La Bella Vita is our regular look at the real culture of Italy – from language to cuisine, manners to art. This newsletter is published weekly, and you can receive it directly to your inbox: go to newsletter preferences in 'My Account' or follow the instructions in the newsletter box below.
As foreigners’ Italian language skills (or lack thereof) are an ongoing topic of discussion in Italy, we recently asked the country’s foreign residents for your views on the issue.
Almost everyone who wrote in agreed that learning Italian to some degree is important (though fluency may not be essential). So we turned to an expert to tell us: when exactly do you need to start learning Italian if you want to live here?
Italian language teacher Lucrezia Oddone of the popular 'Learn Italian with Lucrezia' Youtube channel says you should start far before you arrive in Italy – ideally as soon as you make the decision to move.
But what if it's too late?
Lucrezia gave her advice for what to do if you're already living in Italy but struggling to fully internalise the language: go back to the basics in your studies, while putting yourself into more Italian-only interactions.
Readers who wrote in said largely the same thing – that they learned through a combination of formal study and chatting with locals, "however embarrassing", said John, living in Umbria. The results, readers say, are certainly worth it.
‘You don’t have to write poetry from the beginning': The expert's guide to learning Italian
We already know Italy is great at a lot of things – recent headlines include that the country has four of the top 10 hospitals in the world, and Italian schools are outperforming many European neighbours, not to mention the cuisine, relatively affordable living, beautiful beaches, etc.
But something Italy is really struggling with is astronomically high energy costs, a fact that has become especially apparent during this summer from hell.
Electricity prices in Italy last year averaged €115.90 per megawatt hour, nearly double those of France (€61.10) and Spain (€65.30).
And consumer groups have warned of another spike in energy costs in the coming months, which residents can expect to see reflected on autumn utility bills.
There are a few reasons for Italy's electric prices being some of the highest in Europe. None of them are likely to make you feel better about paying an outrageous bill, but they do put the situation into context (and perhaps point to what the government ought to do about it).
Why are Italy’s electricity prices among the highest in Europe?
With the temperatures finally cooling off and rain showers expected, this weekend's plans might include a trip to a museum (especially the ones without adequate air conditioning, making visits in summer nearly unbearable).
It's the season for new art exhibit openings, and this year's autumn and winter programmes span Renaissance painting, modernism, photography, contemporary art and much more.
New this week in Rome is a retrospective of abstract artist Vassily Kandinsky, with 70 works on display at Palazzo Bonaparte. Meanwhile Warhol enthusiasts can check out some of the pop artist's biggest hits at a peculiar venue – La Vaccheria, a former dairy barn – in the capital's southern EUR neighbourhood.
Opening next weekend is one of the most anticipated shows of the season: a Salvador Dalí exhibit exploring the artist's relationship with fashion at Milan's Palazzo Reale.
12 exhibitions to look forward to in Italy this autumn and winter
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Is there an aspect of the Italian way of life you’d like to read more about? Please email us at news@thelocal.it.
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