venerdì 8 maggio 2015

Vit dalla Repubblica Ceca

LA SCORSA ESTATE, TRA I NOSTRI STUDENTI, ABBIAMO OSPITATO VIT, UN INSEGNANTE DELLA REPUBBLICA CECA. VIT CI HA MANDATO IL SUO COMMENTO, E LA FOTO DEL BATTESIMO DELLA SUA BAMBINA. COMPLIMENTI VIT!!
Intenzívní kurz italštiny, který jsem v Caorle u il Faró absolvoval v roce 2014, byl vynikající. Pedagogické schopnosti vyučujících jsou na vysoké úrovni (to mohu posoudit, neboť sám pedagogem jsem). Vstřícnost a nasazení lektorek byly vynikající, pomohly ochotně zařídit všechny věci, které jsem potřeboval k zorientování se ve městě i k vyřízení administrativy, neboť jsem měl kurz hrazen z grantu EU. Kurz byl intenzívní, zaměřený jak na gramatiku a konverzaci, tak i na reálie. Velice se mi líbila vyjížďka lodí po zdejší laguně a samozřejmě samotné Caorle v jehož centru výuka probíhá. Mohu jen doporučit.

Ecco com'è andata l'avventura del Lycée Français de New York al Faro

Pendant les vacances de printemps, les élèves-italophones du secondaire se sont rendus en Italie pendant une semaine, encadrés par la professeur d’italien Sonia Rocca, et le professeur d’arts plastiques, John Tasevoli. Retour sur une expérience culturelle, linguistique et historique.


The trip to Italy comprised a unique mix of school and daily excursions. During the week we stayed in a hotel in Caorle, a seaside resort on the Adriatic Sea. Each morning students attended custom-tailored classes at “Il Faro Center for Italian Language and Culture”. In the afternoons they were led on guided tours exploring the surrounding area of Veneto including Treviso, Portogruaro, Concordia and of course Venice.
In addition to traditional walking tours, we also rode a ‘bragozzo’, a traditional Venetian boat, around the lagoon of Caorle to “l’Isola dei Pescatori” (Fisherman Island). The highlight of the week was a full day in Venice, visiting St Mark’s Basilica and the Ducal Palace. We visited glassblowing workshops and lacemaking boutiques and took a  gondola ride through Venice’s picturesque canals.
Day 1: Arrival in Caorle!
After a long flight we arrived in Caorle, a beautiful medieval town of about 10,000, located along the Adriatic coast. Here we attended italian classes in the morning, and launched our day trips to cities in the Veneto region.
Day 2: Il primo giorno di scuola

After a well deserved, full-night’s rest we began our first complete day in Caorle. The weather was beautiful, cool mornings warming to the high 60s in the full sun.  Our hotel continued to feed us very well, with a traditional three course Italian meal for lunch and dinner. In the morning we were treated to an enormous prima colazione (the Sanguinello juice and local pane al cioccolato were particular popular).
A quick 15 minute walk from L’Hotel Venezia took us through the winding streets of Il Centro Storico and brought us to our school, located just off a central piazza.  Il Faro was very charming – immaculately maintained by Liviana and her staff. The instructors Liviana, Barbara and Martina met our students cheerfully and began the week’s lessons. Later that afternoon our local guide lead us through the old sites in town and give us an up-close history of Caorle’s medieval past.
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Day 3: Beyond Caorle, Treviso
By day three we had finally settled into our week and the day-to-day routine of morning classes and afternoon excursions.  News from Il Faro was very positive, our students were making real improvements in their oral skills and their instructors were very pleased with their enthusiasm toward the Italian language.
After classes, and another enormous pranzo of fried calamari and pasta pomodoro e mozzarella, we ventured beyond Caorle to the picturesque walled medieval city of Treviso, about an hour west of Carole. There we encountered the 13th century Romanesque Chiesa di San Francesco, famous for its original medieval frescos and its vaulted ceiling, borrowed from boat designs of the era. Later we explored the enormous Cattedrale di San Pietro di Apostolo, noted for its massive dome and Titian masterpiece, the altarpiece “L’Annunziata”. In all we left very impressed with Treviso, in many ways a preview of Venice, with a labyrinth of streets, crisscrossed with canals.
 Day 4: Beyond Caorle, Portogruaro
After another morning of classes and an incredible stop for pizza we were off to Portogruaro, a charming medieval town about an hour north of Caorle. There we met the lovely Elena, our local guide for the day, who led us on a wonderful walk through town, highlighting all of the major sites. First stop was the Parco della Pace, dotted with aromatic “glicine” (wisteria) in full bloom.
Later we made our way to the Museo Nazionale Concordiese, which hosts a fantastic collection of 1st century Roman artifacts.  The group was very impressed but wondered where all the noses and heads had run off to! Next we made our way toward the center of town, la Piazza della Repubblica, under the shadow of a less famous leaning torre, the Campanaria.
Like Treviso, Portogruaro is laced with waterways and canals, although swifter. Our group really enjoyed the walk along the waterwheels and locks that redirect and harness the power of the current. Finally we took a well-deserved rest in the grassy shade within the courtyard of the very old Liceo Marconi, originally built as a lazzaretto (a renaissance era isolation ward).
After the break and a little shopping (and gelato-ing), we hopped a local bus to see Concordia, the original site of the Roman artifacts we saw earlier in the day. Our students really enjoyed the up-close window into ancient Roman-life.

