Pronunciation diary #2

Hey guys,

It is time to talk about pronunciation again. Yay, who does not like pronunciation? ;) This is the second part of my pronunciation diary.

I want to share with you my method that I used while studying for my oral exam on Thursday. The oral exam is over!!! :D I felt such a relief after I was done with it. It was not bad at all. I was afraid of it, but it turned out good. :) Besides learning the Porter words, I also had to work on my pronunciation.

In my last feedback Frank told me that my biggest problems are that I speak too fast and the “th” sound. I needed to work on those two things before the exam. I know that I speak too fast and it is really a problem because sometimes my own mother cannot understand me. Most people just speak really quickly in their mother tongue, but I speak like that in every foreign language I am fluent in. Now, I try to speak slowly and enunciate my words, but sometimes I forget, and slip back into my old talking speed. I worked on that with my roommate. I would get a text and read it out loud, if she could follow, then the speed was good, if she could not, then I had to do it again, but more slowly this time. We went through many texts. In the end it was worth it. I think that I am now able to speak in appropriate speed when I am talking in class or reading a text out loud. However, I think that I will still read/talk fast when I am not in class. Sorry, I cannot really help it. Blessing or curse? :S

Furthermore, I had to work on the “th” sound. It is not really that I do not know how to pronounce it, but sometimes I am lazy when I read/speak and I just mispronounce it. Since Youtube is a great source for basically everything I looked up how to correctly pronounce words that contain “th” and came across this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5LO0hHGfQg I recommend watching it. It is not long and it really helps. Side-effect, you might spit around while trying to imitate the guy but that is ok ;) After some time spent spitting around, I found this pronunciation practice sheet http://www.vitaeducation.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/th-sound-Handout.pdf

Again, my roommate and I decided to do it together. Honestly, we looked like nutcases ready to be hospitalized while yelling out words containing “th”. We even made up our own language:

A: Three! (Hi!)

B: Three! Thirteen? (Hi! How are you doing?)

A: Thousand! There? (Great! You?)

B: Bathroom :( (Not good.)

As you can see we had a lot of fun practicing our pronunciation. As I said in my other blog post I wrote about pronunciation, practicing it can be really fun. It all comes down to your attitude. If you go in and start learning it while thinking “I hate this crap, let's just get it over with” you will hate it. However, if you have a positive attitude things will be much easier.

XOXO A.

“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever.”  Mahatma Gandhi

Reflection on Pecha Kucha

It feels like Pecha Kucha was ages ago, but in reality it was just before Christmas. We were working on many projects this semester and had to write a lot of homework. Since we are getting close to the end of the winter semester, it is time to look back at what we have done. One of our biggest projects was the Pecha Kucha project. Pecha Kucha what? Pecha Kucha is a presentation style in which 20 slides are shown for 20 seconds each (six minutes and 40 seconds in total).

When Frank told us to research it for homework I had no idea what it was. I read through some blog posts and articles, but did not give it much thought until Frank told us that we will have to do a presentation like this ourselves! I thought he was joking. I do not know what to tell you. Usually I cannot wait to do a presentation, but that was not the case with Pecha Kucha. First, we got a partner for our project. Mine was Katharina and we got along well. Then, we were supposed to choose a topic. The topics were actually really interesting. Mine was the Maltese language. I loved my topic. When I was on Malta in 2011 I thought I would understand what they are talking because I assumed that the language is similar to Italian, which I speak a little. The truth is, I did not understand a single word because it is nothing like spoken Italian. When I was given the chance to do research on Maltese I was really excited. I learned that Maltese is the only Semitic language written with Latin letters. While preserving its Arabic roots, it the course of its history, Maltese pronunciation and words has been subject to strong influence from Italian and, more recently, English. Maltese, as well as English are the official languages in Malta.

My peers had also good topics for their presentations. Laura and Andrina talked about the Slovenian, and Harald and Orsy about the Hungarian language in Austria. Another cool topic was bilingual schools in Austria. If I would have to judge Pecha Kucha on the topics I listened to, I would say that it was an awesome project and that I would love to do it again, but that is not the case. Honesty is the best policy, right? I hated Pecha Kucha. I hated the way I had to present my topic. I think that every single topic we had to do was fun and that we could have learned so much from the presentation, but it was not like that. In my opinion, the whole learning process got lost in the nervousness of presenting. I know how I felt, at least. I was really under stress because of it. It is not easy to have to present one slide in exactly 20 seconds. When practicing I was either too slow or too fast, or I could not remember my lines. I was also nervous because I did not know whether our videos are going to work or not. On presentation day, at least I think so; I and my partner lost it. She was too slow and talked into my slide, and then I had to be super-fast to catch up and stay within the 20 seconds. Whenever I would catch up she would again be too slow. On one slide I could not remember my lines so I had to leave out a sentence or two. I could not wait for the presentation to be over, honestly.

