Japanese immigration in Brazil

On June 18, 1908, the Japanese ship Kasato Maru arrived in Santos (SP) with the first group of Japanese immigrants. One hundred years later, Brazil and Japan celebrate the 100th anniversary of their arrival with a series of cultural events in several cities and the visit of prince Naruhito. Brazil has the biggest Japanese community outside Japan (more than 1,5 million) and their influence is particularly strong in the state of São Paulo.

To celebrate the occasion, here is a short article about the immigrants and an interesting video teaching you how to eat sushi (scroll down the page if you would like to read the transcript too).

Then listen to Mari comparing life in New York and Tokyo and Clare comparing Japan and England. And finally, why not try a quiz about the country?

The Dales Way

If you enjoy nature and going for long walks, here's a place to visit next time you are in England. The Dales Way is a beautiful path in the north part of the country which attracts tourists and travellers from all over the world. One of them was photographer Kevin Rushby, who made a beautiful slideshow using pictures he took while visiting the region. When the link page opens, click on the 'play' arrow on the bottom-left side to see the slideshow and listen to Rushby's comments. Then try an activity here.

Brazil in the news: discovering Salvador

Salvador is one of the most fascinating Brazilian cities, and one of the country's favourite holiday destinations. Full of history and culture, the capital of Bahia was recently the subject of an interesting article published in the New York Times, focusing on some famous - and not so famous - tourist sights.

Brazil in the news: Tiradentes (MG)

The small town of Tiradentes, in Minas Gerais, used to be a very quiet place until about a decade ago, with its narrow cobblestone streets, colonial houses and baroque churches. It is still relatively peaceful most of the time but things change twice a year, when tourists from all over the country flock to the 18th century mining village for the International Film Festival in January and the International Culinary Festival in August.

New York Times' journalist Isabel Vincent visited Tiradentes last year; in this article, she gives us her impressions about the town and suggests what you can do in one of the best preserved and most historic places in South America.

Vocabulary: travelling

Ready to enjoy your holidays? It's summer in the southern hemisphere, and here are some activities related to the world of travelling. How about doing some listening practice? Listen to a man talking about his family's travel preferences and match the people to the right places.

Looking for some vocabulary activities? Here's a simple crossword puzzle to revise some of the most common words, and a BBC quiz.

For advanced students, here's a gap-fill activity. Read the text and write te correct word in each box. You can use the 'hint' button for help. It's great practice if you are preparing for the CAE or CPE.

Packing for a trip

Have you ever wondered what happens to your bags once they're checked in at the airport? Here is an interesting article, in which a former baggage handler reveals what really goes on once your luggage disappears behind the airline company counter.

So how can you get ready for a trip? Watch an interview with Joel Widzer, a travel strategist, who tells you some do's and dont's when packing and how to avoid problems when you go through airport security check. There are eight questions in the passage; can you find the answers while you watch? Check your answers here.

Where to go in 2008

New year, new plans... What new places would you like to travel to this year? Here are, according to The New York Times, the 53 sights you can't miss in 2008, like the Maraú Península (photo) and Itacaré, in the south of Bahia, in Brazil. From far-away, exotic locations to well-known cosmopolitan cities, from desert tropical beaches to sophisticated ski resorts, there are options for every kind of traveller.

Are there any places you would love to visit and didn't make it to the list? Write your suggestions on 'comments' and let us know about it!

Check also:

Matt dances round the world (video)

Belo Horizonte: the city of bars

Porto de Galinhas: a great place for a holiday

Discover Florianópolis

Brazil in the news: Florianópolis

Looking for a place to go in the summer? Benji Lanyado, from the British newspaper the Guardian, explores the beauty and relaxed atmosphere of Florianópolis, in the south of Brazil, a city that boasts fantastic beaches and incredibly friendly people!

What to do in Belo Horizonte

by Wanessa R.

Belo Horizonte is an interesting city in Brazil. The city isn't the most famous, but the people are known as the friendliest in Brazil. Belo Horizonte has a beautiful park called Mangabeiras. There you can enjoy one of the most beautiful views of the town, and can walk through the oldest trees.

