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Tilbakemeldinger
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Lær italiensk i Toscana @ Il Sasso
Hva de som gikk på kurset hos oss synes om vår italienske skole i Montepulcino. Anbefalinger og tips om skolen, byen, ting å gjøre, å spise, og å drikke!
| Larry (Canada) | | My wife and I were at Il Sasso for three weeks this March / April and we will go back! Many reasons:
1. Our teachers - Sara and Costanza - were great!
2. We had never spoken Italian but made real progress - we have a foundation for self study.
3. We love Italy and knowing at least some Italian makes it that much more enjoyable.
4. Montepulciano is a small town and it is fun to have the locals getting to know you.
5. We met many interesting people and made many new friends
6. I like the travel and learn experience. There is never a dull moment
7. We had a beautiful apartment with beautiful views that changed ith the light and the weather.
Drawbacks? The "compiti" ;=) | |
| Mette (Norvegia) | | Svært dykitige lærere! Hyggelige og imøtekommende personale! Fleksibilitet og engasjement! Undervisning og aktiviteter på skolen og i den flotte byen Montepulciano. Veldig kjekt og lærerikt. | |
| Serena (Svizzera) | | I can only add on to the long line of students who have frequented and praised this school, but it is just such a good, unique school that praise it I must. I had been looking at schools for months, and had the intention of going further south, but this school kept coming up on my short-lists. I realised that it was not only one of the best in italy, but all the criteria I had fitted this school perfectly, and now having left Il Sasso I can certainly confirm that my experience could not have been more rewarding.
The most important part of chosing a school is finding one that is recognised by professionals and appreciated by previous students. The quality of the teachers, and how they teach, will mean that your schooling is successful or not. At Il Sasso the teachers are undoubtedly extremely knowledgeable in communicating with foreign students, and this helps immensely when you arrive not speaking a word of their language. I was blessed with a fantastic teacher, Costanza, for 5 weeks, four of which I was alone in class. She is amazing, she speaks and explains clearly, she remembers things about your life outside of school, she encourages all sorts of questions, and when you feel you are getting to a difficult part, she motivates you and takes it at your speed. She couldn't do her job better than she does it already. she is the one who enabled me today to have a 30minute conversation in italian, when 5 weeks ago I couldn't say a single phrase! Amazing!
However, don't dispair if you are given another teacher, I heard nothing but good of the others, and they are not only excellent teachers, but the sort of women you'd want as a sister or 'best friend', genuine people who only want the best for you.
The organisation of a school, homestay and the day to day life of a foreigner in a town like montepulciano, only runs smoothly when you have a person like Heike in control. I had no problems during my five weeks, but she is the one who made my life easier behind the scenes, acted as my travel agent and placed me at my homestay. She is the one everybody reads about before getting to the school, and is the only one you dare to speak to in English, just for the last time before being immersed wholely into the italian language!
One extremely important part of going to Italy to learn Italian is actually listening to others talking and trying to speak without feeling embarrased. For this, there is one solution which cannot fail and I highly recommend, homestay. Honestly, the day I arrived at my homestay to discover that my hostess didn't speak a word of any other language, I sort of panicked! But within the first 24hrs I realised that this was the only way I could have constant 'tuition' : 45mins at breakfast, 2hrs at lunch, 2-3hrs during the evening....my hostess was always there to chat in Italian, and although she probably didn't understand half the things I said, I was constantly listening to her, or the television, and repeatedly hearing the same things makes it so much easier to remember the words or pronounciation (even if you're talking about the weather!) for this I can't push it enough to do the homestay option. The other reason for pushing homestay is definitely for the homemade cooking! I was stuffed (this is the word!) every day with so much delicious homemade food that I was obliged to do sport every day so as not to put on a kilo per week! And the food I ate was superior to most restaurants, absolutely devine (great way to learn new recipes, too!).
