Archive by Author
La Terra Trema! Posted by Geoff on Aug 31, 2016
The deadly earthquake which wreaked havoc in central Italy on the 24th of August can teach us as much about Italian culture as it can about Italy’s geophysical qualities. On the one hand we’ve witnessed the incredible solidarity and determination to help in any way possible which has emerged from a normally parochial and divided…
Treading Grapes Posted by Geoff on Aug 22, 2016
I recently asked my Italian friend and student of English, Stefano, to practice his English by writing about some of his childhood memories for me. I liked what Stefano wrote so much that I asked him to rewrite it in his mother tongue so that I could share it with you. Here are a few…
Blu Posted by Geoff on Aug 15, 2016
Singer Irene Fornaciari, daughter of the famous Italian pop star Zucchero, has written a moving song about the plight of North African refugees. But in order to fully appreciate the significance of this song you need to have an insight into the tragic humanitarian crisis behind the lyrics. Last year, a million desperate refugees undertook…
The Biggest Liar In Italy! Posted by Geoff on Aug 8, 2016
Italy is well known for its many traditional festivals, from grandiose medieval pageants and world famous events such as Il Palio di Siena to the smaller scale sagre based on traditional regional recipes and wines. But for the last 40 years a rather unusual, yet none the less typically Italian Festival has taken place in…
Italian Political Crap! Posted by Geoff on Aug 3, 2016
Dear readers, do you ever tire of hearing politician talking crap? I do! So I was overjoyed to read an article in Il Tirreno a couple of days ago about a Tuscan farmer who decided to communicate with the presidente della regione Toscana, Enrico Rossi, in the language that politicians seem to understand best. Here…
Irregular Nouns – Quiz Solutions Posted by Geoff on Aug 1, 2016
In last week’s quiz on irregular nouns we asked you to translate each of the sentences in the four groups below by adding the definite or indefinite article (il, i, lo, gli, la, or le, and un, uno, or una), picking the correct adjective from the box at the bottom of the page, and then…
A Box Of Adjectives – Quiz Solutions Posted by Geoff on Jul 25, 2016
Well done everyone who had a go at our quiz about pairing up adjectives with the nouns that they describe and their respective articles. We asked you to translate each of the sentences below, adding the article (il, i, lo, gli, la, or le), and picking the correct adjective from the box at the bottom…