previous lesson | this lesson
E’ VIETATO SOSTARE, SPORCARE E MANGIARE IN QUESTE AREE
“It’s prohibited to loiter, litter and eat in these areas.”
What area is this you may ask that is sign graces? It’s the bleakest patch of asphalted and bricked cityscape to be found and that ironically is the entrance to ARPA Lombardia (Agenzia Regionale per la Protezione dell’Ambiente). Well, they should start by taking care of their ambiente / bleak entrance. Not even a planter or something green to be found. All of this is watched over by a statue of a woman by the Bergamo sculptor Elia Ajolfi. She does have her hands on her hips as if to ask why this place is so bleak.
Cuccioli Bassotto nano. Non perderci, prenotaci!
Dwarf Dachshund puppies. Don’t miss out, book now!
Bassotto comes from basso or “little”. Cuccioli are pups.
We know who cares about our opinion, but here it goes: dachshunds are our least favorite dog, and they seem popular here in Bergamo. Figures.
L’ARROTONDAMENTO DEI CENTESIMI
The rounding up of cents
Damn. We still learn something studying signs and that is why we do it. In this case, we did not release that by law, the minting of 1 and 2 cent coins (centesimi) in Italy was stopped in 2018. Woah! What?
Italy stopped minting its 1‑cent and 2‑cent coins primarily due to the high production costs relative to their face value and the inconvenience they caused in everyday cash transactions. The decision was implemented through parliamentary measures, and from January 1, 2019, these coins were no longer produced. However, they continue to be legal tender and will circulate until people spend them out or they naturally exit circulation.
For cash payments, Italy adopted a rounding system so that the final price is rounded to the nearest multiple of 5 cents. This is what the sign here seen in Carrefour says. Arrotondamento means in this case “rounding”.
In practice, when a transaction doesn’t neatly add up to a sum ending in 0 or 5 cents, the total amount is adjusted—typically, if the final digit is 1 or 2, it’s rounded down; if it’s 3 or 4, rounded up to the nearest 5-cent increment. It’s important to note that this rule applies only to cash transactions; digital payments (like those with a card or online) continue to be processed to the exact cent.
The 5-cent coin is still produced. Someone get a message to him to watch his back. He could be next.
IMPIANTO DI CREMAZIONE
Crematorium
Can you guess where we were? Why yes, in the Cimitero Monumentale Di Bergamo. We were there recently and a bit lost wandering around. Long story.
We once attended a mass in the church at the cemetery and then slowly walked behind the hearse (and body inside) from the chapel to the crematorium. So, yeah, we know what this sign points to.
TRÀFECH? ADÈS BASTA!
What are you doing? That’s enough!
This is the Bergamo dialect. At first, we thought TRÀFECH meant traffic and the sign read “Traffic, enough!”.
The phrase is typical of the Bergamasco dialect, where “adès” stands in for the standard Italian “adesso” (meaning “now”) and “basta” carries the common meaning of “enough” or “stop.” The opening word “TRÀFECH?” is used as a questioning exclamation that can be understood as asking “What are you doing?” or expressing incredulity at someone’s actions. [ref] An Italian very that carries the same significance is affare – matter, concern. A clever play on words as we understand it.
In Italian, this sign would be something like Che stai facendo? Adesso basta! Moez is a bike shop in Bergamo. Get out of your car an on a bike.
AREA DESTINATA A CANI DI PICCOLA TAGLIA E MEDIA TAGLIA
Area for small and medium-sized dogs.
This sign is in front of an off-leash area in Parco di Loreto. Taglia is size or dimension. Not to be confused with taglia third person present tense of tagliare, to cut or slice. Or a taglio di capelli, haircut, and often shortened to just taglio when context is obvious.
OTTIENI 1 MESE GRATUITO – DI TAGLIO DI CAPELLI – TUTTE LE VOLTE CHE VUOI
Get one month free – Haircut – as often as you want.
Speaking of haircuts, here’s taglio di capelli in action. On the bus, we pass this barber shop and this sign. (Can’t tell if the shop is coming or already came and went.) We like compact powerful phrases like tutte le volte che vuoi.
