On Location Italian – 16 May 2013

130509-nicoleBuongiorno a tutti and welcome to On Location Italian. This week I have felt as if I was back in Scotland, having to endure four seasons in one. At the start of the week, primavera (Spring) was in full bloom in Verona. With the sun shining and temperatures sweltering, I jumped on a train to Lago di Garda (“Lake Garda”), the largest lake in Italy. There are various towns situated on the lake, all of which have become a major attraction for tourists, and being just a stone’s throw away from Verona I am fortunate enough to be able to spend sunny days there.

However, I didn’t get too carried away with planning all my future day trips to Lago di Garda since the sunshine was short-lived. In fact, I faced my first tempesta (“thunderstorm”) since living in Italy. Whilst taking shelter from the tuoni e fulmini (“thunder and lightning”) at my friend’s house, I took the opportunity to ask her about some common phrases in Italian relating to weather. She told me that the Italian equivalent of the expression “it’s raining cat and dogs” would be pioggia a catinelle. She also taught me the expression piove che Dio la manda (literally, it’s raining as if God sends it) translated as “it’s pouring”.

Following the tempesta, the unpredictable weather changed from torrido (“roasting hot”) to raining and back again. With my friend from back home visiting, I was taking her to see Venice, come rain or shine! Fortunately there were only a few nuvole (“clouds”) in the sky on the day. On returning from our day trip and describing the weather to my Italian friend, she taught another expression , this time for cloudy weather – c’é un cielo a pecorelle. Pecore are “sheep” and pecorelle are “little sheep”. This translates literally as “there is a sky of little sheep”.

I guess it just goes to show that it isn’t just us Scots who have to deal with il tempo imprevedibile (“the unpredictable weather”). Hopefully the weather will pick up before I have to leave at the end of June.  I have loved my time in Verona and I hope you have all enjoyed having a little insight into my life here, as much as I have enjoyed sharing it with you all. So for one last time, a presto!

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