Product Description

I thought I spoke Italian but the only thing I could think of to describe the Sistine Chapel was 'Mama mia!' Then I opened my phrasebook and entered a world beyond the Italy I thought I knew.

• extensive two-way dictionary & easy-to-use sentence builder
• pronunciation for every word
• real language for a truly authentic Italian travel experience - art, soccer, food & wine plus classic pick-ups & put-downs
• special travellers' Latin for decoding historical sights

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #409459 in Books
• Published on: 2003-04
• Original language: Italian, English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Review
"...Lonely Planet phrase books have long taken a hip, streetwise approach." -- Atlanta Journal-Constitution, May 27, 2004

"Lonely Planet Phrasebooks. Portable, pocket-size, cheap, and available for almost any country you might want to visit..." -- National Geographic Traveler, September 2006

From the Publisher
Who We Are
At Lonely Planet, we see our job as inspiring and enabling travellers to connect with the world for their own benefit and for the benefit of the world at large.

What We Do
* We offer travellers the world's richest travel advice, informed by the collective wisdom of over 350 Lonely Planet authors living in 37 countries and fluent in 70 languages.
* We are relentless in finding the special, the unique and the different for travellers wherever they are.
* When we update our guidebooks, we check every listing, in person, every time.
* We always offer the trusted filter for those who are curious, open minded and independent.
* We challenge our growing community of travellers; leading debate and discussion about travel and the world.
* We tell it like it is without fear or favor in service of the travellers; not clouded by any other motive.

What We Believe
We believe that travel leads to a deeper cultural understanding and compassion and therefore a better world.

Customer Reviews

This book is great!
I went to Italy two summers ago with no previous Italian. From reading over the phrasebook I learned a great deal of Italian and was able to communicate with people in everyday situations (buying subway tickets, ordering food, directions, etc.). This book contains way more than just your basic "touristy" phrases and was really helpful, especially the index of Italian foods. I would recommend this to anyone going to Italy or anyone who just wants to learn a few phrases. There are some parts of the book that you won't use but I still think that its a really good deal and contains a lot of good information.

Great Size and Easy use.
We used this book for our trip to Italy and I found it to be a very big help. Also the small size made it easy to stick in my pocket and carry all over without looking like tourists.
Now we tried to learn as much Italian as we could before we went over so we didn't need it for very basic words but it was great when we didn't understand some words while eating or in museums.
It is split into different topics so its easy and quick to find things about shopping, eating, hotels, trains, etc...
I really didn't try to use it if I was trying to have a conversation with a fluent speaker as I don't think it was really made for that purpose.
So overall I found this book to be a huge help, but let me also suggest trying to learn as many basic words as possible. It will make things quicker and easier.

Came in handy for all sorts of scenarios you'll enounter...
I travelled alone in Italy for one week, and this little book was so helpful...referenced it again and again during my visit. It came in handy for practical situations travelers always encounter...directions, menu verbiage, and basic conversation with locals.
It also helped in more specific situations...for women traveling, this will help you formulate quick responses to the "ciao bellas" you'll receive. Bene!