How to Italy

I'm back

2009-10-02T08:58:56+02:00

This week writer Catherine Sanderson, aka her of Petite Anglaise fame, hit the headlines once again when she announced undramatically/dramatically (undramatically if you're like the status quo, dramatically if you're a journalist having a very slow news day) that she'd decided to quit blogging about her expat life in Paris.

And that was only after a month's absence from the blogosphere and prompts from one concerned reader.

It made me realise that I've never explained my sudden disappearance both Twitter and blogging and why I've ignored hundreds of unopened emails (yes, I'm sorry about those) at the beginning of April.

It was only meant to be for a few days. But those limped into weeks and months with only my closest friends and a few concerned fellow bloggers/Twitterers knowing the reason why I'd lost my writing mojo. Suddenly, six months had passed and I hadn't so much as lifted a finger to the keyboard to reveal why.

So now I am.

My brother ended his life at the end of March and when you're dealing with a bereavement that you never ever expected to have to deal with, the online world becomes very trivial indeed. How could I have enjoyed carefree banter with fellow Tweeters or give advice about living in Italy when all my energy was spent on getting up in the morning and struggling through the day?

I'm taking babysteps back into the web 2.0. You can find me on Facebook and I'm vowing to be back on Twitter soon. I've also got a few blog posts up my sleeve about what Italy's taught me over the past few months and I'll be publishing those in the next few weeks.

Please bear with me.

Teaching in Sardinia

2009-03-02T11:46:05+01:00

The Speak English School still has a part-time teaching opportunity from now until July.

We're a small but bustling language schoo in Arzachena, and pride ourselves on being dynamic and innovative. The social side is big with us, too, and we hold monthly Speak English pizza nights.

If you'd love to join our team of teachers, here's what you need to do:

Be a native English speaker

Have EU citizenship/working papers in place

Be CELTA/Trinity-qualified

Have a passion for teaching

Speak at least some Italian

Tell us why you are the best teacher out there for the job

Give us an example of your passion and initiative

And here's not what to do:

Don't send us a general application that you're sending to a million different places

Don't send us an application full of grammar and spelling mistakes

Don't apply if you don't meet the above criteria

Don't mention in your application form that you've always wanted to live in Rome/Florence/Venice. We're in Sardinia.

Don't attach a general business CV. We're an English school not a corporation. It's the teaching experience we're interested in first and foremost.

Don't send us an email asking for more information about Sardinia. If you want the job, you do the homework.

Send your application (including CV) to emmaDOTbirdAThowtoitalyDOTcom

Teaching opportunities in Sardinia

2008-11-14T10:40:03+01:00

Do you want to teach English in one of the world's most beautiful locations?
Do you want to slow down and relax and learn a whole new way of living?
Do you want to teach in my school?

I'm looking for qualified teachers and non-qualfied native speakers to work in the Gallura area of Sardinia. If you're interested, email me your cv and covering letter, outlining why you're the best person for the job. Please note, due to EU laws, only those with EU passports may apply.

Email: Info at howtoitaly dot com

All will be revealed soon

2008-11-14T10:31:40+01:00

It's been another busy few weeks here.

Big things are happening on the work/business front. And I'll be revealing all soon.

As for the new pad, it's almost ready. Almost. As in it's officially ours but we're still waiting for electricity and gas to be connected. The kitchen still needs to be installed. We still need a bed and a matress to sleep on. And we still need light fittings. It may not sound much, but I'm in Sardinia where time works in an entirely different way to the rest of Europe. If I get any of the above by Christmas, it will be cause for celebration.

In the meantime, a belated thanks to Megan Fitzgerald, over at career by choice, for the coffee beans she sent me in the post. I still can't believe I was one of the winners in the 'you know you're in Italy when...' contest.

A presto (promise!)

Revealed: my students on the Sardegna Speaks English course

2008-10-29T09:56:31+01:00

10 of my 14 students on one of our pizza nights.