I never ever want to do a Pecha Kucha presentation again. It was no fun to me, on the contrary my heart started racing, my hands started sweating and a total chaos was in my head. I really love doing presentations; it is one of my favorite parts of class. For instance the last year’s Culture Project was one of my highlights from my first year in university. I really enjoyed doing that presentation. Everyone was so relaxed and looking forward to presenting something they have been working on for weeks. Though we had a limited time there as well, the pressure was not that big. If I would ever get the chance to do either Pecha Kucha or Culture Project again, my answer would be the latter. Maybe my peers liked my Maltese presentation, maybe they did not, I do not know since we did not get any feedback. What I do know, however, is that I am not satisfied with the way I presented it. I hope you guys are satisfied with how you presented your presentation and that you had more fun doing it.

XOXO A.

"Life begins at the end of your comfort zone" :)

Serbia's requirements for the EU - Corrected Version

Hey friends,

check out the corrected version of our paper for Melissa and Fiona on Tiana's blog. Our topic was "Serbia's requirements for joining the EU". Thank you :)


http://tiana-afterglow.blogspot.co.at/2014/01/serbias-requirements-for-eu-corrected.html


XOXO A.

"It is not about what you have done, it is about what you are doing!"

Pronunciation Diary #1

How do we pronounce words in a language? Pronouncing words comes naturally in our mother tongue. We learn to talk by imitating the communication of people around us. Sure, learning how to talk is not mere imitation, but is still a vital part of the process. The words and sentences we construct as children often do not make much sense and do not follow any grammatical pattern. As we are growing up our language skills are improving. We all speak our native languages fluently without being able to explain why that is so. The chances of speaking a foreign language at a fluency level are higher when we are children. It is a known fact that children learn by listening and jabbering, no declension tables or vocabulary lists. As we grow up and reach puberty, our ability to acquire a foreign language at fluency level gets lost. No one can really explain why that is so.

 A vital part of learning a foreign language is the pronunciation of words. As mentioned above when picking up a new language as a child, the pronunciation of words comes naturally, but if you start learning it as an adult, things become tricky. For instance, Croatians and people that start learning Croatian as children have no problems with pronouncing the letters č, ć, š, ž, đ and dž. However, others who start learning it later in life have troubles pronouncing words containing those letters. That is the same in English. Certain letters or letter pairs are hard to pronounce, such as “th”. German native speakers tend to pronounce “thousand” wrong because it is very similar to the German word “tausend”. I also have problems with pronouncing “th”. When I concentrate on what I am reading I pronounce it correctly, but when I am tired or do not concentrate on the text I make mistakes. Bathroom, throne, theory, thesis and thriller all contain “th”.  Essential to sounding like a native speaker is picking up the right pronunciation. Learning pronunciation cannot be left until later because it will be harder to re-learn the words we already know in the correct way. When talking to an English native speaker he might not notice your limited vocabulary or bad grammar at first, but he will notice your bad pronunciation.

So what can I do to improve my pronunciation? What can you do? One way is to watch YouTube videos that deal with that topic. Frank introduced us to Amy and Rachel, two women that have a series of videos where they are explaining how to pronounce words properly. It can be very helpful to look at those videos. I have my own method. Whenever I come across a word I do not know how to pronounce or an old one I am not sure if I am pronouncing correctly, I search for an online dictionary. Those usually have a sound button where you can hear how the word is pronounced. What also helps me and what is my favorite thing to do is skyping with my friends from the States. I usually have a list of words I want to ask them how to pronounce. First, I try to pronounce them and then they correct me if needed. I also love watching series and movies in English, as well as listening to music. Many times I realized, by watching a movie that I am pronouncing a word wrong by hearing the actor say it. What I find particularly fun while learning pronunciation is watching Ronnie's videos. Andrina, a very nice girl from my class, introduced Ronnie to us in class. I liked her videos so much that I looked them up at YouTube and started watching. Ronnie is so nice and makes learning proper pronunciation fun. I highly recommend watching her videos. This is her YouTube channel http://www.youtube.com/user/EnglishLessons4U?feature=watch

Here is another link about 5 key areas in which non-native English speakers have problems

http://www.callearning.com/blog/2011/03/5-problem-areas-in-english-pronunciation/

“Dearest creature in creation,

Study English pronunciation.

I will teach you in my verse

Sounds like corpse, corps, horse, and worse.

I will keep you, Suzy, busy,

Make your head with heat grow dizzy.

Tear in eye, your dress will tear.

So shall I! Oh hear my prayer.

Just compare heart, beard, and heard,

Dies and diet, lord and word,

Sword and sward, retain and Britain.

(Mind the latter, how it’s written.)

Now I surely will not plague you

With such words as plaque and ague.

