tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17391053679962710812024-02-17T23:16:59.081-08:00Portuguese TipsTips by a Brazilian Portuguese TeacherAnandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.comBlogger43125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-22742100522275659322010-08-10T18:37:00.000-07:002010-08-10T19:32:18.986-07:00University Vocabulary in Portuguese<div style="text-align: justify;"> Oi gente! Elena Como has submitted a great post (full of "false friends") on talking about college in Portuguese. So aqui está the first ever guest post here at Portuguese Tips:<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" height="239" src="http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3558/3603342631_2c55fb226f.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="320" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">photo: Ananda Lima</td></tr>
</tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span id="goog_496100750"></span><span id="goog_496100751"></span><a href="http://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>University Talk</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Elena Como</span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> Before I studied in Brazil, during my junior year abroad at PUC-Rio, I learned a lot of Portuguese vocabulary. I remember that my Portuguese teacher at UC Santa Cruz gave us a number of ways to discuss what we majored in at the university. So I arrived at PUC and spoke about my <b>area de concentração</b>. And the Brazilians thought I was a graduate student. That also caused confusion, because <b>estudante de graduação</b> is actually an undergraduate in English. <b>Graduação</b> sounds like it should refer to a graduate student, but it's actually used for undergraduates. (Graduate students are called <b>pós-graduados</b>). <br />
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What's wrong with translating the idea of a <b>major</b> into "area de concentração"? It's a cultural problem--Brazilians don't really do general education, not like Americans, anyway. So they don't talk about having an "area de concentração" unless they are graduate students with a focus or concentration. Instead, Brazilians speak about their major or department the same way they would talk about their work: <b>eu faço matemática</b> (I am a math major), or <b>eu estudo matemática</b> (I study math). <b>Faculdade</b> means department, and it can also be used the way we use the word "school"--sort of a general way of referring to where you study.<br />
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Speaking of school, another confusion I encountered was the false cognate in the word "school." In American English, young people often use the word "school" to refer to university. In Portuguese, <b>escola</b> doesn't ever mean college or university, it means elementary school (and <b>colégio</b> is high school). So people would look at me funny when, at age 20, I would say "Eu vou para a escola." All of these terms came pretty quickly when I was living there, but it's easy to make these kinds of mistakes when the actual educational system is quite different. So to all of you who are going back to school, <b>tenham um bom semestre!</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>----</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: small;">Elena Como is the founder and president of </span><span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://www.atlanticobooks.com/">Atlântico Books</a></span><span style="font-size: small;">, an importer, distributor, and publisher of Portuguese-language books, CDs, DVDs, and downloads. Atlantico Books serves Portuguese students, teachers, and translators.</span><span style="font-size: small;"> </span></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">*I have not received anything in exchange of this post, i.e., this is not advertisement. </span></div>Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-69399956579207777192010-08-08T09:58:00.000-07:002010-08-08T09:58:19.840-07:00Learn Portuguese with these great online games As well as a lot of natural conversation, I love mixing games into my Portuguese classes! Since you are using this online, here are two very cool places where you can find a bunch of online games to practice Portuguese (great resources for teachers also):<br />
<ul><li><a href="http://portuguesembadajoz.wordpress.com/2008/05/22/jogos-interactivos-de-lingua-e-cultura-portuguesa-aprender-brincando/">Português em Badajoz</a> - This site, created by Portuguese teachers in Badajoz (Spain) has a bunch of links to great online games/quizzes. The descriptions are all in Portuguese, so you may have to poke around a little bit for something that is just right for you. Some of the quizzes (e.g. Os contrários in <a href="http://cvc.instituto-camoes.pt/aprender-portugues/a-brincar/jogos-lexicais/120-associacoes.html">Jogos de associações</a> or <a href="http://cvc.instituto-camoes.pt/aprender-portugues/a-brincar/temas.html">these games</a> by Instituto Camões) will be great for beginners. Other games (eg. <a href="http://cvc.instituto-camoes.pt/aprender-portugues/a-brincar/jogo-da-lusofonia.html">Espaço Lusofonia</a>) will be better for intermediate or advanced students.</li>
<li>Ludo-tech - This site also has a great collection of games (all created by the writers of the site). It seems like some of the games may have been designed to teach Portuguese children (whose first language is Portuguese to begin with :-)), but most of them can also be useful for second language learners (like this <a href="http://ludotech.eu/jogos/portug/adject-1.htm">vocabulary quiz</a>).</li>
</ul>Note: You will see some Portuguese from Portugal (as opposed to the Portuguese from Brazil which is present throughout most of this site) in some of the games above... but, although there are differences, these varieties are very similar and this shouldn't be a problem for you.<br />
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Divirta-se!Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-28675371067121595962010-08-03T10:00:00.000-07:002010-08-03T10:00:50.117-07:00Learn more about Brazilian Music and Culture: Choro<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4137/4856964218_8df2887eaf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4137/4856964218_8df2887eaf.jpg" width="256" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Pintura por <a href="http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/C%C3%A2ndido_Portinari">Cândido Portinari</a> (domínio público)</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;"> </span> </div>Most of my students have heard of samba and bossa-nova*... but it is much harder to find those who know what Choro ou <a href="http://www.samba-choro.com.br/sobre/chorinho">Chorinho</a> is. Well, if you are like them, you need no longer miss out on this beautiful style of music.<br />
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Choro means 'cry'. It is the noun as in "um choro triste" (a sad cry) (so the first 'o' is pronounced like an 'ô', not like an 'ó'... as opposed to the verb spelled the same way, but pronounced with an ó) ... but the rhythm is most often very happy and upbeat (there seem to be a couple of different ideas on why that is the name, and since I don't know the answer, I won't go it to it). Here is a Brazilian advertisement that makes a joke based on the name of the style, where you can also hear an example of chorinho (don't worry if you don't get the joke!):<br />
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Chorinho is considered the first popular urban style of music created in Brazil (originating in the 19th century) and it is stil played in Brazil today.<br />
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If you are in New York City, you can go to a Choro concert right here in the city! The <a class="wiki_link_ext" href="http://www.myspace.com/choroensemble" rel="nofollow">Choro Ensemble</a> is playing at <a class="wiki_link_ext" href="http://zincbar.com/node/678" rel="nofollow">Zinc Bar</a> tomorrow night (04 de Agosto)!<br />
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To learn a little bit more about chorinho, read one of these articles:<br />
<ul><li><a href="http://saintpaulsunday.publicradio.org/features/0109_choro/">Artigo sobre o choro em inglês </a>(only are an early beginner! Otherwise, read the next one :-))</li>
<li><a href="http://almanaque.folha.uol.com.br/choro.htm">Artigo sobre o choro em português</a></li>
<li><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choro">Artigo da wikipédia em inglês</a> (only are an early beginner! Otherwise, read the next one :-))</li>
<li><a href="http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choro">Artigo da wikipédia em Português</a></li>
</ul>To learn about the instruments used in chorinho, see my other post with <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2010/08/parte-i-os-instrumentos-musicais-aqui.html">a vocabulary lesson about musical instruments in Portuguese</a>.<br />
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To enjoy the music (and hear a little bit of Portuguese), you can watch the documentary "The sound of Rio: Brasileirinho"(<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0456321/">imdb</a>). If you are an advanced student, it may be good listening practice. You may try it even if you are a beginner, as there is a lot of music and not too much talking anyway:<br />
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<object height="385" width="640"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z-B0icHXpy0&hl=en_US&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Z-B0icHXpy0&hl=en_US&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="640" height="385"></embed></object><br />
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*If you are an upper-intermediate or advanced student and really love Bossa nova, you should check <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2010/02/expand-your-portuguese-through-reading.html">this book out</a>!<br />
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Hope to see you at Zinc bar!Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-22650433276765517342010-08-03T09:16:00.000-07:002010-08-03T11:35:33.740-07:00Vocabulary lesson: Instrumentos Musicais em Português<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: small;">Bom dia! I was preparing <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2010/08/learn-more-about-brazilian-music-and.html">a post about chorinho</a> and thought that it would be a good idea to introduce you to the vocabulary of musical instruments in Portuguese first. I also have a couple of very nice students who are musicians who may find this useful.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-size: small;">If you are a beginner, don't worry too much if you don't understand a lot of the words in the readings and video, just get as much as you can. If you are an intermediate student, this may be perfect for you. If you are an advanced speaker of Portuguese, you may still learn a new word or two... and I follow the links to some readings that are more advanced. </span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Parte I: Os Instrumentos Musicais</span><br />