These are the words that caught me off-guard last week in the restaurant (note, I'm leaving them in Italian):

“Emma, oltre che un’ottima insegnante d’inglese, sei veramente una bellissima persona. Averti conosciuto è stato molto bello, di te ho apprezzato il fatto che sai rendere le lezioni divertenti e piacevoli. Le tue lezioni già mi mancano e mi consola il fatto di sapere che, anche se non con tutto il gruppo, comunque proseguiranno. Grazie davvero di tutto.” - Giuliana Peddis

“Ognuno di noi ha diverse capacità di apprendimento, differenti basi di partenza…ma stessi obbiettivi! Imparare!!!!! Questa è una scuola dinamica di importante rapporto umano. L’approccio con essa è un’eccellente combinazione di capacità organizzative. Emma, l’insegnante, è attenta alle esigenze di ciascuno. Sono soddisfatta della sue costante dedizione. Questo è determinante per la crescita dello studente. Lei rispetta i tuoi impegni…ma…seguendo i tuoi progressi. Imparare con Emma è facile. Possiede gli strumenti giusti. Ti guida verso l’importante obbiettivo…imparare l’inglese” - Maddalena Demuro

“Onorati di averti conosciuta!” - Francesco Giorgioni e Maria Franca Linaldeddu

“Cara Emma, ti ringrazio per tutto quello che mi hai insegnato e che mi insegnerai. Sei una persona speciale, anzi unica, la tua spontaneità e la tua allegria sono contagiose. Insomma, non so se l’hai capito ma per me questo corso è stato un’esperienza meravigliosa.” - Maria Antonietta Tonola

“Sono felice di averti conosciuta. Grazie” - Adriana Chiodino

“Grazie di tutto quello che hai saputo darci! E’ stata una bella esperienza e non avrei mai pensato di riuscire a impare una nuova lingua. Siamo divertiti!” - Maria Meloni

“Emma, sei una teacher proprio speciale per me, anzi unica - non ne ho mai avuto un’altra. Grazie per la pazienza.” - Maria Bonanno

“Cara professoressa, sei stata bravissima, ma nel mio caso il tuo sforzo è stato quasi vano (per colpa mia). Comunque, ciò che ricordo meglio è nice to meet you.” - Matteo Filigheddu

“Rientrare a scuola e riprendere i libri in mano è stato un’esperienza davvero bella, anche perché mi sono trovata molto bene con te e con il tuo insegnamento. Ti ringrazio. Ci vediamo presto alle nuove lezioni.” - Elisabetta Scampuddu

From journalism to teaching and why I don't regret it

2008-10-24T09:23:32+02:00

Ever get those days where you wonder whether or not you did the right thing in giving up one career you loved (journalism) for something even less well paid (teaching) hundreds of kilometres away (Milan's urban jungle to Sardinia's sandy beaches)?

Five-and-half years later and all those doubts have vanished. Let's face it, teaching English on a mega yacht moored off the Costa Smeralda or travelling to work via helicopter to teach world famous peeps (my lips are sealed - I signed a confidentiality clause yesterday) is far better than being glued to a computer screen. Oh, and I've also realised teaching is far more lucrative than being a trainee reporter. You've just got to get the right contacts.

Of course, that's the extreme version of my life. The cliche-ridden one, where I pinch myself to see whether I'm dreaming. But even the more mundane end of teaching is rewarding. On June 15, I walked into a classroom to teach 14 total beginners 80 hours of English. I was nervous. I'd never taught a group of total beginners before and I wasn't quite sure how it was going to go. Three-hour lessons three times a week can be painful. It's a good job I came armed with my bright pink basketball to break the ice.

Four months of laughter, frustration and me bollocking them for not doing their homework later and we've finished. I'm sad and I know they are, too. What we created in those 80 hours wasn't perfunctory. It went far beyond the language learning. It was proof that when you put your heart and soul into something, magic happens.

Last night we had the end-of-course pizza, together with the awards ceremony. But the joke was on me. What I hadn't realised is that they'd got together to buy me a beautiful, beautiful leather bag, inside which was a book filled with their handwritten sentiments. It's a good job I didn't read it in the restaurant. Mascara sliding down your face isn't good publicity for a school.

So here's to Giuliana, Antonietta, Maria B, Giulia, Laura, Katia, Matteo, Iana, Maddalena, Francesco, Maria L, Valeria, Maria M and Elisabetta for being the best group of students ever.

Cheers!

Why Marmite is my secret weapon in the Italian classroom

2008-10-23T02:00:00+02:00

Marmite is a regular in my classroom.

