by Dianne Hales | Sep 11, 2019 | Books, books on Italy, culture, history, Italy, Language, Travel, Uncategorized, Web/Tech, Weblogs
“Sniff!” our guide commands as she thrusts a leaf snipped from a bush in the Roman Forum under my nose. “What do you smell?” I inhale deeply. The aroma is tantalizingly familiar—fresh, spicy, woodsy, a scent I immediately link to a certain type of alpha male—but I...
by DHales | Mar 10, 2018 | Books, culture, history, Italy, Language, Rome, Sayings and expressions, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
Le idi di marzo In the oldest Roman calendar March (marzo) was the first month (il primo mese) of the year, named for Mars (Marte), the fierce god of war (dio della guerra), and the time when Rome’s legions (le legioni), after a winter’s break, prepared...
by DHales | Sep 9, 2010 | Fashion, Italy, Language, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
i capelli (delle donne) women’s hair A bad hair day (una giornata storta) is nothing new. Regardless of whether their hair (i capelli) is curly (ricci), red (rossi), dark (scuri), brown (castani), or blond (biondi), women have always obsessed about it....
by DHales | Sep 6, 2010 | Italy, Language, Sayings and expressions, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
i capelli (degli uomini) hair (men’s) Italian men have always wanted to look their best (apparire al meglio). The manly men of ancient Rome were clean-shaven and neatly coiffed—no easy feats in those days.According to Alberto Angela’s fascinating...