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Aqui estão alguns instrumentos músicais:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4097/4856563107_94c21c6dbd.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4097/4856563107_94c21c6dbd.jpg" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="color: #38761d;"> violão, violino, piano e flauta</span></span></div><br />
Esses intrumentos são parecidos (similares), mas são diferentes:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4079/4857267074_8f72c912b9_m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4079/4857267074_8f72c912b9_m.jpg" width="190" /></a></div><br />
Note que a guitarra é elétrica e o violão geralmente é acústico. O cavaquinho é bem pequenininho.<br />
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Aqui estão outros instrumentos:<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">trombone saxofone clarineta</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYnf86NuKGrAdTstL4YqNVOBAn5OReiiMyVZ86_DxhfUlMKQ6lyTvGQL4WLHHSxzSe0aiR_7WDxgBH5WVTnLk4UjQ5FSbiTxhD-OV0a55yCutHgHUVVoelYZclZPeZX2WTCohBXU3pc0RU/s1600/images-3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYnf86NuKGrAdTstL4YqNVOBAn5OReiiMyVZ86_DxhfUlMKQ6lyTvGQL4WLHHSxzSe0aiR_7WDxgBH5WVTnLk4UjQ5FSbiTxhD-OV0a55yCutHgHUVVoelYZclZPeZX2WTCohBXU3pc0RU/s320/images-3.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnhifKV91-x0rv6f7tWYiQuYXIt7jlikPTR3FbGqgqdE1DZduyupxFkONOot3vx9P97UCEPHPr3ZHDXW3pMZWYGubJKcL7FTtTDNnsqbMLQOHKKo7fzhg-NYnUJPLvwQ6nKjHIjWGFRbz-/s1600/gaita-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="143" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnhifKV91-x0rv6f7tWYiQuYXIt7jlikPTR3FbGqgqdE1DZduyupxFkONOot3vx9P97UCEPHPr3ZHDXW3pMZWYGubJKcL7FTtTDNnsqbMLQOHKKo7fzhg-NYnUJPLvwQ6nKjHIjWGFRbz-/s200/gaita-1.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="200" /></a> <span style="font-size: large;"> gaita</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">bateria </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizSWP1yMoaLDAzYVrv70cuWCr7DxPIwuW6O-j7w2XKjFGM2RWRu2csQ7KSlciLANeXxcfupt1i5fPcTwRevkBb8GNn9nD27AF3siVdH6uiGMked3J20sE25WTrAoR7WOMfcjsiufKQT6CN/s1600/sanfona.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizSWP1yMoaLDAzYVrv70cuWCr7DxPIwuW6O-j7w2XKjFGM2RWRu2csQ7KSlciLANeXxcfupt1i5fPcTwRevkBb8GNn9nD27AF3siVdH6uiGMked3J20sE25WTrAoR7WOMfcjsiufKQT6CN/s320/sanfona.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLlKuhZv6QmsEE6SGoGxkYN4QGfuVZ4UoAfSOtyMOXHkHsXCUhUxK2y7jL2ZKXz-uUXalKXM8XtJvNybUB3gOCm3zKvtp7_-N3H2jVx2eBgay21t1q-G9FSpWMiHsoAwlcvD6Y3aMQsSrf/s1600/images-4.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLlKuhZv6QmsEE6SGoGxkYN4QGfuVZ4UoAfSOtyMOXHkHsXCUhUxK2y7jL2ZKXz-uUXalKXM8XtJvNybUB3gOCm3zKvtp7_-N3H2jVx2eBgay21t1q-G9FSpWMiHsoAwlcvD6Y3aMQsSrf/s320/images-4.jpg" style="cursor: move;" /></a><span style="font-size: large;"> pandeiro sanfona</span><br />
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O pandeiro é muito importante no samba e a sanfona é muito importante no forró. <br />
O Slash (dos Guns and Roses) toca guitarra e o João Gilberto toca violão. <br />
Você sabia que o Woody Allen toca clarineta?<br />
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<b>Atividades:</b><br />
Responda as perguntas (answer whichever ones you can):<br />
a. Você toca algum instrumento musical?<br />
b. Você tem algum instrumento musical?<br />
c. Qual é o seu instrumento favorito?<br />
d. Qual dos instrumentos acima é maior (mais pesado)?<br />
e. Qual dos instrumentos acima é menor (mais leve)?<br />
f. Qual instrumento o Kenny G. toca?<br />
g. Dê o nome de um instrumento que é importante no samba.<br />
h. Dê o nome de um instrumento que é importante no jazz.<br />
i. Dê o nome de um instrumento que é importante no rock.<br />
j. Dê o nome de um instrumento que é importante na bossa nova. <br />
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Jogue esse jogo <a href="http://www.smartkids.com.br/jogos-educativos/instrumentos-musicais-banda-smart.html">sobre instrumentos</a>. Fale o nome dos instrumentos em voz alta.<br />
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Opcional: leia esse artigo sobre <a href="http://www.canalkids.com.br/arte/musica/instrumentos.htm#pandeiro2">instrumentos importantes na música brasileira</a> (if you can, don't worry if don't understand everything. Beginners may just read the name of the instruments matched with the drawings) . <br />
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<b>Desafio (challenge):</b> play a game of <i><a href="http://guida.querido.net/jogos/forca/inst-mus.htm">forca</a></i> (hangman), where all words are instrumentos músicais. (Don't worry if you don't know all of the words in the game: I and a lot of Brazilians wouldn't know all those words ourselves!) <br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">PARTE II: Os instrumentos do Choro </span><br />
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Essa parte é sobre os instrumentos importantes no choro. Para saber um pouco sobre o choro, veja as links no meu artigo sobre o choro.<br />
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<b>Atividades:</b><br />
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Leia o artigo <a href="http://www.canalkids.com.br/arte/musica/instrumento_ch.htm">Os instrumentos do choro</a> (if you can, don't worry if don't understand everything. Beginners may just read the name of the instruments matched with the drawings).<br />
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Advanced students: leia <a href="http://blogln.ning.com/profiles/blogs/2189391:BlogPost:40607">este artigo</a>.<br />
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Conecte o nome do instrument com a foto:<br />
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Exemplo: <br />
Violão de seis cordas: _<u><span style="font-family: Verdana,sans-serif;">1</span></u>__<br />
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cavaquinho: ___ <br />
bandolim:___ <br />
violão:___<br />
flauta: ___<br />
pandeiro ___<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_139261450"><img border="0" height="163" src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4080/4856504055_6dd6eceec7.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><b><br />
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O seguinte vídeo sobre um instrumento importante no choro, no samba e no pagode. Adivinha qual é o instrumento!<br />
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Aqui está o vídeo, com perguntas para responder (the host of the quiz doesn't support Portuguese characters, so there are no acentos in the quiz :-( ). Click <a href="http://www.eslvideo.com/view_quiz.php?id=5690">here</a> to see the complete test.<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" height="900" scrolling="auto" src="http://www.eslvideo.com/view_quiz_inframe.php?id=5690" width="450">&lt;p&gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Um Instrumento do choro &amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&lt;/p&gt;</iframe> <br />
(If you are a my student in a class or private lessons, ask me for a code to share your results or grab it from our private wiki).<br />
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Gente! O Eduardo Sant'Anna não é incrível? <br />
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Opcional: leia as partes do violão e escute o vídeo de novo. Você consegue reconhecer alguma parte?<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Mj_eWqpdngolsylvnOi-Vti9NxH6CfWDWoPqJt6hqwTsefInWbiZm1A32z2brC5X4fMTJBR8HFJHQ4YABZJF2vFAHhAFJRHB35-hW4juGX3WfoAdbvW99fv_tIeFCCLMJOVd30wn3Zne/s1600/partes_viol%C3%A3o_thumb%5B2%5D.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi1Mj_eWqpdngolsylvnOi-Vti9NxH6CfWDWoPqJt6hqwTsefInWbiZm1A32z2brC5X4fMTJBR8HFJHQ4YABZJF2vFAHhAFJRHB35-hW4juGX3WfoAdbvW99fv_tIeFCCLMJOVd30wn3Zne/s320/partes_viol%C3%A3o_thumb%5B2%5D.png" /></a></div><br />
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Now that you know the names of the instruments used in chorinho, <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2010/08/learn-more-about-brazilian-music-and.html">enjoy some of the music</a>!Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-52519680650532706582010-07-12T09:55:00.000-07:002010-07-19T06:23:34.549-07:00Practice your Portuguese Watching Brazilian Movies at MoMA!Another great opportunity to watch Brazilian Movies in New York City! Starting this week until the end of the month, MoMA will be showing movies by both new and established Brazilian filmmakers on their <i><a href="http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/films/1094">Premiere Brazil!</a> </i>Festival. It is a great chance to get expose to the language and different aspects of Brazilian Culture. I will certainly be watching some of the movies with my students. You should go too! <br />
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Even if you are not going with a teacher/ class, here are some tips to get even more of the experience (you can apply them to <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2008/07/watch-movie-in-portuguese.html">other Brazilian movies</a> you may want to watch too). The idea is to get your mind prepared to the themes, vocabulary and the accent of the movie beforehand, so that you can make the most of it:<br />
<ol><li><b>Choose the movie you want to watch</b>. I recommend you choose based on your interests (i.e., whatever looks more fun for you)... but if you want to worry about other things, remember that movies that are very urban, with gangs etc. (like City of God) are possibly more challenging (which can be good if that is what you are looking for). You can also see if there is any information on the description about the region where the movie is set: if it is set in the same region as your teacher/ materials are from, it may be easier to understand (materials often show features of São Paulo and Rio accents). If it is set in a different region, it may be harder, but also very interesting! If my students want to watch more than one movie, I usually suggest that they try and choose movies that look like they will feature different types of language (e.g.: a rural setting and an urban setting or a move set in the Northeast and one in São Paulo), to widen their exposure. </li>
<li><b>Look at the cover/a picture/poster of the movie.</b> Try and imagine what the movie is about. Make a couple sentences describing what you guess the movie is about (in Portuguese). </li>
