Travelling to Calabria

Phyllis Image
05/15/2010 - 11:06

I'm travelling to Belmonte Calabro in October.  My maternal ancestors are from there.  I'm looking forward to seeing the village where my grandmother was born and possibly meeting relatives that may still live there.  My problem is that my grasp of the Italian language is extremely limited.  Oh well.

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We called into Belmonte Calabro Centro Storico one evening and thought it was a really lovely place. Didn't do much more than have a mooch around and a drink but it seemed particularly well kept and the views over the sea from up there are spectacular. I doubt there would be many English speakers - if any at all - but you will be welcomed and helped I'm sure if you smile and start talking. Enjoy!!

There is time to pick up some of the language - I'd suggest the Michel Thomas CDs [you can usually get them on eBay for about £30 on the 'Buy Now' system] Its suprising what you can pick up from the CDs, just listening in the car or at home. Good Luck

I have a couple of those - someone sent them through to us, when they came free with The Guardian paper...aren't they fantastic!! I would certainly recommend them if you are looking to learn some Italian quickly, it's really easy to pick up. :-)

I downloaded the Michel Thomas stuff for free with Limewire or Bitlord. The method is good but you don't want to refer to Michel himself for the pronounciation, he is a grammar man. His English/Italian student is good for the accent.I played those tapes in the car on my way down through France.I already speak the other Latin languages but that continuous blast of the Italian language helped me to converse pretty freely when I arrived. Well recommended.

Just a thought but you can buy satellite dishes from Aldi or Lidl in UK very cheaply and if you point them at the Hotbird satellite almost half the clear channels are Italian. Apart from Rai , uno, due, tre, there are loads of others. Great for opera.