Florence, July 13, 2007 -- Don't you have a plan for this summer? Are you looking for a different holiday? Once again, Scuola Leonardo da Vinci, one of Italy's largest provider of in-country Italian language schools in Italy, is announcing new special offers for the summer 2007 presenting innovative plans to promote the learning of the Italian language.

This year following the great success of the last Special Offers in 2006, Scuola Leonardo da Vinci will feature new last minute language travel packages in in all its Italian language school centers (Florence, Milan. Rome and Siena).

The "last minute language travel package" is an offer comprehensive of a 2 week language and culture course and an accomodation in shared apartment, for students who wish to experience living and studying in Italy.

For the morning you can study Italian, while for the afternoon you can visit the city, with the free guided tours, or partecipate to the many cultural activities organized by the school. For the night you can have an aperitivo, a dinner in a typical restaurant, a disco night with the new friends you'll meet at the school and with the school staff, who usually partecipates and organizes the nightlife. Then, during the week-ends, the Italian school organizes daily excursions and tours around the Region, to visit the best places in the country, the lakes or some wonderful typical Italian towns.

Created to provide an opportunity for motivated and deserving students to experience the magic of study abroad at an Italian language school, the "last minute language travel package" aims to:

- progress from your language level to the upper stages;
- develop speaking and listening skills through daily conversation classes;
- give an introduction

