½ûÂþÌìÌÃ

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I am sure that you will enjoy ¨Il Gattopardo¨and you will learn some scenes by heart!!!! Money well spent.

I haven´t read any of these titles, but perhaps some could help

I agree, what she really needs is to talk ant to cry over the shoulder of people who care for her. If shencan't express her grief, she may need professional help or she would fall into depression. Try to organise a group of supporters and share the task. It will be better for all concerned. Is she a religius person? Prayer may hel her to heal. 

I totally agree with Annec. And I do not know who Beeryspice is, but his summary is very accurate. There seems to be a concentrated attack on this site and it can only cause harm. Yes, and the level of bullying can reach incredible levels. I really think that we should ignore their posts and provocations and this is what I will do. 

Maybe some of us should check the meaning of certain words in foreign languages before using them. In Spanish it is a very vulgar expression.  What are we having here? The attack of the zombies? Sorry, Dolcevita, nothing to do with you. And PatH, I do not know who you were before. I cannot recall your name. In any case, the INternet is a very dangerous tool in the wrong hands. The ones who have remained in the Community and keep on participating in a normal way never start the attacks. The "agents provocateurs" are always the same people. That says it all.

I still think that you would enjoy "Il Gattopardo". You also learn a lot about history, customs and mentality. Visconti's film is a work of art. Really breathtaking. I strongly recommend it. Nothing to do with A level text books.

I agree with Angie, you cannot keep on comparing countries. Everyone is different It is up to us to enjoy it... or hate it and, in that case, my advice would be to move somewhere else. Living costs have increased in many countries which used to be quite cheap to live in. We have seen enormous changes in Europe in the past ten years.

Going back to basics if you feel that your foundations are shaky is always a good idea. You may even get a better understanding of the rules if you already have some knowledge of the language.  Buy DVD,s of good movies which have English an ½ûÂþÌìÌà subtitles and are spoken in ½ûÂþÌìÌÃ. We love to watch  L. Visconti's "Il Gattopardo", a fantastic movie with great dialogues, based on Tomassi di Lampedusa's literary masterpiece (I have the novel in three languages: ½ûÂþÌìÌÃ, Spanish and English, but nowadays I mainly read the ½ûÂþÌìÌà original). And also, don't limit yourself to watching the movies or reading the books. Think about the texts and try to understand the expressions used. Analyzing texts improves comprehension and assists with self-expression.

Whenever you learn a foreign language, there is a dual process. On the one hand, you repeat what you read and hear. On the other, you have to learn certain particularities of the language, such as conjugations, grammar and all the "technical bits". It is not only a matter of memorizing that knowledge. The most important part is to understand how the language works. Otherwise, you will be doing "parrot learning" and that fades very quickly. Also, whatever you learn orally, try to write it down immediately. That consolidates the process. And try to incorporate ½ûÂþÌìÌà into your daly life. When you wake up in the morning and look at the clock, think at ow you would say the time in ½ûÂþÌìÌÃ. When you go to the supermarket, think at the names of all the articles in ½ûÂþÌìÌÃ. And try to speak as much as you can. You will make mistakes, but, hopefully, someone may correct you. That is what children do when they learn to speak....