Cappuccetto Rosso – Part 2. Posted by Geoff on Nov 22, 2017
Here’s part 2. of Little Red Riding Hood. You can find part 1. HERE Little Red Riding-Hood was not in a hurry, and there were many things to amuse her in the wood. She ran after the white and yellow butterflies that danced before her, and sometimes she caught one, but she always let it…
Cappuccetto Rosso – Part 1. Posted by Geoff on Nov 20, 2017
My friend Vincenza is a retired Italian language teacher who’s been learning English with me for a while now. Recently we set ourselves the project of translating a version of the traditional fairy tale, Little Red Riding Hood. It was quite challenging, and a lot of fun. Here’s what we ended up with: “Now, are…
The Pale Tower Posted by Serena on Nov 16, 2017
The milky mist of the Pianura Padana envelops the autumnal landscape. As we drive along the typically straight pianura road the majestic fortress of Torrechiara comes into focus like a pale ghost on the first low hills that rise up ahead of us. In order to preserve the magic of the moment we decide to…
I’m Very Affectionate! Posted by Geoff on Nov 13, 2017
‘False friends’ is the very appropriate title given to words that sound similar in two different languages but, in reality, actually have different meanings. Here’s one that can easily catch you out. Affezionato … sounds just like the English word affectionate, right? And it would seem logical that you should be able to use it…
The Fugitive Posted by Serena on Nov 9, 2017
Here, as promised, is our English translation of Serena’s blog La Fuggitiva Qualche anno fa, quando ancora abitavamo in Inghilterra, mio marito Geoff mi chiese di fargli una mascherina copri occhi, perché la luce che entrava dalla finestra al mattino presto lo svegliava. Così mi misi all’opera. Some years ago, when we were still living…
La Fuggitiva Posted by Serena on Nov 7, 2017
Qualche anno fa, quando ancora abitavamo in Inghilterra, mio marito Geoff mi chiese di fargli una mascherina copri occhi, perché la luce che entrava dalla finestra al mattino presto lo svegliava. Così mi misi all’opera. Usando come modello un copri occhi da viaggio che mi aveva dato mia zia, ne feci una un po’ più…
Che Palle! Posted by Geoff on Nov 2, 2017
Well, we’ve discussed bottoms, now I think it’s time to move onto another anatomical region that gives rise to a plethora of colloquial Italian expressions … balls! My recent inclusion of the expression ‘che palle’ in our blog Una Gita A Parma, and more expressly my English translation ‘what a bore’, seems to have caused…