Breakdown of Abbiamo trascorso la vacanza nella Grecia settentrionale.
avere
to have
in
in / made of (material)
la vacanza
the vacation
trascorrere
to spend (time)
Questions & Answers about Abbiamo trascorso la vacanza nella Grecia settentrionale.
Why is it nella Grecia and not just in Grecia?
Normally, indicating location in a country takes the preposition in without an article, like in Grecia. However, when a country name is modified by an adjective or specific detail—in this case, settentrionale—you must use the definite article. Therefore, in + la combines to form nella.
Why use trascorso here instead of a form of spendere for "spent"?
Could I use the word nord instead of settentrionale here?
Settentrionale is a proper adjective meaning "northern." You cannot say Grecia nord because nord is a noun. To use nord, you would have to link it with a preposition, such as nella Grecia del nord (in Northern Greece) or nel nord della Grecia (in the north of Greece).
The English translation says "our vacation," but the Italian just says la vacanza. Do we not need la nostra?