The traditional Anglo-Saxon holiday, Halloween, has gradually taken hold in Italy and is now an occasion for partying, wearing costumes, and having fun. Serena opens up the door to her apartment and...

Often, when making a phone reservation for a restaurant, theatre, or museum, you'll be asked to spell your name. Marika gives us an example of how it's done in Italian.

From the album Sognando contromano (Dreaming the wrong way). Neffa puts a lot of meaning into just a few, clearly articulated words, set to a simple melody. You'll find it easy to follow along.

You can't learn a language without knowing its alphabet. Here's Marika to teach you the Italian one. Pay special attention when she gets to J! It's one of the letters that wasn't in the original alphabet of 21 letters.

It's important in speaking Italian, to address people using the right form of "you." Tu (you) is for people you know, and Lei (you) is for people you don't know, or people you address with respect. Daniela explains how to use these forms.

Daniela talks about the latest trend regarding l'aperitivo (cocktails) in Italy. To learn more about some of the items she mentions, click! spritz, aperol, prosecco.

Daniela teaches us the difference between two questions: "Where are you from?" and "Where do you live?" She goes on to explain that, depending on whether we're talking about cities and towns, or countries, regions, and continents, the preposition in the response will change. Don't miss this important lesson!

Daniela teaches us how to talk about liking something in each of the persons, using the verb piacere (to please, to be pleasing). Don't miss this very important lesson! And don't forget that spaghetti is the plural of spaghetto. Spago means string, so spaghetti are little strands of string! Italians will use the plural when talking about spaghetti.

Daniela shows us how to ask people if they like something. And don't forget: the thing you like is the subject of the sentence and will govern the conjugation of the verb "piacere."

It's important to know how to talk about what you like and what you don't like. Daniela explains how in this lesson, and if you remember that when you like something, it pleases you, you'll get it!

Daniela takes us through the conjugation of verbs ending in "ere," and explains how easy it can be if we remember some simple rules.

Serena goes in to a shop with a friend to buy some beauty cream. She pays by carta di credito, and makes sure she walks out of the store with lo scontrino (the receipt), which is obligatory in Italy! As an afterthought, she would like Gerarda, the proprietor, to gift-wrap the beauty cream for her, so she asks for un pacchetto regalo.

Pino Daniele with his unmistakable, magical voice, performs his hit song "Quando" (When) from 1991. It's featured on the album Sott' o sole and was part of the soundtrack of Pensavo fosse amore... invece era un calesse (I thought it was love, but it was a barouche), a 1991 film directed by and starring Massimo Troisi. In this live performance, the audience sings along on the refrain, and so can you!

When you're getting to know someone, you ask them their name and where they're from. Join Daniela's class as her students ask their first questions in Italian.

Serena is still shopping for clothes, and looks at some pretty flashy shoes. In the end, though, she goes for the jacket, and she fishes in her bag for the cash. She gives us a good example of how the plural is used when talking about euros. Euro is both singular and plural in Italian. So whether we're talking about soldi (money) or euro (euros), Italians think in the plural!