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Cianfrusaglia (tchan-froo-sah-lyee-ah) is today’s word. I don’t know if you have heard it, but in the heart of many, it’s a controversial term!  Because your cianfrusaglia may be, to me, a little treasure to cherish.  Indeed, cianfrusaglia is a useless object, something that has no …

Once upon a time, Siena was as large as Paris. That was, of course, centuries ago, during the late Middle Ages and the early years of the Renaissance, before the plague epidemic of the mid-14th century, which killed between 75 and 200 …

Today we want to explore a very common Italian expression, hai presente (ah-ee prai-sehn-teh). Avere presente means that we know what the other person is talking about, for instance, ho presente quel negozio, ci ho comprato questi pantaloni (“I know that store, I bought these pants …

Today’s word, spensierato (spehn-see-eh-rah-to) is something we all would like to be. Just like our title say, spensierato means “carefree,” and isn’t that a feeling we all love? Of course, being spensierati (this is its plural form) isn’t easy in this day and age, but we …

If you compare it to other words of our beautiful language, altroché (al-troh-kai) is a relatively new entry in our vocabulary, as its earlier attestations are found sometimes before 1909. This adverb, which is the union of two words, altro and che, is especially used in …

Dante Alighieri is a symbol of Italy and its poetry, but also of the city he was born, Firenze. A proud Florentine, Dante never kept the love he had for his hometown a secret, so why is he buried in Ravenna? Well, because …

Today, most European countries share the same currency, the euro. I am old enough to remember lire and the pain of having to change money at the airport when you were traveling: honestly, I am happy those days are gone. What many people …

Of all the provinces of Tuscany, Pistoia is, perhaps, the one we are less familiar with. Yet, it was Italy’s Capital of Culture only a handful of years ago (it was 2017), and it has one of the best-preserved and maintained medieval …

Relics and reliquaries were really a thing of the Middle Ages. A saint’s bone or two could put your tiny village on the map and quickly transform it into a pilgrimage destination, which also meant something else: money. Hang on, you may …

You may have read that opera lirica has recently become a candidate to enter the UNESCO intangible world heritage: another great achievement for our beautiful country and for the world of music. Yes, for our country, because opera as we know it today was …