Wednesday, December 31, 2008

New Year's Food and Tradditions Around the World

Today is the last day of the year and most families from around the world get together to celebrate it with parties, foods and drinks. I decided to read about some New Year's traditions and found out, many interesting things: We love food and in many cultures that's the center of the celebration.

Every culture has traditional foods believed to bring good fortune in the New Year. No matter when New Year's Day occurs (at Rosh Hashanah in September, Chinese New Year in January, Persian New Year at the spring equinox), special food items are served that represent health, prosperity, sweetness and luck for the year ahead.

These are some lucky food and food traditions:

Noodles
In many Asian countries, long noodles are eaten on New Year's Day in order to bring a long life.

Black eyed peas
A common good luck food in the southern United States, black-eyed peas are thought to bring prosperity, especially when served with collard greens.

Cabbage
In Germany, Ireland, and parts of the United States, cabbage is associated with luck and fortune since it is green and resembles money.

Lentils
Thought to resemble coins, lentils are eaten throughout Italy for good fortune in the New Year.

Pomegranates
Long associated with abundance and fertility, pomegranates are eaten in Turkey and other Mediterranean countries for luck in the New Year.

Fish
In North America, Asia, and Europe, people eat fish to celebrate the new year. In some countries, people associate fish with moving forward into the new year since fish swim forward. Other people think fish symbolize abundance since they swim in schools.

Pork
Pork is served at New Year’s celebrations all over the world. Some cultures believe pigs symbolize prosperity and abundance because of their plump bodies and high fat content, while others say pigs symbolize progress because they push themselves forward as they root around in the dirt for food.

Rice
In Japan, the traditional food for New Year's Day includes mochi (round balls of rice) and mirror cakes (the balls flattened to the shape of a mirror) which are placed on altars as offerings to the gods (along with an orange for longevity) and given to relatives and friends as tokens of divine blessings for the year.

Dates and figs
The Romans used to give friends a glass jar full of dates and dried figs in honey, along with a bay leaf branch so the coming year would be sweet and full of good fortune. Neapolitans still wrap dried figs in laurel leaves and exchange them as a kind of insurance of abundance for the coming year. They also make confections of caramelized dough and tiny almond pieces which are eaten over a period of days.

Grapes
In Mexico and many South American countries, instead of doing a champagne toast, New Year's Eve revelers eat 12 grapes at the stroke of midnight, one for each month in the coming year. In Venezuela we combine both a champagne toast and grape eating.

Tangerines
Citrus is a positive symbol for the Chinese New Year, observed on the first day of the first lunar month (in 2009, it falls on January 26). Tangerines represent good luck, and oranges represent wealth.

Cake
In Greece, a special round cake called vasilopita is baked with a coin hidden inside. At midnight or after the New Year's Day meal, the cake is cut, with the first piece going to St. Basil and the rest being distributed to guests in order of age.

Sweden and Norway have similar rituals in which they hide a whole almond in rice pudding—whoever gets the nut is guaranteed great fortune in the new year.

In Scotland, where New Year's is called Hogmanay, there is a tradition called "first footing," in which the first person to enter a home after the new year determines what kind of year the residents will have. The "first footer" often brings symbolic gifts like coal to keep the house warm or baked goods such as shortbread, oat cakes, and a fruit caked called black bun, to make sure the household always has food.

What Not to Eat or unlucky food

Chicken

According to many cultures, eating anything with wings is not a good. It could fly away, taking all your luck. Chicken is especially bad because the bird scratches backwards (unlike the forward-thinking pig), possibly leading to setbacks.

Lobster
Backwards-swimming lobsters are also a bad omen for the same reason.

Eggs, tofu, or white cheese
The color white is a symbol of death in the Chinese culture, so avoid eggs, tofu, or white cheese.

And above all, don’t clean your plate too thoroughly — many cultures believe that leaving a little leftover food on your plate will usher in a year of plenty.

Well, that's it. Hope you have and excellet New Year's Dinner and a very Lucky Happy New Year 2009.

