“PISA – Gli orti pubblici, terreni concessi dal comune ai cittadini agricoltori per passione, non sono una novità. E migliaia sono gli improvvisati contadini metropolitani che coltivano pomodori, insalata o melanzane nelle periferie di piccole o grandi città. Mai però si erano visti orti energetici dove, invece di frutta e verdura, nascono pannelli solari e impianti minieolici.”

(PISA – Public allotments, pieces of land rented out by the council to citizens who are passionate gardeners, are not a novelty. There are thousands of self made ‘metropolitan farmers’ who cultivate tomatoes, salad, or aubergines (egg plants) on the outskirts of towns and cities. Never before, however, have we seen ‘energy allotments’ where, instead of fruit and vegetables, solar panels and mini wind turbines are cultivated.)

The idea has been proposed by il Comune di Pisa (Pisa City Council), which wants to comply with the new environmental building regulations. They have decided to make available, free of charge, allotments on which to plant this strange new crop which will harvest the abundant natural resources and convert them into clean energy. Orti energitici will be available to citizens who inhabit buildings on which, in order not to disfigure the aesthetic integrity of the centro storico (historic centre), unsightly solar panels and wind turbines cannot be installed.

The most efficient ‘energy gardeners’, and citizens who modify their homes to be more energy efficient, will be rewarded with generous tax discounts.

Post from: Italian Blog

So how can you reproduce this process of contextual learning when you are at home and far from Italy? Well one simple trick is to make your own labels and strategically place them around your house, or even your place of work. For a start you can make your own spingere and tirare labels so that every time you pass through the door you will notice those words. Eventually the act of pushing open the door will be linked to spingere, and pulling will be linked to tirare.

With this useful strategy in mind I’m going to do a series of word lists that you can print out and attach to the appropriate objects in a way that you will see them on a daily basis. Allora (so), let’s start with la cucina (the kitchen):

il tavolo  (the table)   see my blog Tavolo or Tavola

la sedia  (the chair)

la pattumiera  (the rubbish bin)

il lavello  (the sink)

il fornello  (the cooker)

il forno  (the oven)

il microonde  (the microwave)

la lavastoviglie  (the dishwasher)

il frigorifero  (the fridge)

il congelatore  (the freezer)

l’armadietto  (the cupboard)

il rubinetto  (the tap)

la lavatrice  (the washing machine)

lo scolapiatti  (the dish drainer)

il tostapane  (the toaster)

l’interruttore  (the switch)

la spina  (the electrical plug)

la presa  (the electrical socket)

I recommend that you only print out the Italian word, and let the context of where you place the label tell you what that word means, hence every time you use the washing machine you will see your label saying la lavatrice.

Divertitevi!

Post from: Italian Blog

Lucca comics is a celebration of fantasy that, over the course of 43 years, has grown from humble beginnings to become the largest festival of its kind in Europe. Just to give you an idea, this year’s show attracted roughly 140,000 visitors, a fairly large percentage of whom arrived in costume. By chance we happened to be in Lucca that weekend, and what really amazed us, apart from the quantity of participants, was the incredible quality of the costumes, masks, and ‘posing’. These were obviously very dedicated fans who had put a huge amount of time, care, and thought into how they presented themselves, but hey, siamo Italiani, no!

Click on the images below to see larger versions

At the same time there was nothing overbearing about the crowd, who were mainly in their late teens and early twenties, in fact the overall impression was of people having a great time whilst sharing their passion with other fans of the genre and the general public alike. Just walking through the crowd and stopping to admire the diverse characters you couldn’t help but feel a smile creep across your face.

One of the things that really pleased me, was seeing so many people participating in something very contemporary. Most tourist only know and see Italy as Europe biggest open air museum, and yes, we are very proud of our heritage, but life here didn’t end in the middle ages. Italy like everywhere else is a country that is still growing and evolving, there should be room for the new alongside the old, providing, of course, that it is done with that special ‘Italian touch’.