But be careful how you speak:

Say break and steak, but bleak and streak;

Cloven, oven, how and low,

Script, receipt, show, poem, and toe.

Hear me say, devoid of trickery,

Daughter, laughter, and Terpsichore,

Typhoid, measles, topsails, aisles,

Exiles, similes, and reviles;

Scholar, vicar, and cigar,

Solar, mica, war and far;

One, anemone, Balmoral,

Kitchen, lichen, laundry, laurel;

Gertrude, German, wind and mind,

Scene, Melpomene, mankind.

Billet does not rhyme with ballet,

Bouquet, wallet, mallet, chalet.

Blood and flood are not like food,

Nor is mould like should and would.

Viscous, viscount, load and broad,

Toward, to forward, to reward.

And your pronunciation’s OK

When you correctly say croquet,

Rounded, wounded, grieve and sieve,

Friend and fiend, alive and live.

Ivy, privy, famous; clamour

And enamour rhyme with hammer.

River, rival, tomb, bomb, comb,

Doll and roll and some and home.

Stranger does not rhyme with anger,

Neither does devour with clangour.

Souls but foul, haunt but aunt,

Font, front, wont, want, grand, and grant,

Shoes, goes, does. Now first say finger,

And then singer, ginger, linger,

Real, zeal, mauve, gauze, gouge and gauge,

Marriage, foliage, mirage, and age.

Query does not rhyme with very,

Nor does fury sound like bury.

Dost, lost, post and doth, cloth, loth.

Job, nob, bosom, transom, oath.

Though the differences seem little,

We say actual but victual.

Refer does not rhyme with deafer.

Foeffer does, and zephyr, heifer.

Mint, pint, senate and sedate;

Dull, bull, and George ate late.

Scenic, Arabic, Pacific,

Science, conscience, scientific.

Liberty, library, heave and heaven,

Rachel, ache, moustache, eleven.

We say hallowed, but allowed,

People, leopard, towed, but vowed.

Mark the differences, moreover,

Between mover, cover, clover;

Leeches, breeches, wise, precise,

Chalice, but police and lice;

Camel, constable, unstable,

Principle, disciple, label.

Petal, panel, and canal,

Wait, surprise, plait, promise, pal.

Worm and storm, chaise, chaos, chair,

Senator, spectator, mayor.

Tour, but our and succour, four.

Gas, alas, and Arkansas.

Sea, idea, Korea, area,

Psalm, Maria, but malaria.

Youth, south, southern, cleanse and clean.

Doctrine, turpentine, marine.

Compare alien with Italian,

Dandelion and battalion.

Sally with ally, yea, ye,

Eye, I, ay, aye, whey, and key.

Say aver, but ever, fever,

Neither, leisure, skein, deceiver.

Heron, granary, canary.

Crevice and device and aerie.

Face, but preface, not efface.

Phlegm, phlegmatic, ass, glass, bass.

Large, but target, gin, give, verging,

Ought, out, joust and scour, scourging.

Ear, but earn and wear and tear

Do not rhyme with here but ere.

Seven is right, but so is even,

Hyphen, roughen, nephew Stephen,

Monkey, donkey, Turk and jerk,

Ask, grasp, wasp, and cork and work.

Pronunciation (think of Psyche!)

Is a paling stout and spikey?

Won’t it make you lose your wits,

Writing groats and saying grits?

It’s a dark abyss or tunnel:

Strewn with stones, stowed, solace, gunwale,

Islington and Isle of Wight,

Housewife, verdict and indict.

Finally, which rhymes with enough,

Though, through, plough, or dough, or cough?

Hiccough has the sound of cup.

My advice is to give up!!!”

Gerard Nolst Trenité, Drop your Foreign Accent

XOXO A.

Vocabulary notebook #1

Learning new words can be hard and time-consuming. However, having a solid vocabulary is essential for learning a foreign language. Sitting at home, locked up in my room with a vocabulary list on my screen is not my favorite thing to do, but it is something I have to do in order to improve my English. In order to learn the vocabulary necessary for the progress check, Laura has been organizing a Google Spreadsheet. Laura is a friend of mine from class. We are a group of students who are working on the spreadsheet regularly. Laura assigns each of us a unit and a grammar chapter. We then have to work on it. We fill in the words we need to know, the definitions, synonyms, antonyms, translations and example sentences. Sometimes we also fill in the “further info” box when attention needs to be drawn at something in particular, such as the pronunciation. As soon as we are done with it we can start studying.

These are the links to our documents from SUK1 and SUK2:

SUK1: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Ai-faUvNNlKPdDctTWxXWUVMVnA3UFVSZTFiY2lBV3c#gid=26

SUK2: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Ai-faUvNNlKPdE1vTWRiQjVBZTJCWTUtdHZSeDhobmc#gid=26

SUK3: I cannot give you the link to the SUK3 document because we put a lot of work and effort in it and it we want to keep it private.

