Archive for the year 2011
Maria Montessori Posted by Serena on Mar 9, 2011
Yesterday, the 8th of March, was Giornata Internazionale della Donna (International Women’s Day), and this year I’ve decided to write an article about a famous Italian woman, whose work has had a huge impact in the field of education throughout the world. Maria Montessori was born in 1870 in Chiaravalle near Ancona (Marche). She was…
Le Paludi d’Italia Posted by Serena on Mar 6, 2011
The Italian Marshlands "Pigra, limosa, fetente, orlata di dense gramigne, la vasta palude sogghigna in faccia al sole". "Lazy, slimy, fetid, bordered by dense weeds, the vast marsh sneers in the face of the sun". These words, written by Gabriele d’Annunzio in 1879, portray the hatred and disgust felt by people at that time for…
Marzo Posted by Serena on Mar 3, 2011
The name of the month marzo (March) comes from the Roman god of the war Mars. Principali Festività (Main Festivals): On the 8th of March we celebrate la Giornata Internazionale della Donna (International Woman’s Day), also known as La Festa della Donna (Woman’s Festival). In March 2009 I wrote an article about the origins and…
I Promessi Sposi Posted by Serena on Feb 28, 2011
This year we are celebrating the 150th anniversary of the Unification of Italy, and as part of these celebrations I recently went to the Teatro della Rosa here in Pontremoli to watch "I Promessi Sposi alla Prova", a play based on the famous Italian novel "I Promessi Sposi" (‘The Betrothed’). There are several reasons why…
La famiglia ‘Acqua’ Posted by Serena on Feb 26, 2011
The group of letters ‘-cqu-‘ are used by many words in Italian, the majority of which belong to the ‘acqua’ family. Here is a list of the most common: Acqua Water l’acquaio the kitchen sink, more commonly known as il lavello l’acquedotto the aqueduct acquatico aquatic, e.g. pianta acquatica (aquatic plant) l’acquolina only used in…
101 uses for an orange! Posted by Serena on Feb 24, 2011
In my last blog I mentioned that I recently bought a twenty six kilo crate of arance rosse di Sicilia (Sicilian red oranges). Even after I had made ten jars of marmalade, I still had una marea di arance (a mass of oranges, literally ‘a tide of oranges’) to dispose of. So I decided to…
L’Arancia Rossa di Sicilia Posted by Serena on Feb 20, 2011
My husband Geoff is mad at me at the moment simply because I ordered a box of oranges! Well, I must admit that I went slightly over the top. It’s a twenty six kilo crate that, luckily, I’m sharing with my friend Annalisa. So, yes, we have oranges everywhere, both in the kitchen and the…