My experience attending an informal event hosted by the Barnard Italian Department.

Have you been racking up your Italian points on Duolingo recently? Preparing for a trip to Italy over the summer? Finding yourself consuming a lot more Italian media than usual and relying heavily on subtitles? Enrolled in an Italian class at Barnumbia this year like me? I might just have the event for you. 

I attended “Caffè & Conversazione” (translation: Coffee & Conversation), a weekly event hosted by Professor Emilia Gambardella of the Barnard Italian Department. Every Thursday, attendees gather in 277 LeFrak Center from 10:30 to 11:30 am to brush up on their Italian conversation skills, meet new people, and, honestly, just yap!

In the session I attended, we discussed a bunch of topics: food, Italian culture, regional phrases, beverages, film and theatre, countries and more. Professor Gambardella gave us prompts that got us thinking, laughing, and working on our vocabulary. Several controversial opinions were shared, but this was a safe space!

Whether you’re a native Italian speaker or a total beginner like me, I would definitely recommend stopping by. The event created a supportive environment that helped me overcome inhibitions I had about my accent and pronunciation. Though I’m not Italian, I am someone who moved here from my home country—I know how the feeling of not having any fellow native speakers to talk to can eat you up. If you can relate, Caffè & Conversazione is exactly what you need!

Disclaimer: the event is BYOC (bring your own caffè). Enjoyers of other beverages are also welcome!

Coffee via Bwarchives