Archive for May, 2009
Gli Scorpioni in Italia Posted by Serena on May 31, 2009
I remember when I was a child seeing a film, set in the desert of North Africa, in which a man was stung by a deadly scorpion which was hiding in one of his boots. Che impressione! (how frightening) for a long time after seeing that film I always used to bang and shake my…
I Vivai di Pistoia Posted by Serena on May 28, 2009
Pistoia is probably one of the old Tuscan towns least visited by tourists, largely because of its rather industrial setting. However, the few intrepid, or ‘accidental’ tourists who penetrate the ‘cement jungle’ of the periphery, including the extremely misguided attempts at ‘modern’ architecture which my mother described on a recent visit as “una grande schifezza”, will…
Lucca: Villa and Palazzo Guinigi Posted by Serena on May 25, 2009
A couple of weeks ago we went to my hometown, Lucca, to visit my parents, and while we were there we decided to take the opportunity to visit one of Lucca’s many historic buildings. We opted for the Museo Nazionale di Villa Guinigi (National Museum of Villa Guinigi), which we hadn’t been to for many years, and I…
Parole Onomatopeiche, the solutions, and a poem. Posted by Serena on May 22, 2009
It’s always exciting to launch a little quiz on the internet and wait for the answers to come rolling in, so first of all I’d like to say thanks to the people who replied to Parole Onomatopeiche, well done both of you! Now for the solutions: 2. Tic… tic… e’ il ticchettio dell’orologio (is the…
Il Giro d’Italia, part 2 Posted by Serena on May 19, 2009
Now don’t start getting the idea that I’m mad about cycling. Well I have got una bici (a bike) in the shed with two flat tires, and it gets an airing once or twice a year. When we lived in a fairly flat region in England we cycled to work, to the shops, and also for leisure. But…
Il Giro d’Italia Posted by Serena on May 16, 2009
On Saturday 9th May the competitors in Italy’s most important cycle race set off from their starting point at Lido di Venezia in the north of Italy. Known as Il Giro d’Italia (The Tour of Italy) the race is broken into 21 stages, during the course of which the cyclists will cover 3,455.6 Km and pass through 3 countries: Italy, Austria and Switzerland, and 13 Italian regions…
Parole Onomatopeiche Posted by Serena on May 13, 2009
O.K. it’s time for another one of my little quizzes. This one is based on parole onomatopeiche (onomatopoeic words). Here’s how it works: below, you will find a numbered list of sounds together with their onomatopoeic counterparts, this is followed by a list of things that produce the sounds (highlighted in blue). All you have…