These are some of the articles I read to write this post

Living in Season: New Year's Feasts
"Good Luck" New Year's Feast Ideas from Around the World
Lucky Foods for the New Year

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Friday, December 19, 2008

URBE Xmas Party 2008

Well, here we have another nice tool to share photos in a creative way.. Hope you have fun doing this little project.

Click to play URBE xmas party 2008
Create your own scrapbook - Powered by Smilebox
Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Apture: Add Multimedia to Your blog with One Click.

"Apture provides the first rich communication platform allowing publishers and bloggers to easily turn flat pages of text into multimedia experiences."

This new tool deserves a WooooWWWW! It allows you to link videos, documents, photos, maps, etc to your page.

It's veryEasy to use. Just watch the video and follow the instrustions... of course, you will need a blog, a webpage and you know what it's great about it..... It works with Ning! So we can use this great tools with our EFL university ning CoP...

Watch the video and start experimenting and adventuring.. you won't regret it...



After you played with it...... Let me know what you thought about it.

Holiday wishes from teachers of the world

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Youth for Human Rights



Carlos Linares shared this wonderful video with us to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of Human Rights Declaration. He asked:

What's your favorite Human Rights?

if you don't know much about Human Rights, read the previous post. There you will find them... have fun and let us know your answer to Carlos' question.


Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) 60th Anniversary

The adoption of the Universal Declaration is a significant international commemoration marked each year on 10 December and is known as Human Rights Day or International Human Rights Day. The commemoration is observed by individuals, community and religious groups, human rights organisations, parliaments, governments and the United Nations. Decadal commemorations are often accompanied by campaigns to promote awareness of the Declaration and human rights. 2008 marks the 60th anniversary of the Declaration and is being accompanied by year long activities around the theme "Dignity and justice for all of us".

Human rights set out in the Declaration
The following reproduces the articles of the Declaration which set out the specific human rights that are recognized in the Declaration.

Article 1
All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood.

Article 2
Everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. Furthermore, no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty.

Article 3
Everyone has the right to life, liberty, and security of person.

Article 4
No one shall be held in slavery or servitude; slavery and the slave trade shall be prohibited in all their forms.

Article 5
No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.
Article 6
Everyone has the right to recognition everywhere as a person before the law.
Article 7
All are equal before the law and are entitled without any discrimination to equal protection of the law. All are entitled to equal protection against any discrimination in violation of this Declaration and against any incitement to such discrimination.

Article 8
Everyone has the right to an effective remedy by the competent national tribunals for acts violating the fundamental rights granted him by the constitution or by law.

Article 9
No one shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile.

Article 10
Everyone is entitled in full equality to a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal, in the determination of his rights and obligations and of any criminal charge against him.

Article 11
Everyone charged with a penal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proved guilty according to law in a public trial at which he has had all the guarantees necessary for his defence.
No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. Nor shall a heavier penalty be imposed than the one that was applicable at the time the penal offence was committed.

Article 12
No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

Article 13
Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state.
Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.
Article 14
Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum from persecution.
This right may not be invoked in the case of prosecutions genuinely arising from non-political crimes or from acts contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 15
Everyone has the right to a nationality. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his nationality nor denied the right to change his nationality.

Article 16
Men and women of full age, without any limitation due to race, nationality or religion, have the right to marry and to found a family. They are entitled to equal rights as to marriage, during marriage and at its dissolution.
Marriage shall be entered into only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses.
The family is the natural and fundamental group unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State.

Article 17
Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.
No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.
Article 18
Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.

Article 19
Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

Article 20
Everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.
No one may be compelled to belong to an association.

Article 21
Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives.
Everyone has the right of equal access to public service in his country.
The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government; this will shall be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures.

Article 22
Everyone, as a member of society, has the right to social security and is entitled to realization, through national effort and international co-operation and in accordance with the organization and resources of each State, of the economic, social and cultural rights indispensable for his dignity and the free development of his personality.

Article 23
Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.
Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.
Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.
Everyone has the right to form and to join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

Article 24
Everyone has the right to rest and leisure, including reasonable limitation of working hours and periodic holidays with pay.

