Improving your Italian with Maxmondo

Recently, I stumbled across an excellent resource that is geared mainly for advanced beginners or intermediate students (even advanced students, too!). Maxmondo is online resource that focuses on students who have acquired knowledge of Italian and are looking to improve their listening comprehension and build their vocabulary.

As I've said before, building vocabulary and attaining any kind of fluency in Italian requires that you work beyond making word lists and studying word matrices in Italian language and grammar books. As you do with your native language, you acquire new words every day just by interacting with the language, speaking it, and, most of all, reading and listening to it. If you've reached a crossroads in your language skills, the best way to continue on "your journey" is to read more and listen to the language as much as you can.

This resource will enable you to do just that. They have a lot of free resources on the site, but the gem of the site is their online magazine, Incontro Italiano. You can become a subscriber or purchase issues individually (4.95 euro/issue or 37.95 euro/year for a 12 month subscription). Each issue comes with an audio file and a pdf transcript that you can download and follow along. There are also exercises and lists of words -- the great thing is that the author(s) of the magazine don't give you straight translations, but make you work at understanding the Italian by having you work with the context of what you are reading. This is a superb way to build vocabulary and engage with the language!

Each issue talks about Italy so not only are you learning more language and improving, but you're also learning about Italian culture, current events, history and more! Head to their site and try out a free issue. If you've used this resource, leave a comment and let others know what you think.

Life isn't a film...or is it?

I never laughed so hard after watching this piece. This YouTube video was created by a very clever and creative Italian. Check out some of his other videos -- according to YouTube, he's got quite an audience! Let me know what you think. If you have any questions on what he's saying, I can try to help, too! :)

Italian Food Net

Italianfoodnet.com is an online cooking resource that is packed with some very delicious recipes, but with this site, not only do you get the great recipe, but you get cooking demonstrations, too. Most of the videos last anywhere betwen 4-6 minutes long, some shorter, and teach you some basic as well as some not so basic recipes.

There are three chefs who demonstrate various recipes: first and second course dishes, antipasti, desserts, breads and more. The demonstrations will leave your mouth watering as these chefs serve up some great meals. The videos are in Italian, but many of them have subtitles. Even so, the Italian used is standard, the chefs speak well, and even if you're not completely fluent, you shouldn't have any trouble following their instructions. With the help of a good dictionary and some study, it won't take you long at all to get through these recipes. Plus, it's a great way to practice your Italian and your listening skills while learning how to serve up some authentic Italian dishes at the same time!

Buon appetito!

Tell your friends...

It's no surprise that Berlusconi's government dislikes the show, Annozero, because it gives a voice to many of Berlusconi's critics. Television stations in Italy are refusing (or perhaps, it's better to say that they are unable) to air television commercials that are annoucing the return of this wonderful program.

Anyone interested in Italian language and culture would do well to watch this program. I watch it as often as I can (online), and I find that it can be a wonderful source of entertainment as well as practicing and improving your Italian comprehension.

Here's an email I received (as I'm sure thousands of others) -- check out the spots (adverts for the show's return) and read the email I received below:

Buongiorno Keith,

---

Cari amici, sono Michele Santoro e ho bisogno del vostro aiuto. Mancano pochi giorni alla partenza e la televisione continua a non informare il ...pubblico sulla data d'inizio di Annozero. Perciò vi chiedo di inviare a tutti i vostri amici e contatti su Internet gli spot che abbiamo preparato a questo scopo e che non vengono trasmessi.

Qui trovate i nostri spot

Su Youtube:

Primo spot: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8e-HvwOhmjE

Secondo spot: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kJRHdrLfWI

Su Rai.tv:

http://www.rai.tv/dl/RaiTV/programmi/media/ContentItem-616d28e5-f635-4e1f-a3d9-e153752d2e91.html?p=0

E come sempre il nostro sito

http://www.annozero.rai.it/

Passaggio a nord-ovest

While many programs take a break in the summer in Italy, there are some that continue, and these programs are generally quite good and are useful in helping to improve your listening Italian skills. One of my favorite shows is Passaggio a Nord-Ovest -- you can watch the episodes through the PC through Rai's web site or, if you're lucky enough to be in Italy, it's on TV on Saturdays at 5:45 PM.

The host of the program is Alberto Angela, a well-known journalist and television personality who often hosts television programs on archaeology and culture (along with his father -- Alberto also holds a degree in Natural Science from La Sapienza). In this program, Alberto Angela crosses the globe visiting cultural sites as well as visiting some unique sites in Italy. There's also a very informative show on the giant squid, its history and research into this unique and amazing creature. The programs aren't always about history and archaeology but a true exploration of our planet into areas and sites that often don't receive a lot of attention.

I've watched about a dozen episodes - they last between 5 minutes to as long as 15 minutes. Alberto Angela is easy to understand, speaks well, and brings a passion and love for what he does -- not only can you listen and improve your Italian, but you can also learn something, too!