Canadian Organization Promotes Italian Language and Literature
<p>The <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://canadiansocietyforitalianstudies.camp7.org/">Societ?anadese per gli Studi d'Italianistica</a> (Canadian Society for Italian Studies in English, and Soci? canadienne pour les ?des italiennes in French) is an international organization composed mainly of academics or those who have a scholarly or professional interest in Italian Studies. Established in 1972, the society: <blockquote>"Aims to foster and advance Italian Studies in Canada by providing venues for the presentation and discussion of research dealing with Italian language, literature, film, politics and culture, and related fields, such as Italian-Canadian studies, and matters pertaining to the teaching of Italian as a second and third language."</blockquote></p><p>The official publication of the society, <a href="http://canadiansocietyforitalianstudies.camp7.org/Default.aspx?pageId=137851"><i>Quaderni d'Italianistica</i></a>, is a peer-reviewed journal published twice yearly in English, French, and Italian.</p><p style="background:#f5f3ef;border:1px solid #d5d0bf;clear:both;padding:.5em;"><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/09/02/canadian-organization-promotes-italian-language-and-literature.htm">Canadian Organization Promotes Italian Language and Literature</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/">About.com Italian Language</a> on Thursday, September 2nd, 2010 at 02:32:57.</p><p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/09/02/canadian-organization-promotes-italian-language-and-literature.htm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/09/02/canadian-organization-promotes-italian-language-and-literature.htm#gB3">Comment</a> | <a href="http://italian.about.com/gi/pages/shareurl.htm?PG=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/09/02/canadian-organization-promotes-italian-language-and-literature.htm&#038;zItl=Canadian Organization Promotes Italian Language and Literature">Email this</a></p>
La Burrasca di Ferragosto ?in Arrivo
<p>If historic weather patterns hold true to form, Italy will experience <i>la burrasca di Ferragosto</i> over the next few days. The storm typically occurs in the last week of August, after the <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2009/08/15/ferragosto.htm">Ferragosto</a> holiday, during which an intense rainstorm that lasts a few days is followed by lower temperatures and fresh air, breaking the hot, humid days of summer. According to the Italian news agency ANSA, in: <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.ansa.it/web/notizie/rubriche/cronaca/2010/08/28/visualizza_new.html_1789758259.html">Caldo: la 'rottura' dell'estate, tra domenica e luned?t;/a>, this year's <i>burrasca di ferragosto</i> will affect all of Italy and result in a sharp drop of temperatures (between 10-12 degrees Celsius) and strong winds.</p><p style="background:#f5f3ef;border:1px solid #d5d0bf;clear:both;padding:.5em;"><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/29/burrasca-di-ferragosto.htm">La Burrasca di Ferragosto ?in Arrivo</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/">About.com Italian Language</a> on Sunday, August 29th, 2010 at 02:34:21.</p><p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/29/burrasca-di-ferragosto.htm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/29/burrasca-di-ferragosto.htm#gB3">Comment</a> | <a href="http://italian.about.com/gi/pages/shareurl.htm?PG=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/29/burrasca-di-ferragosto.htm&#038;zItl=La Burrasca di Ferragosto ?in Arrivo">Email this</a></p>
McLawyers Contro McPuddu's
<p>If you're looking for a Big Mac in Sardinia and order a <a href="http://www.sardegnaturismo.it/index.php?xsl=87&#038;s=4382&#038;v=2&#038;c=3164&#038;t=1"><i>culurgiones</i></a>, don't be surprised if there's no special sauce. For that matter, there won't be any beef patties either, because the dish is a Sardinian form of stuffed pasta filled with <i>pecorino sardo</i> (Sardinian cheese made from sheep's milk), potato, and mint.</p><p>The point is, there's nothing on the menu at McPuddu's restaurant that's likely to be confused with a Big Mac, yet McDonald's lawyers have ordered the tiny Sardinian pasta snack bar in Santa Maria Navarrese to <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.blitzquotidiano.it/gourme/mcdonalds-contro-mcpuddus-imprenditore-sardo-gastronomia-513708/">remove 'Mc' from its name</a>.<p style="background:#f5f3ef;border:1px solid #d5d0bf;clear:both;padding:.5em;"><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/28/mcpuddu.htm">McLawyers Contro McPuddu's</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/">About.com Italian Language</a> on Saturday, August 28th, 2010 at 02:01:07.</p><p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/28/mcpuddu.htm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/28/mcpuddu.htm#gB3">Comment</a> | <a href="http://italian.about.com/gi/pages/shareurl.htm?PG=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/28/mcpuddu.htm&#038;zItl=McLawyers Contro McPuddu's">Email this</a></p>
De Niro To Take Italian-Speaking Role?
<p>Robert De Niro might soon be dusting off his Italian language skills. According to <i>Variety</i>, the actor is in final negotiations to star in the film <i>Manuale d'Amore 3</i> (Manual of Love 3). In the film, the third in a series of Italian romantic comedies by the same name, De Niro would play a divorced American professor living in Rome. Some of his dialogue would be spoken in Italian.</p><p>Some people claimed <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/01/02/dustin-hoffman-needs-italian-lessons.htm">Dustin Hoffman needed Italian lessons</a> when he appeared in a television commercial to promote the Marche region of Italy; maybe he can give De Niro a few pronunciation tips before filming begins in September.</p><p style="background:#f5f3ef;border:1px solid #d5d0bf;clear:both;padding:.5em;"><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/25/de-niro-manual-of-love.htm">De Niro To Take Italian-Speaking Role?</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/">About.com Italian Language</a> on Wednesday, August 25th, 2010 at 02:49:38.</p><p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/25/de-niro-manual-of-love.htm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/25/de-niro-manual-of-love.htm#gB3">Comment</a> | <a href="http://italian.about.com/gi/pages/shareurl.htm?PG=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/25/de-niro-manual-of-love.htm&#038;zItl=De Niro To Take Italian-Speaking Role?">Email this</a></p>
Study With Meucci and Garibaldi
<p>Looking for a historical setting to study Italian? <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://pub1.andyswebtools.com/cgi-bin/p/awtp-custom.cgi?d=garibaldi-meucci-museum&#038;page=747">Register for the fall semester of Italian language classes</a> at the <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.garibaldimeuccimuseum.org/">Garibaldi-Meucci Museum</a>, in Staten Island, New York. There are classes for both beginner and advanced students as well as classes taught primarily in Italian. The museum is a memorial to inventor Antonio Meucci and Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi.</p><p style="background:#f5f3ef;border:1px solid #d5d0bf;clear:both;padding:.5em;"><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/24/garibaldi-meucci-museum.htm">Study With Meucci and Garibaldi</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/">About.com Italian Language</a> on Tuesday, August 24th, 2010 at 02:45:42.</p><p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/24/garibaldi-meucci-museum.htm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/24/garibaldi-meucci-museum.htm#gB3">Comment</a> | <a href="http://italian.about.com/gi/pages/shareurl.htm?PG=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/24/garibaldi-meucci-museum.htm&#038;zItl=Study With Meucci and Garibaldi">Email this</a></p>
