# English speaking areas in Italy



## RachelGiada

Maybe I am asking too much but if there are a number of expat English speaking areas in Italy, perhaps people can post them here? I know it was mentioned before that Florance has a good deal of enaglish speaking expats. Where else please?

Thanks much

Rachel


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## Bevdeforges

Not sure about the areas as such, but you might try looking for places where there are English or American expat clubs and associations. The group I'm most familiar with is FAWCO, which is an American expat association of women's clubs overseas. https://www.fawco.org/index.php?opt...d=18&crmRowCount=100&Itemid=200546&crmSID=3_u

According to their site, there are FAWCO groups in Rome, Torino, Naples, Genoa and Florence. That should give you a start on finding English speakers.
Cheers,
Bev


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## NickZ

My question would be what sort of English speaker?

Chianti is also called Chiantishire. A large number of UK residents but I guess many are retired.

OTOH in the more university cities (Florence and Perugia for example) you'll have more college aged kids.

Rome has many international companies etc. But it's a large spread out city. I doubt you'd find clumps .

You'll find retired people spread over the country.


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## RachelGiada

Bev thanks for the link, i will follow up on it. Also by providing this it will help others looking for expats.

Nick I am a retired American would like to retire in southern Italy along the Adriatic in Puglia area. However I would still like to be close to some club where i could go to enjoy some conversation with fellow english speaking individuals, American, British Aussie does not matter . I am not a city person and would like more of the Bari area. 

Thanks Bev and Nick,

Rachel


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## accbgb

It is not to difficult to get by (daily life, shopping, medical care, some dealings with government) in Rome, Florence, Bologna, Venice, maybe Bari as well, without being fluent in Italian. In general, areas that see a lot of tourism.

Avoid small towns until you are at least comfortable with a minimal level of Italian as even a simple thing like buying a sandwich (un panino) can be an exercise in futility.


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## NickZ

Bari is a city. It may be only 300k but it's a regional capital.


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## RachelGiada

Hi Acc and Nickz. acc very true especially in tourist areas, however i am about to start basic Italian using Pimsleurs. 

I was using Bari as an example, I could stay in the outskirts, but i am still looking to where i would like to settle, somewhere centrally located perhaps.

Thanks!

Rachel


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## sicilian1

There is free Italian grammar online which would give you the basics on how to pronounce the different sounds of vowels and consonants. Then use a site like my language exchange to find a partner to speak with. I did this 3 years ago and it was free, and now I'm speaking Italian.
I'm looking into moving to the south, maybe Sicily, in the next two years. I hope I can swing the residency requirements.


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## accbgb

forvo.com - enter any word, name, or phrase and hear it pronounced by real Italians (or any other language). If a word isn't there, just submit it and usually you'll get two or three pronunciations within 24 hours

duolingo.com - both on the web and an app for smartphones. Very nice free learning tool

italian.about.com - lots and lots of helpful stuff

if you use an Android smartphone, search the Play store for "Italian Verbs" by Appicenter. A very helpful verb conjugator

translate.google.com on the web, or Google Translator for your smartphone

From Amazon.com - "Italian Vocabulary (Academic)" flashcards by BarCharts Inc.

I like Pimsleur but have one basic problem with it: no study guide. For the beginner especially, it is often not clear what words are being spoken nor can you begin to guess the spelling of words unless you look elsewhere. The tools mentioned above can help bridge the gap left open by the Pimsleur learning method.

One additional comment: concentrate heavily on nouns. Without any other parts of speech, you can manage to get a towel from the hotel maid if you know that the word for towel is asciugamano (or "l'asciugamano" - "the towel") and how to pronounce it.

Next, learn how to say I want, I would like, and I need: io voglio, io vorrei, io ho bisogno. Put those together with the nouns of your choice and you are on your way!


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## RachelGiada

Thank you Sicilan1, appreciate the input and good luck, your in the right forum for some guidance.


