wliwl

Do any of these Learn Italian audio lesson things work? Has anybody used one they particularly like? I just want to learn a few words to help out on a June trip. Thanks.

elaine

Hi
If you just want to learn
a few words, which is a great idea, most of those cd's with phrase books can work really well.
concertrate imo on the basic courtesies: hello, goodby, please, thank you, do you speak English?, etc.

I think anything more complicated, which some of those lessons contain, like
"How do I get to the San Moise church?"
or "What's wrong with the brakes on the car?" may get you answers that you can't understand anyway.

rainbow007

Dear wliwl,

I have found Pimsleur CD's to be very good. You may want to check them out of the library instead of or before buying them. They have an inexpensive CD 'conversational' set (10 CD's, I think) that is about $35, and they also have larger CD sets for Italian I, II and III. Each CD contains 2 half-hour lessons.

I used the Italian I set plus a basic Italian workbook for about 2 months and learned enough to help me through a 2 1/2 week independent trip through southern Italy and Sicily (rented a car and stayed in places where I had made reservations via phone and email).

Good luck!

Suki

We are currently working on the Pimsleur's Italian. It's 18 lessons, I think. We are through 8, and I am confident in my ability to say "where is Veneto Street?", "I don't know", and "I do not understand Italian." It seems to me that most of the rest of what I have learned I will never have a need to say ("I would like to eat something at your place" comes to mind.)I can't wait to learn to ask for a table for four. That will be useful. Oh, and I was happy to learn "de vino."

willmar

you mean del vino

most importantly learn words to repel the hordes of dishonest beggers who you might encounter.

GeoffHamer

It's a very personal thing: some courses will be just right for you, while others will irritate you and put you off learning. I agree with Rainbow007's advice and suggest trying different ones from a library if you can; if you get along with one, then buy one for yourself. The BBC used to do very good courses on how to get by in foreign languages. I'd concentrate on the pronounciation, then polite words like "please" and "thank you" and the numbers, then the words that you'll need: if you drink wine, learn the words for red and white, glass and bottle.

tcreath

I used both audio cd's (might as well learn something while sitting in rush hour!) and software and both seemed to help. I think its polite and great to try to learn some Italian, but keep in mind that most people, especially in the cities, seem to speak at least some English and ended up responding to me in English even when I tried using my (pitiful) Italian. But the cd's I used (Frommers, I believe) and the software (Speak Italian Now!) definitely helped with the pronunciation.

Eloise

I agree totally with Elaine: Limit yourself to things like please, thank you, hello, goodbye. Almost anywhere in Italy, people working in hotels and restaurants speak sufficient English to communicate with you.

Suki

Well, I am happy to hear your good advice on concentrating on polite phrases. Still, we will soldier on through our Pimsleur's and hope to come away feeling comfortable with some basic phrases. I know from visiting France for the first time though that what you say is true. We used hello, goodbye, please, thank you, and table for four, please. Everything else was accomplished in English, and I expect the big cities in Italy will be the same.

And, willmar, I just knew i had that wrong - del vino from now on!

elaine

Before I actually took Italian lessons, I'd used one of the book/tape combos, Berlitz I think, to learn a few phrases before I went to Italy.
They offered an entire chapter called
"At the fruit market" so that I could learn how to ask for a ripe pineapple.
Not all that useful a question in the context of my trip, I decided later.

dutyfree

Just remember that you become more fluent in Italian the more wine you drink? Seriously, if you can say where/how much/please and thank you?/excuse me and a few other key phrases you will be fine. My favorite thing about the Italians is that you can ask someone something like a direction and they say they don't speak English and ignore you. Then someone else comes along to help you and the
previous people come running back to tell the person that they are NOT telling you the right way to go. Soon it is usually a 3-6 person discussion about the right way.They really are a delightful group and if you always say Hello and goodbye when you walk into a shop and/or restaurant you have "mastered" half the battle of language. Have fun!!!

ucsun

i used the bbc website for italian. free and pretty good.

sandi_travelnut

I bought a Berlitz tape in a used bookstore that I keep in the car and used religiously. Also, I took a 6 week class in intro. Italian which really helped.

rainbow007

With respect to English being spoken in Italy, my experience has been that you will likely find people in major cities and tourist areas who speak English, particularly in northern Italy. If you venture off the beaten path, then a basic vocabulary and the ability to ask/understand directions, etc. may make your trip easier and more enjoyable.

Conversational CD's that teach phrases the way you will likely hear them are especially helpful. For example, I learned that 'non si puoi sbagliare' means 'you can't miss it', which was helpful because many people would say that first, and then follow with the directions I needed.

That said, two words that are not usually included on language CD's, and that may be very useful to know: 'carta igienica' (toilet paper).

Again, good luck!