Beautiful London

Les sugiero pasar por aquí y ver unas hermosas fotos de Londres sacadas a la noche y desde arriba.

Enjoy! Felices vacaciones para el hemisferio sur!

Auld Lang Syne

Quisiera agradecerte tu visita este año, si fue un minuto o una hora, igual te doy las gracias. Me hace bien saber que hay colegas por allí con quien hermanarme aunque sea a través de posts e ideas que te puedan servir.

Te deseo un 2010 con muchos éxitos, para vos y tus alumnos, en tu vida y en tu carrera.

Que disfrutes de esta maravillosa profesión cada vez más!

Aquí iremos a The London Eye a ver los fuegos artificiales y a cantar Auld Lang Syne, esta maravillosa canción escocesa, que tiene su historia y aquí transcribo la versión inglesa.

Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind ?
Should old acquaintance be forgot,
and old lang syne ?

CHORUS:

For auld lang syne, my dear,
for auld lang syne,
we'll take a cup of kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

And surely you’ll buy your pint cup !
and surely I’ll buy mine !
And we'll take a cup o’ kindness yet,
for auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We two have run about the slopes,
and picked the daisies fine ;
But we’ve wandered many a weary foot,
since auld lang syne.

CHORUS

We two have paddled in the stream,
from morning sun till dine^† ;
But seas between us broad have roared
since auld lang syne.

CHORUS

And there’s a hand my trusty friend !
And give us a hand o’ thine !
And we’ll take a right good-will draught,
for auld lang syne.

CHORUS

Para ver la versión escocesa original y su pronunciación, click aquí.

Te recomiendo que escuches esta hermosa versión por la BBC, la imagen de fondo es del Sydney Harbour.



Happy New Year!

Traditional Christmas Carols

'Tis the season...

Londres está cada vez más linda, se respira Navidad, hay pantos y por supuesto, también se cantan los villancicos.

Uno puede ir a la iglesia a escuchar un coro o incluso se dan sing-a-longs como el que hubo hace poco en el Royal Albert Hall.

Tuve la dicha de ser invitada a un sing-a-long y fue mi segunda vez y les puedo asegurar que es una experiencia maravillosa cantar villancicos con gente que no esconde su voz y canta a viva voz, familias, gente grande, niños, todos juntos!

Les paso los que cantamos ayer, bastante "entonados" en todo sentido, después de haber comido mince pies y de tomar mulled wine...

También agrego las letras para que puedan enseñarlos, particularmente The Twelve Days Of Christmas, una especie de cumulative song, muy divertida!

Si ya están de vacaciones, será el año que viene.

Clickeen PLAY y a cantar! Merry Christmas!

The First Noel



The First Noel, the Angels did say
Was to certain poor shepherds in fields as they lay
In fields where they lay keeping their sheep
On a cold winter's night that was so deep.
Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel
Born is the King of Israel!

They looked up and saw a star
Shining in the East beyond them far
And to the earth it gave great light
And so it continued both day and night.
Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel
Born is the King of Israel!

And by the light of that same star
Three Wise men came from country far
To seek for a King was their intent
And to follow the star wherever it went.
Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel
Born is the King of Israel!

This star drew nigh to the northwest
O'er Bethlehem it took its rest
And there it did both Pause and stay
Right o'er the place where Jesus lay.
Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel
Born is the King of Israel!

Then entered in those Wise men three
Full reverently upon their knee
And offered there in His presence
Their gold and myrrh and frankincense.
Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel
Born is the King of Israel!

Then let us all with one accord
Sing praises to our heavenly Lord
That hath made Heaven and earth of nought
And with his blood mankind has bought.
Noel, Noel, Noel, Noel
Born is the King of Israel!


Ding Dong Merrily on High
(Mi villancico favorito! No se olviden de la intrusive r cuando canten Hosanna in Excelsis!)



Ding dong merrily on high,
In heav'n the bells are ringing:
Ding dong! verily the sky
Is riv'n with angel singing.
Gloria, Hosanna in excelsis!

E'en so here below, below,
Let steeple bells be swungen,
And "Io, io, io!"
By priest and people sungen.
Gloria, Hosanna in excelsis!

Pray you, dutifully prime
Your matin chime, ye ringers;
May you beautifully rime
Your evetime song, ye singers.
Gloria, Hosanna in excelsis!


