Italy Map plus YouTube Videos

If you are looking to while away a few minutes, perhaps while waiting for an important phone call or suchlike, and you are thinking about coming to Italy for a summer holiday, then this Italy map link might prove fun.

Even if you were not thinking about a vacation in Italy, you might end up doing so after seeing a few of the videos here!  Be warned.  The plethora of videos available makes Italy look like a pizza!  Quite appropriate really.

It is quite simply a Google Map of Italy, plus a pot pourri the YouTube videos on Italy.

Here is the link for you to click, but only if you have some time to waste! … Continue Reading

Daily Life In Italy in Summer

Maybe some people are wondering just what daily life in Italy is like in summer. Well, once the warm weather hits this country, the routine in the north does change a little.

First of all, most of the schools in Italy close for summer at the end of June, which means many children suddenly find themselves with not much to do, while many of their parents are still working.

Families With Children

What Italians generally do when the schools close, especially whose wives don’t work, is take the kids to the sea or the mountains, while the husband stays in the city or town to work. When both parents have jobs, Italian children are sent to their grand parents, who either have or have rented houses or apartments down on the coast or up in the cool of the mountains. The 30°C+ heat in Italian cities can become oppressive and potentially dangerous for very young children.

For many Milanese, the coast generally means the Liguria region, the area on both sides of Genova. However some, especially those with family down in the south of Italy, may well send their children down to grand parents or relations down in the southern areas of Italy.

Those who do not have grand parents or relations, and who have the resources, will have a ‘colf’, which is basically a nanny who is often employed full time to look after younger children. Sometimes, the colf will take the children out of Milan, and at weekends parents will join the children. … Continue Reading

Zapping the mozzies

The mosquitoes are still a pain in the neck, although much less so now than back in June and July.  I hate the little blighters but now I’m able to take my revenge.

I invested the princely sum of 5 Euros in an electronic insect killer which looks a lot like this:

An electronic insect killer

It’s cool and lethal.  You hit a button on the side to charge it and then hit the bug and if contact is made you see a blue flash and may even hear a satisfying crack!

Even though it is only battery powered it has to handled with a degree of caution.  Our little one shocked himself with it as it seems to hold its charge after the button has been pressed and I zapped my other half’s rear end, unintentionally I might add, and she was not at all happy and the distinct smell of burning did not win me any brownie points either.  Naughty me.  We both laughed about it later on seeing as the whole thing seemed rather comical looking back on it.  I will not, however, be misusing this ‘weapon’ again and it is kept out of reach so that little hands do not get zapped.  It is a great, and effective, way of getting rid of pesky mozzies though – to that I can bear testament!

Bring the little blighters on!!  This device was a great investment!