TL;DR? These questions that I want answers for: What's up with all the discounts? Are designer brands worth it? Is "Made in Italy" actually better than "Made in China"? Since I hit 30, I've been trying to buy less but better. It would appear that, by the power of osmosis or some other form of … Continue reading Clothes Shopping in 2018: what’s the answer?
It's now February. February! How did that happen? We're already a good chunk into what I still think of as the new year. I think it's because I am starting to feel increasingly settled here in Italy, the days are going faster, the evenings are getting longer but I sometimes feel that I let days slip … Continue reading How Is It February Already?
It's been a little while since my last update on the building works. Unfortunately, the reason largely lies in the fact that, through no fault of our own, we've been at a standstill throughout most of November and December. On the plus side, we ran into our team of builders at the Befana bonfire in … Continue reading Update on the Renovations
One of the things that I try really hard to impress upon visitors is how divided Italy is. Until very recently it was not one country and mobility between towns, cities and across mountain ranges was limited. As a result, regional traditions are more localised than you may have first imagined and remain very much … Continue reading Burning “La Befana” – Very Much A Local Tradition
Happy New Year's Eve! Or "la notte di San Silvestro" in Italian. Whether it's out partying or staying in wrapped up in a blanket on the sofa, I hope you're spending the last few hours of 2017 exactly as you want to spend them. I'm personally not much of a fan of New Year's Eve. … Continue reading New Year’s Eve in Italy… and the importance of lentils!
The final days of November always feel strange to me. It's this weird time of year when you're in limbo. My American friends have already made me hungry for turkey but yet it's still too early to really start the Christmas countdown: mince pies, festive music and twinkling lights. I don't recognise the Thanksgiving holiday … Continue reading Waiting for Advent
The house renovations are moving ahead. Admittedly not as quickly as we had planned, but you can now finally see that progress is starting to being made. Today the electricians finished laying down the tubes for our lighting, the burglar alarm, the solar panels and the different power sockets. For his part, the plumber has … Continue reading Pipes and Pythagorus
Whilst November 11th is Armistice Day in the UK and much of northern Europe (in memory to end of WW1) here in my corner of Italy, it's the Festa di San Martino. San Martino is one of the more important harvest festivals... at least, it was the case many moons ago. It depends where you … Continue reading November 11th is the Festa di San Martino
You would have thought that after two months of vendemmia (grape harvest) that the work would be coming to an end by now. It's far from true! Towards the end of October, in this area of the Veneto, all the local farmers stand on the side of the road, peering up into an olive tree. Yep, it's … Continue reading The Olive Harvest
So you've taken a couple of classes, downloaded Duolingo and bought a hefty dictionary. You can breeze through conversations with natives and even answering the phone to an unknown number is no longer intimidating. You're ready to move onto the next level. The next three phrases are not the Italian that you learn in a … Continue reading So You Think You Speak Italian?
The Burnt Cream Blog 