Back to School Sorrento Style
Feb 23rd, 2014, 06:52 AM
#27
phew - home at last. Rumours of my kidnap and/or demise were fortunately greatly exaggerated. Peter - i hope that my return here is sufficient for your purposes.
Sorry that the 2nd chapter has been somewhat delayed; it was entirely due to our having had far too good a time, with school in the mornings and afternoon excursions to Pompeii, Amalfi and Naples, all of which involved returns after the school was closed and my access to the internet curtailed hence no more trip reporting.
To return to my account of the first full day, we did indeed find our way back down into Sorrento [you'd guessed that, I suspect] and after a celebratory beer [quattro birre per favore] we made our way to our respective lodgings. I'd like to be able to report in detail on the dinner we were served that night, but sadly, all I can remember is a rather strange [to my mind] potato and artichoke dish followed by some rather tough veal and a green salad. Ah, how are illusions shattered - it turns out that not all italians are invariably excellent cooks. But our hostess was very generous with her time and the effort she made to explain to us the current political situation in Italy, which she followed very closely - tutti sono ladri [they are all thieves] is a phrase that is probably of almost universal application.
By 10pm we were ready for our beds. My GF and I had separate rooms, hers was a little smaller than mine but had the huge advantage of a bed that was reasonably soft. I can now confidently report that sleeping on a rock-hard bed is not necessarily good for one's back. Apart from that our lodgings were very comfortable and extremely clean, and had the added advantage of being within a 5 minute's walk of the language school, though several students were staying somewhat further away.
Anyway, i got through the night well enough, and in the morning we were treated to cornetti alla cioccolatta [croissants full of nutella] and caffe latte which went down very well. Then it was off to school, and Pompeii!
Sorry that the 2nd chapter has been somewhat delayed; it was entirely due to our having had far too good a time, with school in the mornings and afternoon excursions to Pompeii, Amalfi and Naples, all of which involved returns after the school was closed and my access to the internet curtailed hence no more trip reporting.
To return to my account of the first full day, we did indeed find our way back down into Sorrento [you'd guessed that, I suspect] and after a celebratory beer [quattro birre per favore] we made our way to our respective lodgings. I'd like to be able to report in detail on the dinner we were served that night, but sadly, all I can remember is a rather strange [to my mind] potato and artichoke dish followed by some rather tough veal and a green salad. Ah, how are illusions shattered - it turns out that not all italians are invariably excellent cooks. But our hostess was very generous with her time and the effort she made to explain to us the current political situation in Italy, which she followed very closely - tutti sono ladri [they are all thieves] is a phrase that is probably of almost universal application.
By 10pm we were ready for our beds. My GF and I had separate rooms, hers was a little smaller than mine but had the huge advantage of a bed that was reasonably soft. I can now confidently report that sleeping on a rock-hard bed is not necessarily good for one's back. Apart from that our lodgings were very comfortable and extremely clean, and had the added advantage of being within a 5 minute's walk of the language school, though several students were staying somewhat further away.
Anyway, i got through the night well enough, and in the morning we were treated to cornetti alla cioccolatta [croissants full of nutella] and caffe latte which went down very well. Then it was off to school, and Pompeii!
Feb 23rd, 2014, 09:28 AM
#30
Thanks thursdaysd. We left Naples airport in a rainstorm [which soaked all our luggage as it sat beside our plane for what seemed like a vey long time] and arrived home to the blue skies of London though it was raining by the time we got to Cornwall, 6 hours later.
not a lot has changed in the last week - some places on the coast are still under water, [or have flooded again] and more bits have collapsed, including a part of the cathedral in Truro. And it's blown a hooley all day. But I had [almost] a week of lovely weather in Italy, so I really shouldn't complain.
Ger - thanks to you and everyone else for your kind words and encouragement.
more soon.
not a lot has changed in the last week - some places on the coast are still under water, [or have flooded again] and more bits have collapsed, including a part of the cathedral in Truro. And it's blown a hooley all day. But I had [almost] a week of lovely weather in Italy, so I really shouldn't complain.
Ger - thanks to you and everyone else for your kind words and encouragement.
more soon.
Feb 23rd, 2014, 10:22 AM
#32
Language School, italian style.
Some of you may have shared the same stereotypical idea of schools and education in Italy that I had, before I visited an italian language school - that they would probably be lackadaisical, disorganised, and laisez faire. Not a bit of it. All the three that I have attended have been well-organised, disciplined, with very good enthusiastic and well-prepared [and highly qualified] teachers. We started at nine, and were expected to be there ready to start work on the dot. That was easy for us adults, especially for me and GF as we our lodgings were close by, not so easy for some of the students whose host families were further away, and who had started the week with the idea that they were on holiday. By day 2 they had been gently but firmly disabused of this notion, and by 9am they were all present and correct, though I have to say that some were more enthusiastic than others, particularly as the first lesson of the day was grammar. This did not mean that all we did for the next hour and 40 minutes was grammar exercises, in fact our second day day started with a listening exercise in which we had to try to work out what was going on without any written clues, but it did mean that the emphasis was on the grammatic basis of the italian we were trying to learn.