Away in a Manger
(generalmente, la primera estrofa la cantan los niños, la segunda las mujeres y la tercera, los hombres)



Away in a manger, no crib for His bed
The little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head
The stars in the bright sky looked down where He lay
The little Lord Jesus asleep on the hay

The cattle are lowing the poor Baby wakes
But little Lord Jesus no crying He makes
I love Thee, Lord Jesus, look down from the sky
And stay by my side,'til morning is nigh.

Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay
Close by me forever and love me I pray
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care
And take us to heaven to live with Thee there


Good King Wenceslas



Good King Wenceslas looked out
On the feast of Stephen
When the snow lay round about
Deep and crisp and even
Brightly shone the moon that night
Though the frost was cruel
When a poor man came in sight
Gath'ring winter fuel

"Hither, page, and stand by me
If thou know'st it, telling
Yonder peasant, who is he?
Where and what his dwelling?"
"Sire, he lives a good league hence
Underneath the mountain
Right against the forest fence
By Saint Agnes' fountain."

"Bring me flesh and bring me wine
Bring me pine logs hither
Thou and I will see him dine
When we bear him thither."
Page and monarch forth they went
Forth they went together
Through the rude wind's wild lament
And the bitter weather

"Sire, the night is darker now
And the wind blows stronger
Fails my heart, I know not how,
I can go no longer."
"Mark my footsteps, my good page
Tread thou in them boldly
Thou shalt find the winter's rage
Freeze thy blood less coldly."

In his master's steps he trod
Where the snow lay dinted
Heat was in the very sod
Which the Saint had printed
Therefore, Christian men, be sure
Wealth or rank possessing
Ye who now will bless the poor
Shall yourselves find blessing


The Twelve Days of Christmas



On the first day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
A partridge in a pear tree.

On the second day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the third day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the fourth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the fifth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the sixth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the seventh day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the eighth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the ninth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Nine ladies dancing,
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the tenth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Ten lords a-leaping,
Nine ladies dancing,
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the eleventh day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Eleven pipers piping,
Ten lords a-leaping,
Nine ladies dancing,
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree.

On the twelfth day of Christmas,
my true love sent to me
Twelve drummers drumming,
Eleven pipers piping,
Ten lords a-leaping,
Nine ladies dancing,
Eight maids a-milking,
Seven swans a-swimming,
Six geese a-laying,
Five golden rings,
Four calling birds,
Three French hens,
Two turtle doves,
And a partridge in a pear tree!

Esto es lo que significa:

1 True Love refers to God
2 Turtle Doves refers to the Old and New Testaments
3 French Hens refers to Faith, Hope and Charity, the Theological Virtues
4 Calling Birds refers to the Four Gospels and/or the Four Evangelists
5 Golden Rings refers to the first Five Books of the Old Testament, the "Pentateuch", which gives the history of man's fall from grace.
6 Geese A-laying refers to the six days of creation
7 Swans A-swimming refers to the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, the seven sacraments
8 Maids A-milking refers to the eight beatitudes
9 Ladies Dancing refers to the nine Fruits of the Holy Spirit
10 Lords A-leaping refers to the ten commandments
11 Pipers Piping refers to the eleven faithful apostles
12 Drummers Drumming refers to the twelve points of doctrine in the Apostle's Creed


All Come All Ye Faithful



O Come All Ye Faithful
Joyful and triumphant,
O come ye, O come ye to Bethlehem.
Come and behold Him,
Born the King of Angels;
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord.

O Sing, choirs of angels,
Sing in exultation,
Sing all that hear in heaven God's holy word.
Give to our Father glory in the Highest;
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord.

All Hail! Lord, we greet Thee,
Born this happy morning,
O Jesus! for evermore be Thy name adored.
Word of the Father, now in flesh appearing;
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
O come, let us adore Him,
Christ the Lord.

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing



Hark the herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!
Peace on earth and mercy mild
God and sinners reconciled"
Joyful, all ye nations rise
Join the triumph of the skies
With the angelic host proclaim:
"Christ is born in Bethlehem"
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

Christ by highest heav'n adored
Christ the everlasting Lord!
Late in time behold Him come
Offspring of a Virgin's womb
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see
Hail the incarnate Deity
Pleased as man with man to dwell
Jesus, our Emmanuel
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

Hail the heav'n-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Son of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings
Ris'n with healing in His wings
Mild He lays His glory by
Born that man no more may die
Born to raise the sons of earth
Born to give them second birth
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

A Beatles Conspiracy Theory

Ustedes alguna vez escucharon hablar de esa famosa teoría conspirativa que dice que Paul McCartney habría muerto y que fue reemplazado?

