Archive for April, 2016
Buying Clothes in Italy – Part 2 Posted by Serena on Apr 13, 2016
Shopping for clothes, like any other category of activity, has its own specific vocabulary. How do you ask for the right shoe size, or say that the jacket sleeves are too short? What size waist are those jeans, and is that shirt going to fit your neck? Here is some key vocabulary to help you…
Primavera Posted by Geoff on Apr 11, 2016
The transition from winter to spring always brings with it a touch of nostalgia. The return of sounds, colours, and odours simultaneously awakens desires for the future and memories of the past. These sensations are often heightened to an almost unbearable level when you live in a place, as do I, far from that of…
Buying Clothes in Italy – Part 1 Posted by Serena on Apr 8, 2016
A couple have been invited to una festa in maschera (a fancy dressing party) and they’ve decided to mascherarsi (dress up) as Bonnie and Clyde. They go down town to root around the mercatino delle pulci (flea market) were vintage clothing is sold: Marito: “Mi servono un paio di pantaloni a vita alta, taglia 48…
Stolen Archaeological Treasures Return To Italy Posted by Serena on Apr 6, 2016
As a trained archaeologist, articles relating Italian archaeology always catch my eye. Here’s a recent one that really pleased me: Il 22 marzo sono rientrate in Italia dalla Svizzera 45 casse piene di beni archeologici appartenenti al nostro paese. Beni archeologici unici, per un valore stimato di ben 9 milioni di euro, provenienti da scavi…
For Better or For Worse Posted by Geoff on Apr 5, 2016
Parli bene l’italiano! (You speak Italian well!) You won’t get far in any conversation without needing to use the words good, bad, well, badly, better or worse. Now here’s one of those topics that in theory should be simple but in practice can turn out to be quite confusing. Let’s try and break it all…
Historic Italian Monuments For Sale! Posted by Geoff on Apr 1, 2016
Da il Corriere del Tirreno di oggi: Buco dell’ASL National Health Services Financial Crisis Regione Toscana in crisi costretta a chiudere vitali servizi sanitari e di emergenza se non verranno generati fondi Tuscan Region forced to close vital health and emergency services if no funds generated Dopo mesi di sofferti dibattiti è stato deciso di…