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## RachelGiada

accbgb said:


> forvo.com - enter any word, name, or phrase and hear it pronounced by real Italians (or any other language). If a word isn't there, just submit it and usually you'll get two or three pronunciations within 24 hours
> 
> duolingo.com - both on the web and an app for smartphones. Very nice free learning tool
> 
> italian.about.com - lots and lots of helpful stuff
> 
> if you use an Android smartphone, search the Play store for "Italian Verbs" by Appicenter. A very helpful verb conjugator
> 
> translate.google.com on the web, or Google Translator for your smartphone
> 
> From Amazon.com - "Italian Vocabulary (Academic)" flashcards by BarCharts Inc.
> 
> I like Pimsleur but have one basic problem with it: no study guide. For the beginner especially, it is often not clear what words are being spoken nor can you begin to guess the spelling of words unless you look elsewhere. The tools mentioned above can help bridge the gap left open by the Pimsleur learning method.
> 
> One additional comment: concentrate heavily on nouns. Without any other parts of speech, you can manage to get a towel from the hotel maid if you know that the word for towel is asciugamano (or "l'asciugamano" - "the towel") and how to pronounce it.
> 
> Next, learn how to say I want, I would like, and I need: io voglio, io vorrei, io ho bisogno. Put those together with the nouns of your choice and you are on your way!


Another awesome post packed with goodies, thanks much acc. I will download the apps to my phone.

I do not have the books either, but i did find these, see if that is what your looking for?

http://www.neiu.edu/academics/colle...les/documents/tegriffi/Pimsleur_Italian_I.pdf

https://www.recordedbooks.com/pdf_brochures/pimsleur/ItalianIIBooklet.pdf

Still looking for level 3, if i locate it will post it here.

Thanks much :blabla:
Rachel


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## lindanoto63

I would use English speaking areas as my least criteria of where to pick when moving to Italy. You will have a totally different and better experience if you commit to learning the language. It is natural to want to cluster together with other English speakers but it will slow down your learning and integrating into your chosen community. We have people in our area who have been here over 20 years and can barely put together a phrase. They are lost and isolated when their expat friends move on. You will find that in a smaller village the locals will go out of their way to help and include you if you only make the attempt to speak their language.


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## RachelGiada

Thank you Linda for your input. I am starting to use Pimsleur's Italian course, however if you read up through this post there were a few who gave additional help regarding speaking the language. It is my intent to learn, i just wanted to meet up with English speaking people. Again thank you!

Rachel


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## Bevdeforges

No problem with that idea. Even if you're learning the language - or even have a pretty good grounding in it - it's "relaxing" to find a few speakers of your own language to kick back with. Check out the various expat groups as you can find them. Not for all your socializing, but to find a few "good buddies" who will understand some of your frustrations with local habits and customs. 
Cheers,
Bev


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## RachelGiada

Bevdeforges said:


> No problem with that idea. Even if you're learning the language - or even have a pretty good grounding in it - it's "relaxing" to find a few speakers of your own language to kick back with. Check out the various expat groups as you can find them. Not for all your socializing, but to find a few "good buddies" who will understand some of your frustrations with local habits and customs.
> Cheers,
> Bev


It is exactly what i was thinking when i wrote that request. I am just looking for an occasional group to meet with and chat, whatever. I am not seeking a crutch.

Merci beaucoup, Bev.


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## jmob

RachelGiada said:


> It is exactly what i was thinking when i wrote that request. I am just looking for an occasional group to meet with and chat, whatever. I am not seeking a crutch.
> 
> Merci beaucoup, Bev.


Any Americans in Florence right now?


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## RachelGiada

jmob said:


> Any Americans in Florence right now?


It is my understanding there is a "English" speaking expat community in Florence.


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## accbgb

RachelGiada said:


> It is my understanding there is a "English" speaking expat community in Florence.



Yes, and there is a Facebook closed, members-only, group named "A Friend In Florence" which you may want to join if you are a Facebook user. It's at https://www.facebook.com/groups/aFriendInFlorence/


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