If you would like to know more about Lucca Comics then I suggest that you start with these two web sites: http://www.luccacomicsandgames.com/ and http://lucca09.luccacomicsandgames.com/ If you are planning an autumn break to Toscana next year I would definitely recommend a visit to Lucca Comics 2010. As they say ‘Be there, or be square’!

Post from: Italian Blog

Fare San Martino

‘Fare S.Martino’ (literally: to do S.Martino), an expression used in the vast agricultural plains of the Pianura Padana, means both to traslocarsi or trasferirsi (to move house), and to change one’s place of work. The expression goes back to the time when a significant part of the population of the pianura worked as braccianti (farm hands, or laborers). The farm laborer’s annual contract expired at the beginning of November, and if the contract wasn’t renewed by the proprietario terriero (landowner) for the following year, the  bracciante had to find work elsewhere. This entailed moving himself, his family, and all their possessions to una nuova dimora (a new dwelling place, or residence). The date chosen for il trasloco (the move) was traditionally the 11th November, la festa di S.Martino, and there was a very practical, climatic reason for selecting that date: l’estate di San Martino. 

‘L’estate di San Martino, tre giorni e un pocolino’ – detto popolare. (‘S.Martino’s Summer, three days and a little bit’ – popular saying)

L’estate di San Martino is the name given to a short period following the first really cold weather during the late autumn, in which, if we are lucky, we have a brief reprieve, and things warm up again for several days. I have to say, looking out of the window at the snow capped mountains which occasionally emerge from gloomy grey clouds, that quest’anno sembra che sia poco probabile (this year it seems very unlikely!) Ma chissà! (but who knows).

One well known usage of the expression ‘fare San Martino’ took place during Italy’s second war of independence in 1859. At the great battle of San Martino (a small town located in Northern Italy), King Vittorio Emanuele II famously resorted to dialect when he desperately tried to rally his struggling troops with the phrase: ‘Fioeui, o i piuma San Martin o i auti an fa fé San Martin a nui!’ which in Italian means ‘Ragazzi, o prendiamo San Martino o gli altri ci fanno fare San Martino a noi!’ (Lads, either we take San Martino or the others will make us ‘fare San Martino’ i.e. will throw us out!)

This year however, the expression ‘fare S.Martino’ has particular significance for us because we are in the middle of the grueling process of moving my elderly parents from their palazzo (block of flats) in the suburbs of Lucca to an appartamento near where we live so that they are closer to us and we can help to give them a better quality of life, però, devo dire che è un lavoro snervante!  (however, I have to say that it’s an exhausting job!). Oh well, in order to reward ourselves we can always follow yet another old tradition that takes place at this time of year, il primo assaggio del vino novello, che solitamente viene abbinato alle prime castagne (the first tasting of the new wine, which is usually accompanied with the first chestnuts). This tradition is celebrated in a famous poem by Giosuè Carducci (1835 – 1907) which we all had to learn at school:

San Martino

La nebbia a gl’irti colli
piovigginando sale,
e sotto il maestrale
urla e biancheggia il mar;

Ma per le vie del borgo
dal ribollir de’ tini
va l’aspro odor de i vini
l’anime a rallegrar.

Gira su’ ceppi accesi
lo spiedo scoppiettando:
sta il cacciator fischiando
su l’uscio a rimirar

tra le rossastre nubi
stormi d’uccelli neri,
com’esuli pensieri,
nel vespero migrar.

The drizzling fog
climbs the rugged hills,
and beneath the mistral
the sea howls and foams;

but in the village streets
from the seething vats
the pungent smell of wine goes forth
to cheer the souls.

On fiery logs the spit
turns and crackles;
the hunter stands whistling
and from his door watches

amongst reddish clouds
the black flocks of birds,
like forlorn thoughts,
at dusk migrate.

Post from: Italian Blog

The two words which I have chosen today, allora and dunque, both have more or less the same meaning, and most of the time it is a matter of personal choice which one you use. I, for example tend to use allora more frequently than dunque, and I was well known when I taught Italian in England for starting every other sentence with ‘allora, oggi studieremo…’ (well then, today we’ll study…), or ‘allora, adesso facciamo…’ (so, now we’ll do…), etc.

