Archive for March, 2013
It’s Snowing in Venice Posted by Geoff on Mar 29, 2013
If you plan on taking an Easter vacation in romantic Venice you would be well advised to do a bit of research on what to expect from the weather. Should you take lots of warm clothes, a waterproof jacket and stout shoes, or is it time to dig out something light and summery, perhaps even…
Pietro Mennea Posted by Serena on Mar 26, 2013
On Thursday the 21st of March Pietro Mennea, the Olympic sprint champion who held the world record for the 200 meters for 17 years, died in Rome at the age of 60 after an 8 months battle against an incurable disease. Mennea was born on the 28th of June 1952 in Barletta, in the south-eastern…
Benvenuto! Posted by Serena on Mar 22, 2013
The two adverbs bene (well, good) and male (bad, badly) are combined with a variety of words in order to express a positive or negative value. Today we’ll be looking at some of the most common words built with ‘bene’, starting with the greetings: benvenuto/a/i/e – bene plus venire (to come) = welcome: Siete sempre…
Le Frittelle Per La Festa del Papà Posted by Serena on Mar 18, 2013
On the 19th of March the Catholic Church commemorates San Giuseppe (Saint Joseph), the father of Jesus on earth, and therefore on this day we also celebrate La Festa del Papà (Father’s day). This festival wouldn’t be complete without the traditional zeppole or frittelle di San Giuseppe, a type of sweet fritter or doughnut, which…
Papa Francesco Posted by Serena on Mar 15, 2013
On Friday the 13th of March, the Catholic Church chose its new pope, Papa Francesco. Jorge Mario Bergoglio (the new pope’s real name) is the first non European pope to be elected in centuries, the first ever Latin-American pope, the first Jesuit to sit on Saint Peter’s chair, and the first pope to choose the…
Ai Gatti Non Piace La Pioggia! Posted by Geoff on Mar 12, 2013
Ai gatti non piace la pioggia, questo lo so perché sono gatta anch’io. Noi gatti siamo creature sensibili, ed anche se siamo capaci di sopportare tante cose che agli essere umani sarebbero insopportabili apprezziamo le comodità di un posto caldo, asciutto, ed accogliente con una buona scorta di croccantini, proprio come la casa di Geoff…
Grazia Deledda Posted by Serena on Mar 8, 2013
Today, the 8th of March, we celebrate la Festa della Donna (International Women’s Day), and as is now my tradition, I’m going to dedicate today’s blog to a famous Italian woman. In the past I have written about educationalist Maria Montessori, and artist Artemisia Gentileschi, today’s blog is about the writer Grazia Deledda. Grazia Deledda…