Article 25
Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or other lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control.
Motherhood and childhood are entitled to special care and assistance. All children, whether born in or out of wedlock, shall enjoy the same social protection.

Article 26
Everyone has the right to education. Education shall be free, at least in the elementary and fundamental stages. Elementary education shall be compulsory. Technical and professional education shall be made generally available and higher education shall be equally accessible to all on the basis of merit.

Education shall be directed to the full development of the human personality and to the strengthening of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms. It shall promote understanding, tolerance and friendship among all nations, racial or religious groups, and shall further the activities of the United Nations for the maintenance of peace.
Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.

Article 27
Everyone has the right freely to participate in the cultural life of the community, to enjoy the arts and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits.
Everyone has the right to the protection of the moral and material interests resulting from any scientific, literary or artistic production of which he is the author.

Article 28
Everyone is entitled to a social and international order in which the rights and freedoms set forth in this Declaration can be fully realized.

Article 29
Everyone has duties to the community in which alone the free and full development of his personality is possible.
In the exercise of his rights and freedoms, everyone shall be subject only to such limitations as are determined by law solely for the purpose of securing due recognition and respect for the rights and freedoms of others and of meeting the just requirements of morality, public order and the general welfare in a democratic society.
These rights and freedoms may in no case be exercised contrary to the purposes and principles of the United Nations.

Article 30
Nothing in this Declaration may be interpreted as implying for any State, group or person any right to engage in any activity or to perform any act aimed at the destruction of any of the rights and freedoms set forth herein.
Source: Answers.com

Friday, December 5, 2008

Take the Feedback Survey!

Well, we are finishing our September- December 2008 Trimester!!!! This was a great trimester full of wonderful stories and adventures... Well, that will be another post.

Now, rhe feedback survey... Only for students from this September-December2008 trimester:

The ones that take the survey will get an extra punto..



Feed back ( students Sep-Dec 08 only) Feed back Class Sep-Dec 2008

...... si este no funciona...trata con este otro enlace http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=_2f_2bmvsUnqCbR47uBm_2bjCzOg_3d_3d after you take the survey... send an email to your teacher at doris3m@gmail.com , write your name and seccion...


Photo by sliceoflife

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Daft Bodies - Harder Better Faster Stronger

Practicing your comparatives....

Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger lyrics

Work It
Make It
Do It
Makes Us

Harder
Better
Faster
Stronger

More Than
power
Our
Never

Ever
After
Work is
Over

Work It
Make It
Do It
Makes Us

Harder
Better
Faster
Stronger

Work It Harder Make It Better
Do It Faster Makes Us stronger
More Than Ever Hour After
Our Work Is Never Over

English Grammar Lesson - Verb Forms and Verb Tenses

Check this EFL video about Tenses! Mario has been teaching English in Mexico for 12 years in some of the most prestigious language institutes in the country, such as Harmon Hall and Berlitz. His dream is to make English a reality in all those who have an internet connection regardless of their current economical situation.

ESL teachers and students are allowed to make free use of the resources included on his You Tube channel.

He hopes you find his video useful and He hopes to hear from you. Any feedback is welcome.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Our 10Th Anniversary.. ESL Language Center Rocks!!!

Chinita's Day! 2008

Today is Chinita's day! What a Day! Let's celebrate our lady of the Rosary of Chiquinquira and visit her at her house La Basilica. Let's adore her and ask her to protect us and look after us.

November 18th is a very important day in our state. Today there will be many activities all around the state and specially here in Maracaibo. People will remember and rejoice in Chinita's honor.

Reading on wikipedia, we can find her story:

An old lady made a living by washing other people's clothes, a job she did every morning at the shores of the lake. On November 18th 1709 she took a bulk of clothes, and as usual, went to the lake to start washing them. This old lady was at her chores when she saw a wooden board floating towards her. She picked it up thinking that it might be of some use. When she finished her work, she went home carrying the clothes, the board and a small vase with fresh water. She then placed the board on top of the vase. Then, she noticed a small figure in the board but couldn't tell what it was.She fell asleep, and when she áwoke up it was already late and dark. She decided to go to a local grocery store to buy some candles.
On her way back a small gathering of people had formed outside her house, and after coming closer she noted that her home was filled with light. After entering she and some of the neighbors witnessed the small wooden board floating in the air surrounded by light with a bright crisp image of the Virgin Mary. At this, everyone was amazed and called the event a miracle.

