As I write this my husband is in the other room watching the "Godfather" in Italian. I love hearing Italian, any time, any day, and have since I first heard it. It is comfort to my ears somehow. My first trip to Italy, when I had only one semester of Italian under my belt, it never bothered me that I didn't understand what people were saying. I remember just wanting to sit in public places and soak in the sounds, bathe in the melody of that beautiful language.
I know that I will always be a student of languages and look forward to learning more, but I want to be fluent in Italian more than I have ever wanted to in another language. Through a dear
friend in Long Beach who was my Italian tutor, I met Stefania Belli, the founder of La Lingua La Vita in Italy. La Lingua La Vita is an Italian language school for foreigners located in beautiful Todi, Umbria. I have studied languages since 1976 (French, Spanish and Italian) and have had a wide range of teachers. I can honestly say that Stefania is one of the best and most natural teachers I have ever had the pleasure of studying with. She has also created a new innovative way of learning called "Beyond Language", which was recently written about in Yoga Journal.Lucky for me, Stefania comes to Southern California once a year to hold a month-long intensive Italian course that I take. I dream of going to Todi to immerse myself in the language program there as soon as I can. I must say that despite the terrible exchange rate for us poor people with dollars, her programs are still very affordable, in addition to being very interesting. If you are interested in signing up for one of her courses in Todi, you can visit my website for full details and, since I act as one of their U.S. agents, you can register through me.
In addition to the language classes, students can take cooking courses, do olive oil and wine tastings, visit ceramic studios, or do art classes. You have the option of staying with a family (a further way to strengthen your Italian) or stay in an independent apartment. Studying at La Lingua La Vita would be a great way to full immerse yourself in the Italian culture.
Have a passionate Monday!
Fatevi un lunedi appassionato!
14 comments:
Sounds lovely. I would love too....but, life gets in the way! We took a class before my first trip and now I am feeling since I don't use it all the time..I am losing what I know. We just signed up for another 10 weeks of classes that starts next week...so I am very excited!!! I think what I really need is a base of people that I can practice with!
OH cara, she sounds like a fabulous teacher. And Todi is a gorgeous town in Umbria...would love to take that course. Damn Dollar...I will def check out her site and look for funzies...hehe...a presto amica...
Hi Jeni,
Nice post and good motivator for me to keep trying to learn to speak Italian, I'm so intimidated to hear myself. Your post is a good reminder, to keep at it. So now we need the yoga class with the Italian lessons too here.....
Melange - It is wonderful that you are taking classes here. Parliamo italiano!
Katerina - definitley check it out and keep it in mind for the future.
Marla - I'm sure your Italian would put us all to shame. The good thing about the Italians is that they are very forgiving when we don't speak well, right? Oh, and yes, I would love to come there and teach yoga while someone else teaches the Italian!
This is a wonderful posting! I love that you get to listen to Antonio watching the Godfather in Italian. How cool! I too love Italy and it's language and if it wasn't so darn expensive to go there I would plan another trip tomorrow and brush up on the little Italian I know. I did find however, when I was in Italy last year that you can get far on just a little knowledge of the language.
I'm trying to learn to speak and write more Italian myself. I can understand more than I can speak. Learning in Italy would be wonderful :)
I agree, the Italian language is beautiful! I love listening to Andrea Bocelli as he sings in Italian, I play his cd's through out my house as I'm cooking!!!
Rebec - you are so right - the Italians are very forgiving with people who try to speak there language. It is fun to try to communicate even with very little Italian.
Maryann - we're in the same boat!
P I C - your house must be filled with passion and joy when you are cooking!
I just love that last photo! Best of luck with your continued learning...it never ends, does it_!
Sognatrice - grazie bella!
you're right, it's great just soaking up the sounds of people conversing. It is a beautiful language. Joe
I would love to be able to speak Italian - it always sounds like such a rich, passionate, vibrant language.
Ah I love the Italian language! The way the words roll of the tongue make it sound so elegant and flowing. A few years ago I decided to learn Italian and I picked it up quite quickly - I'd like to think I'm pretty fluent now.
Molto grazie per la tua informazione. I studied with Stefania in Todi for three years but haven't been there in quite some time - since before 2005 when I suffered through Hurricane Katrina. I am very interested in the Italian course in California. Will Stefania be coming again? (I also wrote her a note at the school). Going to Todi is wonderful. It is a bit difficult getting there from Rome but I've done it by various means - Marco the taxi driver, a bus, and by train from Perugia. It is well worth the effort though. Forse ci vediamo a Todi nel futuro!!! Carolina
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