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Buondì.
I’ll be super-quick today, as Bug’s petting zoo is closed for some sort of structural check, and though they’ve sent a volunteer to keep him busy for a few hours, my working day has been seriously curtailed.
So anyway, Bologna Città 30, perhaps you heard? It was in newspapers all over Europe, and also in The Guardian, which reported on the controversy, the protests, the angry motorists, etc.
No idea what I’m on about?
The Bologna Comune (= local authority) decided last year to reduce the speed limit on the majority of its city streets from the default 50 km all’ora (31 mph) to the apparently much safer 30 km all’ora (19 mph). After a publicity campaign lasting several months, they began enforcing the new measure a week or two ago.
Stefi and I had been practising driving more slowly since we heard that change was coming, while debating whether the reduction was a good idea, and whether people would comply.
So I can assure you that driving at 19 mph/30 km all’ora felt, at first, completely unnatural! I don’t think I’d ever driven so slowly and carefully in my motoring life (ormai 40 years!)
A few major routes through the city remain at 50 km all’ora (31 mph), which – now we’ve got used to Bologna Città 30 – feels quite fast enough!
Controversial or not, there does seem to have been a mass change of behaviour. A similar thing happened a decade or so ago when they started fining people for riding city buses without a ticket. Before, it had been like the wild west – no respectable gunslinger would spend €1 on a ticket, and there were few lawmen willing to insist.
But then, after a publicity campaign and a year-long blitz of fining wrong-doers (I got caught twice…), we were back in northern Europe again!
Driving in Bologna was, until recently, like being in a crazy video game in which the laws of physics were only tangenitally referenced, and players had as many lives as they needed.
Now the game has changed completely, from the city-streets Formula 1 simulator of before, to something more like ‘Operation‘ (remember that? Italians call it L’Allegro Chirurgo). You win by going very, very carefully, or risk setting off a siren and flashing blue lights.
Our daily commute to the petting zoo has become much more relaxing (and doesn’t appear to take longer, either). Most people really have slowed down!
It’s not uncommon to be part of a convoy of vehicles all proceeding at a stately nineteen miles per hour until, suddenly, someone behind will lose their temper, floor the accelerator, and overtake, doing at least three times the limit.
It’s a Bologna version of the apparently-popular, American pastime of whipping out an AR 15 and shooting up a school. Why? Well just because you can. And to flip the bird to the man, of course.
Bologna Comune has a nice website dedicated to this project, with an interactive graphic showing the Formula 1 simulation before, and the L’Allegro Chirurgo after. Scroll down this page to find the map, then slide it to see the extent of the changes.
Incidentally, on their map you can also see the street where I live! See the large oblong, stuck on top of the city, leaning in a sort of one o’clock direction?
That’s our zone (Corticella/Navile), and the street that forms the top side of the oblong is ours! From our house, drive a few hundred yards north, cross the city limits, and it’s PEDAL TO THE METAL!
While you’re looking at the map, by the way, more or less in the very center, like the bullseye on a target, is our Italian school.
Further reading, for those that can be bothered: this webpage reproduces ‘articolo 142 del Codice della strada’, which sets out Italian ‘limiti di velocità’ in fun, legalistic language.
Enjoy.
Oh no! Bug and his volunteer keeper are back from their walkies, so peace is shattered. My time is up.
Alla prossima settimana, allora.
Two Classic Italian Movie ‘Ebooks of the Week’ – Half Price!
Yesterday our ebooks store began a new half-price promotion. Below is a copy/paste of the mailing, for the ten thousand or so of you who aren’t on their list, but might anyway be interested. There are movies!
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This week’s half-price ‘Ebook of the Week’ offer comprises two more titles from our Classic Italian movie series of Italian ‘easy readers.
The two short texts (with online audio) were written by an award-winning scriptwriter, who teaches Italian between movie projects, to pay the rent.
The idea is to make well-known films from Italian movie history accessible for all learners of the Italian language, not just advanced students with developed listening-comprehension skills.
This week’s half price choices are Ladri di biciclette (level A2/B1, pre-intermediate/intermediate) and Divorzio all’italiana (level B1, intermediate).
You can easily find both movies on the Internet, but most people never will, which is a shame. Ladri di biciclette is terribly sad, Divorzio all’italiana bitingly funny, both are worth your time.
For those willing to give reading and listening to Italian a try, below are links we found while writing this. You can go straight there and get started.
Ladri di biciclette: Wikipedia page | online movie
Divorzio all’italiana: Wikipedia page | online movie
Why then bother with our ‘easy reader’ ebook versions? Perhaps because other learners like you have found them helpful (and fun) in the past. Check out these reviews to see what they thought:
Ladri di biciclette ‘easy reader’ reviews | Divorzio all’italiana ‘easy reader’ reviews
And here are the ‘easy readers’ themselves, HALF-PRICE this week, remember!!
1948’s Ladri di biciclette, directed by Vittorio De Sica, won an Oscar, a Golden Globe, and a Bafta (all in 1950…) So it must be good. It’s terribly sad, though…
- .pdf e-book (+ audio available free online)
- .mobi (Kindle-compatible) and .epub (other ebook readers) available on request at no extra charge – just add a note to the order form or email us
- 8 chapters to read and listen to
- Comprehension questions to check your understanding
- Italian/English glossary of ‘difficult’ terms for the level
- Suitable for students at any level
- Download your Free Sample Chapter (.pdf)
Buy Ladri di biciclette, just £4.99! | Free sample chapter (.pdf) | Classic Italian Movies series | Catalog
In contrast, 1961’s Divorzio all’italiana, directed by Pietro Germi, won ‘Best Comedy’ at Cannes the year after…
- .pdf e-book (+ audio available free online)
- .mobi (Kindle-compatible) and .epub (other ebook readers) available on request at no extra charge – just add a note to the order form or email us
- 8 chapters to read and listen to
- Comprehension questions to check your understanding
- Italian/English glossary of ‘difficult’ terms for the level
- Suitable for students at any level
- Download your Free Sample Chapter (.pdf)
Buy Divorzio all’italiana, just £4.99! | Free sample chapter (.pdf) | Classic Italian Movies series | Catalog
How do I access my ebooks?
When your order is ‘completed’ (normally immediately after your payment), a download link will be automatically emailed to you. It’s valid for 7 days and 3 download attempts so please save a copy of the .pdf ebook in a safe place. Other versions of the ebook, where available, cannot be downloaded but will be emailed to people who request them. There’s a space to do that on the order form – where it says Additional information, Order notes (optional). If you forget, or if you have problems downloading the .pdf, don’t worry! Email us at the address on the website and we’ll help. Also, why not check out our FAQ?
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P.S. MILLE GRAZIE! 
A thousand GRAZIEs to all EasyItalianNews.com readers/listeners who donated during their recent appeal.
The team doesn’t have the final result yet, but many more people responded than usual. Perhaps that’s because the recent FREE bulletins have been good? Or maybe it’s just the January effect, who knows?
Either way, the EasyItalianNews.com crew is very pleased, grateful, and newly inspired to get on with their work of compiling, recording and publishing three bulletins each week – without having to worry about paying their bills!
Subscribing – and so receiving each ‘easy news’ bulletin via email – is FREE. Thanks to the donors…
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