Since that day the street where she lived was renamed "El Milagro" which means Miracle in Spanish, and to this day it is one of the most important streets in the neighborhood of "El Saladillo" in the city of Maracaibo.
To this day the wood with the image on it can still be seen in the Basilica in Maracaibo.Legend has it that the government decided that the wood with the image belonged in the capital city, Caracas. So they ordered it moved. As the soldiers following the order carried the image away from Maracaibo it got heavier and heavier until finally no one could lift it. They returned it to the basilica in Maracaibo where it has remained with the belief that no one can remove it.

The people of Maracaibo celebrate the Festival of La Chinita in November with an all night party. One of the main city streets, Bella Vista, is closed for several blocks and the city puts lights along the whole street. The lights stay up for months, until after Christmas. There are stages set up, sponsored by the government and businesses around the city. There are firework shows and street vendors, and hundreds of thousands of people line the streets and celebrate all night.

"Our Lady of Rosario of Chiquinquirá." Wikipedia. Wikipedia, 2007. Answers.com 18 Nov. 2007. http://www.answers.com/topic/our-lady-of-rosario-of-chiquinquir

Also, one important part of the celebration is selecting a beauty queen for the fair. This year's winner was Leidys Orellano. accompany by her parents and sister. She was the representant of the B.O.D, an important Bank in our region.

Of course, sports are present in the celebration. There is one important game today. EL juego de Baseball de la Chinita... let's pray our lady to help us today... Chinita hacenos el milagrito de que ganen las Aguilas otra vez..... God bless our Chinita and our baseball team Aguilas del Zulia. Go team!!!!


This game have been played on this day since 1969. There have been 38 games and "Las Aguilas" have won 19 times. Also, on this day the Luis Aparicio Award is given to the best baseball players in Venezuela. Johan Santana, Magglio Ordóñez y Oswaldo Guillen, have been awarded with it. This year, Francisco Rodríguez, Carlos Zambrano y Omar Vizquel will receive their Luis Aparicio Awards. Congratulations to this wonderful Venezuela baseball players.

Another big thing in the Feria is the bull fight (La Corrida de Toros)... I personally don't like it but a lot of people like going to the bullfight ring and yell "Ole". This is a tradition that comes from Spain and in my opinion it is horrible... I'm against torture and violence. But that's just me.

Now, what's your opinion about our fair? Did you enjoy our fair this year? Tell us what you did to enferiarte? Where did you go? how was it? What did you like the most? What you didn't like... if there's something you didn't like...

Looking forward to reading all the stories from this year celebration.

And Chinita....... Gloria a ti casta Señora! Happy Day!

I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed working on this posting in honor to my chinita!

Sunday, October 5, 2008

StoryTelling Mini Conference



Date: 2 - 9 November 2008
Duration: 60 minutes
Facilitators: Cristina Costa, Tom Wambeke, Nellie Deutsch, and Richard Green (Guest)

Venue: WiZi and Connecting Online

Description:

Do you think of stories when you look at a photo, a video, or listen to music? Does the topic interest you as a tool for instruction and learning or are you just curious? In any case, for whatever reason you may have, you are invited to join this storytelling mini conference.

We will have a live storytelling event on WiZiQ or Elluminate. Please refer to the main page of Connecting Online for further discussions on the topic.

Please add your name if you are interested in joining and , ask questions and/or add comments here.

Saturday, August 23, 2008

Bronze Medal for Venezuela.. Thanks Dalia!

The taekwondist Dalia Contreras won the Bronze Medal in Women −49 kg. Dalia is 24 years old and she's from Cabudare, Lara State. Dalia's medal is Venezuela's first medal in the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games and the number 11 medal in Venezuela's participation history in the Olympic Games. Venezuela has got 1 gold medal, 2 silver medals and 8 bronze medals.