So how do I learn vocabulary? I read through the list a couple of times. The first time I read the words and the definitions. The second time I look at which words I already know and which still need working on. Knowing a word does not mean knowing only its translation. It also means knowing how to use the word, its synonym and antonyms, as well as knowing how to use it in a sentence. After I know how many words I have to learn, I start re-reading the list. Repeat, repeat, repeat. There is no other way. Since I prefer to hold a piece of paper in my hands I also write certain words on sticky notes. Usually those words are the ones I have problems with, in terms of pronunciation, knowing their meaning or using them in a sentence. What also helps me is making connections to my mother tongue, Croatian. Some words sound similar and have the same meaning so that helps me a lot too. Another way to remember new words is to use them in a sentence. Make the sentences as fun as possible. You are likely to remember a fun sentence with a new word than a sentence that is a mere definition of the word. I hope you can apply some of my study techniques yourself. Studying vocabulary is not the most fun way to spend you weekend, but believe me, in the end it will be worth it.

XOXO A.

 “As vocabulary is reduced, so are the number of feelings you can express, the number of events you can describe, the number of the things you can identify! Not only understanding is limited, but also experience. Man grows by language. Whenever he limits language he retrogresses!”

Sheri S. Tepper, A Plague of Angels

Europe is a state of mind: Is Croatia there yet?

On July 1st 2013 Croatia became the 28th country to join the European Union. It was the end of a long road that Croatia has been on for over a decade. Even though Croatia had to make many reforms to be able to become a member state, certain countries argue that Croatia was ready to join. Europe is a state of mind, being part of the Europe Union needs to be felt as a privilege by every Croatian citizen. Also, it is important to embrace differences between cultures and people and respect them. Lately Croatia has been struggling with the latter. LGBT and minority rights have been in the focus of the Croatian public in the last months. The implementation of the Cyrillic alphabet on signs of state institutions in Vukovar brought up the ghosts of history. Vukovar, a city completely devastated by war, after it underwent a three month long occupation by the Serbs, feels as if it is not ready to accept the Cyrillic alphabet, which is the alphabet of the Serbian language. The people of Croatia decided on a referendum that was conducted on Sunday that marriage is a bond between a man and a woman and as such should be written down in the constitution. What does that tell us about Croatia respecting the rights of homosexuals and minorities? Another important issue is corruption on all levels. Though reducing corruption rates was one of the requirements on joining the Union, tremendous progress has not been made. All these examples lead us to the question whether Croatia has left its past behind or is it still affecting its present and future? The aim of this academic paper is to bring closer the Croatian culture to other people, to explain why Croatians are behaving the way they are and how that is affecting their progress as a country. I hold this topic very dear to my heart because I am Croatian and because I sometimes feel ashamed of how my fellow citizens are behaving, but on the other hand I can see why that is so. Many people dealt with this problem before me and have published papers on it so finding the sources for it should not be a problem. All in all, I think that this is an important topic since it can give the reader a different perspective on the youngest EU member and its struggle to become a true European state.

"Croatia is an amazing place" Jean Reno

XOXO A.

Why Serbia should join the EU?

Hi!

Me and my friends Tiana and Dajana had to write an essay about Serbia and its relation to the European Union. We chose to write about why Serbia should join. If you are interested in politics, the European Union and its enlargement process, take a look at it. You can find it on Tiana's blog. I hope you will find it interesting. :)

http://tiana-afterglow.blogspot.co.at/2013/12/serbias-requirements-for-joining-eu.html


"You're not to be so blind with patriotism that you can't face reality. Wrong is wrong, no matter who does it or says it." Malcolm X

Anonymus summary

Anonymus summary:

Ambrose Evans-Pitchard’s article in The Telegraph of the 23rd October 2013 analyses the

approaching European deflation in connection with debt.

At the beginning of the text, the author mentions that deflation had already occurred before.

Deflation can influence the economy of countries positively if they are not too heavily in debt.

This, however, is not the case in Europe: As many countries are overburdened with debts,

repaying it becomes more and more difficult if the inflation is too low. This problem does not

only affect national but also private debt.

It is argued that the ECB should try everything to maintain an inflation of at least 2% in order

to prevent from an economic disaster, but according to the author Europe seems to be

paralyzed. Italy, France and Spain should gang up on Germany and dictate a new policy,

which combats deflation and could therefore help restoring the damaged economies. Yet, they

fear that Germany might leave the EMU and leave it up to the rest to solve the debt problem.

Summing up, Europe is far away from a proper solution. It still seems to be in recession but

prefers to wait for an economic miracle instead of taking the initiative.

