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Alberobello’s trulli are among the most characteristic buildings in Italy. They are so  rare and beautiful  that, today, they  are part of the UNESCO World Heritage List. Their name comes from the Greek and means “dome.” Their structure is characterized …

Davvero (dahv-vai-roh) means “for real.” It comes from the locution da vero, “which comes from reality,” and began being used in the  early 14th century. It corresponds to other common words in Italian, like veramente, and locutions, like sul serio.  …

What’s the first thing that comes to  your mind when you think of Italians? They dress well: yeah, sure. They know how to cook! True, true.  They are passionate: there we go, we’re getting close to the point. Imagine — …

Do you enjoy calura this time of the year, or is air conditioning  your best friend? Honestly, there is nothing nice about today’s word, calura (cah-loo-rah). Calura is more than  simple heat, it’s unbearable heat. It’s what  you get when …

If you visited Italy in person, you are probably familiar with the fact your caffè al bar is often accompanied by a curious shot glass of water. In Piemonte and Liguria, basically every café will give it to you, while …

Time passes, life changes and we can’t stop growing old, as a song says. This seems to be particularly true once you turn 40. Far from saying 40 is “old” in any way: I don’t think it is and I …

The days are getting shorter and cooler, it’s undeniable. And some of us dig it. There’s so much beauty in the colors of the fall seeping through that in-yer-face green and deep, bright sun-yellow of the summer. Finally it’s a …

Ah! Finally the Fall is  here! After  months of unbearable heat, the soft, fresh and  fragrant air of the  most colorful season  of the year feels like a liberation. Our word of the day is quintessentially tied to the Fall, …

Bologna: la dotta, la grassa, la rossa: “dotta,” the learned, because home to the oldest university in Europe. “La grassa,” the fat, because of her rich, decadent food. “La rossa,” the red, because of the terracotta hue of her buildings …

Those among you who have an ear for languages — or music, as the two seem to go hand in hand — probably haven’t failed to recognize how this week’s word, influenza (een-floo-ehn-zah) sounds a lot like the English “influence” …