The first session went past surprisingly quickly, and after a pause for coffee or hot chocolate from the college vending machines, [the italian version of which seem to produce far better results than english ones] we were onto the second half of the morning, conversation, which most people seemed to enjoy more, though it has to be said that usually there was a strong grammatical component to this too. Today however, our two groups joined up for a session on Pompeii. This was taught very well - we were not just lectured at, but after an initial film we were divided into groups with plans of the part of Pompeii that we would be visiting later in the day, and asked to find the various buildings on a plan - the Forum, baths, temples, even the brothel. [of which more later!]. We also had to try to work out a day in the life of a citizen of Pompeii, which proved harder then you might think.
then, after a short pause for lunch, it was off to Pompeii on the train - a great new experience for most of the students - and some of the adults too.
Some of you may have shared the same stereotypical idea of schools and education in Italy that I had, before I visited an italian language school - that they would probably be lackadaisical, disorganised, and laisez faire. Not a bit of it. All the three that I have attended have been well-organised, disciplined, with very good enthusiastic and well-prepared [and highly qualified] teachers. We started at nine, and were expected to be there ready to start work on the dot. That was easy for us adults, especially for me and GF as we our lodgings were close by, not so easy for some of the students whose host families were further away, and who had started the week with the idea that they were on holiday. By day 2 they had been gently but firmly disabused of this notion, and by 9am they were all present and correct, though I have to say that some were more enthusiastic than others, particularly as the first lesson of the day was grammar. This did not mean that all we did for the next hour and 40 minutes was grammar exercises, in fact our second day day started with a listening exercise in which we had to try to work out what was going on without any written clues, but it did mean that the emphasis was on the grammatic basis of the italian we were trying to learn.
The first session went past surprisingly quickly, and after a pause for coffee or hot chocolate from the college vending machines, [the italian version of which seem to produce far better results than english ones] we were onto the second half of the morning, conversation, which most people seemed to enjoy more, though it has to be said that usually there was a strong grammatical component to this too. Today however, our two groups joined up for a session on Pompeii. This was taught very well - we were not just lectured at, but after an initial film we were divided into groups with plans of the part of Pompeii that we would be visiting later in the day, and asked to find the various buildings on a plan - the Forum, baths, temples, even the brothel. [of which more later!]. We also had to try to work out a day in the life of a citizen of Pompeii, which proved harder then you might think.
then, after a short pause for lunch, it was off to Pompeii on the train - a great new experience for most of the students - and some of the adults too.
Feb 23rd, 2014, 01:59 PM
#34
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Annhig - Back, and following along with your adventure! While I had one year of Italian in college, that was many years ago. Not sure I would be as brave as you to tackle a language school with what appears to be full immersion! Janet
Feb 24th, 2014, 07:46 AM
#35
Janet, it's really not as scary as it sounds. we still spoke english to each other most of the time out of school whereas the first school I went to in Orbetello we spoke italian all the time, which I found very hard work.
my GF did a year of italian at university and took up it again in September after a very long gap; she is managing fine even after such a long break. I think you would be surprised at how much you remembered!
my GF did a year of italian at university and took up it again in September after a very long gap; she is managing fine even after such a long break. I think you would be surprised at how much you remembered!
Feb 24th, 2014, 09:04 AM
#36
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annhig:
Did you take Italian (or other languages) during 'High School', or did you start from scratch as an adult? Did you have an aptitude for languages?
The reason I ask is that I want to do a similar French programme, somewhere gorgeous in France. I took Latin (CSE Level), Irish & French (Leaving Cert Level) in school, but it was always a challenge. Despite the fact I got honours in all, I had to work really hard at it, while English, History, Math and Sciences were a breeze.
I left school fairly fluent in French, but have now lost almost all of the conversational component, but can still read it. Its like the language component of my brain has atrophied.
You may have discussed this in you previous trip reports, so you can just point me there
Best Ger
Did you take Italian (or other languages) during 'High School', or did you start from scratch as an adult? Did you have an aptitude for languages?
The reason I ask is that I want to do a similar French programme, somewhere gorgeous in France. I took Latin (CSE Level), Irish & French (Leaving Cert Level) in school, but it was always a challenge. Despite the fact I got honours in all, I had to work really hard at it, while English, History, Math and Sciences were a breeze.
I left school fairly fluent in French, but have now lost almost all of the conversational component, but can still read it. Its like the language component of my brain has atrophied.
