One place tourists from all over the world want to visit, especially if they like to hike, is a place called Le Cinque Terre. This means "the five villages" and if you look at a map, you can see they are positioned in a similar way: overlooking the sea.
In fact, there is a footpath leading from one to the other. The villages are more difficult to reach by car, as they are surrounded by mountains. One of the most convenient ways to visit these villages is by train. Each town has a train station at a walkable distance from the center of town.
If you do have a car, you can leave it in La Spezia and take the local train. The road through the mountains is winding and narrow. When you take the train there are lots and lots of gallerie (tunnels), but when you come out of the tunnel, you have a lovely, quick view of the sea.
In Marika's series about the regions of Italy, Anna describes Liguria, the region where le Cinque Terre are located. Anna's "prof" is asking what there is to see in Liguria.
Tantissime cose, in particolare le Cinque Terre sono un angolo di paradiso a picco sul mare, eh, che attira visitatori e turisti da tutto il mondo.
A great many things, especially the Cinque Terre are a corner of paradise, high up above the sea, uh, which lure visitors and tourists from the world over.
Captions 77-78, L'Italia a tavola Interrogazione sulla Liguria
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This shot was taken on the hike from Corniglia to Vernazza in the month of February.
Each town has hotels or rooms to rent, and plenty of restaurants.
When talking about this area, in English, we often skip the article, and talk about "Cinque Terre," as if it were one place, a spot to visit. But now that you know some Italian, you know that it's Le Cinque Terre, because the number cinque (five) calls for the plural.
Why the name?
The name “Cinque Terre” appeared for the first time in the 15th century when this area was under the control of the Maritime Republic of Genoa. A clerk united the five villages under a single place name because they had many characteristics in common. The name “Cinque Terre” stuck. The name can be misleading, as terra means various things, but in this case, terra stands for “little medieval village.” The villages, in order from south to north are: Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso.
One important characteristic of Le Cinque Terre, and the Ligurian coast in general, is the terracing. This was conceived in order to create spaces for cultivation, primarily for vineyards.
Retaining walls were built with the stone available, primarily sandstone. The soil was very sandy and scarce, but it was sifted to make a material to put between the stones for the wall. No mortar was used, which is why this kind of wall is called un muro a secco (a dry-stone wall).
E facendo questi famosi muri a secco per trovare uno spazio per piantare la vite.
And making these famous dry-stone walls in order to find space for planting the grapevines.
Captions 10-11, L'Italia che piace Territori - Part 5
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Here you can see a narrow sentiero (footpath) and muro a secco (dry-stone wall).
We decided on a lesson about Le Cinque Terre because there is a new documentary on Yabla about places to see in Italy and this week's segment focuses on, yes you guessed it, Le Cinque Terre!
All photos by Sigrid Lee except for the map, which is courtesy of Google Maps.
When traveling to Italy, we might arrive by plane. So let's go over some vocabulary you might need when you arrive and when you go back to the airport.
You might want to send a message to your host to say you have landed.
Questa, questa è una matta scatenata. Guardi, guardi questo telex: è appena atterrata a Saigon, senza autorizzazione, senza addebito su banca locale,
This gal, this gal is an unleashed madwoman. Look, look at this telex: She just landed in Saigon, without authorization, without access to funds at area banks,
Captions 18-20, L'Oriana film - Part 4
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Your text could just use one word and say, "Atterrati!"
If you say atterrati, you're including yourself and the other passengers on the flight (using the first person plural). You can also choose to say this in the singular: atterrata (if you are female) or atterrato (if you are a male). The verb is atterrare. We can detect the word terra in atterrare. La terra means "the earth," or "the land."
You might want to let someone know your flight is delayed.
Il volo è in ritardo (the flight is late/delayed).
Siamo in ritardo (we're late).
Il volo ha subito un ritardo (the flight underwent a delay).
Trovi? -Eh, e sei arrivata pure in ritardo.
You think so? -Yeah, you even came late.
Caption 18, La Ladra EP. 10 - Un ignobile ricatto - Part 8
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You might want to meet your host outside in front of "Arrivals." Gli arrivi.
Ah, il mio volo arriva un'ora dopo il tuo. Aspettami agli arrivi, eh.