Every Sunday, in the center of the city, happens a typical market, called "Feira Hippie". This market is the best place to buy presents and souvenirs.

Belo Horizonte is also famous for its restaurants and pubs. In Krug Bier you can drink the best beer. But to eat the best typical food, you should go to Dona Lucinha.

Click here to see a clip with some pictures of the city.

Brazil in the news: BH in the NYTimes

Straight from California, Ronaldo sends us the link to an interesting article published in the New York Times about the 12,000+ bars you can go to in Belo Horizonte. From the greasy-spoon spots to the very sophisticated pubs, tourists are sure to find one to match their taste!

Of course it would be impossible to come up with a comprehensive list of the best bars in town, so how about lending them a hand and posting here some suggestions of the "not-to-be-missed" places to go? You can use the comments link or send us your post! platypusmail@gmail.com

Check also: Comida de Buteco Food Festival

Belo Horizonte: young at 110

36 hours in São Paulo

What would you do if you had 36 hours to spend in Brazil's busiest city? A reporter from The New York Times tells you where to go if you happen to be in São Paulo for the weekend. Read the article and try a reading activity. Have you ever been to São Paulo (or do you live there)? What other places of interest would you suggest people visit?

Porto de Galinhas: the best place for a holiday

What is your favourite holiday destination? Send us your suggestion (and pictures, if you like!) and we'll post them on the blog! Here's Daniela's choice.

by Daniela F.
In my opinion, the best place for a holiday in Brazil is the best beach, and that is Porto de Galinhas, in Pernambuco state. It is close to the state's capital (Recife) and the beaches are excellent. The weather always is good and the sea is very calm and blue/green color. The hotels are excellent and you can visit another beaches on a small boat, go scubadiving and swim. You can buy local souvenirs and try the food in small restaurants and bars. I went there two months ago and it was the best holiday of my life!

Booking a hotel room

People often worry when they need to speak English on the phone. But many conversations we hold in a foreign language are simpler than we imagine. Here are some dialogues to practise making hotel reservations, at pre-intermediate and advanced levels. You can choose how to use the material: it's possible to read and listen at the same time, eliminate one part of the audio or one part of the script. Just click on the symbols under 'play'. There are also some alternative activities:

- a spelling game for beginners

- put words in the right order forming sentences in a dialogue (intermediate level)
- a vocabulary quiz with words related to hotel

A tale of two cities: Riverside (USA) and BH (Brazil)

by Marcia and Ronaldo

Hi Blog,
We are originally from Belo Horizonte (BH), MG, in Brazil, where we have lived most of our lives. However, since September 2006 we are living in Riverside, CA, in the USA (click on map), and so far it has been a great experience. We would like to share with you a few differences between these two places.

Believe us or not (if you are from BH), public transportation service in BH is better than in Riverside. Getting around by bus in BH you can go to more places than you could go in Riverside. This is like that because cars in the USA are relatively cheaper than cars in BH, then fewer people need buses. But, as expected, buses in Riverside are in better condition than in BH.

It is summer season in Riverside and temperatures may reach 40 degrees celsius everyday and you definitely want an air conditioning. Contrarily, in BH we would barely need one. Moreover, Riverside is a semi-desert, it is sunny the whole year and much drier than BH. But notice that Riverside is colder than BH during the winter and you cannot live without heating. Riverside has almost no rain, differently from BH where you can get soaked during December and January. As you can now imagine, temperature in Riverside varies much more than in BH.

Finally, we would like to talk about ethnic groups you find in these cities. In BH we mostly find descendants of immigrants from Africa, Portugal, Spain and Italy. On the other hand, in Riverside you find many native Asians and Middle-Easterns and for that reason it is not rare to listen to many types of English accents.

Obviously, there is much more to say about some differences we found between these two cities. The good thing is that these characteristics make each city a culturally unique place to live.

Marcia and Ronaldo.

In the news: Voted New Seven Wonders of the World

The statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro has been elected one of the New Seven Wonders of the World by online and telephone voters around the globe. The final results were announced today by actors Ben Kingsley and Hilary Swank, during the official ceremony in Lisbon (Portugal).