[201 words]

Dear anonymous writer,

What I like about your article is that you have a topic and a concluding sentence. I also like how you divided your summary into paragraphs; it makes it easier to read. However, your first sentence in the second paragraph makes no sense to me. Of course deflation happened before; it would be kind of naive to think it did not. Furthermore, in your third paragraph you are saying that Italy, France and Spain should gang up on Germany. Why Germany? Why not the UK for instance? I think that you should have explained it better. I do understand what you mean by that but someone who has not read the original article and is not familiar with the European economy might ask the same question. I know that we had a 200 words limit but I think you could have done a better job with explaining why Germany is to blame. Also, there would be no “rest to solve the problem“ if Germany leaves the EMU. Something like that would probably lead to the collapse of the EMU. From a perspective of someone who read the original article I think that your summary is fine although certain changes should be made. Please, do not take this personally. I am only doing my homework.

[217 words]

XOXO A.

"It is well to read everything of something, and something of everything." Joseph Brodsky

The council of Europe

Good morning!

I just want to inform you that I and my colleagues had to write a paragraph about the council of Europe. If you are interested in reading what we wrote, check out Cat's blog (link below). Thank you and have a nice day!

XOXO A.

http://sparklyzombiecat.blogspot.co.at/2013/11/the-council-of-europe.html

"The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time" Abraham Lincoln

The European Year of...

Hello!

Our topic for SUK3 is the European Union. In class we had to get into groups and write a paragraph about "The European Year of..." Check it out, maybe you will learn something you did not know before.



 The concept of the European Year was first introduced in 1983, and each year since, the EU has picked a 
specific topic to discuss within the member countries of the European Union. The purpose of the European Years is to concentrate and debate on subjects that are currently important to the EU in order to change certain policies to improve the standard of living for its citizens. Each year, a specific theme is proposed by the Commission and approved by the European Parliament. 1997 was named the “European Year against racism and xenophobia”. As a leader in protecting human rights, the EU wanted to raise public awareness of the dangers of racism and xenophobia and stress the importance of equal rights. Languages are of great importance for the EU as well; hence it was proposed to promote them and their impact on our everyday life in form of a “European Year of Languages” in 2001. The aim was to encourage the citizens of the European Union to take interest in learning foreign languages. As a sort of extension to the 2001 project, 2008 was named the „European Year of Intercultural Dialogue“. It was a year of projects, campaigns, debates and festivals all aimed at increasing mutual understanding and dialogue between different cultures. In a nutshell, the European Year focuses on important topics and works towards bringing forth positive changes.


"Each day you learn something new, and just as important, relearn something old." Robert Brault

XOXO A.

Summertime sadness...

Hey guys, 

I am really sorry for not posting anything in such a long time. I suck with blogging this semester, I know. It is just that this semester is so exhausting. I have literally no time for eating, let alone blogging. Every now and then I want to scream and cry at the same time because the amount of work for this semester is crazy. Summary writing, pronunciation diary, Proseminar paper, German exams, the list of tasks seems to be endless. I cannot wait for Christmas, and especially for February when this crappy semester will finally be over.

What keeps me going are the great memories from Lisbon this summer. I remember how hard I worked last year to be able to award myself with an awesome trip, and that is what I want to do next year too. Let me give you a brief description of why you should visit Lisbon!

1) Tiles or "azulejo" in Portuguese

There are very few places in the world that can pride themselves of maintaining the tradition and artistic use of tiles. They are used to decorate interiors or whole facades of houses or churches. Azulejos are present in so many corners of the city, at viewpoints, metro stations, church fronts, or on walls of important buildings. In Alfama, the “azulejos” show the images of saints. They are placed at the entrance of houses as a form of protection. Throughout the Bairro Alto or the Chiado areas, some of the facades of houses are filled with this Portuguese form of art. Each group of them tells a story. Azulejos are a big part of Portuguese history and culture. They are the symbol of Portugal and hence are found on every corner in the city. „What the ...., are those azulejos? This looks fabulous“, this was something I was saying to my friend almost every day.

2)  People

My friend Jasenka and I were staying at a hostel on Praça dos Restauradores (city center). It was our first hostel experience. We were skeptic in the beginning but it turned out to be the best place we ever stayed at. Our hosts were amazing young people from all over the world who made us feel at home, when I say home, I really mean it. They would make pancakes for us every morning, organize typical Portuguese dinners, sing karaoke or take us out to Bairro Alto to experience the nightlife in Lisbon. People in Lisbon are in general very nice and will try to help you as much as they can and as much as their language skills let them (their English language skills are not the best) Oh before I forget, that is the hostel: http://www.goodmorninghostel.com/

3) Beaches
Swimming in the ocean was on my “To do list in Lisbon”. I almost did not do it because one week was not enough for everything me and Jasenka had planned. The last day of our trip we managed to arrive at the beach around 6 pm. Even though the sun was still out, there were not many people there. Jasenka refused to go into the water since it was really cold, around 12C. The only people in the water were surfers trying to catch a good wave. Without hesitation and without listening to Jasenka, who was screaming at me because I might get a cold or a bladder inflammation, I ran into the water like Pamela Anderson does in Baywatch hahaha :D. The minute I was in, I was happy. It did not bother me that the water was freezing or that the sun was going down, I did what I came for. Portuguese beaches are in general very beautiful because they are sandy; the problem though is that the water is freezing in comparison to the Mediterranean Sea.