Ah, my flight arrives one hour later than yours. Wait for me at "arrivals," huh.
Captions 60-61, Sei mai stata sulla Luna? film - Part 2
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If you have to take a taxi, you will see that the word is the same as in English, even though the official Italian word is tassì. O con il taxi e qui c'è la stazione dei taxi.
Or by taxi, and here there's the taxi stand.
Caption 40, In giro per l'Italia Firenze - Part 3
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You might hear tassì, but it's easily understandable.
Ho preso un tassì e sono scappata dal Pronto Soccorso.
I took a taxi and ran off from the emergency room.
Caption 1, La Ladra EP. 7 - Il piccolo ladro - Part 15
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When present, la metropolitana is a fast and convenient way to get around big cities, such as Rome, Milan, Naples, and Turin.
Poi, ho preso la metropolitana e sono scesa a Rho Fiera Milano;
Then I took the subway and got off at "Rho Fiera Milano,"
Caption 26, Marika spiega Expo 2015 - Part 2
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After your stay, you might go back to the airport.
Per arrivare all'aeroporto di Firenze c'è un bus, un autobus che parte dalla stazione degli autobus, che è laggiù.
To get to the Florence airport, there's a bus, a bus that leaves from the bus station, which is down there.
Captions 38-39, In giro per l'Italia Firenze - Part 3
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L'uscita (the gate) is where you show your carta d'imbarco boarding pass and passaporto (passport) and then board the plane. L'uscita comes from the verb uscire (to exit). L'imbarco comes from the verb imbarcare (to board). In turn, it comes from the noun la barca (the boat). Obviously, the term came into being before airplanes!
Attenzione, prego. Stiamo per imbarcare il volo Enitalia settantadue settanta diretto a Kingston. Tutti i passeggeri sono pregati di recarsi all'uscita B ventuno, uscita B ventuno.
Attention please. We're about to board Enitalia flight seventy-two seventy to Kingston. All passengers are requested to make their way to gate B twenty-one. Gate B twenty-one.
Captions 45-47, Provaci ancora prof! S2EP1 - La finestra sulla scuola - Part 7
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When you hear your volo (flight) announced, you might also hear a destinazione di ..... and then the city you are flying to. Or you might hear diretto a (in the direction of) as in the previous example.
No pare, ha acquistato un biglietto aereo. Stesso volo, stessa destinazione della moglie della vittima.
It doesn't seem, he did buy a plane ticket. Same flight, same destination as the victim's wife.
Captions 53-54, Provaci ancora prof! S2EP1 - La finestra sulla scuola - Part 10
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Words we have discussed in this lesson:
imbarcare (to board)
la carte d'imbarco (the boarding pass)
il passaporto (the passport)
l'aeroporto (the airport)
l'uscita (the gate)
il tassì / il taxi (the taxi)
la metropolitana / la metro (the underground, the subway)
gli arrivi (arrivals)
atterrare (to land)
a destinazione di (traveling to)
diretto a (in the direction of)
il volo (the flight)
in ritardo (late, delayed)
il ritardo (the delay)
il passaggero (the passenger)
More travel vocabulary in a future lesson. See part 1 here. And let us know if there are travel topics you would like to know more about. Write to us at newsletter@yabla.com.
When traveling, it's good to have a handle on the words we might need when getting around a new place. But depending on where we are and who we are talking with, we might hear different names for the same thing.
The word for "train" is easy. It's il treno.
Where do we catch or meet a train? Alla stazione. That's a good cognate, too. So already these two words, il treno and la stazione are essential to have in your toolkit.
One important question you might want to ask is: Dov'è la stazione (where is the train station)? Or you can keep it even simpler:
Allora, dico: "scusi, per la stazione?" Semplicissimo.
So, I say, "Excuse me, for the station?" Very simple.
Caption 18, Corso di italiano con Daniela Chiedere informazioni - Part 1
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We don't always need to speak in full sentences, and when we do try, we can easily stumble. You can even just say: La stazione?
When we're talking about the railroad in general, however, we usually say la ferrovia. The rails are made of iron, and ferro means "iron." Via is "way" or "road," so it makes sense.