In this case, it’s one month of free haircuts (fine print: for the first 100 people who sign up). But how many haircuts can you get in one month. Maybe 2 or 3 max. Who has the time?
A spasso nel cosmo
"Out and about in the cosmos”
A friend’s 5-year-old had this book. Andare a spasso is to go for a walk, wander, meander. Essere a spasso is to be out and about.
We wanted to read this book so badly but had to pay attention to the adults. Bummer.
L’ARROTONDAMENTO DEI CENTESIMI
The rounding up of cents
Damn. We still learn something studying signs and that is why we do it. In this case, we did not release that by law, the minting of 1 and 2 cent coins (centesimi) in Italy was stopped in 2018. Woah! What?
Italy stopped minting its 1‑cent and 2‑cent coins primarily due to the high production costs relative to their face value and the inconvenience they caused in everyday cash transactions. The decision was implemented through parliamentary measures, and from January 1, 2019, these coins were no longer produced. However, they continue to be legal tender and will circulate until people spend them out or they naturally exit circulation.
For cash payments, Italy adopted a rounding system so that the final price is rounded to the nearest multiple of 5 cents. This is what the sign here seen in Carrefour says. Arrotondamento means in this case “rounding”.
In practice, when a transaction doesn’t neatly add up to a sum ending in 0 or 5 cents, the total amount is adjusted—typically, if the final digit is 1 or 2, it’s rounded down; if it’s 3 or 4, rounded up to the nearest 5-cent increment. It’s important to note that this rule applies only to cash transactions; digital payments (like those with a card or online) continue to be processed to the exact cent.
The 5-cent coin is still produced. Someone get a message to him to watch his back. He could be next.
IMPIANTO DI CREMAZIONE
Crematorium
Can you guess where we were? Why yes, in the Cimitero Monumentale Di Bergamo. We were there recently and a bit lost wandering around. Long story.
We once attended a mass in the church at the cemetery and then slowly walked behind the hearse (and body inside) from the chapel to the crematorium. So, yeah, we know what this sign points to.
TRÀFECH? ADÈS BASTA!
What are you doing? That’s enough!
This is the Bergamo dialect. At first, we thought TRÀFECH meant traffic and the sign read “Traffic, enough!”.
The phrase is typical of the Bergamasco dialect, where “adès” stands in for the standard Italian “adesso” (meaning “now”) and “basta” carries the common meaning of “enough” or “stop.” The opening word “TRÀFECH?” is used as a questioning exclamation that can be understood as asking “What are you doing?” or expressing incredulity at someone’s actions. [ref] An Italian very that carries the same significance is affare – matter, concern. A clever play on words as we understand it.
In Italian, this sign would be something like Che stai facendo? Adesso basta! Moez is a bike shop in Bergamo. Get out of your car an on a bike.
AREA DESTINATA A CANI DI PICCOLA TAGLIA E MEDIA TAGLIA
Area for small and medium-sized dogs.
This sign is in front of an off-leash area in Parco di Loreto. Taglia is size or dimension. Not to be confused with taglia third person present tense of tagliare, to cut or slice. Or a taglio di capelli, haircut, and often shortened to just taglio when context is obvious.
OTTIENI 1 MESE GRATUITO – DI TAGLIO DI CAPELLI – TUTTE LE VOLTE CHE VUOI
Get one month free – Haircut – as often as you want.
Speaking of haircuts, here’s taglio di capelli in action. On the bus, we pass this barber shop and this sign. (Can’t tell if the shop is coming or already came and went.) We like compact powerful phrases like tutte le volte che vuoi.
In this case, it’s one month of free haircuts (fine print: for the first 100 people who sign up). But how many haircuts can you get in one month. Maybe 2 or 3 max. Who has the time?
A spasso nel cosmo
"Out and about in the cosmos”
A friend’s 5-year-old had this book. Andare a spasso is to go for a walk, wander, meander. Essere a spasso is to be out and about.
We wanted to read this book so badly but had to pay attention to the adults. Bummer.
No comments:
Post a Comment
All comments go through a moderation process. Even though it may not look like the comment was accepted, it probably was. Check back in a day if you asked a question. Thanks!