Allora has the following meanings: ‘then’, ‘well then’, ‘in that case’, ‘therefore’, ‘so’.

Here are a few examples to give you a feeling for how it is used:

Non sei ancora pronto? allora ti aspetterò (aren’t you ready yet? in that case I’ll wait for you)

allora, siamo d’accordo? (well then, are we in agreement?)

Franco: ‘Purtroppo non sono riuscito a prenotare un tavolo a quel ristorante’ Laura: ‘e allora, dove andiamo stasera?’ (Franco: ‘Unfortunately I didn’t manage to book a table at that restaurant’ Laura: ‘and so…, where are we going this evening?’)

Allora is also used in several common expressions with the meaning of ‘then’, or ‘that time’:

da allora (since then) e.g. …e da allora non l’ho visto (…and I haven’t seen him since then)

da allora in poi (from then onwards, or from that time onwards) e.g. …e da allora in poi ha continuato a funzionare (…and it has continued working from that time onwards)

fino allora (until then, or until that time) e.g non ci ero mai stato fino allora (I’d never been there until then)

proprio allora (right then, at that very moment) e.g. …e proprio allora è entrata Federica! (and at that very moment Federica came in!)

Dunque also has the meaning of ‘then’, ‘well then’, ‘in that case’, ‘therefore’, ‘so’.

Here is a very famous example: penso, dunque sono (I think, therefore I am)

dunque, andiamo in pizzeria stasera? (well then, are we going to the pizzeria this evening?)

use dunque if you are picking up the thread of a conversation e.g. dunque… mi stavi raccontando delle tue vacanze (so… you were telling me about your holiday)

you can also use it in exclamatory phrases e.g. dimmi dunque! (tell me then!)

As you can see from the examples, dunque and allora are mostly interchangeable and you will probably end up having a preference for one or the other. As I said, I tend to use ‘allora’ a lot but my mother, on the other hand, uses ‘dunque’. Both words are used very commonly when you are having a conversation and are thinking about what you’re going to say next, a bit like saying ‘hmmm now let me think…’

allora… non so cosa altro dirvi!

Post from: Italian Blog

Alda Merini was born in Milano on the 21st of March 1931. She started writing poetry at an early age, and when she was 19 two of her poems were included in the Antologia della poesia italiana 1909-1949 (Anthology of Italian Poetry 1909-1949) edited by Spagnoletti. Alda Merini published the first of several books of her verses in 1953, however in 1961 she was taken into psychiatric care due to mental health problems and did not publish any more work for over 20 years. Finally in 1984 she published La Terra Santa, in which she describes her experience of being in the psychiatric hospital, and frequent references to this experience reappear in her later work. Despite being a troubled soul, Alda Merini never lost her sense of irony and irreverent wit, and in 2004, for the occasion of her seventy-third birthday, she asked for a “hot man”. Her friends duly organized  a visit from the male stripper Ghibly.

Merini won many Italian literary awards and was twice nominated for the Nobel Prize, firstly by the Académie Francaise in 1996, and then in 2001 by P.E.N. Italia. A selection of her works have been translated into English by the American poet Susan Stewart in “Love Lessons: Selected Poems of Alda Merini”, published earlier this year by Princeton University Press.

I’ve chosen a self-portrait poem to share with you entitled Alda Merini taken from the collection Vuoto d’amore (Void of Love), published in 1991. Here it is below with my own translation into English.

Alda Merini

Amai teneramente dei dolcissimi amanti

senza che essi sapessero mai nulla.

E su questi intessei tele di ragno

e fui preda della mia stessa materia.

In me l’anima c’era della meretrice

della santa della sanguinaria e dell’ipocrita.

Molti diedero al mio modo di vivere un nome

e fui soltanto un’isterica.

I tenderly loved some very sweet lovers / without them ever knowing anything. / And over them I weaved spider’s webs / and I was prey to my own material. / In me there was the soul of the prostitute / of the saint of the bloodthirsty and of the hypocrite. / Many gave a name to my way of living / and I was simply a hysterical person.

