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...
by Dianne Hales | Jul 6, 2021 | Books, books on Italy, history, Italian, Italian language, Italian words and expressions, Italy, Language, learning Italian, summer in Italy, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
Italians sometimes describe themselves as “solari” (sunny, cheerful, radiant). Il sole italiano (the Italian sun) certainly has inspired il culto del sole (sun worship) throughout the peninsula. Could anyone other than Italians have written a love song to the...
by Dianne Hales | Jun 15, 2021 | Books, books on Italy, culture, Fathers Day, history, Italian, Italian folklore, Italian language, Italian words and expressions, Italy, Language, learning Italian, Religion, Sayings and expressions, Travel, Uncategorized, Web/Tech, Weblogs
On Father’s Day I cherish a special memory: the last time I danced with my Dad, at an Italian-American banquet in Northeastern Pennsylvania. My mother had died a few months before, and I decided to bring my broken-hearted Dad along with me on a book tour that would...
by Dianne Hales | Mar 30, 2021 | Books, books on Italy, culture, Easter, history, Italian, Italian language, Italy, learning Italian, Religion, Sayings and expressions, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
On my first Easter in Rome in the Jubilee year of 2000, I joined the throngs jammed into the massive piazza of St. Peter’s basilica. Pope John Paul II, bent with age, extended Easter greetings in dozens of languages, including Italian. “Buona Pasqua!” the Roman family...
by Dianne Hales | Jan 27, 2021 | Books, books on Italy, Carnevale, culture, history, Italian folklore, Italian language, Italy, Language, Religion, saints, Sayings and expressions, Travel, Web/Tech, Weblogs
Not many people have a classic comedy dedicated to their birthday. I do—although that’s far from the second of February’s only claim to fame. This date may always signify Groundhog Day to fans of Bill Murray and the shadow-fearing furry creature who put the...