Bueno, les copio parte de un artículo que apareció en el diario The Mail On Sunday, muy interesante por cierto y que seguro es de interés supremo para todo Beatle fan.

El artículo apareció el día 9 de agosto de este año un día después de haberse conmemorado los 40 años del cruce de la famosa calle Abbey Road. Que lo disfruten!

Pictured: The Beatles album cover that started a decades-long conspiracy theory

Forty years ago yesterday, at 11.35am, The Beatles walked across a zebra crossing in an innocuous North London street.

The photoshoot for their new Abbey Road album happened just yards from the eponymous recording studios and took ten minutes - only six frames were taken by the photographer, Iain Macmillan, who was perched on a stepladder.

It has since become one of the most iconic covers in history for two reasons - no album cover has inspired more imitations, and none has spawned such a mass of conspiracy theories.

For Beatles obsessives with fevered imaginations, it was ultimate proof of the bizarre theory of the time - that Paul McCartney was, in fact, dead.

According to the legend, Paul had died in a car accident and been replaced by an impostor. The band, it was said, subsequently felt guilty about the deception, and so placed hidden clues on the album cover for their fans.

Thus, even today, despite the apparent rude health of McCartney, they insist that if you look closely at the images on the front and back of the album it is packed with deathly symbolism.

What is certain is that the album denoted one death of sorts. Unbeknown to the public at the time, The Beatles were in the final throes of a bitter break-up and would never record another album.

Relations had deteriorated to such an extent that the group abandoned their original title of Everest, together with a shoot in the Himalayas, and were photographed instead walking away from the studios and everything they had once shared.

For other devotees, however, far more could be read into the image...

1. THE FUNERAL
The procession of The Beatles across the zebra crossing, say the conspiracy theorists, represents Paul's funeral.
John Lennon leads in a white suit and symbolises the preacher; Ringo Starr is the mourner, dressed in black; George Harrison, in scruffy shirt and trousers, denotes the grave-digger; Paul is wearing an old suit and is the only one who is barefoot.
He later explained that he began the shoot wearing sandals but, because it was a hot day, he kicked them off.
The theorists believed that if this was the case, the hot tarmac would be too uncomfortable. This, they argued, was a sign that Paul was the corpse.


2. THE CIGARETTE
Paul McCartney is left-handed, but here holds his cigarette in his right hand. At the time, cigarettes were commonly referred to as 'coffin nails'. This, therefore, could be seen as a message that Paul's 'coffin lid' had been nailed down and that the man in the picture was a lookalike.
Paul is also out of step with the other band members. Each of the others has his left leg forward, but Paul has his right leg forward - again marking him out as different.


3. THE REGISTRATION PLATE
The white VW Beetle in the background has the registration LMW 28IF - 28 being the age conspiracy theorists say Paul would have been IF he hadn't 'died'.
In fact, Paul was 27 when Abbey Road was released - but fortunately for the theorists, Indian mystics count a person's age from conception, not birth, in which case Paul would have indeed been 28 at the time.
Besides, the band were famously followers of the Indian guru, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. It has also been suggested that the LMW stands for 'Linda McCartney Weeps' - referring to his new wife whom he had married earlier that year.


4. THE SPECTATORS
In the background, a small group of people dressed in white stand on one side of the road, while a lone person stands on the other.
Is this meant to be Paul, alone and different from the others?


5. THE POLICE VAN
On the right-hand side of the road is a black police van, believed to be a reference to the police who kept quiet about Paul's 'death'.
According to legend, the band's manager, Brian Epstein, bought their silence, and the presence of the Maria is meant as another subtle thank you.


6. THE LINE OF CARS
A line can be traced from the VW Beetle to the three cars in front of it. If it is drawn connecting their right wheels it runs straight through Paul's head, with theorists suggesting that means Paul sustained a head injury because of a car crash.


7. THE BLOODSTAIN
On the Australian version of the album, the cover showed what could be a bloodstain splattered on the road just behind Ringo and John, supposedly backing claims of a road accident.


8. THE CRACKED S
On the back cover there is a picture of the Abbey Road sign and above it the name Beatles has been written. There is an obvious crack running through the S - thought to suggest problems within the group.


9. THE DOTS
To the left of the name 'BEATLES' there are a series of eight dots. When joined together they form the number three.
Did this mean there were only three Beatles left?


10. IMAGE OF DEATH
If the back cover is turned 45 degrees anticlockwise a crude image of the Grim Reaper appears, from his skull to his black gown. Theorists believed it was a sign that someone in the group had died.



