through the Woods Posted by Serena on Nov 18, 2015
Inspired by a lovely walk near our home in Valdantena I wanted to try and find an Italian autumn poem. However, unable to unearth anything that seemed to fit with what I had in mind, I eventually decided to write something myself, assisted by Geoff’s photos. Eccolo: 1. Una mattina apriamo gli scuri e scopriamo…
The Empty Headed Italian Blogger! Posted by Geoff on Nov 16, 2015
Cari lettori, stamattina ho la testa proprio vuota, mi pare di non riuscire a scrivervi una bella introduzione … quindi, incominciamo subito con il vocabolario di oggi: vuoto e pieno Dear reader, my head is really empty this morning, I can’t seem to manage to write you a nice introduction … so let’s get straight…