brenna j, speaks , learning , from - italki

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Wednesday evening, you cook!

Wednesday evening, you cook! (I have to ask, what do you mean by "You cook?" Do you mean, On Wednesday evenings in Italy "one" cooks (I used "one" to clarify)? Or maybe you meant to say "I cook on Wednesday evenings?)
Yesterday evening I decided to cook a popular Italian dish, typical to south Italy.
That is to say I'm neither a chef nor an amateur cook. However, when I try to do something a bit complicated, I have difficulty.
Nevertheless perseverance helps me to improve in my cooking.
The dish I chose to make yesterday is not a normal or simple one (You don't have to say "dish" again) such as meat or pasta--it's one of vegetables.
It's called "Ciambotta." (This one is difficult, because in American English, you put the punctuation inside the quotation mark, and in England, you put the puncutation after. So depending on where you are, you could be right or wrong :) )
The ingredients are: potatoes, zucchini, peppers and eggplant, garlic, salt, (In English, you always put a comma right before "and") and cheese.
The challenge with this dish is that all of those ingredients have a different cook time the others. It's important to pay attention while you are cooking, or else you might as well just (Sounds better) put it all in the bin because it will have been completely burned.

You could compare it to "Ratatouille" but there is one difference; In Ratatouille you cook all ingredients separately, here I cook them all together.
I had to put some vegetables in the frying pan, before the other ingredients which need more time to cook and later the ones which cook more quickly.
The first thing I did was to pour oil in the pan, and when oil was hot I put in some little tomatoes (not sauce) and potatoes (You could also add "in" here at the end instead of before). When the potatoes had become tender, I put in peppers, which are quite hard, and finally zucchini and eggplant.
Probably yesterday I put in too much oil, but in Italy oil is fantastic, and makes the dish more flavorful. However, it is not always advised to do it in this manner.
In south Italy there are many of the typical heavy dishes: lasagna, parmiggiana, peperoni ripieni, cannelloni; but few of you probably know that there are also lots of typical dishes full of vegetables, very healthy and very tasty.

Fantastic English, Fabio! Although it may seem that there are a lot of corrections, most of the corrections I made were to make it look more like something a native speaker would write. I love southern Italian cuisine! This one I will definitely have to try. Looks super good :) Complimentiiiiiiiiii :D
0 voted
September 12, 2013
2
Corrected
There is chaos in my mind. I can't think in English.

Sometimes it's really frustating when you can't say what you want to. Even when you are aware that you are saying the worst grammatical error while you are talking. But no one can stop you. What you learned a while ago is lost in your mind. I would like to succeed in having a conversation without before having to think in italian. As I try to grasp for the correct words, a person could go somewhere, have a coffee, read a newspaper, and come back to me and maybe, maybe...I would have an answer. Anyway, I can understand quite well. Some point last year I had a job interview in Birmingham *and I thought it was difficult to understand them.* English people know that their accent is hard to understand, even for English people. I am wondering whether it could be a problem regarding my neurons--maybe I am getting old. In any case, the only solution that I see, is to learn how to while I stay in England. Although, I see this as a difficult thing, I have to commit myself to get used in listening, as I forget my Italian! ciao!

*Although I understood you, I have to admit that I had to complete the thought with the asterisked sentence. I hope that is what you meant. :)

Anyway, complimenti! Even though you may see a lot of red, most of them are suggestions to make you sound like a native speaker. You had a few grammatical errors, but overall you were understood, and your ideas were communicated effictively, and this is the most important thing in language learning!

To answer your questions, just in case Stephanie doesn't respond (and if she does, two opinions are better than one!):

Q: "Grazie Stephanie per le correzioni. I WILL take advantage for your kindness to ask you: why IT WOULD BE "you learned" instead of "you have learnt." There isn't a specific time indicated in the past, is THERE? ALSO, "has been lost" instead of "has lost" because in the while I'm talking they're still lost? The last one: I am wondering is present continuos, why can't I use it, if in that moment I am thinking of it? I know that present simple is used for habits, fact, things that are always true, is this case? Sorry for my questions but I am reading so many things... Grazie ancora a te e a chi riesce a rispondermi."

A: I would say that it is not necessarily grammatically incorrect (although, "learnt" would be chiefly British--and incorrect, I think). However, in any case, the syntax was changed for the flow of the sentence and to make more sense, in my humble opinion. I didn't understand your other question that you had about the "has been lost" vs. "has lost"--could you reword the sentence? And the last question, again, I think it is was changed because of the context of the sentence. Present coninuous is used mostly when a person is doing something in that very moment, or doing something temporarily. Also, I think you are confused, we usually use present simple for habitual activity. Here is a link I think is quite helpful for people who want to learn English grammar:

http://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/present-simple-use.html