The other six Wonders are The Great Wall (China), Petra (Jordan), Chichén Itzá (Mexico), Machu Picchu (Peru), the Colosseum (Italy) and the Taj Mahal (India).

The event is a private initiative organized by a Swiss foundation and has no official status - UNESCO, responsible for officially awarding the title of World Heritage Sites to places of historical, natural and artistic significance, declined to participate. But the election was a huge success: about 100 million votes have been counted, and the ceremony was broadcast to 170 countries, with an estimated 1,6 billion viewers.

Here is a video about the ceremony, presented by Rhiz Khan for Al Jazeera, and a crossword puzzle about the new seven wonders!

Our visitors around the world!

Have you noticed this world map on the right side of our blog? It shows where in the world our readers are. If you click on the original map, a new window will open and you'll see how many different places are represented - almost 3,000 visits since we first started! Can you recognise all the different countries? Do you know our friends' nationalities? Here are a few activities to revise and practice countries and nationalities in English:

First of all, how about a listening activity? Listen to the description of different flags and mark your answers. Pay attention to the colours, whether there are horizontal or vertical bars, etc., but remember that the flags look quite similar!

Another good activity using flags is a reading activity in the form of a guessing game. You will see a flag and the names of four different countries. Decide which country each flag represents. You can ask for help, but the faster you answer, the more points you get. Have fun!

Looking for some activities to revise vocabulary related to nationalities? Here are links to a wordsearch, a hangman and a crossword puzzle. Also, Elena, a teacher in Russia, has sent us a link to a project on Russia/Latin America that she and her students have been working on (visit their website!). Thank you, Elena!

Lots of activities to choose from!

Travelling in Europe: an interesting blog!

Anna is a 28-year-old American from San Francisco, CA. She has been travelling around Europe for almost two months now, and her 'adventures' are being posted on a blog she created ("Anna Abroad") and which has been named a 'blog of note' by Blogger. She has already visited places like Greece, Bosnia and Austria, and is currently enjoying herself in France. Her posts are interesting and fun to read, and she seems to be having a great time finding out about other people and different cultures. You can check her blog on http://ffoggy.blogspot.com/

The New Seven Wonders of the World

You've probably heard of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, but what are the New Seven Wonders of the World? Well, they will be chosen on July 7, in Lisbon, Portugal and you still have a few days to vote and elect your favourite seven. Twenty monuments have made it to the final list (click here to read all about them), including Rio de Janeiro's Christ Redeemer (Cristo Redentor). Which are your favourite ones? Tell us about them in the 'comments' section!

This video on the Discovery Channel website explores the mysteries of the Mayan civilization in Chichen Itzá, Mexico. Have a look!

A kiss, a hug or a handshake?

Different places, different people, different customs. Learning about cultures is an exciting adventure that starts with the way we say hello. Imagine someone arriving in Brazil for the first time; what would you tell him or her about how Brazilians greet friends and strangers? Who do we hug and kiss? When do we shake hands? Do we greet men and women differently?

When Peter Mayle and his wife got tired of the hustle-and-bustle of London life, they moved to the south of France, and from the experience he wrote A Year in Provence. The book offers a light-hearted glimpse into the quiet life in the French countryside and its fascinating characters. In this short extract , Mayle gives an amusing description of how local Provençal people greet.

Chapada dos Veadeiros (Goiás)

by Fernanda W.

If you enjoy ecotourism and trekking, don’t miss Chapada dos Veadeiros (GO). Over 200 km from Brasilia, the region has the largest concentration of quartzo crystal in the world and also a wonderful landscape, including high waterfalls, natural swimming pools (with chilly waters, around 17°C) and hot spring water. You may spot emus, toucans, woodpecks, wolves and if you’re lucky, leopards and deers.

Inns and restaurants are simple but pretty decent. The main town that gives access to most of the private properties in which the waterfalls are located is Alto Paraíso de Goiás (5,000 inh.). Near the National Park is São Jorge, a small village (600 inh.) which is loved by alternative tribes.

Here is a sample of what you can see there.