Grazie Alda!

Post from: Italian Blog

Earlier this year, at the end of June when the walnuts were still acerbe (unripe), and had il mallo verde (the green husk), I made il Nocino, a strong aromatic liqueur typical of the Emilia Romagna region, which we drink as a digestivo (digestive) in piccole dosi (in small doses). Now it’s autumn, the noci are ripe, and we eat them as a snack or use them in cakes and cookies. But there is one special recipe that we love, and which I always make when fresh walnuts are available, il Pesto di Noci (Walnut Pesto). This pesto is originally from the Liguria region and, as the name suggest, was traditionally made in the mortar and pestle (hence the word pesto, from the verb pestare = ‘to crush’), although nowadays we use an electric blender. It’s a simple and tasty recipe ideal for dressing i pansoti, a type of ravioli filled with spinach and ricotta, or in fact any type of egg pasta. This recipe makes enough for four people.

Ingredienti:

16 noci (16 walnuts)

Mezzo spicchio d’aglio (half a clove of garlic)

4 cucchiai di olio extra vergine d’oliva (4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil)

Mezzo bicchiere di latte (half a glass of milk)

2 cucchiai di Parmigiano grattuggiato (2 tablespoons of grated Parmesan cheese)

Sale a piacere (salt to taste)

Preparazione

Shell the walnuts, and put them in warm water. When they have softened a bit you should be able to remove the dark skins until you are left with the whitish nut inside. Put the walnuts in a blender with the garlic, salt and olive oil, and blend the ingredients until you obtain a smooth, thick paste, adding the milk a little at the time. Finally incorporate the Parmigiano, and put the resulting pesto aside to rest.

While the pasta is cooking, add a couple of spoonfuls of the pasta water to your pesto in order to make it a little more liquid. Serve the pasta, and dress it to taste with your lovely fresh pesto di noce. Ecco fatto! 

Buon appetito!

Post from: Italian Blog

Nowadays the masculine word tavolo, which originates from the feminine word “tavola” (Latin “tabula”), is used almost exclusively to describe a piece of furniture, e.g. il tavolo della cucina (the kitchen table), il tavolo da pranzo (the dining table), il tavolo da disegno (the drawing table), il tavolo da stiro (the ironing board), il tavolo da biliardo (the snooker table). We also use the word “tavolo” for a table in a restaurant, so if you want to book a table for four people, you’ll have to say vorrei prenotare un tavolo per quattro per favore (I would like to book a table for four please).

On the other hand, the feminine word tavola, which also means a plank or a board, is used to describe the dining table, not as a piece of furniture, but with reference to the table as a place where meals are eaten. In this case we have a whole series of idiomatic expressions based around the act of eating a meal at the table. These are the most common ones:

apparecchiare la tavola (to lay the table)

sparecchiare la tavola (to clear the table)

portare / servire in tavola (to bring food to the table)

il pranzo / la cena è in tavola (lunch / dinner is on the table)

andare / mettersi / sedersi a tavola (to sit down to eat at the table)

essere / stare a tavola (to be sitting eating at the table)

chiamare a tavola (to call people to the table)

tutti a tavola! or simply a tavola! (everybody to the table! i.e. come and sit down to eat!)

servizio da tavola (dining set, i.e. plates, cutlery, glasses)

biancheria da tavola (table linen)

uva da tavola (eating grapes)

Now please don’t ask me why a table in a restaurant is called un tavolo and not, as you might expect, una tavola, because I haven’t got a clue!

However, don’t forget that leggere il giornale a tavola è maleducato (to read the newspaper while eating is bad manners), but it’s OK leggere il giornale al tavolo (to read the newspaper at the table)!  

To finish with, a funny proverb: chi canta a tavola e fischia a letto, è matto perfetto (whoever sings at the dinner table and whistles in bed, is perfectly crazy)!