You may have discussed this in you previous trip reports, so you can just point me there
Best Ger
Feb 24th, 2014, 11:19 AM
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Annhig - now I'm encouraged! I'll test the language comprehension when visiting Italy in April. It would be nice to have a return visit to Italy in a few years include some time with language classes. Did you register with a school in Sorrento, or is this a class (teachers and students) from your hometown that arranged the time in Sorrento (including lodging)? Hope I'm not covering info posted earlier.
Feb 24th, 2014, 01:55 PM
#38
Did you take Italian (or other languages) during 'High School', or did you start from scratch as an adult? Did you have an aptitude for languages?>>
Ger - I might have discussed it elsewhere [i don't think so, but who knows] but as you've asked it here it might be easier to answer here too. I did French and German at school, and whether because the teacher was better or because it suited my brain better, I enjoyed german more and was better at it. I did French O level and German A level and can now make myself understood pretty well in each of them. The french remains in my brain though I haven't had a lesson in 40 years or so; i find that after a couple of days, it comes back. i suspect that if you went to France and/or had some lessons, you would find you remember a lot. I am lucky though that I think that I have an "ear" for languages; also I don't mind making mistakes and making a fool of myself which is a great advantage when you're speaking a foreign language.
I've had several goes at learning Italian, but finally took it up seriously about 5 years ago, and though it's harder to learn at this age than it was in my teens, I've managed to get to a stage where I can read it pretty well, and have a conversation, but I'm by no means fluent. I think that if I had a month there [ like I had in Germany when I was 17] then I would probably "crack it".
Janet - the first class I went to in 2011 in Orbetello I organised myself and went alone, doing classes with 3 others who had done the same. This year [and last year] was different in that it was organised by the college I go to for my evening italian classes. As well as us adult learners there are 16-17 year olds who are doing AS and A2 level in italian, which makes for an interesting and lively mix. My GF and I were in the same group as the 2 students who are doing A2 so we were about the same level. Don't get too discouraged if you find that you don't get on that well speaking italian on your holiday; it's quite hard I find to create opportunities to say more than "2 beers please" or "can I have a stamp"? The advantage of a school is that you do actually get the chance to speak italian so that when you get an opportunity to use it, you're able to take advantage of it.
We were talking about where we could go next year, so i think that this year can be counted a success!
Ger - I might have discussed it elsewhere [i don't think so, but who knows] but as you've asked it here it might be easier to answer here too. I did French and German at school, and whether because the teacher was better or because it suited my brain better, I enjoyed german more and was better at it. I did French O level and German A level and can now make myself understood pretty well in each of them. The french remains in my brain though I haven't had a lesson in 40 years or so; i find that after a couple of days, it comes back. i suspect that if you went to France and/or had some lessons, you would find you remember a lot. I am lucky though that I think that I have an "ear" for languages; also I don't mind making mistakes and making a fool of myself which is a great advantage when you're speaking a foreign language.
I've had several goes at learning Italian, but finally took it up seriously about 5 years ago, and though it's harder to learn at this age than it was in my teens, I've managed to get to a stage where I can read it pretty well, and have a conversation, but I'm by no means fluent. I think that if I had a month there [ like I had in Germany when I was 17] then I would probably "crack it".
Janet - the first class I went to in 2011 in Orbetello I organised myself and went alone, doing classes with 3 others who had done the same. This year [and last year] was different in that it was organised by the college I go to for my evening italian classes. As well as us adult learners there are 16-17 year olds who are doing AS and A2 level in italian, which makes for an interesting and lively mix. My GF and I were in the same group as the 2 students who are doing A2 so we were about the same level. Don't get too discouraged if you find that you don't get on that well speaking italian on your holiday; it's quite hard I find to create opportunities to say more than "2 beers please" or "can I have a stamp"? The advantage of a school is that you do actually get the chance to speak italian so that when you get an opportunity to use it, you're able to take advantage of it.
We were talking about where we could go next year, so i think that this year can be counted a success!
Feb 25th, 2014, 01:49 AM
#39
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Annhig - How great to find a local class interested in field trips! Think my first attempt will be in a school in Tuscany. For my upcoming trip, maybe 'una birra, per favore' will be my stock phrase ... or 'che vino?' hoping to match a good local wine with my food selection! (Google Translate has become my favorite app!) Looking forward to more chapters to your Sorrento adventure!
Feb 25th, 2014, 02:20 AM
#40
Janet - yes, I'm very lucky. Our teacher teaches the students as well and had been taking groups of the youngsters for several years before she had the idea last year to open it up to us, mainly because she was short of numbers I think. THere were only 3 of us this year as against 5 last, but if we keep saying how wonderful it was, perhaps others will want to come with us.
