viernes, 30 de octubre de 2015

Halloween in Spain and the first day of November, All Saints Day


When I was a child, there wasn't "Halloween" in Spain. I used to go to the cemetery  with my family in NerjaIt really impressed me to feel the presence of the death. It was like a trip to the past and the future, where I began to ask myself great questions about my existence. A great lesson for life.


The first day of November is "All Saints Day" in Spain. We celebrate a Christian practice to remember the dead. Many Spaniards visit cemeteries, especially in the villages, they carry flowers and clean the graves of relatives and friends. Most people are buried in niches. They are like little apartments. 


These holidays come from pagan autumn festivals, they announce the proximity of the winter. During the autumn, the field after the joy of vintages is waiting for sowing. The Earth, a female symbol, appears barren at this time of the year, but after receiving seed, male symbol, this land becomes hope.


This celebration represents a reunion between the world of the dead (arid land) and the world of the living (life). In the past, after dinner, we used to eat: la castañada, it was a family food dedicated to the dead, which was a souvenir of the ancient funerary meals.

VOCABULARY


Child
Niño-a
Cemetery
Cementerio
Dead
Muerto
To carry
Llevar
Grave
Tumba
Relatives
Parientes
Joy
Gozo
Vintage
Vendimia
Sowing
Siembra
Barren
Estéril
Seed
Semilla
Male
Masculino
Female
Femenino
Land
Tierra
Hope
Esperanza
Chestnut
Castaña
Meal
Comida

jueves, 22 de octubre de 2015

España es el país con la esperanza de vida más larga de Europa, las mujeres viven una media de 85 años y los hombres 80
















En los últimos dos siglos, la esperanza de vida en Occidente ha aumentado de forma asombrosa. Durante el siglo XX, el mundo vivió una transformación sin precedentes: por primera vez en la historia de nuestra especie, la edad más probable para morir no es la infancia. Algunas estimaciones indican que la mujer tenía una media de 5 hijos debido a que 3 de los 5 no sobrevivían. Y por supuesto, si una mujer tenía muchos hijos, el riesgo de morir durante el parto era mayor.

En la actualidad, España es uno de los países con una mayor esperanza y calidad de vida de Europa, las mujeres viven una media de 85 años y los hombres 80, según el Instituto Nacional de Estadística.

La mujer vive más debido a factores biológicos y estilos de vida. La mujer es la responsable de reproducir la especie; está dotada de dos cromosomas (xx), en caso de que alguno falle; tiene un corazón más fuerte y hormonas para estimular el instinto de conservación.

El envejecimiento progresivo y  la transformación estructural de la sociedad moderna han producido un cambio en la consideración hacia los ancianos. Esta sociedad moderna, basada en criterios de eficacia, considera a los ancianos improductivos. En el pasado eran respetados; ahora son tratados como niños.

En la actualidad, una de las ocupaciones menos apreciadas es la de cuidador de ancianos, este trabajo es realizado principalmente por mujeres, muchas de ellas inmigrantes. Si estos ancianos no pueden ser cuidados por la familia, requieren ser internados en residencias. Estas organizaciones han aumentado rápidamente en los últimos años y algunas presentan problemas que  escapan a un control de calidad y  en muchos casos tratan a los ancianos como objetos.

Sin embargo, muchos ancianos organizan ellos mismos sus vidas, si la salud y la situación económica son buenas;  incluso algunos llegan a cambiar de lugar de  residencia; especialmente británicos y alemanes jubilados disfrutan  del clima y  estilo de vida saludable en España.

martes, 6 de octubre de 2015

Intercambio Inglés-Español Casa Cultura Gerald Brenan: "CAMPO VERSUS CIUDAD ", artículo de Sur in English

ENVIRONMENT

The increase in organic production has boosted an activity which had lost its popularity and is attracting young people to this rural area
25.09.15 - 13:31 - 