4)  Food and beverages

I do not think I need to talk about Portuguese wines, do I? They are world famous for a reason. I could easily get used to drinking them every day ;) Then there is Ginjinha or simply Ginja, a liqueur made by infusing Ginja berries (sour cherry) in alcohol and adding sugar together with other ingredients. Ginja is served in a shot form and is relatively cheap. Only one euro per shot!!! What is really cool is a little shop that sells Ginja in chocolate cups. After you drinking your Ginja you eat the chocolate cup. Delicious! A must try while in Lisbon!

5) Nightlife

Oh my gosh, what do I tell you about the nightlife? I cannot put into words what a great time I had in Lisbon. Prior to flying to Lisbon we didn't really inform ourselves about the nightlife, we just wanted to get surprised by it and boy did we get surprised! The first night we went out, we ran into a Croatian bar. Can you imagine our surprise? The guy that worked there is from Serbia and his name is Kristijan. Kiki is the party king of Lisbon. He knows everyone and everyone knows him. Not only is he fun to be around and a great host but also a wonderful person. He took us to the best places in Lisbon, introduced us to many interesting people and gave us the time of our life. We also met Tom and Maxi, two brothers from Germany, Andreas and his friend from Switzerland, a lovely gay couple from Russia, two French guys who are models for Gucci and Marc Jacobs and the owner of the best nightclub in Lisbon. I want to thank every single one of them for making our holiday unforgettable. They are a great bunch of people who have the heart in the right place. I truly hope to see them all again next year. If you are ever in Lisbon you should visit Urban Beach Club. It is a club above the ocean with a breath taking view of Lisbon. While dancing through the night you can see the skyline of Lisbon and the stars and the moon and in the morning you see the sun coming out and greeting this amazing city. An experience I will never forget! 

I highly recommend visiting Lisbon. It is a city with rich history that offers so much to its tourists. In my opinion it is not as beautiful as Vienna but it is certainly a city worth visiting. Lisbon, as well as whole Portugal, was hit very hard by the global economic crisis. Poverty is visible on every corner. High unemployment rates caused many people to leave their homes in the center of the city resulting in lots of abandoned buildings. They are rotting away because no one is taking care of them. Another thing that was rather disappointing to me was the fact that Lisbon is dirty. People throw trash on the streets and no one cares about it, no one will pick it up. It is not something I am used to. In Austria you could get punished if you throw something just like that on the street. There is so much more I would like to tell you about Lisbon but I do not want to bore you out and I think you should all check it out by yourself. TAP Portugal offers really cheap flights (mine was 140 euros from Zagreb) to Lisbon and hostels in Lisbon are also very cheap and comfortable. According to one survey Portugal has the best hostels in the world! My trip motivated me to start learning Portuguese. The grammar is not that hard but I am still struggling with pronunciation.  But I can do it.

Now, I need to get back to my English homework. Oh joy. You gotta do, what you gotta do.

Have a great week guys! :)

XOXO A. 

"Once a year, go someplace you have never been before..."  :)

The European Dream

Have you ever thought about the hardships that African migrants face in Europe? The majority of them come to Europe looking for a better life without having any idea what is really out there. Their dreams and hopes are shattered once they step on European ground. Our reporters interviewed a group of migrants who were willing to share their stories.

Mopi and Emmanuel are African migrants. Both were educated as draughtsman in their home countries, but they are unable to find a job in Europe in that area because they are not educated well enough for European standards. After arriving in Europe, they were faced with many obstacles, such as having no place to live. In order to earn some money and get back on their feet they started parking cars. They usually earn four to five Euros per day, on good days even six. Most of the time, their first meal of the day comes after work. Their friends in Africa think they have money now that they are in Europe and are feel let down by at them for not sending some anything home. Emmanuel on the other hand says that people expect too much from immigrating to Europe and recommends everyone who is doing well in Africa to stay there because of the hardships they might face in Europe.