 Day 5: Caorle’s bragozzi and casoni
After classes, we explored the canals and waterways around Caorle in a bragozzo (a traditional fishing boat), stopping to visit one of the ancient island communities that dot Venezia’s lagoons. There we were given access to one of the island’s casoni (a reed-thatched house once used by local fishermen) owned for generations by the family of our captain Riccardo.
Day 7: Arrivederci!
After a long journey we finally arrived in Venice, a site one will not easily forget.  We began at the Ducal Palace, exploring the golden rooms of the Serenìssima Republican government, making our way across the Ponte dei Sospiri to St Mark’s Basilica and Piazza.
After another exquisite lunch (highlighted with an excellent nutella tiramisu) we visited a nearby glassblowing workshop and traditional lace-maker shop, and then capped the entire trip off with a lazy glide through the canals in four gondolas, which emptied us into the Grand Canal at sunset – Venice did not disappoint!


Sad to leave, we said our goodbyes to the Veneto, enjoying one last stroll through Caorle’s winding streets…

- See more at: http://life.lfny.org/2015/04/25/exploring-italian-history-culture-and-language/#sthash.bLDIfw1g.dpuf

sabato 3 gennaio 2015

Liesbeth dall' università di Gent (Belgio)...



Attending the language institute 'Il Faro' was a wonderful experience: the daily lessons were held in small groups, in an ever relaxed convivial atmosphere and the material was nicely suited to the competence of the group members. I would definitely recommend this school to anyone who wants to learn Italian or improve their grasp on the language

Liesbeth

venerdì 2 gennaio 2015

Ecco il commento del nostro amico Guenter

Im vergangenen Sommer besuchte ich einen eindrucksvollen vierwoechigen Kurs des Sprachzentrums IL FARO in der malerischen Meeresstadt Caorle. Die geringe Anzahl von Schuelern in meiner Klasse, das abwechslungsreiche, authentische Lernmateral und die Kompetenz der stets freundlichen Lehrerin Liviana trugen dazu bei, dass ich in einer lernfreudigen Atmosphaere meine Sprachkenntnisse auffrischen und vertiefen konnte.
Auch der regelmaessige Sprachkontakt mit Liviana, ihren Kollegen und den anderen Kursteilnehmern waehrend der Kaffeepausen oder Ausfluegen halfen mir, mein Italienisch zu verbessern. Nicht weniger  nuetzlich waren die taeglichen Hausaufgaben in ansteigendem Schwierigkeitsgrad und mit interessanten Themen ueber soziale und kulturelle Aspekte Italiens.
Sprach- und Landeskenntnisse gewann ich zusaetzlich dadurch, dass ich dank der Vermittlung von Liviana im Hotel "Villa Maria" wohnte, wo ich Gelegenheit hatte, sowohl Einheimische als auch Gaeste aus verschiedenen Regionen Italiens kennenzulernen. Ausserdem ermoeglichte mir die vorzuegliche Verpflegung, viele der kulinarischen Spezialitaeten des Landes zu geniessen.
Die tolle Zeit in Caorle uebertraf alle meine Erwartungen, weil ich dort zum ersten  Mal ein intensives Sprachstudium mit einem erholsamen Urlaub verbinden konnte.
Guenter

giovedì 20 novembre 2014

Vanessa e John: i nostri amici scultori dal Canada




Grazie a Liviana e Laura per due settimane indimenticabili! Speriamo di vedervi presto!

Grazie a Voi, John e Vanessa, è stato un vero piacere conoscervi...a presto!


Vanessa Paschakarnis John Greer sono una simpaticissima coppia di bravissimi scultori, che ci hanno fatto visita quest'estate! Vanessa è stata una dei due vincitori della quarta edizione del nostro concorso letterario un dito nell'occhio: ha vinto proprio con  un racconto che parla di scultura "la raspa diamantata"...leggetelo!



giovedì 30 ottobre 2014

Cecilia da Taiwan


I had a really good time with all of you guys.
 
you guys are always very considerate, warm hearted, and patient. I always enjoyed all the moment with all of you.
There is  a very good atmosphere in the school, all the school mates are kind and I like to sip coffee with all you guys after the lessons, thats  a very good opportunity to practice Italian in a good way.
Now I do miss all of you guys very much, hope to see you guys in the next summer.
wish you the best      
Cecilia

domenica 12 ottobre 2014

Hermann dall'Austria




Die eine Woche, die ich gebucht hatte, hat sich als zu kurz erwiesen, weil die Bemühungen und die Umsicht unserer Lehrerin Liviana so toll waren, dass die Tage im Nu vergingen und das Lernen Freude machte. Trotz der Vielschichtigkeit der Teilnehmer ( in unserer Gruppe waren neben einer Russin, einem Franzosen, einer in London lebenden Deutschen auch zwei Österreicher, davon war einer ich ) ist sofort freundschaftliche, familiäre Atmosphäre entstanden, die durch den Kaffehausbesuch aller Teilnehmer und der Schulleiterinnen während der Pause noch gefördert wurde. Zusammenfassend möchte auch ich daher, in leicht abgewandelter Form ( ohne Pluralis 
majestatis ), die oftmalige Aussage von Kaiser Franz Josef zum Ausdruck bringen:´´ Es war sehr schön, es hat mich sehr gefreut!´´
Hermann Wurm, settembre 2014