Archive by Author
Understanding Italian Modal Verbs Posted by Geoff on Aug 1, 2017
Volere (to want), dovere (to have to) and potere (to be able to) are the three so called modal verbs. As verbs go, they are not particularly difficult to conjugate … until you need to use them in the present perfect (passato prossimo). Then things start to get really interesting! A prerequisite to understanding how…
Ciamioncino, The Singing Trash Collector Posted by Geoff on Jul 28, 2017
Ciamioncino is the nickname of Omar Gueye, a young Senegalese singer from Bergamo in the north of Italy. His name derives from the Italian word camioncino (little truck/lorry), a reference to the trash/rubbish truck which he spends his days following as an ‘operatore ecologico’. So, how did a spazzino (the common name for a street…
I Meet A Childhood Hero – English Translation Posted by Geoff on Jul 24, 2017
On our first day back in Pontremoli, after a week away in England, Serena had the unexpected pleasure of shaking hands with a hero from her youth. Here’s my English translation of her blog: I Meet A Childhood Hero Siamo appena tornati da una settimana in Inghilterra, una settimana molto intensa e stressante per motivi…
Farcela Posted by Geoff on Jul 19, 2017
Here in Italy, we have a wealth of weird and wonderful idiomatic expressions. These expressions tend not to follow the logic of certain rules that you may have learned. Farcela is a classic example. Farcela (to be able/to manage) is used very frequently in everyday Italian, so it’s important to learn how to use it…
Transitive And Intransitive Verbs – Quiz Solutions Posted by Geoff on Jul 17, 2017
Well done all of you who had a go at our quiz on Transitive And Intransitive Verbs you did really well! We asked you to insert the correct auxiliary verb followed by the past participle of the main verb into the incomplete sentences below. Let’s see how you got on. presente: la mamma fa gli spaghetti…
Ben Tornati In Italia! Posted by Geoff on Jul 13, 2017
All’aeroporto di Genova durante il rientro dall’Inghilterra … Al banco del controllo passaporti: Passaporto per favore ……. Eccolo! Parli l’italiano? Certo, abito qua. La cittadinanza ce l’hai? No, ma ora sto pensando di prenderla. Sarà meglio, altrimenti non ti facciamo più entrare! mi fa con un sorriso di complicità. Poi tocca a Serena, che ha…
Spaesato! Posted by Geoff on Jul 10, 2017
Once again, it’s time for our annual visit to my family in England. As usual, this causes me to reflect on a few cultural differences, and deal with that strange mixture of nostalgia and alienation familiar to expats and emigrants. When Italians discover that I’m originally from the U.K. they usually ask me: “Ci torni…