She said " I always dreamt of going to the Olympic games, I always told my mom that I wanted to go to the games... winning a medal was another goal but I made it..."

Venezuela first competed in London 1948, with The cyclist Julio Cesar Leon, our only participant and has sent athletes to compete in every Summer Olympic Games since then. Venezuela has also participated in the Winter Olympic Games since 1998.


In Helsinki 1959, there were 37 Venezuelan athlete participating that year. Two women Úrsula Selle y Gerda Müller, were also there. The athlete Arnoldo Devonish (June 15, 1932 – January 1, 1997) won the first bronze medal in Men's triple jump. Devonish was from Zulia State. In his jump, he registered 15,15 meters.

In Rome 1960, Enrico Forcela also won bronze medal in Men's 50 meter rifle prone.

In Mexico 1968, the boxer Francisco "Morochito" Rodríguez from Cumana, won a gold medal in Men's light flyweight. he competed against the Korean Young Ju Lee.


Eight years later in Montreal 1976, Pedro Gamarro won a silver medal in Men's welterweight.


Next, in Moscow 1980 another boxer, Bernardo Piñango got another silver medal in Men's bantamweight (categoria gallo).


In Los Angeles 1984, Venezuela got three bronze medals, two in boxing by Marcelino Bolivar (Men's light flyweight) and Omar Catarí (Men's featherweight). That year our Rafael Vidal got the Men's 200 meter butterfly bronze medal, too.


In Barcelona 92, Arlindo Goveia got Gold medal in Tae Kwon Do, but unfortunately that discipline wasn't a valid discipline in the Olympic games at that time.


Twenty years later in Athens 2004, Israel Rubio (Men's featherweighty) and Adriana Carmona in taekwondo (Women's heavyweight) got two Bronze medals more for Venezuela.


Finally, this year in Beijing 2008 our Dalia Contreras won the Bronze Medal.

We are very happy and proud of Dalia and we want to congratulate and thank her for the happiness that her dreams of computing in an Olympic game have given the Venezuelan people.

Now after reading about our athletes and their performance at the different Olympic Games. What do you think? Is it easy to get a medal? What do you know about our athletes? Do you you have a favorite one? What about the sports? What's your favorite?

Source: Wikipedia
Posters: Olympic Games

Monday, August 18, 2008

A beautiful song....about us... people from Zulia!

This is a beautiful song with lots of photos about our State! Hope you enjoy it as much as I do.. This video was posted by Eduardo Morales. He's a member of Quinto Criollo, our most representative musical group in our region.



Quinto Criollo is a local musical group whose members have dedicated 34 years of their lives to make our people happy and proud of their culture and heritage. This musical group was born on May 21 1971. Amada Campbell, Eduardo Morales, Francisco Arrieta and Lisbella González started their presentations at universities and schools.

In 1973,Hernán Gamboa, a cuatro player from Serenata Guayanesa, invited them to create their own music. In 1976, they recorded their first album (listen to it here), produced by maestro Hugo Blanco composer of "Moliendo Cafe", its cover was designed by Francisco “Paco” Hung, one of the most important painters of our coutry. That year they were on National television. They were invited to participate in the Venezuela Siempre Venezuela show in Venezolana de Television.

In 1978, they recorded Canción del Barco Velero dedicated to the children and in 1979, Navidad Criolla with the maestro Simón Díaz.

In 1981, different reasons made them decided to stop recording or going on tours. For twelve years they remained silent but in 1993, decided to come back. Rafael Soto and Nectario Sánchez, joined the group substituting Iván Burgos and Francisco Arrieta. That year, they won the Premio Nacional de la Canción Popular.

In 1999 they recorded "Como el río" with two new members Mildred González y Edilio Lugo

In 1996, on their 25th aniversary, Quinto Criollo was named Patrimonio Cultural de Maracaibo, and received the orden “Ciudad de Maracaibo”.

In 2001, On their 30th Aniversary, they celebrated with a concert where Serenata Guayanesa, Gualberto Ibarreto, Cecilia Todd, Huáscar Barradas and Ricardo Cepeda accompanied them.