Il ponte della ferrovia,
The railroad bridge,
Caption 45, Rosalba al parco della donna gatto - Part 1
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Ferrovia isn't too hard to pronounce, but when we turn it into an adjective, it's a bit trickier.
...e la ricevuta di un biglietto ferroviario di sola andata Bologna-Roma.
...and the receipt for a train ticket, one way, Bologna to Rome.
Captions 16-17, Provaci ancora prof! S2E5 Vita da cani - Part 6
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There are 3 different terms people use when they refer to a bus. The easiest one is autobus, as it contains the word "bus" we recognize.
L'autobus often refers to local transportation within a city, but it's also used generally, especially by young people.
Da qui partono gli autobus, tra l'altro, per gli aeroporti di Pisa e di Firenze...
From here, the buses leave for the Pisa and Florence airports, among other places...
Caption 47, In giro per l'Italia Firenze - Part 3
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La corriera is a term that's a bit outdated (and it was used for stagecoaches in earlier times), but if you are talking to someone of a certain age, or if you are in a remote village, corriera is a term they might use.
Mi scusi, la corriera per Milano?
Excuse me, the bus for Milan?
Caption 31, Il Commissario Manara S1EP12 - Le verità nascoste - Part 9
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Attenzione! Let's also mention that both la corriera (the bus) and il corriere (the courier) have the same origins. In earlier times, a stagecoach would carry passengers but also letters and packages. Nowadays, la corriera carries passengers and il corriere carries packages. We can detect the verb correre in the term, which hints at speed.
Usually, with la stazione, it is pretty clear you are talking about the train station, but if you are asking for the bus station, you will want to specify that. Il pullman, is a word you'll likely recognize from English.
È arrivata zia, è alla stazione dei pullman.
My aunt has arrived. She's at the bus station.
Caption 48, Il Commissario Manara S2EP11 - Uno strano incidente di caccia - Part 11
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Note that la corriera is feminine and il pullman is masculine. Often, these two terms indicate buses that go long distances, from city to city (like Greyhound in the U.S).
When there is a proper bus station, you can buy your biglietto (ticket) at la biglietteria, but more and more, there are self-service machines where you can pay in cash or by credit card. In some places, however, you have to buy your ticket at the bar or dal tabaccaio (at the tobacconist's).
Some cities have had trams since the 19th century. In some cities, they were once in vogue, then went out of vogue, but are coming back. Whoever is interested in an overview of the tramways in Italy can consult this Wikipedia article. It's called il tram in Italian (so that's easy!). It runs on rails and is (now) electric.
Bene, una volta arrivati a Napoli, prendete il tram che vi porta al porto.
Good, once you've arrived in Naples, you'll get a tram that will take you to the harbor.
Caption 28, Marika spiega I veicoli
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Other cities have a kind of bus that's powered electrically, from above. It's called il filobus (the trolley bus). Il filo is the word for "the wire".
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Here are the words we discussed in this lesson. In a future lesson, we'll dive deeper into travel vocabulary, as this list is only partial.
l'autobus (the city bus)
la corriera (the bus, the coach)
il corriere (the courier)
il pullman (the bus, the long-distance bus)
il treno (the train)
la ferrovia (the railroad)
il biglietto (the ticket)
la stazione (the station)
il filobus (the trolley bus)
.
In a previous lesson, we talked about transportation vocabulary, specifically ground transportation. Now, let's look at some other terms to know. To speak generally, we refer to mezzi di trasporto (means of transportation). And getting more specific, we can talk about mezzi pubblici (public transportation).
Nella grande città per fare qualsiasi cosa hai bisogno della macchina, hai bisogno dei mezzi pubblici, devi aspettare l'autobus, devi prendere la metropolitana, devi farti largo in mezzo alle persone, invece qui è tutto tranquillo.
In the big city in order to do anything you have to take the car, you need public transportation; you have to wait for the bus, you have to take the subway, you have to get out of people's way, whereas here it's all very quiet.
Captions 9-12, Giuliano in Vacanze a Riva del Garda
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The noun or adjective mezzo has multiple meanings. One important meaning is "half" but it also means "middle," or "means." When the context is clear, i mezzi di trasporto can be shortened to i mezzi. In the following example, mezzi refers to vehicles of various kinds, such as trucks and tanks. The context is World War I.
