Archive for 'Culture'
Who Won the Lottery? Posted by Serena on Jan 15, 2014
La sera del 6 gennaio, giorno dell’Epifania, è stato estratto il biglietto vincente della Lotteria Italia per il valore di 5 milioni di Euro! Il biglietto milionario era stato venduto in una tabaccheria di Lecco, in Lombardia. Siccome ho un amico, Giuseppe, che abita a Lecco, gli ho scritto su Facebook facendogli gli auguri per…
Apologies! Posted by Serena on Dec 26, 2013
When I lived in England I used to teach several classes a week of Italian and also Yoga classes for adults. The courses used to start in September with ten to fifteen students per class, but by mid November they were reduced to three to four students per class. This wasn’t due, as I thought…
Barzellette Natalizie Posted by Geoff on Dec 24, 2013
For your entertainment … a few Italian Christmas barzellette (jokes). Doctor my reindeers are sick … How did you do it doctor? What did you give them? Voltarenne! In Italy we have an anti inflammatory medicine called Voltaren. This joke plays on the words voltare (to turn) and renne (reindeers). Per Natale, Giorgio regala…
A Merry Sexy Christmas Posted by Geoff on Dec 19, 2013
Let’s take a break from all the Italian Christmas stereotypes, il presepe, il panettone, Babbo Natale, la Befana, and spice things up a bit. I found an interesting little article in the newspaper Corriere della Sera which I thought you might enjoy. But first, click on the photo below to watch a video entitled: L’albero…
Ninna Nanna Posted by Serena on Oct 25, 2013
A few days ago I wrote a ‘sleepy’ post … which I hope you managed to stay awake long enough to read! Here’s another word that we use for going to sleep/bed when we’re talking to children, la nanna. Let’s look at a couple of typical examples of how it’s used: forza, è ora di…
Last Chance Caffè before the Land of Laa – ay Posted by Geoff on Oct 11, 2013
Part 1. The Sad farewell We’re heading north, the vast flat expanse of la Pianura Padana begins to undulate, the first sign that we’ll soon be leaving l’Italia and entering la Svizzera. But before we cross that border we have something very important to do. We pull off the autostrada into a familiar service station…
Non Potho Reposare Posted by Serena on Aug 30, 2013
Non Potho Reposare (I Cannot Rest) is the title of a famous Sardinian song. In 1915 Salvatore Sini (1873 – 1954), a Sardinian lawyer from Nuoro who enjoyed writing, composed a love poem entitled “A Diosa” (To the Goddess). Later, in 1921, Giuseppe Rachel, who was the conductor of the local band, composed a melody…