About Cher

Cher is the founder of The Iceberg Project and a passionate learner of the Italian, Mandarin and Spanish languages. In a little town called Vegas, you can find her searching the Internet for Doctor Who and Parks & Rec memes, drinking bubble tea, or talking about how much she loves grammar.

How to Buy Cheese in Italy

Click play on the player at the bottom to listen to this podcast or find it on Apple Podcasts. Much like in the US, you can buy cheese at the deli counter. Near the deli there is usually some already pre-packaged and pre-weighed cheeses for you to browse as well. Personally, I like my cheese…

What’s it like to be an American living in Florence?

Click play on the player at the bottom to listen to this episode or find it on Apple Podcasts. In episode 208 of the 30 Minute Italian Podcast, Rachel and I talk about what Christmas holiday is coming up in Florence and the reality of being a foreigner – an American – in Italy. We…

Italian Word Speed Dates: Altrimenti

Click play on the player at the bottom to listen to this podcast or find it on Apple Podcasts. I don’t know why, but I love the word “altrimenti”. It might be the way it rolls off the tongue or the elegant way it connects phrases together, but I’m off on a language-nerd tangent now….

Phrases to Say “This is Delicious!”

Click play on the player at the bottom to listen to this podcast or listen to it on Stitcher or Apple Podcasts. 1 ) Mamma mia, questa (schiacciata) è puro piacere!!! – My goodness, this (schiacciata) is pure pleasure!!! 2) Giulia: Sentirai che bontà… – You’ll see how good it is! You: Olio nuovo? Non…

10 Italian Phrases to Use When You’re Busy or Running Late

Click play on the player at the bottom to listen to this podcast or listen to it on Stitcher or Apple Podcasts. I don’t know about you, but recently I have been feeling pretty filled to the brim with tasks to do, and that reminded me of all of the things I say in Italian…

Vocabulary Word Speed Dates: Mica

Click play on the player at the bottom to listen to this podcast or listen to it on Stitcher or Apple Podcasts. If I had to choose a few words that I’m asked about all the time in Italian, ones like “proprio” and “magari” would surely be up there, but the one I hear about…

What’s It Like to Be Pregnant in Italy?

Click play on the player at the bottom to listen to this podcast or listen to it on Stitcher or Apple Podcasts. In episode 204 of the 30 Minute Italian Podcast, Rachel and I talk about what others have been talking about from the news a lot in Italy, what holiday just passed in Florence, and…

14 Ways to Say Thank You in Italian

Click play on the player at the bottom to listen to this podcast or listen to it on Stitcher or Apple Podcasts. 14 Ways to Say Thank You 1) Grazie. – Thank you. 2) Ti ringrazio (informal) /La ringrazio (formal). – Thank you. I miei ringraziamenti – All my gratitude Porgo i miei più sinceri ringraziamenti.-…

Phrases for Enjoying Your Time at the Beach

The sun is shining, and you’ve just arrived at your seaside resort hotel in Taormina. Before you even reach your room, you’re already thinking about what the ocean breeze is going to feel like once you roll out your towel and lay underneath the big umbrellas lining the shore. Even if you’re just going to…

How to Create the Ideal Language Learning Flashcard

So, you’ve discovered the power of flashcards, and would like to finally use them to help memorize Italian words. In theory, all you need to do is create a flashcard (physical or digital) that displays two pieces of information: A target language word The translation of that word in your native language Once you’ve done…

75 Vocabulary Words for Talking About Sports in Italian

When you think about sports in Italy, I’ll bet the first one that comes to mind is the infamous calcio, or soccer. And if you have spent any length of time obsessing about Italian culture or in Italy–or both–team names like Juventus and Gli Azzurri will come to mind. But beyond calcio, there are lots…

How to Supercharge Your Vocabulary Flashcards for the Digital Age

I have a confession to make: I hate language learning flashcards. Well, I used to, anyway. Before you reach for your pitchforks, hear me out: The traditional vocabulary flashcard suffers from two key problems. Flashcards are, in my opinion: — Cumbersome – Flashcards take up space, and lots of it. If you’re using index cards,…