Altre invece costituivano più le retrovie che alimentavano di uomini, mezzi, munizioni, eccetera,
Others instead made up the rear that supplied men, transport, munitions, et cetera
Captions 50-51, Meraviglie EP. 5 - Part 9
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We can also use the noun il veicolo. It mainly refers to a mechanical means of transportation operated by a person, such as una macchina (a car) or un camion (a truck).
La via è una strada lunga e larga, adatta alla circolazione di persone e veicoli.
The street is a long and broad, suitable for the circulation of people and vehicles.
Captions 17-18, Marika spiega La strada
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In the context of a town or city, it's clear that i mezzi refer to public transportation.
Oppure è meglio prendere delle biciclette? Ci sono dei mezzi? Come funziona? -Quanto tempo hai a disposizione?
Or is it better to get bicycles? Is there public transportation? How does it work? -How much time do you have available?
Captions 23-25, In giro per l'Italia Lucca - Part 1
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When we talk about getting around, especially locally, one verb we can use is spostare, in its reflexive form, spostarsi. This is an interview with some high school students.
Come ti sposti? -Coi mezzi o in bici.
How do you get around? -With public transportation or by bike.
Captions 59-60, Le Interviste I liceali - Part 3
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To get around using a specific means of transportation, we use the verb prendere (to take), just like in English.
Eh, la madre dei ragazzi è morta tre anni fa, ma il padre, Cosimo, ieri ha preso un treno per Napoli
Uh, the mother of the kids died three years ago, but the father, Cosimo, yesterday, took a train to Naples
Captions 51-52, I Bastardi di Pizzofalcone S1EP4 Gelo - Part 3
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We can use the verb collegare (to connect) to refer to how to reach places such as cities and towns. We note also that we use the preposition in (in) to refer to the specific means of transportation.
Com'è collegata? -La Campania è collegatissima, quindi ci si può arrivare in treno, in aereo, in macchina o in nave.
How is it connected? -Campania is very accessible, meaning you can get there by train, by plane, by car, or by ship.
Captions 81-84, L'Italia a tavola Interrogazione sulla Campania
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Some towns, notably hilltop towns, are not very accessible by car. There is very limited parking and the streets are narrow. One solution is to have a small bus that shuttles people back and forth from a parking lot to the center of town. It's called la navetta.
Ci sono delle navette che tutto il giorno, con una cadenza oraria, visitano tutti i luoghi che fanno parte del programma.
There are shuttles, which, all day, with hourly frequency, visit all the places that are part of the program.
Captions 30-31, Ferrari Museo Ferrari Maranello
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In future lessons, we'll talk about other topics related to getting around.
We have talked about the prepositions in and a separately in previous lessons. Let's finally talk about when to use the preposition in and when to use a when referring to places like cities, countries, continents, regions, etc. This is tricky for lots of us, and it's easy to make mistakes.
If you are subscribed to Yabla, you will want to check out these two lessons on this topic:
We generally use the preposition a (to, at) with names of cities and minor islands.
Bologna is a city, so we use a.
Perché è partito da Roma ed è arrivato qui a Bologna.
Because it left from Rome and it arrived here in Bologna.
Caption 17, Marika spiega - I verbi venire e andare
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Per esempio: quando vai a Bologna?
For example: "When are you going to Bologna?"
Caption 26, Marika spiega - La particella CI
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In Toscana, come in altre regioni d'Italia,
In Tuscany, as in other regions of Italy,
molte famiglie hanno degli ulivi di loro proprietà.
many families have olive trees of their own.
Captions 1-2, L'olio extravergine di oliva - Il frantoio
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Valdobbiadene è in Veneto.
Valdobbiadene is in the Veneto region.
Caption 13, Corso di italiano con Daniela - L'aperitivo
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Africa is a continent, so we use in
.
Vorrei tanto andare in Africa.
I would very much like to go to Africa.
Caption 6, Marika spiega- Le preposizioni di luogo
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Canada is a country, so we use in.
Nicole Kidman è venuta una volta a provare,
Nicole Kidman came once for a fitting,
poi altre due volte siamo andati noi in Canada.
then we went two more times to Canada.
