by Dianne Hales | Aug 18, 2021 | Books, books on Italy, Italian language, Italian words and expressions, Italy, Language, learning Italian, Sayings and expressions, summer in Italy, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
il dolce far niente by Jody Paglia Goode This guest blog by an Italophile in Des Moines is one of the most popular posts I’ve ever run. I’m re-publishing it to savor as the end of summer approaches. Buona lettura! (Enjoy the read!) A few years ago...
by Dianne Hales | Aug 10, 2021 | Books, books on Italy, Capri, history, Italian, Italian language, Italian words and expressions, Italy, Language, learning Italian, Roman history, Sayings and expressions, summer in Italy, Travel, Uncategorized, Web/Tech, Weblogs
Years ago I celebrated my first Italian Ferragosto in Capri, a most fitting (though crowded) place to be on August 15. The Roman emperor Augustus, whose name graces summer’s last month, was so enamored with the beguiling island of Capri that he appropriated it from...
by Dianne Hales | Aug 3, 2021 | Books, books on Italy, history, Italian, Italian language, Italian words and expressions, Italy, Language, learning Italian, Sayings and expressions, summer in Italy, Travel, Uncategorized, Web/Tech, Weblogs
Italy goes on vacation in August. Even in not-yet-normal times, shops are shuttered, restaurants closed, streets quiet. Cities empty as residents join the esodo estivo (summer exodus), the mass departure of Italians heading off for their ferie estive (summer...
by Dianne Hales | Jul 27, 2021 | Italian, Italian language, Italian words and expressions, Italy, Language, learning Italian, Sayings and expressions, summer in Italy, Travel, Uncategorized, Weblogs
They buzz, bite, sting — and shatter the serenity of a summer day in Italy. Many of the insects (gli insetti) you might encounter in Italy are familiar foes. The fly (mosca), mosquito (zanzara), gnat (moscerino), wasp (vespa), bumble bee (calabrone) and tick...
by Dianne Hales | Jul 20, 2021 | boats, Books, books on Italy, Italian, Italian language, Italian words and expressions, Italy, Language, learning Italian, Sayings and expressions, summer in Italy, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
For years we sailed San Francisco Bay in a boat called Canto del Mare (Song of the Sea). When we started sailing in Italy, we had to master a new maritime vocabulary, starting with the names for various Italian boats (imbarcazioni italiane): *Rowboat — barca a remi...
by Dianne Hales | Jul 13, 2021 | Books, books on Italy, Italian, Italian language, Italian words and expressions, Italy, Language, learning Italian, Sayings and expressions, summer in Italy, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
The beaches on the northern California coast where I live are beautiful, dramatic — and usually windy, foggy and cold in the summer months. As much as I love walking and jogging on them, none can compare with una spiaggia italiana. If I could, I’d spend...