<li><b>Find a description of the movie</b> from its promotional materials, read it out loud. Underline any words you don't know and either look them up or ask your teacher to help. Now, write or say your own short description, without looking and in your own words (in Portuguese). </li>
<li><b>See if you can find a movie trailer and some clips of the movie.</b> Listen to it a few times to get used to the accent. Try and repeat/ act out one of the scenes out loud. Repeat any words that you liked or where you found the pronunciation different or interesting. </li>
<li><b>Think about what you know of the story so far and formulate a few questions </b>about parts of the story that you don't know, so that you can answer them after the movie? Write a small list of questions down. These can be any questions, for example <i>Qual é o relacionamento entre a mulher loira e a morena no poster do filme?</i> (What is the relationship between the blond woman and the brunette woman in the movie poster?), <i>Porque a mulher loira está correndo naquela cena do trailer?</i> (Why is the blond woman running on that scene on the trailer?). You can see if you can answer your questions after the movie.</li>
<li><b>Read the questions under number 7 below</b> ("7.Review the movie") to see some aspects of the movie that you may want to notice (optional - you may just want to enjoy the movie instead).</li>
<li><b>Enjoy the movie!</b></li>
<li><b>Review the movie. </b>If you have a teacher or a friend who speaks Portuguese, discuss the movie with him or her. there are may things you can talk about, here are some suggested topics (you should discuss it in Portuguese, of course):</li>
<ol><li>Plot and characters: Summarize the plot. Say what you thought about the story in general, about each of the main characters. What was your favorite character? How did you feel during the movie (<i>assustado, triste, feliz, emocionado</i>)? Did the movie make you <i>rir </i>ou <i>chorar</i> (laugh or cry)? If so, in which scenes? Did you like the ending? Would you have changed it?</li>
<li>Photography: Was the movie visually appealing? Was the 'look' of the movie (dark and heavy? Light and airy?). What were your favorite scenes (visually) in the movie? Can you describe one of the scenes, places or settings in the movie? (e.g. an old house)</li>
<li>Cuture: Did you learn anything new about Brazilian culture? Was there anything that you found interesting? Was there any habits/ actions practiced by the characters that you didn't understand?</li>
<li>Language: Was the language easy or difficult to understand? Did you recognize and words or expressions that you already knew? Which ones? Do you remember any new words/ expressions that you found interesting? Was the accent of the characters similar or different from what you are used to? If so, did you notice how the accent was different (e.g., the pronunciation of the 's', intonation etc.).</li>
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<li><b>Write about the movie.</b> Write a summary or review of the movie.</li>
</ol> ... or if you don't want to focus on learning so much this time, just go and enjoy the movie!Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-57662399110868660872010-07-01T14:46:00.000-07:002010-07-01T14:46:19.440-07:00Brazilian Music at MoMA Nights thoughtout JulyOne more for those of your learning Portuguese in NYC: MoMA Nights will be featuring a bunch of Brazilian artists this month! The events are being <a href="http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/events/9783">kicked off</a> right now (as in the time of writing) by the awesome <a href="http://www.nationbeat.com/">Nation Beat</a> (I only heard about it now and have to head off to teach :-() and will continue through to the end of July. You can see the events scheduled <a href="http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/programs/52">here</a>.Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-66923598555742721902010-06-28T10:35:00.000-07:002010-06-28T11:39:33.898-07:00Portuguese for the world Cup -Part 1: Basic Conversation Soccer TermsEven if you are <a href="http://www.majorleaguesoccertalk.com/is-soccer-popular-in-the-united-states-or-not/9512">in the US</a>, chances are that you have heard about the hype about the <i>Copa do Mundo</i> (The FIFA Soccer World Cup). Whenever the<i> Copa </i>comes up, it is also likely that you hear at least some talk about Brazil (since Brazil is the only country to have participated in all world cups, the only one to have <a href="http://www.v-brazil.com/culture/sports/world-cup/">won 5 times</a> and the <a href="http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copa_do_Mundo_FIFA#Primeira_participa.C3.A7.C3.A3o.2C_Ranking_hist.C3.B3rico_e_Lista_completa_de_participa.C3.A7.C3.B5es">top country in historical ranking</a>... ok, I'll stop now...). .. Even if you are not crazy about futebol, it is nice to add a little soccer vocabulary to your Portuguese, since it is so present in Brazilian culture.<br />
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The game (Brazil x Chile) is starting really soon, so I will make this a quick starting post, with more coming later. Here are a couple of terms you may hear if you go watch it in a bar or a Brazilian friend's house to get you started:<br />
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<b>1. Basic terms:</b><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">Copa (do mundo) </span>- <i>world cup</i><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;">Futebol</span> - <i>soccer</i><b><br />
</b><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;">Partida/ jogo</span> - <i>match/game</i><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;">Assistir</span> - <i>watch</i><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;">bola (de futebol) </span>- <i>(soccer) ball</i><br />
<span style="color: #274e13;">jogador </span>- <i>player</i><br />
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<div style="color: #444444;"><i>Exercises:</i></div><div style="color: #444444;">1. Make sentences with each of the words above, until you have used all the words (not necessarily in the same sentence). If you are a beginner, you may still be able to make very simple sentences slightly modifying the examples. Example: </div><div style="color: #444444;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #444444;"><i>Kaká é um jogador de futebol.</i></div><div style="color: #444444;"><i>Eu não assisto todos os jogos da copa do mundo. </i></div><div style="color: #444444;"><i>O meu amigo tem uma bola de futebol.</i></div><div style="color: #444444;"><br />
</div><div style="color: #444444;">2. Answer if you can:</div><div style="color: #444444;">a. Que é o seu jogador favorito?</div><div style="color: #444444;">b. Você está assistindo os jogos da copa do mundo?</div><div style="color: #444444;">c. Qual foi a sua partida favorita?</div><span style="color: #444444;">d. Você tem uma bola de futebol?</span><br />
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<b>2. Torcer (para)</b><br />
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The verb for cheer is torcer (use it with para to say who you are cheering for). E.g.:<br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">Torcer (para)</span>: <br />
<i><br />
</i><span style="color: #274e13;">Para quem você está torcendo?</span><br />
<i>Who are you cheering?</i><br />
<i><br />
</i><br />
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<div style="color: #274e13;">Eu estou torcendo para o Brasil.</div><i>I am cheering for Brazil. </i><br />
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<div style="color: #274e13;">Eu estava tocendo para o México.</div><br />
<i>I was cheering for Mexico yesterday.</i><br />
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You can also use this verb to say which team you support in general:<br />
<div style="color: #274e13;"><br />
</div><span style="color: #274e13;">Na copa do mundo, eu sempre torço para o Brasil, mas a minha esposa torce para a Argentina.</span><br />
<i>In the world cup, I always support (cheer for) Brazil, but my wife supports Argentina.</i><br />
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<span style="color: #274e13;">Eu torço para o Lakers.</span><br />
<i>I support the Lakers/ I'm a Laker's fan.</i><br />
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<div style="color: #444444;"><i>Exercises: </i></div><div style="color: #444444;">a. Make 2 sentences saying which teams you support in any sport you like. </div><div style="color: #444444;">b. Make 3 sentences saying which teams people you know support.</div><span style="color: #444444;">c. Practicing asking someone which team they are cheering for.</span><br />
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<b>3. Soccer terms:</b><br />
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If you know a little bit about soccer you may like to know these terms. I took them straight from <a href="http://www.oitoronto.ca/9748/ingles-para-qualquer-copa/">this nice article</a> (which teaches English soccer terms to Portuguese speakers):<br />
<ul><li><span style="color: #274e13;">Escanteio</span> – <i>Corner kick</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Árbitro</span> – <i>Referee</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Técnico</span> – <i>Coach</i> ou <i>Team Coach</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Atacante</span> – <i>Striker</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Zagueiro </span>– <i>Defender</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Lateral</span> – <i>Winger</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Goleiro </span>– <i>Goalkeeper</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Meio campo </span>– <i>Midfielder</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Impedimento</span>- <i>Offside</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Lateral (cobrança)</span> – <i>Throw-in</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Penalti </span>– <i>Penalty kick</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Torcedor </span>– <i>Supporter/fan</i></li>
<li><span style="color: #274e13;">Bandeirinha</span> – <i>Linesman</i></li>
</ul><div style="color: #444444;"><i>Exercises:</i></div><div style="color: #444444;">This exercise is only recommended for those into soccer and it may be a nice prep before watching a game (assuming Brazil wins today :-)).</div><div style="color: #444444;">1. Do a little research and describe in Portuguese sentences, using the terms above:</div><div style="color: #444444;"> a. The Brazilian team in a recent game;</div><div style="color: #444444;"> b. Either (i) the team you support (if not Brazil); (ii) a team you recently watched, or; (iii) the team who is next playing Brazil.</div><div style="color: #444444;">E.g.:</div><div style="color: #444444;"> <i> O Dunga é o tecnico do Brasil.</i></div><br />
