BooksBologna does not generally feature as largely as Florence, Venice or Rome in the rose-tinted travels of 19th-century writers, dandies and Victorians on the Grand Tour. Mostly the city receives a cursory mention focused principally on the city's art treasures but the following are all good reads. Bologna also features in passing in the portraits of Italy by Jan Morris, D H Lawrence and Edith Wharton. Many of the older texts are available as free downloads from Project Gutenberg at http://promo.net/pg/ Travel writingByron, Letters (various volumes, 1798-1822), Typically floral musings, extravagant statements and clever-dick comments in epistles to fellow novelists. Dickens, C, Pictures from Italy (Penguin, 1866), Travelogue of incisive and refreshingly unblinkered observations and descriptions. Goethe, W, Italian Journey (Penguin, 1786-1788) Beautifully written descriptions mixed with more abstract musings from the original Romantic smitten by Italy. Morton, H V, A Traveller in Italy (Methuen, 1969) A gentlemanly and scholarly account infused with local detail and encounters with the natives. Non-fictionBarzini, L, The Italians (Penguin 1968) At times almost a character/nation assassination, all the more incredible in that it is written by an Italian. Possibly the most incisive piece of writing there is on the Italian mindset and the illusion that is Italy. Richards, C, The New Italians (Penguin 1995), A refreshing account of Italy and the Italians at the end of the 20th century that dispels the myths of Chiantishire and Bella Tuscany. FictionLeopardi, G, Il Giardino dei Finzi-Contini, Romantic novel set and written in and around Bologna, not available in translation. Newby, E, Love and War in the Apennines (Picador 1983) Exactly what is says on the tin, but written with the wit and poignancy of the great travel writer. Stendhal, H Charterhouse of Parma (Various publishers, 1839) Love, intrigue, jealousy and vanity set in the city of Parma. Giosue Carducci The poetic works of the 1906 Nobel Prize winner are inspired, among other things, by his life in and around Bologna. LanguageLocal dialect 99% of Bolognese can and generally do speak 'normal' Italian but don't be surprised if in the markets or some of the more down-at-heel osterias you can't understand what's being said. Italy's regional divisions are as marked in its language as in its cuisine, and each region has not only very distinct accents but also, due to Italy's comparative youth as a unified nation, living dialects which are far from extinction. The Bolognese accent is distinguishable for its nasal quality and for a tendency to pronounce the letter 's' as 'sh – think Sean Connery with an Italian accent. One local phrases you might hear in dropped into conversations are 'Bon allez', a vestige of Napoleonic occupation meaning 'basta' – 'enough!' and 'namo (short for 'andiamo') – 'let's go'. Gestures Italians are famously theatrical and animated in dialogue and often resort to a variety of gestures in order to accompany or in some cases substitute words. Knowing a few of these will help you both to understand what's being implied to you and also to become more Italian during your stay. Side of left palm on side of right wrist as right wrist is flicked up Go away Hunched shoulders and arms lifted with palms of hands outwards What am I supposed to do? Thumb, index and middle finger of hand together, wrist upturned and shaking What the hell are you doing/what's going on? Both palms together and moved up and down in front of stomach Ditto All fingers of hand squeezed together To signify a place is packed full of people Front of side of hand to chin To signify ‘nothing', as in ‘I don't understand' or ‘I've had enough' Flicking back of right ear To signify someone is gay Index finger in cheek To signify good food Basics: thank you grazie hi/goodbye ciao good day (until after lunch/mid-afternoon) buongiorno good evening (after lunch) buonasera goodnight buonanotte goodbye arrivederci please per favore I'm sorry mi dispiace excuse me permesso yes si no no Numbers one uno, two due, three tre, four quattro, five cinque, six sei, seven sette, eight otto, nine nove, 10 dieci, 11 undici, 12 dodici, 13 tredici, 14 quattordici, 15 quindici, 16 sedici, 17 diciassette, 18 diciotto, 19 diciannove, 20 venti, 21 ventuno, 22 ventidue, 30 trenta, 40 quaranta, 50 cinquanta, 60 sessanta, 70 settanta, 80 ottanta, 90 novanta, 100 cento, 200 due cento, 1000 mille. Questions how? come? how much? quanto? when? quando? where? dove? why? perchè? what? Che cosa? Problems I don't understand Non capisco I don't know Non lo so I don't speak Italian Non parlo italiano How do you say …(in Italian)? Come si dice … (in italiano)? Is there anyone who speaks English? C'è qualcuno che parla inglese? Shopping this one/that one questo/quello less meno more di più How much is it/are they? quanto costa/costano? Can I have …? posso avere …? Eating/drinking Can I have the bill? posso avere il conto? What's this? cos'è questo? Is there a menu? c'è un menù? Where's the toilet? dov'è il bagno? Travelling one ticket for… un biglietto per… single solo andata return andata e ritorno does this go to Bologna? questo va a Bologna? airport aeroporto bus stop fermata train treno car macchina taxi tassi Hotels a double/single room una camera doppia/singola a double bed un letto matrimoniale bathroom bagno Is there a view? c'è una bella vista? Can I see the room? posso vedere la camera? When is breakfast? a che ora è la colazione? Can I have the key? posso avere la chiave? Conversation alright va bene right then allora who knows! bo! / chi sa? good luck! in bocca al lupo! (literally, 'in the mouth of the wolf') one moment un'attimo hello (when answering a phone) pronto (literally, 'ready') let's go! andiamo! enough/stop basta! give up! dai! I like... mi piace … how's it going? (well, thanks) come va? (bene, grazie) how are you? come sta/stai? (polite/informal) Time morning mattina afternoon pommeriggio evening sera night notte soon presto/fra poco later più tardi What time is it? Che ore sono? today/tomorrow/yesterday oggi/domani/ieri
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Bologna - £7.99
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