It's the most effective weapon there is in keeping everyone - from lively kids to gossiping adults - disciplined.

Because they know that whenever the noise rises to an unacceptable level or they're not focusing on the English task in hand, I take the Marmite out of my bag (dubbed the Mary Poppins bag because no one is ever quite sure what's going to emerge next), place it on my desk and unscrew the top.

The effect is instant silence without me having to say anything. And that's not because I put the fear of God into them (though my CELTA teachers might disagree - I was once nicknamed Sergeant Emma or some other Army-esque term. But, hey, that was six years ago). It's because the brownstuff puts the fear of God into them.

They know that if they choose to snog their classmates (yes, that really has happened), apply their lippy or continue to gossip in Italian, I'll place the open jar of Marmite on their desks.

C, who has regularly been on the receiving end of the M-treatment, even begged me to give her some so she could use the same technique at home when her six-year-old twin boys misbehaved.

Is this a sign that Italians are finally beginning to appreciate the salty brown gloop?

Twittering on all things Italian

2008-10-22T06:00:00+02:00

Wow. I've updated for a third day in a row.

But on those days (ok, weeks, months) that you come here looking for updated information and you don't find anything at all, get on Twitter and follow the following expats in Italy/Italy experts:

@michellefabio

@bellissimatina

@mybellavita

@ExpatCoach

@italylogue

@figcharlie

@rosso

@aVg

@lucullian

@MissExpatria

@Roam2Rome

@seancarlos

@italyinsf

@wisequeen

@divinacucina

@BlogfromItaly

@dreamofitaly

Italian builders

2008-10-21T20:16:56+02:00

Italian builders do my head in.

I went to check on the state of the apartment today. What this usually involves is me reminding F that I have now asked once a week since June for the tiles to be taken off the wall in the kitchen because I do not want beige floor tiles on the wall with a glossy black and white kitchen. Once a week since June, I've also asked for the radiator to be removed from kitchen because I want to put a shelving units there and given that the kitchen is tinier than a postage stamp I really don't need the heating on when I'll aready be sweating from the heat of the oven/hob.

Surprise, surprise, this week was no exception. The beige floor tiles are still on the wall and the radiator is still in the kitchen.

Is Builder Angst a valid motive for murder in Italy?

A whirlwind roundup of life in Sardinia

2008-10-20T11:09:53+02:00

I haven't posted for ages. For three months in fact.

So, here's a quick roundup of what's been happening:

Summer happened. And the summer was hot. It's hard to concentrate when it's 40°C out. To be fair, summer is still happening. It may be Autumn, but we've still got 25°C.
I've been busy arguing with kitchen designers who quote ridiculously high prices for kitchens that you don't want in the first place because they didn't listen to what you wanted. Eur13,000 for three cupboards, a sink, an oven, a hob, a dishwater and a fridge/freezer anyone?
I've been busy finding kitchen designers who actually do listen and are lovely at the same time. Alberto Garau, of Guido Garau in Sassari, is my man of choice. Oh, and he happens to have the biggest chocolate brown eyes ever. Not that that influenced my choice.
Back in June, I started teaching again on the regional initiative Sardinia Speaks English. Total beginners are always my downfall. That led to taking over another course. I was teaching six hours back-to-back a day so definitely no time for blogging.
I'd forgotten how much I loved teaching. So, before I had time to realise what I was doing, went and set up my own private language school in Arzachena.
When I was getting stressed and scratching my head in bemusement, I reread my book on Starting a Business in Italy: how to set up and run a successful business in the Bel Paese (extremely non-subtle plug). Felt better after that.
I've also been redoing websites (with the help of Martha from Roam2Rome - she's a star)
I've been playing waiting games with the bank who wanted us to sign the act for the new appartment before we knew whether or not they'd give us a second mortgage (we've already got one on the whole oh-dear-the-roof-collapsed saga).
I've been writing lots - articles and that book that I should have finished ages ago.
I've been trying to find beds in Sardinia that don't come with a 70-day delivery time. I wish I was a carpenter. I could go and cut down the tree and make a bed in less time than that.
Oh, and I've been trying not to get annoyed that I have to pay Eur300 to clean up the mess that the builders have made in the apartment.