Do you badly want that Prada purse [borsetta] and you want to buy to the actual historical Prada store #1 in Milano on a Sunday? Do you want to be able to shop anywhere in Italy at lunch time? From … Continue reading
Monthly Archives: January 2012
Mia’s Italian: 8 Weeks Until Italy!
Hi everyone! I have been working really hard tutti i giorni (everyday) to cram as much as I can in before my trip! I’m leaving in about eight weeks and hope to remember all of the wonderful things I’m learning. … Continue reading
Meet Our E-Tutors: 5 Questions with Michel
In developing Living Language Platinum we hired a crew of language teachers from all over the world. These native speakers will contribute to this blog, answer questions on Twitter and our forums, and teach small group sessions. There’s nothing like … Continue reading
Why We Light Firecrackers on Chinese New Year: The Legend of Nián 年
As legend goes, in ancient times there was a monster called nián 年. Every Spring, during New Years Eve, nián would come out to eat villagers, destroy their homes and farms. One year, the villagers were burning bamboo to keep … Continue reading
Do Italians dress too warmly in the Winter?
An interesting story in the BBC News Magazine sparkled an interesting debate over how Italians supposedly dress to stay warm vs. Britons during the winter. (According to the two debating BBC writers, Italians underdress and the Brits overdo it.) I believe that both sides have … Continue reading
Living Language at the Gym
How are your New Year’s resolutions holding up? Not only does learning a new language enhance travel and bring people closer together, but it’s great for your health as well. Based on on recent articles from ABC and BBC, Living … Continue reading
It goes without saying…
You may not know it, but every time you use that expression, you’re speaking French. Well, that’s pushing it a bit, but this perfectly good English phrase is actually a borrowing from French. Most people realize that languages bump up … Continue reading
The Difference between Avocado and Lawyer in French
Did you know that the same word in French can have different meanings depending on gender? In French, every word has a gender. Of course, garçon (boy) is a masculine word and fille (girl, daughter) is a feminine word, but … Continue reading
Do Newborns Cry in Different Languages?
According to one study, yes. It’s been known that human fetuses have some degree of “semi” linguistic interaction with the world outside the womb. For example, studies have shown that newborns prefer the sound of their mothers’ voice over other … Continue reading
Mia’s Italian: Learning To Describe
Hi everyone! Most recently I have been working on describing items inside and outside the house. This forces me to apply my knowledge of colors, sizes, and other adjectives to new and old vocabulary. Since I haven’t been able to … Continue reading