Archive for 'Italian Language'
Totò In Milan Posted by Serena on Apr 26, 2017
A few days ago was the 50th anniversary of the death of Totò (Napoli, 1898 – Roma, 15th April 1967), one of Italian cinema’s greatest comedians. Totò is the pseudonym of Antonio Griffo Focas Flavio Angelo Ducas Comneno Porfiro-genito Gagliardi de Curtis di Bisanzio. Guess why he used the nickname Totò! Totò (a common abbreviation…
Parliamo Romanesco! Posted by Serena on Apr 18, 2017
Last week I wrote an article based on the poem La Margherita (The Daisy) by the Italian writer Trilussa. The poem is written in the musical Romanesco dialect which was Trilussa’s preferred means of expressing himself. If you have a reasonable grounding in the Italian language, Romanesco isn’t too difficult to read. You just need…
Aspettare or Aspettarsi? Posted by Serena on Apr 5, 2017
“Ma quello che ci aspettava non era quello che ci aspettavamo” (“But that which awaited us wasn’t what we expected”) wrote Geoff at the end of his post about Verona. Confusing? In fact, that line contains two easily confused forms: aspettare and aspettarsi So, what is the difference between them? Let’s have a look at…
Le Studentesse – English Translation Posted by Geoff on Mar 24, 2017
Salve a tutti! Here’s my translation of Serena’s blog Tales From The Bar – Le Studentesse I bar aprono la mattina presto, verso le sette, sette e mezzo e studenti e lavoratori ci vanno a fare colazione e rinfrancarsi prima di affrontare la giornata lavorativa. Quando io vado a badare mia mamma a Pontremoli, mi…
Tales From The Bar – Le Studentesse Posted by Serena on Mar 22, 2017
Il bar is an essential part of everyday life here in Italy. It’s important to clarify that an Italian bar isn’t like a bar in an English or American pub, club or hotel. The bar is a place to go for a coffee, breakfast, a snack, an aperitivo, to socialize, to top up your cell…
When We Played At Being Ladies Posted by Geoff on Mar 13, 2017
Here’s my English translation of Serena’s Blog Quando Giocavamo Alle Signore. Come mi piaceva giocare con le bambole da bambina! E quanti pianti ho fatto! How I loved playing with dolls when I was a child! And how I cried! Ero l’unica femmina e avevo tre fratelli maschi, così spesso li scoprivo che giocavano a…
Quando Giocavamo Alle Signore Posted by Serena on Mar 10, 2017
Children just love to play ‘grown-ups’, imitating the many strange and mysterious things that they see adults doing. So, what did I used to get up to with my dollies when I was a little girl? Come mi piaceva giocare con le bambole da bambina! E quanti pianti ho fatto! Ero l’unica femmina e avevo…