Graphic created at Tagul

Weekend Italian: Bite-size language chunks of Italian survival phrases and high-frequency words to kick-start your language learning. Grab a cup of coffee and spend a little time this weekend learning Italian!

Italian for Travelers: Hellos, goodbyes and how are yous

Imagine: You have dreamed of a week in Italy for years and today, you find yourself there, at last. (<3>!)

Image Credit

Checking into the hotel, the first word you will likely be greeted with is buongiorno (hello/good morning) or perhaps buon pomeriggio (good afternoon), depending on the time of day. As you come and go during the week and the staff gets to know you better, they may switch to the more informal salve to say hello or even the least formal ciao — used for both hi and bye.

Outside your hotel, the city streets are bustling. “Pronto…” you…