They have been singing to us for 37 years now. Congratulations to Amada Campbell, Mildred González, Rafael Soto, Eduardo Morales and Nectario Sánchez. We are very proud of you because your life's work has been dedicated to represent us all over the world and the time.

We are specially proud at URBE because one of its founding members, Amada Campbell is one of our EFL professors and dear friend. Also, Eduardo Morales' son.... Eduardo Morales Jr., an engineer and EFL teacher, was part of our Staff at the URBE's ESL Language Center.

Source: El cuatro Venezolano, sabor gaitero, salvavinilo

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Feedback for our May- July 2008 class!

Well, we just finished another trimester... It went really fast but we achieved a lot:
  1. We got a bunch of new friends at the International Collaboration Ning Social Network.
  2. We got a Facebook Group
  3. We had lots of fun... Soon, I will be posting all we did... lots of pictures, videos and excellent work.
Now... the feedback... This is the link to our survey...

Click Here to take survey

Please, take the survey and keep in touch...

I will see you next trimester...

Saturday, August 9, 2008

A movie Quiz... Mamma Mia!!!

Friday, July 25, 2008

Randy Pausch... an unbelieveble teacher, parent and human being!

An amazing professor who taught us a great last lesson.



In the lecture Mr. Pausch urged his students and colleagues to live life to the fullest. Among his words of wisdom:
  • "Never underestimate the importance of having fun. I'm dying and I'm having fun. And I'm going to keep having fun every day because there's no other way to play it."
  • "We can't change the cards we're dealt, just how we play the hand. If I'm not as depressed as you think I should be, I'm sorry to disappoint you."
  • "Good teaching is always a performance, but what Randy did was in a class all by itself," says Andy van Dam, co-founder of the computer science department at Brown University, which Pausch attended as an undergraduate. "His students responded to him as athletes do to a great coach who cares not only about winning but about the team players as individuals."
Randy Pausch, died Friday of complications from pancreatic cancer. He was 47. He died at his home in southern Virginia.

Most felt condolences to his family, friends and students.

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Bolivar Bolivariano no es un pensamiento muerto ni mucho menos un santo para prenderle una vela.... Ali Primera.

Today, we are remembering our Bolivar. What do you think about this great Venezuelan? How important is his legacy to you? Should we be proud of him? Was he a superheroe or just an ordinary human being?

Reading The Free Dictionary, I found this: "Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar Palacios y Blanco called El Libertador (born July 24, 1783 in Caracas, Captaincy General of Venezuela – died December 17, 1830, in Santa Marta, Colombia) was a leader of several independence movements throughout South America, collectively known as Bolívar's War.

In 1802, he married María Teresa Rodríguez del Toro y Alaysa, daughter of Bernardo Nicolás Rodríguez del Toro y Ascanio and wife Benita de Alaiza y Medrano. She died of yellow fever less than a year later and decided he would never remarry.

Together with José de San Martín, Bolívar is regarded as one of the Liberators of Spanish South America."

Wikipedia tell us..... "After the triumph over the Spanish monarchy, Bolívar participated in the foundation of Gran Colombia, a nation formed from the liberated Spanish colonies. Bolívar became President of Gran Colombia from 1821 to 1830, President of Peru from 1824 to 1826 and President of Bolivia from 1825 to 1826. His legacy contributed decisively to the independence of present-day Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Panamá, Perú and Venezuela."

Now... What do I think about our "Libertador"... he was a great man ...an initiator and a true believer.. he had dreams and he pursued them... he was a man of honor and kept promises. I also think he was a human being of his time and he did as his conscience told him to do. He also could see that moral and education are our first necessities....

Some of his thoughts:

Usted formó mi corazón para la libertad, para la justicia, para lo grande, para lo hermoso. Yo he seguido el sendero que usted me señaló... No puede figurarse usted cuán hondamente se han grabado en mi corazón las lecciones que usted me ha dado " (Palabras de El Libertador a su maestro Don Simón Rodríguez ­ 1797)

El que manda debe oír aunque sean las más duras verdades y, después de oídas, debe aprovecharse de ellas para corregir los males que produzcan los errores.

