Carnival in Navalmoral!!

An invitation for you:

Tell us about your Carnival!!! Make a comment!!!

Love,

Your teachers.

P.S. Remember you can include photos too if you make a post as a student. Ask your teacher for help.

CARNIVAL

Notting Hill Carnival (August)

Hi there !
The weekend is over but Carnival is approaching and I guess you are looking forward to it.
I’ve been doing some research on how Carnival is, or used to be, celebrated in Britain and Ireland, and I’d like to share it with you.

In England the period immediately before Lent was called “Shrovetide” (from “to shrive”: to confess sins), but not many of the festivities survived the English Reformation in the 16th century.
The day before Ash Wednesday was called Shrove Tuesday. It is also known as Pancake Day, because traditionally pancakes were made to use up the fat, eggs, milk and butter which could not be eaten during Lent.
Nowadays pancakes races are held in many towns in the UK. Each runner carries a pancake in a frying pan and tosses it while they run. The most popular race takes place in Olney, in the south of England, where it has been run each year since 1445. Some charities also organize races to raise money.

Another event that has survived is the Royal Shrovetide Football Match, which has been played in the town of Ashbourne, in the East Midlands, since at least the 12th century! However, don’t expect a traditional football match. In fact there are not many rules, one of which being “the prohibition of committing murder.”

Royal Shrovetide Football Match

Notting Hill Carnival, which, according to Wikipedia, is the second largest street festival in the world after Rio, takes place in August.

Most traditions connected with Carnival have fallen into disuse in Ireland, too, but many still make and eat mountains of pancakes on Shrove Tuesday.
In the past, because of the prohibition of marriage during Lent, Shrovetide was a traditional time for marrying and most churches had at least one wedding on Shrove Tuesday.
Unmarried people did not have the same status as those who were married and practical jokes were played on them on Pancake Day. One of them was tying the door and blocking the chimney so that the house was filled with smoke.
Another custom associated with marriage was the tossing of pancakes. The eldest unmarried daughter was allowed to toss the first. If it fell among the ashes, she wouldn’t marry that year.

Pancake Tossing in Ireland (1850)

One practice that I was surprised to read about – because of its cruelty and also because something similar was common in some towns in Spain – has to do with cocks. In the 19th century a cock was tied to a stone. People paid a penny to throw a stick at the poor bird. If you killed it you could take it home.
What some people still do in Ireland during Lent is to abstain from (to give up) something they like, for example sweets, alcohol or cigarettes.

I hope you tell us what you are planning to do at Carnival.

Chema

What's up, folks?

Here I am with our freshly made issue of Speak Up. Check out for new articles on Tom Hanks, Mia Farrow, St Valentine's Day in London and many more! Plus jokes, cartoons and crosswords...

Don't forget the articles come in different levels, from Basic to Advanced, so there is something for everyone.

I know just what you're thinking. "Yeah, right, but let's cut to the chase: where's my movie?"

Well, spy fans are lucky again: Charlie Wilson's war is waiting on its shelf.

These are the days of Bin Laden, the Talibans in Afghanistan, etc. But who armed and trained the Afghan fighters? You're right: the USA! Here's the story of how two men and one woman decided, in the late 70s, that the Soviet Union could go through their own Vietnam with just a little help from the outside...
Enjoy!

Álex

Let´s go shopping!!!

Did you know that number one leisure activity in England is shopping? Well, it is.
The English are, in the words of Napoleon, “a nation of shopkeepers”, but they are also a country of compulsive shoppers.

And where do they go?

The main shopping street in many towns is called High Street where local people have small shops. Most shops, however, are owned by national “chains” of stores.

Some towns also have street markets where fresh food and cheap goods can be bought.
Away from the town centre, small corner shops provide groceries to local customers.

Shopping centres and department stores are also very popular.
What´s the world´s most famous department store?

Do you need a clue?

But this is not all, the real shopaholic can even spend money without leaving home, can you guess how?

Then, leave your comment and tell us about your shopping preferences.

And remember, if you find it hard to make ends meet try window shopping!!!

Carmela

LAST WEEK'S IDIOM: TO MAKE ENDS MEET

Thank you for your votes and congratulations! Most of those who voted in the poll guessed correctly.
"To make (both) ends meet" means to balance what you earn and what you spend (your income and expenditure) so that you have enough money until the next payday.
Watch out for our next idiom. In the meantime leave your comments and tell us if you are also struggling to make ends meet.

THANK YOU, READERS!!!

I've just seen that our blog has received more than 1,000 visits so far. OK, these statistics are not as reliable as we would like. Anyway, I must say that our expectations have been way surpassed...

1,000 visits in 3 weeks!

Please keep on coming, and don't forget to add your comments. After all, this blog is for you guys!

See you around

Cirstina, Carmela, Chema, Esther and Alex

Signs II

Hi there!

I just want to solve the mistery of the signs. Congratulations, Rober! (see coments) You guessed it! In California, Mexican immigrants cross the border and run form the police. Sometimes you can see whole families crossing the road, so be careful!

Thanks everybody for reading and sending comments.

See you soon

Alex

End of Course Party

My enthusiastic students celebrating the last day of the Communicative Course of English (A1).

You are great!!!

Thank you.

Carmela

Happy Groundhog Day!!!!

There are many interesting traditions and holidays around the world. One of my favourite is 'Groundhog Day', which is celebrated today, February 2nd, in the United States and Canada.

I discovered it a few years ago thanks to the film by the same name (Title in Spanish 'Atrapado en el Tiempo') starring Bill Murray and Andy McDowell. It's an absolute classic that my sister and I, both studying English when it came out, watched many many times.

Excellent film.

The largest Groundhog Day celebration is held in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, where every year the famous groundhog Punxsutawney Phil predicts the weather. According to legend, if Punxsutawney Phil sees his shadow, there will be six more weeks of winter weather. If he does not see his shadow, there will be an early spring.

Today is the big day, so stay tuned... in a few hours we'll visit Punxsutawney Phil's web page (isn't technology amazing?) to find out what he predicted...

While we are waiting, are there any other interesting traditons or holidays around the world you would like to tell us about?

PLEASE, COMMENT!!!


TTYL Cristina