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This should give you a little bit to start speaking a little Portuguese on the next game... For now, see you after Brazil x Chile!Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-85451555977973710082010-06-07T12:25:00.000-07:002010-06-07T12:25:49.779-07:00Brazilian Film Festival in NYCPortuguese students and Brazilianites of NYC, this week, you have a chance to watch a bunch of Brazilian movies at a Brazilian Film festival! It is going on right now and it only lasts until Saturday:<br />
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<a href="http://www.brazilianfilmfestival.com/ny_programacao.html">http://www.brazilianfilmfestival.com/ny_programacao.html</a><br />
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Such a shame I am going to be away! Otherwise I'll do a field trip with my students for sure...<br />
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Enjoy!Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-64660163882106285902010-05-25T15:38:00.000-07:002010-05-25T15:44:11.492-07:00Brazilian Music and Architecture at Central Park!<span class="event_title">I'm back! To get us started, here is a little cultural event where you can listen to Portuguese (if you are in the city). It is free and ourdoors! Here is a blurb about it from the <a href="http://www.blogger.com/%20%20%20http://www.summerstage.org/search_results.html?&p=4">Summer Stage music series</a>:</span><br />
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<span class="event_title">The 8th Annual Cine Fest Petrobras Brasil, featuring live sets from Os Paralmas Do Sucesso and Maria Gadu, followed by a screening of Oscar Niemeyer – Life is a Breath of Air</span><br />
<a href="http://www.summerstage.org/images/events_images/Paralams_do_Sucesso.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img align="left" alt="The 8th Annual Cine Fest Petrobras Brasil, featuring live sets
from Os Paralmas Do Sucesso and Maria Gadu, followed by a screening of
Oscar Niemeyer – Life is a Breath of Air" border="0" src="http://www.summerstage.org/images/events_images/Paralams_do_Sucesso.jpg" style="width: 120px;" /></a><br />
When: Saturday, June 12, 2010 at 7:00PM<br />
Where: <a href="http://www.summerstage.org/park.html?id=44">Central Park/Mainstage</a><br />
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<div>Brazil’s finest from the fields of music, architecture and film meet in the heart of New York City.</div><div class="big_description" style="display: block;"><br />
<div>Os Paralamas do Sucesso formed in Rio de Janeiro in the late 1970s, and are now considered one of the “Big Four” bands of Brazilian rock. They have always incorporated reggae and ska into their sound, and have over the years continued to expand their soundscapes with intricate horn arrangements and Latin rhythms. The lineup, unchanged since 1982, includes Herbert Vianna on guitar and lead vocals, Bi Ribeiro on bass, and Joao tildeo Barone on drums.<br />
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Brazilian guitarist, singer and songwriter Maria Gadu is an emerging sensation to watch. She began her career as a child and went out to garner attention with her stunning interpretation of “Ne me quitte pas” by Jacques Brel. She has been featured on several soundtracks and her self-titled debut release has already created an international buzz.<br />
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The closing night film of The 8th Annual Cine Fest Petrobras Brasil is the documentary <i>OSCAR NIEMEYER – LIFE IS A BREATH OF AIR </i>. Is it possible to tell a story of a nation through its architecture? <i>Life is Breath </i> takes its cue from its subject, renowned and influential architect Oscar Niemeyer-- the great icon of Brazil’s Modern Architecture movement-- highlighting the poetry of his forms as inspired by his country’s majestic geography and soul.</div><div><a href="mailto:info@SummerStage.org">info@SummerStage.org</a></div><div>(212) 360-2777<br />
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<span class="event_title">Being a kid in the 80's I can't help it but like Paralamas (even if it is not your thing, they were huge in Brazil, so it may be interesting anyway)... being from Brasilia, I liked the Oscar Niemeyer movie a bunch... (though the format is not for everyone). </span></div></div>Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-57770075879091867702010-02-24T06:14:00.000-08:002010-02-24T06:34:40.676-08:00Sing Happy Birthday in Portuguese again... this time with the help of a cuuuuuute dog!After seeing my post on singing <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2008/07/happy-birthday-in-portuguese.html">happy birthday in Portuguese</a>, the owner of a gorgeous <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/magoo11111995">golden retriever </a>contacted me for help on the song. They wanted to send a video of happy birthday to the puppy's cousin in São Paulo in Portuguese! (Isn't it fun to be a blogger? How else would I get fun messages like these! ).<br /><br />Unfortunately, I was away and that e-mail address was a little messed up, so I didn't see the note until it was too late... but it looks like they didn't need me anyway! Here is Golden dog's productions awesome video:<br /><br /><object style="height: 344px; width: 425px"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/CiCxvZ0pPMY"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/CiCxvZ0pPMY" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowScriptAccess="always" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Or you can see it on their You Tube channel, <a href="http://www.youtube.com/user/magoo11111995#p/u/0/CiCxvZ0pPMY">here</a>. (thanks for the video, Simon and Simon's owner!)Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-77976078902386642552010-02-23T03:43:00.000-08:002010-02-23T03:59:00.385-08:0080's Portuguese concert in NYC again!Quick note for those in New York and interested in a pop-cultural experience. <a href="http://www.gigbrazil.com/GIG_BRAZIL/Welcome.html">Gig Brazil</a> is guys are having another 80's Brazilian Rock concert this Saturday at Sullivan Hall. I am not sure I'll be able to go this time (bummer), but <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2009/07/80s-90s-brazilian-rock-concert.html">last time</a> I had such a great time! Check it out if you are up to some very different Portuguese practice this Saturday night!Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-56246881216398194492010-02-22T08:11:00.000-08:002010-02-23T20:42:20.061-08:00Expand your Portuguese through reading and music: A great book for advanced speakersI am always on the look out for books for my advanced students that are interesting so that they can practice their reading. The only thing is that some <a href="http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/As_Intermit%C3%AAncias_da_Morte">books that I love</a> and some of <a href="http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lista_de_autores_do_Brasil_por_movimento_liter%C3%A1rio">the classics</a> can be very difficult to read for foreign language speakers and they end up giving up!* During my last trip to Brazil I found a great book for advanced learners called "Noites Tropicais", by the music journalist Nelson Motta.<br /><br />The language in the book is really natural (more similar to spoken language than many books I find). As well as looking out for the abscence of language features that are mostly formal and looking for informal language while reading it (like "pulando feito pipoca"), I test drove the book by giving it to my husband (an advanced speaker) who could read it without too much trouble and really liked it!<br /><br />The story is super-interesting if you like Brazilian music. The book tells the story of Brazilian music from João Gilberto until the 1990's, from a very personal perspective (the author was right in the middle of the music scene the whole time and was good friends with a lot of the musicians). Because of that, it mentions the story behind of a lot of the songs that we know and love. So you can spice up your reading by pausing to listen and have a good look at some of the songs mentioned in the book (<a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2008/07/learn-by-singing-amanh-eu-no-vou.html">learning through music</a> can be very nice and break up your routine). [I have set up a Pandora station (free!) with songs *mostly* by the composers mentioned in the book. To access, click <a href="http://www.pandora.com/?sc=sh197842901105706379#/">here</a> (login required) or go to "create station" and start typing "Noites Tropicais", it should find the station and suggest it to you as you type it.]<br /><br />You can see a good summary from the publisher <a href="http://www.editoras.com/objetiva/292-2.htm">here</a> and a nice review <a href="http://www.brasileirinho.mus.br/artigos/noitropical.html">here</a>. These are in Portuguese, so if you can understand the gist of these articles well, you are in a great position to read the book... If you can't understand most of the summary and review, keep practicing (and following the blog :-)) and try again later.<br /><br />As of right now, you can get the book from <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/8573022922?ie=UTF8&tag=portutips-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=8573022922">Amazon</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=portutips-20&l=as2&o=1&a=8573022922" alt="" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important;" border="0" height="1" width="1" /> or you can get it through <a href="http://www.atlanticobooks.com/">Atlântico Books</a>, a boutique book importer which specializes on Portuguese books. There is also <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/B00005Q447?ie=UTF8&tag=portutips-20&linkCode=am2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00005Q447">companion CD</a><img src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=portutips-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B00005Q447" alt="" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important;" border="0" height="1" width="1" /> (or you can listen to the Pandora station, which is free :-)).<br /><br />*I think is a great goal to be able to read the stuff with more complicated language (and worth it!), but I definitely don't think your first Portuguese book should be one of those (just like I don't think English learners should start by reading Shakespeare!). I recommend reading books with more current/ natural language first and then moving on to <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2008/09/brazilian-writer-machado-de-assis.html">harder stuff</a> later... even if your Portuguese is really good!