Another impressive story is about Sylvia from Uganda. She has been living in Amsterdam for 15 years, constantly facing housing problems. She moves like an outcast from one place to another. Even after she obtained her legal papers, she could not find a permanent stay. She says, “When people come to Europe, they think they will pick up money like mangos from trees, but reality is, of course, different”. When people from Africa have problems, they do not have anyone to ask for help, and when they do, it does not mean that someone is going to help them. “We grew up knowing that any person is a sister or a brother, but in Europe no one wants to help you”, Sylvia’s words cut to the heart. The issue is that it is illegal to rent a house to people without papers in Holland. Moreover, when Sylvia was broke and could not pay for the rent, her landlady implied that she should sell her body in order to earn money. After her refusal she was kicked out of the house without any of her belongings. These are the real challenges which people from Africa face every day. After this situation Sylvia wanted to commit suicide. She went to a lake with her little Bible, she was thinking and crying, but then she heard a barking dog. She supposed the owner of the dog must be near, and if he sees her, he will take her to the police and she will be deported. Why do you think people from Africa do not want to be deported? The truth is because it is embarrassing to return home without any savings and without having accomplished anything. Fortunately, Sylvia overcame her crisis and became a stronger person. Now she has a daughter and is looking to the future with confidence.

The new coming migrants are astounded by some peculiarities of European culture, where being broke means there is no use in expecting any help from other people. For example, when a street singer came to a so-called “friend” of his, he was never invited into his house, even though they knew each other very well. Back home people are more open-minded to welcoming friends into their homes. From his point of view Europeans are selfish and too self-concerned. The same conclusion was drawn by an African reporter who claims that people in Denmark are concerned with petty issues, like providing passports for their animals and the amount of money they cost. However, there are of course examples of relatively successful migrants, such as professional football players. Abu did not only make it to the main squad of FC Utrecht, he is now about to open a football Academy in Uganda, which will allow to enrich European football with talented African players. This proves that African migrants, once being accepted can provide a valid contribution to society, not only sell their bodies and park cars.

To sum up, we all want to be happy and we all deserve a better life. However, is it possible for migrants from Africa to find their happiness, is it in their own hands or is Europe being too selfish to respond to this burning issue in modern society?

EU individual paragraph

In 2011 the European Commission decided to make 2013 the “European Year of Citizens”. Exactly 20 years ago leaders of 12 member nations signed the Maastricht Treaty removing all barriers to the movement of people, goods, capital and services across national borders, as well as establishing a single European currency, the euro. By signing the Treaty lives of millions of Europeans were affected. To honor this event and the citizen, the one who started it all, the European Commission decided to dedicate the whole year to it. Every citizen of the EU has certain rights and over this year they want to encourage us to inform ourselves more about them. Approximately 48% of Europeans feel that they are not well-informed about their rights and in order to change that the Commission will host various conferences and events across Europe. Besides having rights, Europeans also have responsibilities. In order to be able to understand both, we need to know what the EU is doing for us and what we can do for it and what better way than to enjoy our year?

(181 words)

XOXO A.

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has"       Margaret Mead

Paragraph brainstorming:

-> 2013 "European Year of Citizens"

-> Maastricht Treaty

-> European Commission proposed the idea

-> Rights and responsibilities we have as EU citizens

-> European citizens can make a difference for they are the ones who started it all

Feedback summary 1 (Topic sentence, Register):

I was given positive feedback on my paragraph. Thanks to my colleagues, Cat and Monika, I was able to look at my paragraph from a whole new perspective. I like getting feedback because it shows me what still needs working on. In my case, it is the commas. I make comma mistakes often. I simply forget that they even exist. I think I will have to read through rules for comma usage. My colleagues liked my topic sentence and the high register I used but suggested to change my last sentence in order to connect better to the rest of the paragraph.

Revised paragraph 1:

In 2011, the European Commission decided to make 2013 the “European Year of Citizens”. Exactly 20 years ago leaders of 12 member nations signed the Maastricht Treaty, removing all barriers to the movement of people, goods, capital and services across national borders, as well as establishing a single European currency, the euro. By signing the Treaty, lives of millions of Europeans were affected. To honor this event and the citizen, the one who started it all, the European Commission decided to dedicate the whole year to it. Every citizen of the EU has certain rights and over this year they want to encourage us to inform ourselves more about them. Approximately 48% of Europeans feel that they are not well-informed about their rights and in order to change that the Commission will host various conferences and events across Europe. Besides having rights, Europeans also have responsibilities. In order to be able to understand both, we need to know what the EU is doing for us and what we can do for it and this is exactly the point of the „European Year of Citizens“.

(184 words)

Feedback summary 2 (Topic sentence, Register):

The second feedback I got from my colleagues was again very positive. My friend Cat pointed out that I should make two more changes in my paragraph. Instead of saying “over the year” I should use more sophisticated words and write „throughout the year“. She also noticed another mistake. In my paragraph I wrote “To honor this event and the citizen, the one who started it all,...”. This might confuse people as they would think that I am talking about a specific person, which I am not. That is why Cat suggested changing it into „To honor this event and the citizens, those who started it all,..“. I am very thankful for the feedback I got from my colleagues because they taught me valuable lessons about my style of writing.