Malaga growing is getting greener
Pepe Urbano and Toñi Hevilla with their “happy hens”. :: Ángel de los Ríos
Noa runs barefoot through the vegetable plot, finds a fig and eats it with a clear delight that would surprise many town-dwelling parents. Noa is nearly three and figs are one of her favourite fruits.
“Children love growing up in the countryside. They learn to be patient, that they can eat these three strawberries which are red today, but if they want more they’ll have to wait until tomorrow,” says Noa’s mother, 37-year-old Cristina Lucas, who until three years ago used to live and work in Seville, as did her husband, who was an engineer for Renault. They both felt the call of the countryside, if not the wild, when Noa was conceived, and they have ended up in Coín, where their vegetable plot makes them self-sufficient, and they organise courses in ecological farming (www.cursoagriculturaecologica.com).
Cristina and Juan Luis don’t feel out of place in the Guadalhorce Valley. They are not the only young people to have moved from a city to the countryside, the opposite route to that which thousands of rural residents have been taking for decades.
They were seeking personal change, as the founders of Caña Dulce did 15 years ago: Caña Dulce, also in Coín, is devoted to permaculture, a philosophy of life which covers everything from sustainable agriculture to bioconstruction and yoga.
However, in the increasingly popular ‘eco’ lifestyle in this region of Malaga there are other profiles, too: people who want an alternative type of self-employment, those who decide to use a family plot as a source of extra income and farmers who have been converted to the idea of ecological production because it is more profitable.
The so-called ‘garden of Malaga’ is becoming green again thanks to the increase in ecological production, which has boosted the economy and the self-esteem of an activity which had lost its popularity.
Pepe Urbano is one of them. He and his family set up the first ecological chicken farm in the province on a two hectare site in Coín. As well as producing free range eggs from what Pepe calls his “happy hens”, the family grows pecan nuts. “Ecological produce has become fashionable, but it isn’t just a matter of the label. You have to believe in it,” insists Pepe.
Sebastián also stresses that this type of agriculture boosts other businesses. There are now more suppliers, fertiliser companies and industries which make bread, preserves, olive oil, cheese etc., in the ‘eco garden’ of Malaga province.
Joining a cooperative
One indication of the volume of business is the Guadalhorce Ecológico cooperative. It was formed by the association of the same name, brings together about 20 producers and provides work for five people in its premises in Alhaurín el Grande. The president of this cooperative, Miguel Angulo, says both production and consumption have grown in recent years and that this ‘eco revolution’ has had a dynamic effect on the area.
The recovery of traditional agriculture has also achieved something spectacular: consumers in Malaga have finally become enthusiastic about buying local produce. 
“Our best products have always been sent elsewhere because people in Malaga were only interested in the price,” explains Sebastián.
In the beginning, ecological products from the Guadalhorce region were also exported abroad or, at least, were sent to northern Spain.
That has changed now, though, and much of the credit goes to the farmers’ markets organised by the Guadalhorce Ecológico association, which has been gradually raising awareness among consumers in Malaga.
These markets, which now regularly take place in six municipalities in the province, started in Coín nearly ten years ago. Between 15 and 22 producers from the region participate.
“The markets are very important because they bring consumers face to face with the producers and they then understand how this tomato or that cheese which they are going to eat is produced,” says Sebastián.
These markets have also led to something else which is new for Malaga: home deliveries of organic seasonal fruit and vegetables, either by individuals or through associations or consumer groups.
“This is something which is spreading through word of mouth. People are now organising regular deliveries to their places of work, for example,” explains Sebastián.
Worried about health
There are various reasons for the increasing popularity of organic products, including health concerns, an increasing interest in gastronomy and the work done by chefs from Malaga in stressing the quality of local produce.
 Price is also a factor.“It is not true that ecological products are more expensive. We did a study in Malaga some time ago which showed that the fruit and vegetables our farmers sell are no more expensive than in the big stores,” insists Sebastián Hevilla.

viernes, 2 de octubre de 2015

jueves, 1 de octubre de 2015

¿Cuál es tu nivel de español? What is your degree of Spanish? (Instituto Cervantes)

¿Cuál es tu nivel de español? Pincha en este enlace y descúbrelo. What is your degree of Spanish? Click on this link and find out.http://ave.cervantes.es/prueba_nivel/default.htm


The Diplomas in Spanish DELE were created in 1988 by the Ministry of Education (RD 826/88).

The Diplomas DELE are official qualifications certifying the degree of competence and mastery of Spanish, granted by Instituto Cervantes on behalf of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Sport of Spain.

The DELE examination provides for all the different variants of the Spanish language. They are all considered as valid to obtain the diploma.

The DELE examinations have been designed following the guidelines of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) of the Council of Europe, which ensures a practical way of establishing a standard, international and objective measurement of the level that should be reached at each teaching stage, and in evaluating results.

The University of Salamanca collaborates with Instituto Cervantes in designing exam papers and in grading the tests leading to the Diplomas in Spanish.

The levels of the Diplomas in Spanish are integrated into the CEFR:

Diploma in Spanish Level A1.
Diploma in Spanish Level A2.
Diploma in Spanish Level B1.
Diploma in Spanish Level B2.
Diploma in Spanish Level C1.
Diploma in Spanish Level C2.

Los diplomas de español DELE fueron creados en 1988 por el Ministerio de Educación (RD 826/88).

Los DELE son títulos oficiales, acreditativos del grado de competencia y dominio del idioma español, que otorga el Instituto Cervantes en nombre del Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte de España.

El DELE contempla todas las variantes del español y se consideran igualmente válidas para obtener el diploma.

Los exámenes DELE están diseñados siguiendo las directrices del Marco común europeo de referencia (MCER) del Consejo de Europa, lo cual garantiza una manera práctica de establecer una medición estándar internacional y objetiva sobre el nivel que debe alcanzarse en cada etapa de la enseñanza y en la evaluación de resultados.

La Universidad de Salamanca colabora con el Instituto Cervantes en la elaboración de los modelos de examen y en la evaluación de las pruebas para la obtención de los diplomas de español.

Los Diplomas DELE cubren todos los niveles del MCER:

Diploma de español Nivel A1.
Diploma de español Nivel A2.
Diploma de español Nivel B1.
Diploma de español Nivel B2.
Diploma de español Nivel C1.
Diploma de español Nivel C2.

Más información: http://diplomas.cervantes.es/en/information/dele_description.html