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Quanto bene conosci l’Italia? Posted by Serena on Jan 9, 2012
How well do you know Italy? Here’s a quiz which will put your knowledge to the test. Leave your answers in the comments section. 1. Roughly how many inhabitants does Italy have: a. 40million, b. 50million, c. 60million, or d. 70million? 2. Which city is famous for its romantic songs? 3. On which Italian island…
La Lingua in Italia Posted by Serena on Jan 6, 2012
One of the main aims of my blogs is to help you to understand the Italian language. It’s important to remember, however, that due to complex social and historical reasons Italian isn’t necessarily the first language of all Italians. There are, for example, linguistic minorities in Italy whose first language is German (in Trentino Alto…
Parole e Accenti Posted by Serena on Jan 4, 2012
I recently wrote a blog about the accent in Italian verbs explaining that there weren’t any fixed rules, and that they had to be learned by heart. In order to show how important it is to get the accent in the right place, let’s have a look at a few words that change their meaning …
Una Selezione di Blog del 2011 Posted by Serena on Jan 2, 2012
Allora, here we are at the beginning of a new year. I thought it might be interesting to start this year with a mini review of my 2011 blogs. Let’s take a look back at some of the diverse topics that we covered last year. I’d be very interested to hear from you, our readers…
Una Storia di Natale Posted by Serena on Dec 30, 2011
Yesterday I was browsing through the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, when I came across this touching little story which exemplifies the spirit of Christmas: Pensionata sorpresa a rubare, i Carabinieri prima l’arrestano e poi la invitano a pranzo Pensioner caught stealing, Carabinieri (the Military Police force) first arrest her and then invite her for…
Il Presepe Nel Lavatoio Posted by Serena on Dec 29, 2011
Tellaro, 25th of December 2011: Yesterday, Geoff posted a blog about the lovely walk that we had on Christmas day. Near the end of the walk we came across a fascinating presepe (nativity scene) in the old village laundry near the little harbour of Tellaro. Next to the presepe was a note with the following…
Il Nostro Giorno di Natale Posted by Serena on Dec 27, 2011
Written by Geoff We’ve always written blogs around Christmas time that tell you something about Christmas traditions here in Italy. However, it’s important to remember that not everyone follows these traditions … including us! Our Christmas tradition? … going for a walk in a beautiful place. Our Christmas meal? … panini al formaggio! Here’s how…