As you may have seen in Italian movies or during your stay in in Italy if you had the chance , you will notice that ciao is the easiest and most common Italian greeting people use to say "hello" or "goodbye." Usually though, you should only use this greeting with people whom you are well acquainted with, such as friends or relatives. As a special case, you may notice that it is common to address foreigners entering into Italy with ciao. The reason for this is that it's a friendly and easy way to greet them. Sometimes owners of casual, modern shops may greet customers with ciao as a way to keep social distances at a minimum and make talking easier and faster,thus making you feel more comfortable (and this way making their... Show more

"Waiter, there's a fly in my cup!" How many times have we heard jokes and real anecdotes of this nature? However, did you know that in Italy, some people like to drink their coffee "with the fly"? Coffee is always present in a typical Italian breakfast, which usually consists of light pastries, croissants, and the simple bread, butter and jam. Italian style coffee though, has many variations and is usually much more concentrated and strong that the American one, and is usually served in a smaller cup. In Italy, your coffee can be served in many variations, the most popular ones being the espresso, made by machine; and the napoletano, prepared home-made style and in small kettles. Furthermore, coffee can be machiato (spotted, with... Show more

How to Really Learn Italian in Just Minutes a Day and Stick with it Get an Instant 10% OFF with coupon code FF2009 for a limited time. The Myth What if I told you mastering Italian wasn't that hard. That actually learning the language itself is not nearly as difficult as you may have heard. And that the problem to progressing is an age old one...failure to execute. The Real Issue Said another way, "People don't progress 'cause they don't do! If you don't do the work, you won't reach your goals." It's a bold statement, but think about it. How many things have you tried, only to give up at some later point in time. Exercising daily, diets, hobbies, etc. Language learning is no exception. We tend to start out... Show more

Happy Holidays and Happy New Year from everyone here at ItalianPod101.com! We're grateful to have listeners just like you, and we're eagerly waiting for the upcoming year to learn Italian together! And when the New Year comes around, be sure to make a resolution to study Italian with ItalianPod101.com! Have a healthy and happy holiday season. From the ItalianPod101.com team!