Post from: Italian Blog

Ecco, a little word which we Italians use all the time, can often be difficult for foreigners to pin down because it doesn’t have a single equivalent in English. So here are some everyday examples which illustrate its usage:

1. with the meaning of ‘well’ or ‘well now’ when you are beginning an explanation, or working out what to say:

Ecco, io lavoro per il comune (well now, I work for the council)

2. used frequently in everyday conversation as an exclamation of agreement meaning ‘that’s right’ often followed by appunto or esatto (exactly): ecco, appunto! (that’s right, exactly!)

3. with the meaning of ‘here’ or ‘there’:

Eccoci arrivati a casa (no satisfactory translation for this into English, but it means something like ‘here we are, we’re home’), eccovi finalmente! (there you are, finally!), dove sei? – eccomi (where are you? – here I am). As you can see, in this case the word ecco is combined with the direct personal pronoun mi, ti, lo, la, ci, vi, li, le e.g. ecco (here/there) + vi (you [plural]) becomes eccovi (here/there you are). Obviously the choice of ‘here’ or ‘there’ depends on the situation.

4. with the meaning of ‘here is / are’ or ‘there is / are’:

Ecco il libro che mi hai prestato (here is the book which you lent me), ecco lassù il castello (there is the castle up there), ecco le tue scarpe (here are your shoes). 

5. with the meaning of ‘this is’ or ‘that is’:

Ecco come vanno fatte le cose in Italia! (this is / that is how things are done in Italy!), vuoi il mio consiglio? eccolo (do you want my advise? this is / that is it).

6. with the meaning of ‘that’s why’:

Giorgio: Sono stato in vacanza per tre settimane – Lucia: ecco perché non ti ho più visto! (Giorgio: I’ve been on holiday for three weeks – Lucia: that’s why I haven’t seen you!).

7. at the end of a summary or explanation we sometimes say ecco tutto (that’s all).

8. to say that something is done, or finished we often use ecco fatto (‘that’s it’ or ‘it’s done / finished’)

Ecco fatto il blog (that’s the blog finished).

Post from: Italian Blog

Here in Lunigiana we also have il gradile (more commonly known as il seccatoio), a small building in which le castagne (the chestnuts) would be dried ready for grinding into farina di castagne (chestnut flour). Il gradile was also once used as a primitive kitchen, with an open fire in the middle of the room over which, supported by un paio di alari (a pair of firedogs), was placed il testo (a heavy iron skillet). This was the preferred method for cooking such traditional recipes as la pattona, la torta d’erbe, and il testarolo. These days the use of il gradile as a kitchen is increasingly rare, but we have been lucky enough to sample these dishes cooked in the traditional manner and I can testify, non c’è paragone! (there’s nothing like it!)

However, whether we like it or not, social trends change, and with the migration of young people to larger towns and cities, where they tend to live in un appartamento (an apartment) as a much smaller family unit, the kitchen seems to have lost its relevance.  A recent survey of 30,000 newly constructed habitations shows that the presence of a separate room for the preparation of food is becoming increasingly rare. In northern Italy for example, only 9% of bilocali (two room apartments) have a separate kitchen. The figure goes up to 10% for central Italy, and even in the more traditional south barely reaches 12%. Trilocali (three room apartments) don’t fare much better, with only roughly a quarter possessing una cucina tradizionale (a traditional kitchen). Only when we look at quadrilocale (four room apartments) and larger does the presence of a kitchen reach 70%.

In Italy, when we talk about the number of rooms an apartment has we do not usually include the locali di sevizio (service rooms, such as the kitchen, bathroom, or storage room), therefore an apartment described as a bilocale may in reality consist of more than two rooms. However, for the majority of people these days, the use of an angolo cucina incorporated into il soggiorno (the living room) is more efficient and allows the creation of a smaller, more economical apartment which serves the same function as the traditional home.

Another factor which has no doubt contributed to the decline of the kitchen is the change in our eating habits. Whereas in the past the family would riunirsi (get together) around the kitchen table three times a day it seems that these days us Italians like to eat out much more frequently. A recent survey has shown that 80% of Italians regularly eat meals outside the home, and of these 44%  do so at least once a day!

Post from: Italian Blog