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Non Vedo l’Ora! Posted by Geoff on Jan 15, 2016
Non vedo l’ora! (literally: I can’t see the hour) is a very common expression meaning ‘I can’t wait!’ or = ‘I’m really looking forward to’ It can be used as an exclamation on its own: Giorgio: vieni a vedere la mia raccolta di antiche pistole domani? = Giorgio: are you coming to see my collection…
How To Tell The Time In Italian Posted by Geoff on Jan 13, 2016
So … if you don’t have a donkey (see Monday’s post) how exactly do you tell the time in Italian? Asking the time If you watched the video embedded in Monday’s blog, you’ll have noticed that the man on the scooter asks the contadino: mi scusi buon uomo … mi sa dire l’ora per favore?…
Telling The Time In Italy … The Country Way Posted by Geoff on Jan 11, 2016
Nowadays we all have a watch or a cell phone that tells us what the time is, but once upon a time watches weren’t so common, and cell phones were still a thing of the distant future. So how did people in the past know what the time was if they were out working in…
Foggy Italy Posted by Geoff on Jan 4, 2016
We wanted to begin 2016 with some music: “Forse troviamo una bella canzone su gennaio” (perhaps we’ll find a nice song about January)” said Serena … “Hmmmm, vedremo” ( Hmmmm, we’ll see) I replied sceptically 30 minutes of fruitless searching pass … my scepticism has, unfortunately, been justified. Italian songs with the word gennaio in…
My Favourite Italian Blogs of 2015 – Part 1: Geoff’s Choice Posted by Geoff on Dec 30, 2015
As 2015 draws to a close I’ve decided to leaf back through some of the many articles that we’ve shared with you over the past year. It’s an odd experience! As you know, we try to provide you with relevant and contemporary material about real events, so over a period of time our blog naturally…
An Italian Nativity Posted by Geoff on Dec 24, 2015
Probably the most abiding symbol of Christmas here in Italy is il presepe. Il presepe is a reconstruction of the nativity story, and its origins date back to 1223 when San Franceso di Assisi created the first presepe vivente (living presepe). The presepe can be found in three main forms: 1. the simple small scale…
Just Good Friends Posted by Geoff on Dec 21, 2015
A reader recently commented on my blog Italian Sexual Euphemisms “I would love to see a post about words to describe the less graphic interactions between men and women. I’m particularly confused about how to say ‘girlfriend’, as distinguished from ‘friend who is a girl.’ Same with boyfriend. I’m sure there is a lot of…