0 voted
September 10, 2013
2
Corrected
0 voted
September 9, 2013
0
Posted
Hayao Miyazaki e...imparare l'italiano? A me piacciono tanti tipi diversi di film, ma soprattutto preferisco il genere di fantasia. Il regista di film fantasy che preferisco più degli altri sarebbe sicuramente Hayao Miyazaki, un regista giapponese che è anche un produttore, animatore, e sceneggiatore. I film di Miyazaki mi portano via lontano dalla realtà della vita--specialmente quando li guardo doppiati in italiano. Curiosamente, questo e anche un modo per me di imparare l'italiano, perché secondo me, i film (non italiani) doppiati in italiano siano più facile da capire che i film italiani. E' una cosa un po' strana. Qualche volta mi chiedevo perché sarebbe così, è mi sono conclusa che magari non è una questione linguistica ma piuttosto culturale. Perché i film italiani che io ho guardato sono pieni delle cose culturale (come per esempio l'umorismo) che non capisco proprio. Ad esempio, ho appena visto "Benvenuti al Sud" e capivo la maggior parte del film, ma non ridevo per niente! Al contrario, posso guardare un film straniero doppiato in italiano--come per esempio "Aladdin"--e ridere per tutto il tempo. Forse qualcuno potrebbe fare luce su quest'argomento. Grazie :D A proposito, qualcuno mi consiglia anche qualche film italiano che sarebbe più facile da capire? Forse il mio problema è che non devo guardare tale film a questo punto... :D Nella foto qua sotto c'è un immagine del mio film preferito di Miyazaki: "Princess Mononoke" :)
September 9, 2013
12
0
Posted
Sono tornata dall'Italia :( Sono state bellissime le vacanze in Italia--due mesi di felicità pura. Non so se potrò mai descrivere bene tutto ciò che è successo, perché c'ho tante storie. Soprattutto è stato sicuramente un evento che ha trasformata la mia vita per sempre. Durante il mio soggiorno nella regione di Molise, ho scoperto la splendida cultura di Sud Italia, e ho imparato anche un po' della cucina italiana! Per me, le cose più belle e impressionante sono l'ospitalità, la generosità, e l'amabilità della gente del paese in cui abitavo. Non dimenticherò mai le persone che ho incontrato, particolarmente la mia "seconda famiglia" con cui avevo l'onore di abitare. Sicuramente ritornerò lì, e magari, successivamente, vivrò lì! La foto qua sotto è la mia "seconda famiglia" :) li voglio tanto tanto bene :D :D :D Please please please CORRECT ME :)))
September 3, 2013
9
0
Answered
Mazel Tov is a Jewish phrase we English speakers have added to our language. It means 'congratulations' or 'best wishes.' Jewish people often will use it during a wedding or bar or bat mitzvah, or some other important Jewish ceremony. Hope this helps (and that it is correct! Anyone can correct me if I am wrong!)
0 voted
July 8, 2013
1
Commented
That certainly makes sense! I have heard of the healing properties of dairy products. Dairy also moisturizes! I hear that yogurt is really good for preventing acne, too!
0 voted
June 10, 2013
0
Commented
Wow, Maral! Sunflower oil sounds great! I will have to try it!
0 voted
June 10, 2013
0
Posted
Home Remedies
Hello my lovely friends from around the world!

I was wondering if you guys could tell me about your cultural (or your own) home remedies for sickness, skin disorders, etc.

For example: I use olive oil for EVERY skin problem. It is not an American thing to do, but it works REALLY well, especially mixed with other common household items! I use olive oil alone to remove my makeup and moisturize my skin and hair. For cellulite, I mix olive oil with used coffee grounds and rub it on my legs. For for chapped lips or cracked cuticles, I mix argan oil and olive oil together and rub the ointment on my lips and cuticles. For exfolliation of dead skin on my feet, I put sugar and olive oil together and scrub away! So many uses!

I am curious to know all of your uses of incredible everyday items!!! :*
June 10, 2013
7
2
Corrected
Tomorrow is 2 June June 2nd (or the second of June)

Tomorrow is 2 June and in Italy is the Republic Day. Tomorrow in Italy on June 2nd, it is Republic Day. (un piccolo errore della sintassi)
This is the day when the Italian people remember the referendum through which we chose a Republic and not a Monarchy, by in the first universal suffrage in Italy.

At Rome, tomorrow morning, Tomorrow morning in Rome the President for of the Italian Republic, Giorgio Napolitano, lays aside (meglio: will lay aside) a laurel wreath at the Altare della Patria (quando si scrive una parola straniera in una frase inglese, si deve scriverla in corsivo) and there will be a military parade at the Fori Imperiali.

In the afternoon the gardens of Quirinale will be open.
But the 2nd of June is the fearst (???) (forse: for the?) common people too. So many people tomorrow will celebrate the Republic Day with family, going to the beach or in the contryside and doing a having picnics outside the city.

(senza le mie note)

Tomorrow in Italy on June 2nd, it is the Republic Day. This is the day when the Italian people remember the referendum through which we chose a Republic and not a Monarchy, in the first universal suffrage in Italy. Tomorrow morning in Rome the President of the Italian Republic, Giorgio Napoletano will lay aside a laurel wreath at the Altare della Patria and there will be a military parade at the Fori Imperiali. In the afternoon the gardens of Quirinale will be open.
But the 2nd of June is for the common people, too. So many people tomorrow will celebrate the Republic Day with family, going to the beach or in the countryside and having picnics outside the city.
0 voted
June 1, 2013
0