Online Italian Club

The two best places to learn Italian for free (& new ebook!)

by

Buondì.

A rare Saturday article, to compensate for there having been no articles on Wednesday or Friday, the first time I’ve missed writing to the club on one of the regular days for many, many years.

I often tell my students, by way of encouraging them to read and listen more to the language or languages they’re learning, that were they to find themselves in a Chinese prison with no prior knowledge of the language, they’d no doubt pick up the basics fairly quickly. There’s the obvious advantage of full-immersion in a community of native speakers, along with the dubious extra ‘benefit’ of not having any escape. Learn to communicate in Chinese, or don’t communicate. Punto e basta, as Italians say.

An Italian prison can be hard to get into, of course, but not to worry – there’s another option, and one which is more palatable, with clean beds, good food, and friendly custodians. You still have to learn the language to survive, and just as in gaol, you get plenty of speaking and listening practice.

You guessed it – I’m writing this from the stroke ward of an Italian hospital, where after an exciting ambulance ride on Tuesday afternoon, I’ve been spending a few days improving my medical Italian. As you can see from this article, I’m now back online and back to work, but it’s certainly been instructive!

On arrival everyone was speaking to me in English, on the basis that as I was clearly unable to speak Italian (or any other language at that point), I likely wouldn’t understand it either. Fortunately, once the medicines and ‘intervention’ had cleared the clot in my brain, I was able to form sentences again, at which point the flow of enthusiastic staff keen to show off their English to their colleagues completely dried up. So the rest of the week was Italian only, plus some dialect, as I’m in a ward where the average age of patients is around 85.

For example, I was just this minute hearing WWII reminiscenses from the eighty-nine-year-old in the bed opposite. Which was not only good listening practice for me, but I assume a welcome distraction for her, a break at least from the weeping and wishing her stroke had finished her off.

So there you go – the two best places to learn Italian for free. Obvious benefits aside, I’m hoping to be let out by lunchtime, so it’ll be back to listening to the radio and reading newspapers (for my Swedish, French, Spanish, Turkish and so on…)

Talking of reading and listening, one thing I had planned for this past week was to publish and promote the ebook version of our Summer Series on Il Medievo.

You’ll find it here, there are free sample chapters here, and if the level is too hard, or too easy, there are plenty of other options on our Catalog page.

A lunedì, spero.

OnlineItalianClub.com | EasyItalianNews.com | Shop

Comments

    • Grazie, Fiona. I’m home now, with a belly full of pasta and beer, so much cheered up (though the food in the hospital was good, too!)

      • Hope you are feeling better . Tutti bend da Christine. Gli articuli sono molto divertente!

  2. Hallo! Im new in the club.
    This post came to my email and i was eager to read it !
    But now it seems just like clicbait,
    I was waiting for 2 places to learn italian for free… and your recommendation is a hospital? And the Radio? Or i just didn’t understand. 🙁 thanks!

    • No, my recommendation was PRISON and hospital. Or you could kill two birds with one stone and try a prison hospital, that would work, too.

      Actually Adri, this site is about language learning. Read the article today one more time and you’ll see it’s about the importance of getting lots of input, which many, many learners fail to understand, so they don’t learn. A typical error is to do 90% grammar, 10% practice, whereas it should, in my opinion, be the other way around. I say it often, and very occasionally it makes the difference to someone.

      N.b. we have a link on our ‘Join’ page that allows you to reveiw recent articles before deciding whether you’d like to join us… Perhaps you missed that? There’s also a ‘best of’ page, with articles going back to 2013, many of which are like this, but longer because they weren’t written in the stroke unit…

  3. I’m so sorry about what you went through this week. It must have been such a shock to you and your family. Here’s wishing you a speedy recovery, and sending prayers to you all I should have commented earlier on how much I enjoy your wonderful chatty writing style, instead of waiting until something happened. In any case, there are many of us that enjoy your newsletters but just don’t take the time to let you know our appreciation. Many blessings!

    • Many thanks, Diane. Yes, it was a shock, but worked out all right in the end. The standard of care I received in Bologna’s Ospedale Maggiore Stroke Unit was exceptional, and entirely free. Blessings indeed!

  4. Dear Daniel
    It is a pleasure reading your messages and I enjoy your sense of humour. I listen to Easy Italian News regularly and also like your choice of ‘news’.
    I just wanted to say how sorry I am to hear that you had a stroke. I wish you a speedy recovery and a full return to good health.

    With very best wishes
    Joyce

  5. Dear Daniel
    It is a pleasure reading your messages and I enjoy your sense of humour. I listen to Easy Italian News regularly and also like your choice of ‘news’.
    I just wanted to say how sorry I am to hear that you had a stroke. I wish you a speedy recovery and a full return to good health.

