Archive for 'Italian Language'
Buying Clothes in Italy – Part 1 Posted by Serena on Apr 8, 2016
A couple have been invited to una festa in maschera (a fancy dressing party) and they’ve decided to mascherarsi (dress up) as Bonnie and Clyde. They go down town to root around the mercatino delle pulci (flea market) were vintage clothing is sold: Marito: “Mi servono un paio di pantaloni a vita alta, taglia 48…
Le Conte Italiane Posted by Geoff on Mar 31, 2016
As promised in yesterday’s blog, here is a small collection of conte (counting games) that I’ve selected from many many examples. Most of these conte contain the idiomatic expression toccare a qualcuno (to be somebody’s turn). For an explanation of le conte see here. I’ve also included translations for the two baffling barzellette (jokes) from…
I’ve Got a Cold Posted by Serena on Mar 23, 2016
Ogni medaglia ha il suo rovescio, every cloud has a silver lining. The cloud is my miserable cold, and the silver lining is that you get to learn some useful vocabulary. So, now you can moan about how bad you feel in both English and Italian … lucky you …. etciù!!! Suona il telefono. Serena…
An Inspiring Italian Teacher Posted by Serena on Mar 8, 2016
Oggi, 8 marzo, è la Festa della Donna e voglio dedicarlo ad una donna speciale per me. Non la mamma, che ovviamente è sempre la donna più speciale, ma una maestra. Eravamo a Bengasi dove, dopo la rivoluzione del 1969 che aveva portato al regime Gheddafi, il Console italiano aveva concesso alcune stanze del consolato…
At The Clothing Store in Italy Posted by Serena on Feb 10, 2016
The setting: un negozio di abbigliamento in una città italiana (a clothing store in an Italian town) The caracters: una coppia e la commessa (a couple and the shop assistant) Moglie: “Guarda, ci sono i saldi, perché non ne approfitti per comprarti un bel giaccone per l’inverno” Wife: “Look, the sales are on, why don’t…
My Italian Carnival Costume Posted by Serena on Feb 5, 2016
L’altro ieri, frugando fra le vecchie foto di famiglia di quando abitavamo a Bengasi, Libia, ne ho ritrovata una di me bambina, che ha fatto riaffiorare dei ricordi divertenti. The day before yesterday, digging through the old family photos from when we lived in Benghazi, Libya, I found one of myself as a child that…
Non Vedo l’Ora! Posted by Geoff on Jan 15, 2016
Non vedo l’ora! (literally: I can’t see the hour) is a very common expression meaning ‘I can’t wait!’ or = ‘I’m really looking forward to’ It can be used as an exclamation on its own: Giorgio: vieni a vedere la mia raccolta di antiche pistole domani? = Giorgio: are you coming to see my collection…