Archive for August, 2013
Non Potho Reposare Posted by Serena on Aug 30, 2013
Non Potho Reposare (I Cannot Rest) is the title of a famous Sardinian song. In 1915 Salvatore Sini (1873 – 1954), a Sardinian lawyer from Nuoro who enjoyed writing, composed a love poem entitled “A Diosa” (To the Goddess). Later, in 1921, Giuseppe Rachel, who was the conductor of the local band, composed a melody…
Lei, Le or La? Posted by Serena on Aug 27, 2013
This morning my husband Geoff had to write an e.mail to the dentist to make an appointment, and before sending it he asked me to check it for spelling and grammar mistakes. Well, I must say that it was well written, but had one recurrent mistake: the confusion between the various formal personal pronouns. Despite…
The Village Feast Posted by Serena on Aug 22, 2013
A long row of tables lines the cobbled village street, accommodating four generations of locals (and a few, such as me and Geoff, not so local) who have come together to share each other’s company, and traditional food efficiently served by a small army of kids. The karaoke, managed by an excellent semi professional female…
Let me give you a hand Posted by Geoff on Aug 20, 2013
Mano = hand, like occhio = eye, which we explored in a previous blog, is another word whose roots can be found in a range of vocabulary and expressions which I’ll cover in this blog. But first, let’s have a look at the hand itself. The first thing to note is that la mano is…
Poteva Andare Peggio Posted by Serena on Aug 16, 2013
Un paio di mesi fa nella cassetta delle lettere di una nostra amica inglese che ha una casa di vacanza da queste parti avevo trovato una lettera inviata da Equitalia. Malgrado il bel nome, ricevere una lettera da Equitalia è sempre un cattivo segno, perché è l’agenzia di riscossione delle tasse e multe. Infatti quando…
Occhio! Posted by Geoff on Aug 13, 2013
The Roman philosopher Cicerone (Cicero) once said: "Ut imago est animi voltus sic indices oculi" ("As the face is the image of soul so the eyes are its mirror"). Above: Sharbat Gula by Steve McCurry We have many interesting expressions in Italian that derive from the word occhio (eye), but let’s begin with the…
Fagiolini al Pomodoro Posted by Serena on Aug 9, 2013
This morning I picked a bag full of fagiolini (green beans) from the orto, “helped” by un corvo (a crow)! He kept hopping around my feet, pulling off beans with his powerful beak then flapping off a couple of meters. I tried to shoo him away with a cane, making sure I didn’t hit him…