    With very best wishes
    Joyce

    • I don’t edit EasyItalianNews.com, Joyce, though I pay the bills and will be the one to get sued if they mess up. The team is Stefania (my wife), Sofia (my eldest daughter), Thomas (my son), and a handful of freelance writers. They operate autonomously, even when I’m indisposed, which I have been very glad about this week!

    • You should hear some of the silly ideas people actually take seriously, Kathy – like sending your introverted teenager to another country for a year at huge expense, or quitting your job to do a months-long course in the country where the language you’re learning is spoken. I thought my ideas were a pretty good compromise – get your healthcare, or pay your debt to society, while at the same time building communication skills and cultural knowlege! When the big guns catch on, remember, you read it here first…

  7. Good luck. Perhaps concentrate on getting really well rather than Swedish, French, Spanish, and Turkish this week.

  9. Daniel,

    Thank goodness you have recovered from your medical experience. Please be careful and take care of yourself.

    As I was reading your this last bulletin, I was asking myself, “Where is this leading?l I never imagined that I was going to read about what must have been a frightening experience. I love the way you express all your moods—joy, frustration, annoyance, etc. there’s always a bit of wit mixed with a healthy dose of sarcasm.

    Be well

  10. Hi, I doubt I could comment anything new (the previous post from Donna K kinda covered it for me) so I just wanted to wish you well and speedy recovery

    Kay

  11. I wish you success in preventing any future recurrence of your neurological event. All that includes good wishes for a complete recovery . I enjoy your personality as it comes through in your writing. Your consistent language learning advice is helping to gradually push me in the right direction .

  12. How scary for you and your family. what a shock….! All good wishes for speedy recovery.
    I was wondering what had happened ‘cos you never seem to miss – writing something funny, useful and interesting on the allotted days – so glad you’re still in the land of the living – but take care of yourself first please

    • Yes, I never missed with my regular articles… guess that’s my ‘streak’ gone, as Duolingo fans would say!

      You’re right, Isabel – it was a shock, but I’ve had a stroke and a heart attack before so this was more routine than scary.
      These things suck, but it’s not something to life in terror of.

      Heart attacks hurt a lot, but the type of stroke I had (ischemic) is more like stuff just not working any longer, which is more frustrating than anything else.

      The takeaway is to recognise the signs and when someone you know becomes ill, get them to the hospita FAST. The treatments are super-effective if given within a few hours. Fortunately for me, I like within a ten minute ambulance ride from a modern hospital with a specialist unit!

  13. Ciao Daniel, what a shock to read about your stroke, but I’m so glad to hear that you received good care and that you’re on the mend. Wishing you a speedy recovery, Patricia (London)

  14. Your poor wife and family. I hope they have recovered from all of this, and you of course. I hope you’ll take it a bit easier now although I do enjoy reading your ………..I’m trying to find the right word…….rants? Is that the right word? Something like that anyway.
    Take care of yourself.

  15. I was wondering why your articles were missing this week Daniel Sorry to hear about your dramatic events. Glad to hear you are now home. Take it easy and wishing you a speedy recovery

  16. So glad to hear you have recovered quickly after that scare. I always enjoy your ramblings. Clearly your recovery was remarkable. Regards. One of your legendary followers

  17. Good heavens, Daniel! I enjoy your wit, but isn’t this carrying nonchalance too far? A prison or hospital, indeed!
    Please take care of yourself and don’t overdo it…not only for you and your family…but for us. Not only do I need your encouragement, but I pass on your advice to to other language learners. You are inimitable. We need you.

    • Thanks, Mary. I’m well now, or well-ish relatively speaking. But covered in bruises and that gluey mess that sticking plaster leaves behind when it’s ripped off. Oh, and still covered in wires…

  19. I was so sorry to hear you were ill and in the hospital. I hope you recover quickly. sending good wishes your way

  21. Daniel, I got such a shock when reading you had suffered a stroke. Even at a times of great stress and worry for you, you still don’t lose your crazy sense of humour and positivity.. I wish you all the best for a speedy recovery and please take good care of yourself.
    Best wishes to you and all the family.

  22. Shock, shock, shock, I have no other word for it, Daniel!
    And I admire your capacity of observation, that even in the hospital, struggling with your health, you could notice what was happening around you. The staff who wanted to show off their English, the despair of the elderly patient.
    I will be thinking of you and sincerely hope that you get well soon.

    • Many thanks for the kind feedback, Felicia! Though in truth, there isn’t much else to do in hospital other than to watch what’s going on around you…

  23. Hi Daniel,

    So sorry to hear about your stroke, and wish you a full and speedy recovery.

    Best regards,
    Norman

  24. It’s almost worth getting sick to know how highly you’re thought of! Most of us will never know – perhaps just as well!

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