In 2019 I met Simona Marras in Sambuca where she owns a house. We began working together and I discovered a passionate teacher, curious and interested. Simona knows e-v-e-r-y-o-n-e in Sambuca, which, although very different from Agnone, also offers opportunity for practice in a slow and friendly community.

A small, cohesive group follows structured lessons of grammar with conversation sessions focused on preparing for visits. It’s quite concentrated, moving from one lesson, conversation, or event to the next – with time to rest and refresh, engage with local personalities, visit sites of interest, and learn about the region.

If you’ve enjoyed Agnone and are ready for something new, this could be for you! Being perfect or fluent is not important, a willingness to jump in and contribute conversation is. We are dedicated to providing an opportunity to practise Italian. Maybe you won’t speak Italian at all times with fellow students, but during visits and meals with Italian speakers we ask that you do so.

Sambuca is very hilly and full of slippery cobblestones, so a high level of fitness, balance, and stamina is required.

Participants will be lodged in 2 separate B&Bs with the use of a shared kitchen.

INCLUDED:

• 10 nights B&B accommodation with Italian hosts
•  7 mornings of lessons and day long interaction with 2 qualified Italian
  teachers
• 10 other meals, lunches or dinners
• 3 visits to archaeological sites with a registered guide
• Visits to places of interest in the region with local hosts
• Wine and oil tasting with a local producer
• Transport costs and entrance tickets for all museums and visits
• Excursion to the coast beach 

€2350

Narni is a small Umbrian town situated between Rome and Assisi, the centre of Italy.

C.S. Lewis remembered finding Narni in an atlas as a boy, so naming “Narnia’ the fantastical country of his chronicals. A lovely, medieval hill town with a lower carpark and elevator up to the centro storico, there’s a museum and library, cinema and theatre, small shops, and restaurants and bars dotted around the narrow streets.

There are hills to negotiate but once in the centre, it’s reasonably flat. Be prepared for exercise - walks and visits with local people always make for a more immersive experience. This programme does not require a high level of fitness.

As with all L&LI programmes, you will be encouraged to speak Italian. You’ll have mornings lessons with Italian teacher, Simona, who will also be with us throughout each day. Additional sessions will be led by Valeria, a fine artist, taking advantage of her knowledge of art and art history, and others by Antonio, a theatre director, using their studio as a base.
Valeria will also be available for those keen to do some drawing.

Private rooms & bath are in the Loggia Dei Priori Hotel (3*) in the centre of Narni. The rooms (2 nd / 3 rd floors with elevator) are very modest, but comfortable. The charming hotel is on the main square with a lovely courtyard, and restaurant for breakfast. There is Wifi in the rooms.

Frequent trains from Roma Termini or Tiburtina, take just under 1 hour. There is a shuttle bus from the station at Narni-Amelia up to the town centre.

INCLUDED:

•  10 nights B&B hotel
•  7 mornings of Italian lessons with qualified teacher, plus day long interaction
• 7 sessions with Valeria or Antonio
• 10 additional meals
• 3 visits to other towns in the region to explore art and local activities
  
• All transport and entrance tickets
  
• 5/6 visits and conversations with artisans, writers, and local guides
  
• Cinema or theatre event

€2350

A short, sharp, and wonderfully intense shock of Italian immersion in a major city.

My friend and colleague, Simona, is Genovese, although she lived in France for a lot of her adult life. Recently relocating back, she rediscovered a much changed Genoa, and was excited to explore afresh. Still familiar from her childhood and university years, the derelict port area has been beautifully reimagined by Renzo Piano (son of Genoa) and the largest centro storico in
Europe has been pedestrianized.

A fascinating city - I fell in love with when I went to find her there.

Mornings are spent concentrated on lessons, mostly in the classroom, sometimes in a specific venue. Afternoons and weekend are dedicated to visits and meeting local people. The idea is to take you to places you won’t find in a guidebook and introducing you to Genovese whom you would not otherwise meet, all while practising and learning Italian.

There’s a plethora of museums, palazzi, and different neighbourhoods which you are free to explore, grabbing a bit of free time during the 7 days, or you could extend your stay before or after the programme.

Genoa is built on a hill and the programme is very active - only suitable for those with a high level of fitness and agility.

As with all Live and Learn Italian stays, we are dedicated to providing an opportunity to practise Italian. You might not speak Italian at all times with fellow students, but during visits and meals with Italian speakers we ask that you do so.

INCLUDED:

• 7 nights in a centrally located B&B hotel with private room and bathroom
• 5 mornings of Italian lessons with qualified teacher, plus day long interaction

• 2 dinners in private houses with Italian hosts

• 5 other meals; lunches or dinners

• Visits to antiche botteghe, places of interest, and artisan workshops

• 2 afternoons with a city guide

• An evening at the theatre

• Excursion to the coast

• Transport costs around the city

€1750