Final paragraph:

In 2011, the European Commission decided to make 2013 the “European Year of Citizens”. Exactly 20 years ago leaders of 12 member nations signed the Maastricht Treaty, removing all barriers to the movement of people, goods, capital and services across national borders, as well as establishing a single European currency, the euro. By signing the Treaty, lives of millions of Europeans were affected. To honor this event and the citizens, those who started it all, the European Commission decided to dedicate the whole year to it. Every citizen of the EU has certain rights and throughout the year they want to encourage us to inform ourselves more about them. Approximately 48% of Europeans feel that they are not well-informed about their rights and in order to change that the Commission will host various conferences and events across Europe. Besides having rights, Europeans also have responsibilities. In order to be able to understand both, we need to know what the EU is doing for us and what we can do for it and this is exactly the point of the „European Year of Citizens“.

(185 words)

Final paragraph-teachers's correction:
In 2011, the European Commission decided to make 2013 the “European Year of Citizens”. Exactly 20 years ago leaders of 12 member nations signed the Maastricht Treaty, removing all barriers to the movement of people, goods, capital and services across national borders, as well as establishing a single European currency, the euro. By signing the Treaty, the lives of millions of Europeans were affected. To honor this event and the citizens, those who started it all(?), the European Commission decided to dedicate the whole year to it. Every citizen of the EU has certain rights and throughout the year they(?) want to encourage us to inform ourselves more about them(?). Approximately 48% of Europeans feel that they are not well-informed about their rights and in order to change that the Commission will host various conferences and events across Europe. Besides having rights, Europeans also have responsibilities(?). In order to be able to understand both, we need to know what the EU is doing for us and what we can do for it and this is exactly the point of the „European Year of Citizens“.

(183 words)

Final final paragraph:
In 2011, the European Commission decided to make 2013 the “European Year of Citizens”. 20 years ago leaders of 12 member states signed the Maastricht Treaty, removing all barriers to the movement of people, goods, capital and services across national borders, as well as establishing a single European currency, the euro. By signing the Treaty, the lives of millions of Europeans were affected. To honor this event and the citizens who make up the EU, the European Commission decided to dedicate the whole year to it. Every citizen of the EU has certain rights and throughout the year the Commission wants to encourage us to inform ourselves more about them. Approximately 48% of Europeans feel that they are not well-informed about their rights and in order to change that the Commission will host various conferences and events across Europe. To conclude, the goal of the “European Year of Citizens“ is to increase awareness and knowledge of EU citizenship.

(158 words)

My five EU topics!

Hi guys!!

I am BACK! Sumer is over(unfortunately) and I am back to serious business. This blog post is mandatory and the topic is already given so I will not be able to write to you about my summer adventures but I promise I will do so soon. Our task is to choose five topics connected to the EU. Out of those five we will have to choose one for our academic paper. I gave it some thought and these are the ideas I came up with.

1)The role of the EU in the Balkans (Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia, Bosnia Herzegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia, Kosovo)

The European Union has been considering elargement in the Balkans since at least the late 1990s. Slovenia joined it first in 2004. Croatia, my country, joined it on 1 July 2013 and the other ones are on its way, more or less. Since Croatia has been trying to join the EU for more than a decade I am really familiar with the EU and its politics in this region. I am also currently following the situation Serbia is in. 

2) The advantages and disadvantages of joining the EU

What does a country get with joining the EU?  What are the disadvantages of joining it? Fees? What about EU funds?

3) Is the Euro really the future of the EU?

Since the global economic crisis ht the EU in 2008 a common currency brought nothing but trouble to the EU. Maybe Greece would have been better off if they stayed with their drachme. Countries like Spain and Italy requested bailouts. Those countries are too important to the European economy to just let them go bankrupt. For instance Italy, the fourth-largest in Europe and the tenth-largest economy in the world.

4) Why Iceland does not want to join the EU anymore?

For a long time Iceland wanted to join the EU and then suddenly the Government of Iceland has announced it will suspend its application to join the European Union. Why? What happened in Iceland that they decided not to join the EU? I want to take a better look at the reasons why Iceland refused to join the EU.

5) Neo-Nazi parties on the rise in the EU

Neo-Nazi parties are on the rise in the EU again. More and more people in the countries across Europe are protesting about the EU migration policies. They feel as if the immigrants are taking away their jobs and are trying to take over their countries. Also since terrorism has become more and more so, many people are scared that immigrants are going to terrorize their country. Many Neo-Nazi parties are growing in support among the people such the Golden Dawn in Greece, the NPD in Germany or the Front National in France. I think that this topics would be really interesting to research as we all know what happened during the rise of the Nazis in Germany in the 1940s. 

XOXO A.

"Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity."  Martin Luther King, Jr.