<br /><br />** This post is for my lovely student of the month, Thomas, who is going to read the book with me!Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-69598150175803966102010-02-17T05:55:00.000-08:002010-02-17T07:24:47.664-08:00Impersonal expressions in Portuguese<div style="text-align: center;"><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">***Warning: grammarphobes may want to skip this article. If you want to learn some of the points here more implicitly, you can practice the expressions <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2008/08/expressions-with-dar-dar-para-em.html">here</a> or <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2010/02/portuguese-expression-cair-ficha.html">here</a>. I am adding a category 'avoid if you don't like grammar' so you can stick to the less heavy stuff.***</span><br /></div><br />One of my students asked about impersonal verbs this week, so I thought I would share this with you in case you have similar questions...<br /><br />...But wait. Don't Brazilians like to get personal? Fear not, you can hold on to the friendly Brazilian stereotypes :-). I don't mean impersonal in the sense of unfriendly or cold. This post is about impersonal in the sense of lacking person agreement (the different person conjugations) on the verb. If you have no idea what I am talking about, don't worry. I'll explain. (If you know what I am talking about you can skip the re-cap :-))<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">A. Re-cap: (Person) Verb Conjugation 101</span><br /><br />Remember that for beginners it can sometimes be tricky to remember all those different verb endings? For example, take the verb <span style="font-style: italic;">falar</span> (to speak) in the past (you can also look at <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2008/07/ser-versus-estar.html">ser and estar</a>):<br /><br />(1)<span style="font-style: italic;">Eu <span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">fal</span>ei</span></span><br />(2)<span style="font-style: italic;">Você/ele/ela/a gente </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">fal</span></span></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">ou</span></span><br />(3)<span style="font-style: italic;">Nós <span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"></span></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">fal</span></span></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">amos</span></span><br />(4)<span style="font-style: italic;"></span><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><span style="font-style: italic;">Vocês/eles/elas </span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">fal</span></span></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 153, 0);">aram</span></span><br /><br />See how the verb endings are different depending on the subject? These different forms depending on the subject is what I am calling person agreement/ person conjugation. Compare with the English translation, where the verb doesn't change at all:<br /><br />(1) I spoke.<br />(2) You/he/she/we spoke<br />(3) We spoke<br />(4) You/they spoke<br /><br />That is because English shows no person agreement for the verb 'speak' in the past and Portuguese does.*<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">B. Impersonal verbs<br /><br /></span>If you have trouble remembering the endings you may like this. Not all verbs have different forms for different persons like the ones above. There are verbs that don't have different endings for different subjects... because they have no subject at all!<br /><br />If you look up 'impersonal verbs' on a grammar, you will probably get the typical impersonal verbs, like some verbs describing the whether:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Nevou muito em Nova Iorque ontem.</span><br />(It) snowed a lot in New York yesterday.<br /><br />The verb <span style="font-style: italic;">nevar</span> in the simple past is always <span style="font-style: italic;">nevou</span>. There is usually no <span style="font-style: italic;">nev<span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">ei</span>, nev<span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">amos</span></span>, etc. Similarly, in English you can't use different subjects. You can only say 'it snowed', but not 'I snowed', 'we snowed'. Etc.<br /><br />So we see two properties of impersonal verbs in Portuguese from the example:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Impersonal verbs:</span> <span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />(1) There is no subject</span>. <span style="font-weight: bold;"><br />(2) There aren't different person conjugations.</span><br /></div><br />There are other 'classic' impersonal verbs (e.g., haver/ter (= English 'there is') , meaning to exist). There are also plenty of other expressions that are not these classic impersonal verbs that are grammatically impersonal. Here are a couple of examples of informal examples that we saw on this blog:<br /><br />We saw one on the last post on <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2010/02/portuguese-expression-cair-ficha.html"><span style="font-style: italic;">cair a ficha</span></a> (meaning something like 'to click'), notice how the verb <span style="font-style: italic;">cair</span> doesn't change depending on the person:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Eu não estava entendendo nada, mas ontem finalmente <span style="font-weight: bold;">caiu</span> a ficha!</span><br />I wasn't understanding anything, but yesterday it finally clicked.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Nós não estavamos entendendo nada, mas ontem finalmente <span style="font-weight: bold;">caiu</span> a ficha!</span><br />We weren't understanding anything, but yesterday it finally clicked.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Eles não estavam entendendo nada, mas ontem finalmente<span style="font-weight: bold;"> caiu</span> a ficha!</span><br />They weren't understanding anything, but yesterday it finally clicked.<br /><br />The verb <span style="font-style: italic;">dar</span> in the expression <a style="font-style: italic;" href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2008/08/expressions-with-dar-dar-para-em.html">dar para</a> (meaning something like 'to be possible (for)') is also impersonal (even though the second verb is):<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0); font-style: italic;">Não <span style="font-weight: bold;">deu</span> para eu chegar cedo ontem.</span><br />(It) wasn't possible for me to arrive early yesterday.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0); font-style: italic;">Não <span style="font-weight: bold;">deu</span> para eles chegarem cedo ontem.</span><br />(It) wasn't possible for them to arrive early yesterday.<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0); font-style: italic;">Não <span style="font-weight: bold;">deu</span> para nós chegarmos cedo ontem.</span><br />(It) wasn't possible for me to arrive early yesterday.<br /><br />We will certainly be seeing some more examples of impersonal verbs come up on this blog, though we won't be discussing the grammar so explicitly every time (grammar tips are good in small dosis).<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Exercises:</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">1. Read the blog posts on the expressions 'cair a ficha' and 'dar para' if you haven't already done so (take your time. Don't do everything today!). Do the one exercise there.</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">2. Google the following phrases to get more examples of these expressions (use the double quotes). Copy 6 sentences that you understood:</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">a. "</span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">deu para eu</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">", "</span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">dava para eles</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">", "</span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">não dá pra eu</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">", "</span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">não da pra elas</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">" (note: </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">pra</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);"> is an informal reduced version of </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">para</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">)</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">b. "</span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">choveu</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">", "</span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">neva</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">", "</span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">ventou</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">"</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">c. "</span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">caiu a ficha</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">", "</span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">cai a ficha</span><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">"</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 102, 102);">3. Write six sentences of your own with the expressions in 2a, b and c.</span><br /><br />*English does have some person agreement, but it shows up in only a few cases. If you look at the verb 'speak' in the present (or any regular non-modal verb), you can see that there is a different form of the verb that depends on person. We say 'I speak' and 'she speak<span style="font-weight: bold;">s</span>'. This is an example of person agreement. Another example is the verb 'be'. In this case we also have different forms (am,are,is) for different persons, even in the past ('was', 'were').Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-64681205042818416572010-02-15T20:31:00.000-08:002010-02-17T05:54:56.344-08:00Portuguese Expression: "Cair a Ficha"<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/cavernclub/2183205421/" title="photo sharing"><img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2004/2183205421_9d984c1f49_m.jpg" alt="" style="border: 2px solid rgb(0, 0, 0); width: 217px; height: 282px;" /></a><br /><span style="margin-top: 0px;font-size:0.9em;" ><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/cavernclub/2183205421/">1965 duas tribos</a> Originally uploaded by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/people/cavernclub/">cavern club</a></span><br /><span style="font-size:78%;">Used with permission by photographer</span><br /></div><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);"><br />Caiu a ficha</span> is a very common slang which literally means for a 'the token dropped'. It means something like 'it dawned on me/someone', 'it clicked', 'I/someone got it' to start understanding something that may have taken a while to understand:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">O professor explicou várias vezes o problema eu não entendia. Quando ele finalmente mostrou um exemplo, <span style="font-weight: bold;">caiu a ficha</span>.