voices

at a gathering with friends last night, i met an Italian guy. i wasn't really paying attention at first, but he had no Italian accent when he spoke. actually, he had a very British one. when i asked him where he'd learnt English, he replied he'd learnt it at school, in Italy. i was impressed. he was in his forties and he spoke like he'd spent half his life in the UK, where he apparently never lived. not only that, he spoke exactly the same way as my best friend does (pronunciation and intonation), which is funny, as he's half Italian himself...