In this episode we are going to be talking about an on-line learning site called italki. It is an educational site that helps foreign language learners connect with on-line teachers and chat buddies. In today’s podcast I will talk a little about my personal experiences with the italki site and you will also hear from three Italian teachers all of whom I have met through the site. They are Francesca Mazza from Lucca, Maria Fusco from Napoli and Olivia Cini originally from Tuscany, but who is currently living in Malta.

Buon giorno cari ascoltatori. Benvenuti! Welcome! Today we are talking about art & plein air painting and we will be hearing from Kelly Medford, an American artist who lives in Rome. Kelly is a wonderful artist and she teaches seminars on how to paint from nature using oils and watercolors. She also teaches us a new way of seeing and that art is personal experience that each one of us can develop and enjoy. I will also be discussing the upcoming "Matta" Language and Art Program that Kelly and I are planning together the first week of July 5-14th 2015.For more details on our Rome trip visit the Matta Blog. You can also find the text for “Tutti matti per l’italiano” in Italian and translated into English on the Studentessamatta site: www.studentessamatta.com. 

Welcome to the second part of the 2-part podcast “C’è chi viene e c’è chi va”. Last week I began to speak about the differences between living in Milan and living in San Francisco. In the first part of the podcast we heard from Gloria an Italian from the Milan area who now lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. In this second part of the podcast, we will continue to discuss the differences between San Francisco and Milan. In this episode we will hear from Christina an American from the Bay Area that has lived and worked in Italy. Both women, an American and an Italian, were transplanted into new culture in new and different countries than that which they were raised. They share similar qualities, of being independent and adventuresome, but obviously they have different and unique perspectives. They represent the flip side of the coin of living abroad as a foreigner.

In this podcast we will be discussing the differences between Milan and San Francisco in a podcast that I’m calling C’è chi viene e c’è chi va - “Those who come and those who go" - the differences between Milan and San Francisco. We will hear form two women who are similar but different. Gloria is an Italian from Milan who now lives in San Francisco. Christina is an American from San Jose, a city very close to San Francisco, who used to live in Milan. Through their experiences and insights, we will explore the flip side of Italian and American life.