</span><br />The teacher explained the problem several times and I didn't understand. When he finally showed an example, <span style="font-weight: bold;">it clicked/ I got it</span>.<br /><br />It is often used in the sense of 'taking a hint':<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">Eu sempre digo que estou ocupada quando ele me convida para sair, mas mesmo assim não caiu a ficha que eu não quero sair com ele!</span><br />I always say that I am busy when he asks me out, but even then,<span style="font-weight: bold;"> he hasn't gotten it yet</span>!<br /><br />The source of the expression becomes a little clearer if you know a little bit about Brazilian public phones. These are known as <span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">orelhão</span>, litererally 'big ear' because of their shape (see the picture above by <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/cavernclub/">cavern club</a>... can you see how it is kind of shaped like an ear?).<br /><br />Back in the day, to make a call on a public phone, you needed to buy a phone token (we didn't get to use quarters like here... maybe because of the inflation, they would probably have had to change the phones too often to accept different shaped coins!). When you placed a call the token would stay up towards the top of the phone until someone picked up on the receiving end. When they picked up, the token would drop into the phone (at that point you could not get it back).<br /><br />Caiu a ficha?<br /><br />P.s.: I just got told that they have the same expression in hebrew! Something like "the token fell" (nafal ha asimon).Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-24699607038011972062010-02-10T00:00:00.000-08:002010-02-10T08:00:12.431-08:00Type Portuguese Accents on the got with Easy Online EditorI have a previous post on <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2008/07/typing-portuguese-accents-keyboard.html">how to type Portuguese accents</a> on a Mac or Windows with a Brazilian keyboard (if you are going there make sure to read the comments from very helpful readers)... but say you are not using your own computer (or not coordinated enough to type those alt combos) and you just want to type a quick couple of sentences, with all those lovely accents... You can use a simple online editor like <a href="http://portuguese.typeit.org/">this one</a>.<br /><br />As Tomasz Szynalski, the creator of the utility, put it on an e-mail he sent me, "[t]he idea is to spare users the pain of installing and switching keyboard layouts, memorizing Alt-codes, etc. Some people use it to quickly type a short piece of text (like a Portuguese name or address), others use it to write personal or business letters to Portuguese speakers."<br /><br />Enjoy!Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-63387989732478139412010-02-09T22:00:00.000-08:002010-02-10T01:10:26.870-08:00Tô VoltandoLong time, no post! After crazy year and a bit with a real lot going on (job, language work plus <a href="http://www.anandalimaphotography.com/">this</a>), I can finally reserve a little bit of time to add to this blog! ... regular posts are coming up!<br /><br />Meanwhile, here is the song "Tô voltando" (<span style="font-style: italic;">I'm coming back</span>) :-)<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/vkmr1qhdTks&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/v/vkmr1qhdTks&hl=en_US&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />Intermediate and advanced students can look at the lyrics <a href="http://letras.terra.com.br/simone/463282/">here</a>.Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-78041829390731493082009-07-09T18:55:00.000-07:002009-07-09T19:30:37.920-07:0080's-90's Brazilian Rock Concert!Ok, so I was planning to have a language/ non-event post next... but then I just found out about what looks like a very fun event for me and all NYC Portuguese students out there coming up this Saturday... so I had to post it!<br /><br />It seems like this group is a very casual, non-pro group of Wall street Brazilian guys who decided to play gigs for fun... their wives are the back vocals and the a crowd is full of their friends.... sounds like an awesome garage band kind of vibe.<br /><br />One very cool thing is that they play classic 80's-90's that most Brazilians <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2009/06/expressions-of-age-in-portuguese.html">the same age as your Portuguese teacher </a>here just love.... All those who know me know that I love samba, bossa/ brazilian jazz and forró, but you can usually find that more easily (ainda bem!)... a band playing the fun 80's stuff is much harder to find! (Don't you love New York City?). So if you are really getting into the culture, this could be a great cultural experience (even if you end up finding out that it is not really your bossa-nova-ear's thing).<br /><br />The concert is <a href="http://www.gigbrazil.com/GIG_BRAZIL_BAND/Home/Entries/2009/6/22_Next_Show_-_July_11th_2009.html#comment_layer">this Saturday at Sullivan Hall</a> at 9:30 pm. Tickets are $10 and can be purchased in advance <a href="http://www.sullivanhallnyc.com/">here</a>. They say to arrive early because they are opening for another band (Shitty Shitty Jam Band, doesn't that sound like a night!).<br /><br />For those advanced Portuguese learners, you can listen to this video about the band and see what you understand (I may post supporting learning notes/glossary later):<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/w604xHF_JE4&hl=en&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/w604xHF_JE4&hl=en&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br />I am going and trying to drag some of my local students with me. Hope to see you there!Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-82395674500116594732009-07-08T20:21:00.000-07:002009-07-08T20:42:24.973-07:00Brazilian Film Festival in NYC: MoMA Premiere - Brazil 2009Long time no language related post, huh? I promise to add another tip on learning Portuguese soon.<br /><br />For the moment though, here is another fun event for those learning Portuguese in New York City: the MoMA is hosting the<a href="http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/films/978"> seventh annual Rio de Janeiro Festival</a> from July 16th - August third. The selection seems really cool, with classics and some newer stuff. It is definitely worth a trip to the MoMA and a great way to get some exposure to the language!<br /><br />I will probably try and organize a trip with some of my students there. (Ping me if you want to meet us :-))Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-37446587514554633462009-06-19T16:21:00.000-07:002009-06-21T06:51:32.917-07:00Expressions of age in PortugueseMy birthday was earlier this month. (Check out these other posts, if you want to know how you would<a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2008/07/happy-bithday-in-portuguese-2.html"> sing happy birthday</a> <a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2008/07/happy-birthday-in-portuguese.html">in Portuguese</a>)... So we will cover a couple expressions for different ages in Portuguese, starting with balzaquiana, <span style="font-style: italic;">em minha homenagem</span> (=as an homage to me):<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> <span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);"> balzaquiana</span></span> = woman in her 30s.<br /><br />Example:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> <span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);"> Agora, eu sou uma balzaquiana.</span></span><br /><br />This is due to <a href="http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honor%C3%A9_de_Balzac">Balzac</a>'s "<a href="http://br.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20060805063538AAQhwfx">A woman of Thirty</a>". There is no similar term for men, so you can say the following (applicable to men and women):<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">Ele tem uns vinte/trinta/quarenta </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">e poucos </span><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">anos.</span><br />He is in his <span style="font-weight: bold;">early</span> 20s/30s/40s.<br />(literaly something like: He has some 30 and few years)<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">Ela tem uns vinte/trinta/quarenta <span style="font-weight: bold;">e tantos</span> anos.</span><br />She is in her <span style="font-weight: bold;">late</span> 20s/30s/40s.<br />(literaly something like: She has some 20/30/40 and so much years).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Exercises:</span><br /><ol><li>If you are of applicable age, make a sentence describing your age, using the expressions above.<br /></li><li>Think of a couple of people you know and use the expressions above to describe thier approximate age.</li></ol><br />As well as <span style="font-style: italic;">balzaquianas</span>, we also have women in <span style="font-style: italic;">the idade da loba</span>:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);"> a idade da loba</span> - literally "the age of the female wolf" - the age of women in their 40s<br /><br />This is again due to a book by Regina Lemos (the translation of the title would be <a href="http://www.estantevirtual.com.br/mod_perl/info.cgi?livro=17112872">"Forty: the age of the wolf"</a> - but all using the feminine gender. Here is some more on <a href="http://br.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20071026083303AAluZb4">that</a>). Again this is for women only.<br /><br />For both genders, we can use the following expressions for people in their 40s and 50s (very informal):<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);"> quarentão/quarentona</span><br /> in his 40s/ in her 40s<br /><br /> <span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">cinquentão/cinquentona</span><br /> in his 50s/ in her 50s<br /><br />Finally we have:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">coroa</span> - a slang meaning old person (sometimes pejorative) - literally "crown"<br /><br />and<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">enxuto/enxuta</span> - a slang meaning someone well preserved for their (old) age.