Captions 31-32, That's Italy - Episode 2 - Part 4
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Sometimes a city and a state or country will have the same name, so it can get confusing.
La città di New York è nello stato di New York (New York City is in New York State).
So If I am planning to go on vacation to visit New York City, I might say:
Vado a New York per le vacanze di Natale (I'm going to New York for the Christmas vacation).
In Italian it's clear that I mean the city because I am using a as a preposition, but in English, we have to guess, or specify. New York, in this case, is a city. But New York is also a state. Since it's easy to get confused, Americans will usually specify if they're not talking about the city, and will say New York State. If we translate that into Italian, it will be lo Stato di New York.
Buffalo è in New York (Buffalo is in New York State).
L'empire state building è a New York [City] (The Empire State Building is in New York [City]).
Someone who has family on Long Island will still say New York as if it were the city. The airport is certainly in the city, at least officially. And incidentally, Long Island is a relatively small island, so we would say:
Ho vissuto a Long Island per sedici anni (I lived on Long Island for sixteen years).
Sei mai stato a Parigi (Have you ever been to Paris)?
Sei mai stata in Francia (Have you ever been to France)?
Vivo a Vienna (I live in Vienna).
Un mio cugino è appena andato in Giappone (A cousin of mine just went to Japan) ma non andrà a Tokyo (but he isn't going to Tokyo).
Quasi quasi mi trasferisco in Nuova Zelanda (I might just move to New Zealand).
Da dieci anni vivo a Como, in Lombardia (I've been living in Como, in Lombardy, for ten years).
Arianna ha studiato in Inghilterra per qualche anno (Arianna studied in England for a couple of years).
Since the United States is a coveted destination for Italian tourists, at least in normal times, it's important to know how to refer to that country in Italian, and what prepositions to use.
When we say the name of this country, we include the article "the." The United States of America. So when we use the proper Italian preposition (in since we are talking about a nation), we have to modify it to include the definite article:
Vado negli Stati Uniti [d'America]. (I'm going to the United States [of America]).
The d'America part is usually left out in both Italian and English, and to make it even easier, Italians also often just say America to mean the United States.
Vado in America per le vacanze (I'm going to America for the vacation).
Some Italians use USA as a word and pronounce it as they see it. For example, here is a headline from Google. It may or may not be correct, but you will hear it said plenty of times:
Come trovare un lavoro negli USA (How to find work in the USA)?
Remember that in contrast to English where "in," "to," and "at" are entirely different, Italian uses the same preposition (be it a or in) to mean any or all of these.
Please let us know what cities, countries or other places you are confused about when using Italian prepositions, and we will answer as soon as we can.
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Find some history and general information about the Trentino-Alto Adige Südtirol region of Italy here.
But let’s take a closer look at the name itself: Trentino-Alto Adige.
The Alto Adige part of the name refers to the upper part of the Adige River that runs from the Alps through the Trentino-Alto Adige region and on to the Veneto region to empty out into the Adriatic Sea just south of Venezia and Chioggia. The Adige is the second longest river in Italy after the Po River, and it is this river valley that accommodates a good part of the toll road autostrada A22 that runs from the Italian-Austrian border at the Brenner Pass to Modena, as well as the railroad that follows a similar route. And so when travelling to and from Italy by way of the Brenner Pass, the river is visible for a good number of kilometers.
Trentino refers to the province of Trento (Trent), one of the two provinces of the region. Trento is a beautiful medieval city with a marvelous castle (Il Castello del Buonconsiglio), and was the seat of the famous Council of Trent in the 16th century.
Trentin-Südtirol is the German language name for the region, with its German speaking province and main city, Bozen/Bolzano.
When travelling north from Modena, Verona, and Trento towards Innsbruck, Austria, whether by car or by train, the names on the signs start to appear in two languages, Italian and German. The mountains get higher, the temperatures a bit cooler. The views are breathtaking.
It is great wine country, and on both sides of the river and of the autostrada, there are vineyards carpeting every inch, except for when there are apple orchards. Most of the apples produced in Italy come from this region.
There is also a bike path that goes along the Adige river, through the vineyards, for about 60 kilometers between Trento and Bolzano.
Buon viaggio!
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