11. THE GIRL
Nobody knows the identity of the girl dressed in blue on the back cover. On the night of the theorists' 'car crash' it was raining heavily and Paul is said to have given a lift to a fan called Rita. It could be that this girl is her, either fleeing the scene or running to get help.

12. PAUL'S FINAL RESTING PLACE
If the writing on the wall is split into sections, it conveys the cryptic message, 'Be at Les Abbey'. In numerology the following two letters, R and O, are the 18th and 15th letters in the alphabet. By adding this together (33) and multiplying by the number of letters (2), we get 66, the year Paul is supposed to have died.
Three also represents the letter C so 33 could also stand for CC. Cece is short for Cecilia, with theorists claiming Paul was 'laid to rest' at St Cecilia's Abbey, a monastery in Ryde, Isle of Wight.

La nota completa aquí.

Y la foto completa:

La Quinta Beatle! ;)

No, metira! :(

What is a mum?

Happy Mother's Day!

ELT Halloween 2009

La época más divertida!

A decir verdad, aquí la gente grande lo ve como una invasión de costumbres americanas pero los que tienen chicos están bien contentos (o por lo menos lo aparentan) de acompañar a sus niños, a la vuelta del cole, a pedir golosinas por el barrio.

Hubo un año en que me vinieron a visitar (ahora vivo en un departamento así que es medio difícil que vengan) y golpeaban mi puerta porque vieron que había puesto una calabaza en la ventana.

Gritaban "Halloweeeeeeennnnnn!!" y cuando salí a convidarles golosinas, muy tímidamente agarraban uno cada uno! Les invité a tomar más y les daba vergüenza!!! Después les pedí a las mamis si me daban permiso para sacarme una foto con ellos y aceptaron!

Bueno, les cuento esto porque les confieso estuve buscando infructuosamente nuevos sitios y/ o actividades para este año y no he encontrado casi nada nuevo que valiera la pena, salvo estos dos sitios muy interesantes.

Click aquí donde encontrarán worksheets y actividades varias y aquí donde tienen un lesson plan para desarrollar una clase sobre Halloween u otras seasons.

Les recomiendo darse una vueltita por los posts de Halloween de años anteriores los cuales he actualizado y allí encontrarán games, classroom decorations, etc.

Halloween 2007 y Halloween 2008.

Que disfruten de Halloween!!!

Urban Accent

El 18/08/09 en el diario de circulación gratuita The London Paper, apareció una columna escrita por un lector, Sert Fetti, que trata cómo hablan los adolescentes en general.

Les copio aquí el texto.
THE URBAN YOUTH TALK NANG, INNIT

Recently I met up with my 14-year old-cousin who, since starting secondary school, has somehow managed to morph himself into Ali G. His accent is now largely indecipherable to his family, much to their annoyance. During our time together words like “nang”, “sick”, “marvin”, “yard”, “blud” and “innit” kept rolling off his tongue.

This got me thinking about accents, language and my cousin’s new-found love of speaking – what I like to call “urbanese”. Does the way youngsters in London speak really say anything about them?

Programmes like The Catherine Tate Show and Little Britain poke fun at kids who’ve adopted this urbanese accent, depicting them as anti-social and unintelligent.

Personally, I’m not “bovvered” with the way some of our kids speak today. I admit, it can sound peculiar but I also think it shows creativity. According to many, a “proper” accent is the one that carries the most social prestige, and that’s how we should all be speaking. This is the pronunciation taught in schools and used by newsreaders, but why should it be classed as superior?

Everyone has an ­accent. Surely it’s what you say, not how you say it. I’m sure most of us are guilty of doctoring our accents depending on the company we’re in. Perhaps by ­speaking urbanese youngsters are just trying to conform to what is now the majority accent in their peer group.

Does a person’s accent really indicate how intelligent they are or their ability to do a job properly? Let’s ­suppose you have a vacancy in your company. Candidate A is experienced, qualified, bright and, on paper, ­perfectly able to do the job, but speaks urbanese. ­Candidate B is less experienced, skilled and qualified, but speaks “properly”. Who would you employ? I’m guessing that, although most of us wouldn’t admit to it, we’d probably discriminate against Candidate A.

It seems that people stereotype and make judgements based on accents. So should we be encouraging ­youngsters to smarten up their speech or should we ­forget snobbery about accents because urbanese is just a natural evolution of a London accent?

Only time will tell how future generations of Londoners will speak. We’ll just have to wait and see... innit!

Sert, 25, from east London, runs a website

La nota se puede encontrar aquí.