As for montepulciano, the wine...well you can't get better, the food, obviously first class, but a huge part of everyday life in Italy is the coffee!! This important matter was put in the expert hands of Alessandro, in the local bar, a few metres up from the school. Every morning I would go in there, listen to the conversations of the locals (for purely educational reasons!), drink my macchiato, go back at break time to have a cappucino whilst 'reading' the paper (ok the first couple of weeks I was looking at the pictures mostly!) ... then discussing the gossipy stuff in class with Costanza - merely to improve my vocabulary, but amazing the words you learn from a newspaper which are not in the text books in school!
The italians do live differently from most of us at home, and it is so nice to be completely a part of the lifestyle, something I doubt you would do so well in a bigger city. I passed, by chance, a school for foreigners in florence whilst on a w-e trip, and the language I heard most people talking was... English! I realised then what a blessing it had been to have chosen a small town, to live entirely amoungst the italians, to help the locals in their home/commerce, in exchange for their conversation and friendliness -something money can't buy.
The day I left Montepulciano I stayed in a hotel in Orvieto, and the receptionist complimented me on my good italian...I proudly told her that I'd just learned the language at Il Sasso! Well done to the whole team, THANK YOU for my new skill... | |
| Teresa (Australia) | | A dream it was, and a dream it is ... as it was only just the beginning of very fond memories that just keep flooding in. What can I say, that has not been said, for Il Sasso is a dream that you never want to end. From the first point of contact, to the very end, Il Sasso ensured all my needs were met. From Heike, Silvia, Sara and all the school, you will not find another that is such a jewel. They tick every box, and that is quite rare, because this school really does care.
It took me a while to figure out which school I wanted to go, as I only had a week to give it a go. There was no doubts to have after my first point of call, as Heike was always there to answer my calls. If it wasn't for her, I'm not sure where I would have gone, as she makes your stay easy, with all that she does. And when I had an emergency, she knew how to respond, for this is what she does, she goes above and beyond.
To add to my fortune of an unbelievable stay, Silvia and Sara were my teachers that blew me away. They had their own style, and I was totally amazed, as how much I learned within a day. And from what I can see, and from what everyone has said, this school is the best ... enough said.
And then there was the accomodation, to add to the experience, with views to die during my tuscan experience. Politian is the name on everyone's tongue, as Giacomo and Maria just did so much. From my endless questions to the emergency one night, there is no doubt about it, they are one of a kind.
So let me just say, after all I have said, it's only when you trial another and realise this school knocks them for dead. From their professionalism, ambedience, style and caring nature, your mind will not wonder when filling out another application.
Because I just can't wait for my next adventure ... | |
| Kim (USA) | | Due to a recent job layoff, I was blessed with the rare opportunity to take 6 weeks off and study Italian in Tuscany. I chose Il Sasso due to the many glowing reviews here on Trip Advisor and now it's my turn to add one more.
First, I must preface my review by saying that my situation was a bit different from most students in that I attended the school during a slow time of the year and after my first week there were not enough students at my level to have the normal 4 hours of group instruction, so I was switched to 2 hours of private instruction. This turned out to be ideal for me and I'm very glad Il Sasso offers this as an option!
The teachers are excellent (I had Patrizia, Costanza and Sara) and the instruction is top notch! They really gear the lessons to your language level and interest. It may sound a little daunting to hear that all of the lessons are conducted in Italian, but it really is the best way to learn and you'll be surprised by how much you actually understand.
My accommodation was a lovely little apartment within a minute walking distance (uphill!) to the school. It was small and cozy and really made me feel like I was part of the town and not just a visitor.
Of course I can't forget the school's secretary Heike. She was of immense help both before and after my arrival in Montepulciano doing everything from arranging my housing to helping me make an appointment with the doctor when I got a nasty spider bite.
The only thing I regret about my stay in Montepulciano (aside from the fact that I had to leave!) is that I went so late in the year. I was there from Nov 11 to Dec 22 and there were very few students. I think my experience would have been more enjoyable if I could have shared it with more people.
Montepulciano is a beautiful town, but as a previous reviewer stated, be sure to bring comfortable shoes and get ready to walk some hills! | |
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price list 2013 (470kb)