Chatty in Illinois
<p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2006/04/03/italian-language-meetup.htm">Italian language meetups</a> are fairly common nowadays and oftentimes have a specific theme, such as the <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2009/10/09/extreme-italian-language-exchange.htm">extreme language exchange</a> held in Rome or the <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/07/05/cineforum-italiano-washington-dc.htm">Cineforum Italiano</a> in Washington, DC. One in particular, though, deserves mention if only for its name. <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://ichiacchieroni.tripod.com/">I Chiacchieroni</a> is an Italian-language conversation group in Illinois that meets for dinner every month for a casual evening of conversation in Italian. With a name like that, the group is sure to be talkative!</p><p style="background:#f5f3ef;border:1px solid #d5d0bf;clear:both;padding:.5em;"><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/21/italian-language-conversation-group-illinois.htm">Chatty in Illinois</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/">About.com Italian Language</a> on Saturday, August 21st, 2010 at 02:18:30.</p><p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/21/italian-language-conversation-group-illinois.htm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/21/italian-language-conversation-group-illinois.htm#gB3">Comment</a> | <a href="http://italian.about.com/gi/pages/shareurl.htm?PG=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/21/italian-language-conversation-group-illinois.htm&#038;zItl=Chatty in Illinois">Email this</a></p>
RIP Il Picconatore
<p>Francesco Cossiga, former interior minister, prime minister, and president of the Italian Republic, died in Rome on Tuesday, August 17. He was 82. According to The New York Times, "In later years, he developed a reputation for his outspoken criticism of the Italian political system and its players, gaining the nickname <i>Il Picconatore</i>, or the pickax."</p><p>Mr. Cossiga was a leading figure in the Christian Democrats, the party that dominated postwar Italy until it crumbled in a kickback scandal in the early 1990s.</p><p style="background:#f5f3ef;border:1px solid #d5d0bf;clear:both;padding:.5em;"><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/19/francesco-cossiga.htm">RIP Il Picconatore</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/">About.com Italian Language</a> on Thursday, August 19th, 2010 at 02:33:50.</p><p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/19/francesco-cossiga.htm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/19/francesco-cossiga.htm#gB3">Comment</a> | <a href="http://italian.about.com/gi/pages/shareurl.htm?PG=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/19/francesco-cossiga.htm&#038;zItl=RIP Il Picconatore">Email this</a></p>
Crema Ghiacciata
<p>According to <i>Corriere della Sera</i> in <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.corriere.it/cronache/10_luglio_06/serra-nuova-vita-caffe_1e1b06c4-88bf-11df-9548-00144f02aabe.shtml">Nuova Vita per il Caff?t;/a>, the latest coffee craze in Italy is <i>crema ghiacciata</i>. Halfway between a gelato and sorbet, the delicious summer concoction is a mix of milk, cream, and coffee combined in a slush machine (<i>granitore</i>).</p><p style="background:#f5f3ef;border:1px solid #d5d0bf;clear:both;padding:.5em;"><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/15/crema-ghiacciata.htm">Crema Ghiacciata</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/">About.com Italian Language</a> on Sunday, August 15th, 2010 at 02:32:11.</p><p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/15/crema-ghiacciata.htm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/15/crema-ghiacciata.htm#gB3">Comment</a> | <a href="http://italian.about.com/gi/pages/shareurl.htm?PG=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/15/crema-ghiacciata.htm&#038;zItl=Crema Ghiacciata">Email this</a></p>
More Reasons To Study Italian
<p>Inflation is ever-present nowadays, <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/30/business/economy/30fed.html">regardless of what economists would have you believe</a>. Case in point: While there might be <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/od/grammar/a/aa082405a.htm">ten top reasons to learn Italian</a>, there seem to be <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.onlinecollege.org/2010/07/26/50-reasons-you-should-learn-a-new-language/">50 reasons you should learn a foreign language</a>.</p> <p style="background:#f5f3ef;border:1px solid #d5d0bf;clear:both;padding:.5em;"><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/14/why-study-italian-2.htm">More Reasons To Study Italian</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/">About.com Italian Language</a> on Saturday, August 14th, 2010 at 02:05:39.</p><p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/14/why-study-italian-2.htm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/14/why-study-italian-2.htm#gB3">Comment</a> | <a href="http://italian.about.com/gi/pages/shareurl.htm?PG=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/14/why-study-italian-2.htm&#038;zItl=More Reasons To Study Italian">Email this</a></p>
Rome the Streets of New York
<p>The title is not a misspelling. <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.illy.com/">illy</a>, the renowned purveyor of espresso coffee, has launched a new marketing campaign in New York City for their <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://www.illyissimo.com/">illy issimo</a> line of coffee-flavored energy drinks. The tongue-in-cheek advertising, which appears in subway stations and other heavily traveled locations, also includes the tag lines: "Travel New York in the espresso lane" and "Ciao New York! Try Illy coffee to go." illy issimo is available in three flavors: Caff?Cappuccino, and Latte Macchiato.</p><p style="background:#f5f3ef;border:1px solid #d5d0bf;clear:both;padding:.5em;"><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/12/rome-the-streets-of-new-york.htm">Rome the Streets of New York</a> originally appeared on <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/">About.com Italian Language</a> on Thursday, August 12th, 2010 at 02:18:50.</p><p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/12/rome-the-streets-of-new-york.htm">Permalink</a> | <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&#038;zu=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/12/rome-the-streets-of-new-york.htm#gB3">Comment</a> | <a href="http://italian.about.com/gi/pages/shareurl.htm?PG=http://italian.about.com/b/2010/08/12/rome-the-streets-of-new-york.htm&#038;zItl=Rome the Streets of New York">Email this</a></p>