Moral y luces son los polos de una República, moral y luces son nuestras primeras necesidades" (Palabras de El Libertador ante el Congreso de Angostura - 15 de febrero 1819)

What do you think about our Libertador? What are you doing to contribute to the development and growing of our country? If you had the chance to talk to Bolivar what would you tell him?


Source:
The Free Dictionary, Wikipedia,

Monday, July 21, 2008

Simona...

Do you like music? ... What about James Blunt? He's one of my fav! I couldn't resist to add the lyrics to this video... So, everybody... Let's all sing.


Find more
videos like this on International Collaboration


About the singer..

James Blunt (born James Hillier Blount, February 221974) is a British singer-songwriter whose debut album, Back to Bedlam, and single releases — especially the number one hit "You're Beautiful" — brought him to fame in 2005. His style is a mix of pop, folk and acoustic rock. Along with vocals, James Blunt plays a wide variety of instruments including the piano, guitar, organ, marimba and mellotron. His song "You're Beautiful" reached number one on the Billboard Hot
100
in 2006.

Here we go again..... The first single from All The Lost Souls is called "1973" and was inspired by Blunt's nights out in a club called Pacha, in Ibiza. The song became another hit for Blunt reaching number-one in seven countries and reach the top
in the European overall chart. It reached top 10 in twenty-nine countries.

Thanks so much James for so beautiful music....


Source: Answers.com
video: International Collaboration

Final Project May-July 08

Well, my dear friends... we are almost done! These are some guidelines and reminders of what our final project is about. Check on the presentation and if you need it you ca download it form our file box.



If you have any doubts ... you know what to do do.... email me or ask a partner...Looking forward to listening to your final reports...

Sunday, July 20, 2008

May-July 2008 Final Week Class

Hello, There! Introducing a voice forum for our last week class... From now on... we are going to record our participations in class in these forums. I know... we are finishing our English class together, but you can always keep in touch with us through these conversations we are going to have in UTTERZ.

Let's get started with our first Conversation... All you have to do is ... click on the replies... Look at the tittle tutorial I put together for you (click on the image to see a larger picture of it).... if you have any questions... you know you can ask your partners or me.


And now, the conversation.... click to listen to the question and participate with your opinion... leave a message to your classmates and teacher.


What would you like to say on your final week class to your classmates and teacher?

Mobile post sent by doris3m using Utterz. reply-count Replies. mp3

Tuesday, July 8, 2008

Who wants a Banana Split?

Banana Split... a delicious dessert.... Antonio Arrieta shared this delicious recipe with us... Here you have to cook this easy recipe...


Uploaded on authorSTREAM by antonioarrieta

Easy right?... Who wants some.... mmmhhhmm

Monday, July 7, 2008

Nature ... Slideshow Contest at Slideshare!

This is powerpoint point presentation designed by a 17 years old student from Portugal. His name is João Paulo Alves and his presentation is competing at a Slideshare contest... go there check it out and vote it winner!!! Excellent message, design, and use of the language.



Ok... did you like it? what did you like about it? Contents, message, photos, words. What about you? Would you like to participate in this contest or at least contribute to the spreading of the going green and thinking green idea to save the world? Come on ... Let us know what you have to say... Leave a comment...

Wednesday, July 2, 2008

Yaimir Muñoz ..... a level 1 student

This was Yaismir Muñoz homework for the second term... Enjoy it.


Uploaded on authorSTREAM by doris3m

Monday, June 30, 2008

June 26th.. URBE says NO to drugs!

There are many stories about drug abuse. people dying, getting high, some kids even getting special medical treatments. Some kids do it to be cool, some for stress, and some for curiosity of how it feels. People do drugs because they think that taking drugs will make them feel good about themselves or takes away unwanted feelings, but drugs have other effects. Drugs change the chemicals in our brains, and when those chemicals change our feelings and actions change too.

