If you visit Sorrento, don’t forget to stop at an inlaid wood store! Sorrento inlaid wood work it is a decorative composition obtained by cutting, inserting and putting together different coloured pieces of wood to create a design or picture. These pieces are then set into a surface to create a design that is usually level with the surface. The…
Still today in the hills of Molise, and particularly in Agnone, the old tradition of la serenata is alive and well. In days gone by when a young man had set his sights on a particular girl and felt he had a chance of being accepted, he would serenade below her window, encouraged and supported by other local lads and…
In 1662 Leonardo Di Nucci was a shepherd moving his herds along the tratturi. The wide tracks that weave through Abruzzo and Molise down to the plains of Puglia. The Di Nucci family have been making award winning artisan cheese here in the Apennine hills, in Alto Molise, ever since. Today, the 11th generation of the family use the same…
This summer the list of events at the Italian Cultural Institute in London is rich with several concerts and also free film screenings. Every Tuesday night and not only, come and watch great Italian classic films and latest releases. Tuesday, June 23, 2015 The Paths of Glory. A voyage with Mario Monicelli to the sites of the Great War The Paths of…
I arrived in Lecce after a long train journey from Milano and was happy to be met by Maria Rossini, my Italian teacher and host for the next two weeks, who created “Scuola Mondo Italia Homestay”. Maria had arrived on foot and was waiting at the station for me with Maya, her cute, little pug dog. Italian lessons given enthusiastically,…
Let’s delve into the colorful world of idiomatic Italian expressions. These expressions, known as “espressioni idiomatiche” or “modi di dire,” add flair and cultural richness to the Italian language. They often carry meanings that go beyond the literal interpretation of the words. Here’s an exploration of some idiomatic Italian expressions. Dogs, cats, birds, gold fishes… it’s becoming increasingly common for…
Learning a new language is always a good challenge to fix a different pronunciation and phonetics. Very often some sounds are really difficult to repeat in order to produce the right native sounds.Sometimes it takes so much time to practice and you never feel confident and enough brave to start a conversation because of those awful sounds. Dealing with…
To see stunning summer views in different directions across the Bay of Naples, Italy you should visit the point of land protruding from the Sorrento peninsula known as Punta del Capo. Many wealthy Romans built holiday villas on the panoramic points along the Sorrento coast and so it is not surprising that there are the extensive remains of a 1st…
Doing some dedicated research on the ancient town of Isernia, about 30 minutes away from Agnone, our base at Live and Learn Italian. I always knew Isernia was there, not least to use the train station, but I had not explored the old town until last summer. It was a revelation – originally settled over 700,000 years ago, it then…
When you take the Strada delle Crete, the road that leads down from Siena towards the south, the last strip of Tuscany before Umbria, you need to drive carefully. Every 100 metres or so there will be somebody who has pulled their car to a halt along the side of the road, and is taking photographs, totally enrapt, unaware of…
