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La mia battaglia col giardino Posted by Serena on Feb 27, 2012
O.K. so it’s only the end of February, and perhaps we’re being a bit over optimistic, but it’s 18 degrees Celsius today, and after il ventaccio gelido, la neve e il ghiaccio (the horrible freezing wind, the snow, and the ice) that has imprisoned Serena, myself (Geoff) and five crazy cats within our little house…
Una Tazza di Tè all’Italiana Posted by Serena on Feb 23, 2012
To understand this blog you’ll need two things: 1. a reasonable knowledge of Italian, and 2. a sense of humour! Salve, sono Geoff, il marito di Serena, e per quelli che non lo sanno già, sono inglese. Abito qua in Italia ormai da un po’ di anni ed è stata una sfida interessante, a volte…
Si Impersonale – Part 1 Posted by Serena on Feb 22, 2012
Si dice che al finesettimana avremo temperature primaverili (They say that at the weekend we’ll have spring like temperatures). In Italian we often use the impersonal pronoun ‘si’, known as si impersonale. It is commonly translated in English as ‘one’, but can also mean ‘they’, ‘you’, or ‘it’ in an impersonal sense. To clarify, let’s…
La Scaramanzia Posted by Serena on Feb 20, 2012
Scaramanzia, nella superstizione popolare, significa: parola, formula, gesto, o azione di scongiuro contro il malocchio o la sfortuna (Scaramanzia, in popular superstition, means: word, formula, gesture, or action to ward against the evil eye or misfortune). Hence: dire qualcosa per scaramanzia; toccare ferro per scaramanzia (to say something for good luck; to touch iron –…
La Disfida dei Falò Posted by Serena on Feb 19, 2012
The tradition of the winter falò (bonfire) is common in many parts of Italy, including the area where we live, Lunigiana in the northern tip of Toscana centred around the medieval town of Pontremoli. The falò tradition goes back to the pagan festival of welcoming back the light after the darkest days of the year…
Venerdì 17 Posted by Serena on Feb 17, 2012
Aiuto, oggi è venerdì 17! (Help, today is Friday the 17!) Here in Italy the unlucky day is not Friday the 13th, as it is in many countries around the world, but Friday the 17th. Why is this day particularly unlucky? Is it because us Italians always like to be different from the rest of…
Ponti d’Italia – 2. Ponte Scaligero Posted by Serena on Feb 15, 2012
“L’opera più audace e mirabile del medioevo in Verona” (“The most audacious and wondrous work of the middle ages in Verona”) is how historians describe il Ponte Scaligero (the Scaligero Bridge), also known as Ponte di Castelvecchio, the beautiful brick and marble bridge which spans the river Adige from the Torre del Mastio (Master Tower)…