There are many drugs such as cocaine, marijuana, and much more. If your friends ask you take drugs or get high, don't do it. If you say yes, you will get high and do something causing dangerous consequences. Many kids that take drugs think they can hide it from their parents, but they are wrong. Parents always have a way to find out about things that their children are hiding from them. Taking drugs can cause family members to fight and destroy families.

Be smart and think before you act. Don't waste your life in something that is not worth it. Drugs are trouble, so do yourself a favor and stay out of trouble. People who encourage you to use drugs are not your friends. Remember drugs makes you sick and damage your brain. People do crazy things when they are high. For example they may shoot themselves, throw themselves off a roof, or drown themselves in the bathtub! So be cool and stay away from drugs!


Now, How can we help our friends to say No to drugs.... any ideas? Let's us know.

source: Fitness our body our temple
Image: Ten reasons to say no to drugs

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Simple present. Daily activities... Daily routine

This a cool video found in You tube to help you remember your vocabulary... have fun!



And here we have a cool song, too!

Have you met Matt?

I think Matt's dancing is beautiful... I want to dance with Matt in downtown Maracaibo. What do you think? Where would you like to dance with Matt?



Matt Harding said ...."14 months in the making, 42 countries, and a cast of thousands. Thanks to everyone who danced with me".... You can visit Matt's site here

Thursday, June 19, 2008

Announcing our weekly meeting in WizIQ!

Everybody is invited to join us every week! Sessions will take place in WIZIQ Fridays at 9:30 pm... Venezuela Time. We are -4:30 GMT

This week: we will getting familiar with WIZIQ and we will be meeting people from the world. All you have to do is to introduce yourself and tell us about your blogs and school life.

Friday, 20 June, 2008
6:30 PM To 8:30 PM SA Western Standard Time
The link to the session is this: Click here


You can view a recording of a WIZIQ session here. Click on view recording to check what WIZIQ is like.

Thursday, June 12, 2008

Make a Wish!

Let's start off with the easy part. ' I wish to' can mean the same as 'I want to' but it is much, much more formal and much, much less common.
  • I wish to make a complaint.
  • I wish to see the manager.

You can also use 'wish' with a noun to 'offer good wishes'.

  • I wish you all the best in your new job.
  • We wish you a merry Christmas.

Notice that when you want to offer good wishes using a verb, you must use 'hope ' and not 'wish'.

  • We wish you the best of luck.
  • We hope you have the best of luck.
  • I wish you a safe and pleasant journey.
  • I hope you have a safe and pleasant journey.

However, the main use of 'wish' is to say that we would like things to be different from what they are, that we have regrets about the present situation.

  • I wish I was rich.
  • He wishes he lived in Paris.
  • They wish they'd chosen a different leader.
  • I wish I hadn't told him.

Notice that the verb tense which follows 'I wish' is 'more in the past' than the tense corresponding to its meaning.

  • I'm overweight. I wish I was slimmer.
  • I never win at tennis. I wish I won a game occasionally.
  • It's raining hard. I wish it wasn't raining so hard.
  • I went to the pub last night. I wish I hadn't had so many beers.
  • I didn't go to the cinema. I wish I had gone.
  • I've eaten too much. I wish I hadn't eaten so much.
  • I'm going to see her later. I wish I wasn't.
  • I was wearing jeans. I wish I hadn't been wearing jeans.
  • I can't go to the party. I wish I could go.
  • I couldn't do all the questions in the exam. I wish I could have done them all.
In the case of 'will' , where 'will' means 'show willingness' we use 'would'.
  • He won't help me. I wish he would help me.
  • You're making too much noise. I wish you would be quiet.
  • You keep interrupting me. I wish you wouldn't do that.

Where 'will' means a future event, we cannot use 'wish' and must use 'hope'.

  • There's a strike tomorrow. I hope some buses will still be running.
  • I hope everything will be fine in your new job.

In more formal English, we use the subjunctive form 'were' and not 'was' after 'wish'.

  • I wish I were taller.
  • I wish it were Saturday today.
  • I wish the options were a little clearer.
Exercises
Practice 1, Practice 2, Practice 3, Practice 4

Taken from: English Grammar Secrets