abitano sugli alberi

00:26 Jul 13, 2012 

Thanks everyone! Thanks in particular to those who suggested the reference to Calvino. That was not something I picked up on. And thanks for assuring me that this was not some hip new idiomatic expression that I had never heard! I've decided to translate it literally because this was in no way the wackiest thing he put in this survey, so it goes along with his other responses.

09:37 Jul 12, 2012 

I think it is a sort of reference to Calvino – they all do that book in school – but the gist is 'students would live anywhere', no?

22:45 Jul 11, 2012 

Hy Dareth,

this is definitely not an idiomatic expression. I also think you should translate this literally.

19:12 Jul 11, 2012 

Could it have something to do with treehouses? The phrase could be literal or near literal.
http://www.storiecredibili.it/2010/08/il-piccolo-popolo-che-...
(If my link doesn't help, the pictures and details might fuel some ideas).

18:42 Jul 11, 2012 

Hello Brigitte. That is an interesting possibility. Although this individual's level of discourse in his other responses wouldn't lead me to believe he's the type to quote literature. Although it's quite possible! I'll keep it in mind.

18:22 Jul 11, 2012 

this refers to Italo Calvino's novel "The baron in the trees", trying to indicate that students break with tradtion?

18:05 Jul 11, 2012 

Haha. Thanks Phil. It does sound like it! He has started just cursing out the survey now. For a while he was saying nonsense and now it's all curse words, which disappointingly I've been instructed to mark [foul language] (what's the fun in that?). I've never laughed so much doing a translation!

18:01 Jul 11, 2012 

In that case I'd do a literal translation, all students live in trees. Sounds like he does.

17:23 Jul 11, 2012 

Impossible to know for sure, but I'd say you're on the right track. The question could be something like "would you spend a night in our hotel?" As for an answer.... Students live in digs?

17:22 Jul 11, 2012 

I've already asked, and I've been informed that the questions are 100% not available. Some of these answers are really ridiculous. I'm starting to think that there was one respondent who is just trying to be difficult. In one response he cursed out the reader, in another he compared the hotel to a used banana, talked about going to pluto...either my knowledge of Italian idioms is significantly more deficient than I initially thought or this guy was smoking something...

17:19 Jul 11, 2012 

I think this is impossible without knowing the question. Customers will usually provide these if you ask.