to the everlasting beauty and charm of Italian art;
- allow you to understand the mixture of tradition and change which characterizes contemporary Italy.

When asked about her experience, Sanda S., who studied in Milan with Scuola Leonardo da Vinci last year, commented: "I was delighted at the chance to travel to and attend Scuola Leonardo da Vinci. I believe the programme helped me to improve my Italian in a friendly and supportive environment. I really enjoyed meeting people from around the world. Being able to study in also helped me gain an understanding of the Italian culture. It was certainly an experience I will never forget and intend to repeat in the future."

Program details and supporting information, including students opinions and histories on the Language Course Experience in Italy, may be found on the Scuola Leonardo da Vinci Web site at http://www.scuolaleonardo.com/. Next Starting dates, as written on the Web Site, are 30 July, and 08 August 2007.

For 30 years, Scuola Leonardo da Vinci, the market leader in in-country Italian language courses, has been exclusively dedicated to the teaching of Italian to foreigners. Each year the company welcomes students from 60 countries to its Italian language schools in Florence, Milan, Rome and Siena. The company’s Web site, www.scuolaleonardo.com, an Italian language portal offering information and pages of Italian language courses, culture and resources on 12 languages, receives more than 3,000 visits daily.

For general questions, contact the Marketing Office of Scuola Leonardo da Vinci.

Information and Registration Center (Florence, Italy)
Tel.: +39-055-29.03.05
Fax: +39-055-290396
http://www.scuolaleonardo.com