It can be challenging for non-native Italian speakers to really understand the difference between these three common words: bello (beautiful, nice, pretty), buono (good) and bene (well, fine). In this first part of three, Daniela explains the difference between bello and buono.

Cos'è normale (What's normal?) is a song by Danilo Pao and Enrico Sognato, that questions what "normal" means in terms of how people live their lives. It's presented here in a music video where the camera, placed on the dashboard of different cars, captures the faces of the drivers and passengers, some of whom are members of the group Zero Assoluto, Salvatore Gioia, and the composers, who are singing the song.

Federico Fellini and Ingmar Bergman, two of the most important film directors in international cinema, discuss a joint project. They come from completely different worlds, but have some important points in common. Fellini's film, Satyricon is in the spotlight at the Venice Film Festival of 1969.

Serena and Martina take you to a shop that sells both home health care products and beauty aids. This kind of shop is called a sanitaria, coming from the word, sanità (health). If you ever (heaven forbid!) need a wheelchair, ace bandage, neck brace, or even orthopedic shoes, this is the place to go. Today, Serena and Martina are shopping for more glamorous items.

If you know the rules regarding masculine and feminine articles, word endings, and plurals in Italian, you'll get it right most of the time. But there are some important exceptions which Daniela addresses in this lesson. They just have to get memorized!

The great Domenico Modugno, best known for his hit song, Nel blu dipinto di blu [Volare], came in first at the San Remo Festival in 1966 with the song, Dio come ti amo. The Italian lyrics are very clear, and very romantic!

Encouraged by the woman who took him home with her, Alessio phones his mother and leaves a message. He then relaxes, and even falls asleep, but gets a rude awakening!

Murder in the library. The curator of the town library was found dead by his secretary, and the assistant librarian hasn't shown up for work. Some valuable correspondence is missing, and there are some suspicious shoe prints on the floor. Manara and his team have gotten busy trying to figure it all out.

In this last episode, we bid farewell to the Aeolian Islands, a fascinating place for its spectacular natural beauty.

Daniela goes into more detail about the difference between bello (beautiful) and buono (good) and clears up any doubts you may have.

Find out how Adriano spends his day, and how he stays in shape, even though he works in an office.

Go clothes shopping with Serena, who's looking for something nice for a festa, as well as some everyday wear.

Gualtiero Marchesi talks about the chef as an artist, and how different chefs can be recognized by their distinctive artistic styles. In defending the choice of simple, genuine food, he goes on to talk about the art of slicing, and how it used to be "performed" right in the dining room.

You'll want to sing along with Nina Zulli as she cries her heart out in "Cinquantamila lacrime" ("Fifty-Thousand Tears"), a hit song from 2009, made even more famous as the theme song from a 2010 film by Ferzan Özpetek, Mine vaganti (English title, Loose Cannons). Great lyrics, great melody, great rhythm!

Alessio resumes his trip, heading for the train station, but on the way, he runs into none other than his former boss, Antonino from the beach club.