<br /><br />Example:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic; color: rgb(0, 51, 0);">Ele é um já é um cinquentão, mas está um coroa enxuto.</span><br />He is already in his 50s, but he is a well preserved old man.<br /><br />Exercises:<br /><ol><li>Think of someone you know or celebreties ranging from early 20s and 50s. Make sentences describing their ages.</li><li>Answer if you can: Na sua opinião, quais pessoas famosas são coroas enxutos?</li></ol>Bom, agora que sou balzaquiana, espero que , pelo menos eu seja uma coroa enxuta!Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-8559709932962148672009-06-04T17:03:00.000-07:002009-06-04T17:23:49.142-07:00Free Brazilian Movies in New York CityWant to put your listening skills to good use? You are still on time to catch some of the free Brazilian movies presented by the <a href="http://www.brasilianendowment.org/film.html">Brazilian Endowment for the Arts</a>. I am a bit bummed to have missed all those movies, but I can still catch the last 3 in June. Films are shown on Thursdays at <span style="font-size:100%;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><span style="line-height: 24px;">7pm 240E.52nd St. (Between 2nd & 3rd Ave) until the end of the month.<br /><br />You can also catch almost free ($5 suggested donation) screenings following a theme of Afro-Brazilian traditions at <a href="http://www.exitart.org/site/pub/exhibition_programs/negritude/screenings.html">Exit Art</a>. The screenings are part of a multi-disciplinary exhibition called Négritude and are shown every Friday at 6pm.<br /></span></span></span></span>Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-77298168765910293822009-04-26T15:38:00.000-07:002009-04-27T09:35:45.935-07:005 Tips to Remember a New Word in Portuguese<div style="TEXT-ALIGN: justify">You have just learnt a new word that you really want to remember how to say it later... How do you make sure you don't forget it? Here are some tips to remember a new word you particularly care about. (It may be useful to pick a new word and really practice this things as an example).<br /><br /><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">1. Say the word out loud.</span> You've heard the new word from your teacher, or read it somewhere and you understood its meaning... you may write it down and you are done. This step is makes sense and is very simple, but it is sometimes forgotten. Take a couple of seconds to repeat the word. Make sure you are comfortable pronouncing it. Then cover the word (if it is written) for a couple of seconds and see if you can remember it without looking (repeat until you can say it, at least just a couple of seconds after covering it up). See if you can say the word out lout after a few minutes have past.<br /><br /><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">2. Put the word into context (1): make a sentence.</span> The very next thing would be to make up a sentence (or several). To focus on your new word, good sentences would be mostly formed of other words you already know (plus the new word). You can get started with any old sentence, but as you go own, try to make the sentences as realistic and as relevant to you as possible. Say you learnt the word <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">avô</span> (grandfather), then make a sentence about your own real grandfather (e.g.: <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">O meu avô mora em Nova Iorque.</span> or <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">O nome do meu avô é John Smith</span>.).<br /><br /><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">3. Put the word into context (2): visualize.</span> You can try visualize the word by itself as you say it, but also think of the sentences you made in the previous point (you are more likely to use the word in a sentence than by itself later). You may visualize the meaning of the sentence, but, most importantly, imagine a context when you would actually say the sentence. For example, you may imagine the following for the word <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">avô</span>:<br /><br />A: - <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Mary, esse é o meu avô, John Smith. </span><br />[Imagine the whole situation, introducing your grandpa to a real friend]<br /><br />A: - <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Eu moro na California, mas eu sou de Nova Iorque.</span><br />B: - <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Que legal! O meu avô mora em Nova Iorque. </span><br /><br />A: - <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Que lindo bebê! Qual é o nome dele?</span><br />B: - <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">John Smith.</span><br />A: - <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">Ah! O nome do meu avô é John Smith!</span><br /><br /><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">4. Put the word into context (3): use stickers.</span> This is an old trick, but it is good. Say you want to remember the word for refrigerator (<span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">geladeira</span> in Portuguese). Stick the word <span style="FONT-STYLE: italic">geladeira</span> to your fridge, then every time you get close enough to your geladeira you will be reminded of the word. ... Sure, your avô would probably not like it if you put a sticker on him, but you may get away with placing one on a picture of him.<br /><br /><span style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">5. Use it!</span> The more you use a word the more you will remember it, so make sue to get as much practice speaking Portuguese as possible! The more you speak, the more likely it is that you will end up having a chance to use your word.<br /><br />[Note: You may not do this for every new word you hear... just a few that you really want to or may be having trouble remembering].</div>Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-42589955281304578232009-04-17T17:21:00.001-07:002009-07-24T18:54:24.732-07:00Expressions of Frequency in PortugueseThe blog is back! ... and the plan is to have a post per week. To get started, how about we look into how to say "once a week" and other similar expressions in Portuguese?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Once/twice a week:</span><br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-style: italic;">Eu escrevo no blog <span style="font-weight: bold;">uma vez por semana</span>.</span><br />I write on the blog once a week.<br /><br />... <span style="font-style: italic;">uma vez por semana.</span> (once a week)<br />... <span style="font-style: italic;">duas vezes por semana. </span>(twice a week)<br />... <span style="font-style: italic;">trê</span><em style="font-style: italic;"></em><span style="font-style: italic;">s vezes por semana.</span> (3 times a week)<br /><br />You can also use this expression for other time periods:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Eu viajo para o Brasil uma vez por </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">ano</span><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span><br />I travel to Brasil once a year.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Eu vou ao cabeleleiro uma vez por </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">mês</span><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span><br />I goes to the hairdresser once a month.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Exercise:</span> Think of an activity that you do once a week and make a sentence in Portuguese expressing that. think of an activity that you do more than once a week and make a nother sentence. Example:<span style="font-style: italic;"> Eu visito os meus pais uma vez por semana.</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">Eu faço ioga duas vezes por semana.</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Everyday:</span><br /><br />= todo dia (slightly more casual) or todos os dias (slightly more formal):<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Eu tiro foto todo dia.</span><br />I take pictures every day.<br /><br />Eu chego ao trabalho às 9:00 todos os dias.<br />I arrive at work at 9:00 every day.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Exercise:</span> Answer the question: Você estuda Português todo dia?<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);">Every other day:</span><br /><br />I like this one. To say every other day, you can literaly say: "one day yes, one day no": <span style="font-style: italic;">um dia sim um dia não:<br /><br />A Mariana corre na praia <span style="font-weight: bold;">um dia sim um dia não</span>.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span>Mariana runs at the beach every onther day.<span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span></span></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Exercise: </span>Answer the question, if you can: Você tem tempo para estudar português um dia sim um dia não?</span><span style="color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(0, 102, 0);"><br /><br />Once every X days:</span><br /><br />You can express every X days by using the expression <span style="font-style: italic;">uma vez a cada X dias. </span>For example, to say "once every three days" you say <span style="font-style: italic;">uma vez a cada <span style="font-style: italic;">três dias:<br /><br />Eu vou na academia <span style="font-weight: bold;">uma vez a cada três dias</span>.<br /></span></span>I go to the gym once every three days.<span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span></span><br /><p><span style="font-weight: bold;"></span> </p><p><span style="font-weight: bold;"><span style="color: rgb(51, 204, 0);">Update:</span> Every Once in a While</span></p><p>You can say <em>de vez em quando:</em></p><p><em><strong>De vez em quando</strong>, eu vou caminhar no Central Park.</em></p><p>Every once in a while, I go for a walk in Central Park.</p><p> </p><p><span style="font-weight: bold;">Exercise:</span><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></span>- Make a table scheduling your major regular activities for the week.<br />- Based on your table describe your regular activities. Make sure to use each of the four types of expressions that you learnt at least <span style="font-style: italic;">duas vezes</span>!<span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br /></span></span>Bom, that is it for now. I hope to see you here at least <span style="font-style: italic;">uma vez por semana</span>.