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Un Memorabile Martedì Grasso Posted by Serena on Feb 12, 2013
Oggi è Martedì Grasso, ultimo giorno di Carnevale, e come sempre questo mi riporta con la memoria ad un lontano Martedì Grasso di tanti anni fa. Avevo sedici anni e frequentavo il Liceo Classico Niccolò Machiavelli di Lucca, una scuola severissima e lugubre, dove era assolutamente vietato ridere e scherzare, essere giovani insomma. L’istituto era…
Pronomi Combinati – Part 2 Posted by Serena on Feb 8, 2013
In Part 1 of this blog we looked at the ways in which personal pronouns are combined together when they precede a verb. Today I’m going to look at how and when to use the combined pronouns after a verb. All the following cases have two main changes in common: 1. the fact that the…
Pronomi Combinati–Part 1 Posted by Serena on Feb 4, 2013
Personal pronouns are always a confusing subject to master for students of Italian, so today I’m going to look at the combined personal pronouns using practical examples. The combined pronouns normally precede the verb in the following order: first comes the unstressed form of the indirect personal pronouns (mi, ti, gli, ci, vi), or the…
Cimento Invernale 2013 Posted by Serena on Jan 29, 2013
This blog is based on various newspaper articles about a winter challenge that took place recently in Milan. Therefore the writing style is very journalistic. Geoff has done his best to translate it into a comprehensible English. Puntuale nell’ultima domenica di gennaio ha avuto luogo la quinta riedizione del Cimento Invernale, una gara di nuoto…
I Simboli Politici Posted by Serena on Jan 22, 2013
Last week was the deadline for the political parties to “patent” their symbols (comprising their slogan and logo) for the next political elections, which will be held on the 24th and 25th of February. Well, this year we have reached the new high record figure of 184 symbols to choose from! Here in Italy anybody…
Il Gatto Inverno di Gianni Rodari Posted by Serena on Jan 18, 2013
Today is a real winter’s day up here in our little village in the mountains: a lot of crispy white snow, limpid blue sky, and icicles dangling from the drain pipes. Gigia, one of our six cats, has been having fun exploring the fluffy white carpet that has covered our patio, and seems very excited…
Fuga in Monopattino Posted by Serena on Jan 11, 2013
Here in Italy, La Befana (click link for more info) is the traditional end to the season’s festivities, and for children it’s almost like having a second Christmas. Instead of the Christmas stocking they hang up la calza della Befana (the Befana’s stocking), and if they’ve been good boys and girls … who knows what La…