</p>Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-17353617508739026252008-10-01T14:25:00.000-07:002009-06-12T07:03:15.895-07:00Talking about Travel in Portuguese 3: travelling by plane<div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Quanto tempo! </span>(<a href="http://portuguesetips.blogspot.com/2008/08/talking-about-travel-in-portuguese.html">again</a>)... Now that I have finally finished settling in in <span style="font-style: italic;">Nova Iorque</span>, I am back from my <span style="font-style: italic;">sumiço</span> (=disapearance). Completing our travelling series, here is a dialogue describing a trip. If possible, try to get the main gist from the Portuguese version and the glossary before peaking at the English translation. (More vocabulary coming up in a future post).<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Diálogo:</span><br />Thomas: <span style="font-style: italic;">- Ananda, como foi a sua viagem para LA?</span><br />Ananda: <span style="font-style: italic;">- Foi bem legal, mas o vôo de volta foi bem longo.</span><br />Thomas:<span style="font-style: italic;"> - Ah é? Foi um vôo direto, ou você teve conexões?</span><br />Ananda:<span style="font-style: italic;"> - Eu tive uma conexão em Chicago. Foi bem demorada... mas a passagem foi bem baratinha!</span><br />Thomas:<span style="font-style: italic;"> - Que bom! Por que? É baixa-estação?</span><br />Ananda:<span style="font-style: italic;"> - Nem sei se é alta ou baixa... mas foi barata porque eu comprei a passagem pelo programa de milhagem.</span><br />Thomas:<span style="font-style: italic;"> - Legal!</span><br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">Notes:</span><br /></div><ul style="text-align: justify;"><li><span style="font-style: italic;">A volta</span>: the way back on a return flight. A return flight is called <span style="font-style: italic;">ida-e-volta</span>, consisting of a <span style="font-style: italic;">vôo de ida</span> (flight there) and <span style="font-style: italic;">vôo de volta</span> (flight back).<br /></li><li>Vôo direto: direct flight, with no <span style="font-style: italic;">conexões</span> (connections) or <span style="font-style: italic;">escalas</span> (stop-overs).</li><li><span style="font-style: italic;">Bem </span>+ Adjective, as in <span style="font-style: italic;">bem longo</span> or <span style="font-style: italic;">bem baratinha</span>: Although <span style="font-style: italic;">bem</span> literally means 'well', in these cases it is used to instensify the meaning of the adjective, much in the same way of the word 'very' in English.<br /></li></ul><div style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">Loose Translation:</span><br />Thomas: - Ananda, how was your trip to LA?<br />Ananda: - It was very nice, but the flight back was very long.<br />Thomas: - Really? Was it a direct flight or did you have connections?<br />Ananda: - I had a connection in chicago. It took a long time... but the ticket was very cheap!<br />Thomas: - Great! Why? Is it low season?<br />Ananda: - I am not even sure if it is low [season] or high [season]... but is was cheap because I bought the ticket through the millage program.<br />Thomas: - Cool!<br /><br />Exercícios:<br />1. Como foi a minha viagem para LA? E o vôo de volta?<br />2. Porque a minha passagem foi bem baratinha?<br />3. Você faz parte de um programa de milhagem? Em que companhias aéreas?<br />4. Qual foi o vôo mais longo que você já fez? Para onde foi? O vôo teve escalas ou conexões?</div>Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-84187601892021241402008-09-12T13:32:00.000-07:002008-09-12T14:12:22.987-07:00Brazilian Writer: Machado de Assis<div style="text-align: justify;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://oglobo.globo.com/blogs/arquivos_upload/2006/12/55_alienista.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px;" src="http://oglobo.globo.com/blogs/arquivos_upload/2006/12/55_alienista.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>This may be especially interesting for Portuguese learners and Brazilian culture appreciators in New York City: from Sept. 15th-19th, there will <a href="http://web.gc.cuny.edu/hispanic/machado21/index.html">a centennial celebration</a> of Machado de Assis, a Brazilian author regarded as one of the most important writers of Brazilian literature. This will include the <a href="http://www.filmlinc.com/wrt/onsale/latinbeat08/thealienist.html">screening </a>of two movies at the Latinbeat 2008 film festival, discussion <a href="http://web.gc.cuny.edu/hispanic/machado21/program.html">panels and a book exhibit</a>.<br /></div><br />Wheather you are in NYC or not, it may be fun to practice reading in Portuguese by learning a little about <a href="http://pt.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machado_de_Assis">Machado de Asiss</a> (if you are not there yet, you can read about him in English <a href="http://www.fll.purdue.edu/publications/espelho/Who.html">here</a> or <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joaquim_Maria_Machado_de_Assis">here</a>).<br /><br />A lot of Brazilians have read some of his books as part of their high school education, but the language is older and quite different from colloquial Portuguese, so it can be tough to read, even for advanced students. If you are up to it, his original work, in Portuguese, can be downloaded for free from <a href="http://www.dominiopublico.gov.br/pesquisa/ResultadoPesquisaObraForm.do?first=1000&skip=0&ds_titulo=&co_autor=&no_autor=Machado%20de%20Assis&co_categoria=2&pagina=1&select_action=Submit&co_midia=2&co_obra=&co_idioma=&colunaOrdenar=NU_PAGE_HITS&ordem=desc">Domínio Público</a>... Or you can get an <a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=Machado+de+Assis&x=0&y=0">English translation</a>, just in case :-).Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1739105367996271081.post-51067878507760051042008-09-12T10:13:00.000-07:002008-09-16T19:00:30.030-07:00Expressions with dar: 'Dar para' em Portuguese<div style="text-align: justify;">Today's tip will show you how to use the expression <span style="font-style: italic;">dar para</span> in Portuguese. This is a very natural and common way to say that something is possible/ doable. Here are a couple of examples:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Dá para ver </span><span style="font-style: italic;">a cidade inteira do topo da Sears towers!</span><br />One can see the whole city from the top of the Sears towers.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Não </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">dá para dirigir </span><span style="font-style: italic;">de Los Angeles até Nova Iorque em um dia: é muito longe!</span><br />One cannot/ It is not possible to drive from L.A. to NY in one day: it is too far!<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Com a nova ponte, </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">vai dar para chegar</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> em casa bem rápido.</span><br />With the new bridge, it will be possible to arrive home very quickly.<br /><br />Mini-dialogue:<br /><br />(Ananda:) <span style="font-style: italic;">Eu fui no MoMA ontem ver a exposição do Dali, mas não </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">deu pra ver</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> nada: estava muito cheio!</span><br />I went to MoMA yesterday to see the Dali exhibition, but one could not see anything: it was too full!<br /><br />(Dju-Dju:)<span style="font-style: italic;">É, quinta-feira é muito cheio... Amanhã vai estar menos cheio e </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">vai dar para ver melhor</span><span style="font-style: italic;">.</span><br />Yeah, Thursday it is very full... Tomorrow it will be less full and it will be possible to see better.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Deu para entender os exemplos?</span><br />Was it possible to understand the examples?<br /><br />So the structure is:<br /><br /></div>DAR PARA + VERB(infinitive)<br />to roughly mean: It is possible to VERB<br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">1. Exercise: </span>Answer however many questions you can:<br />1. <span style="font-style: italic;">Dá para dirjir de Nova Iorque até Los Angeles em um dia?</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">2. Dá para dirjir de Nova Iorque até Los Angeles em cinco dias?</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">3. Dá pra ver o mar da sua janela?</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">4. Dá para pegar </span>(pick up)<span style="font-style: italic;"> a Internet dos vizinhos na sua casa?</span><br /><br />Have a look at the verb <span style="font-style: italic;">dar</span> in the examples. Did you notice they are always the verb form (conjugation) for <span style="font-style: italic;">ele</span> (dá, deu, vai dar). That is how you always use the verb in this expression (with the third person singular form of the verb).<br /><br />That is not to say that you can't 'personalize' them a little bit by saying that an action is possible/doable for specific people, as in the following examples:<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Só </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">vai dar para ela chegar</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> em Nova Iorque em três dias.</span><br />It will only be possible for me to arrive in New York in three days.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Não </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">deu para eu ir</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> no seu aniversário: eu estava muito ocupada.</span>*<br />It was not possible for me to go to your birthday: I was very busy.<br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">Não </span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">dá para eu ler</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> o cardápio: eu esqueci os meus óculos</span>.<br />It is not possible for me to read the menu, I have forgotten my glasses.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;">Dá para você abaixar </span><span style="font-style: italic;">o volume do seu som, por favor</span>?<br />Is it possible for you to lower the volume of your stereo, please?<br /><br />In this case, the structure is like this:<br /><br /></div>DAR PARA + (EU/VOCÊ/ A MARIA...) + VERBO<br />It is possible for me/you/Maria... to VERB<br /><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />Notice that the verb dar is still the form for ele (dá, deu, vai dar...).**<br /><br />Now let's practice again:<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">1. Exercise: </span>Answer whichever questions you can:<br />1. <span style="font-style: italic;">Dá para você ver o mar da janela do seu quarto?</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">2. Vai dar para você ir no Brasil este ano?</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"> 3. Dá para você pegar a Internet dos vizinhos na sua casa?</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">4. Deu para entender esta dica (=tip)?</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;">5. Dá para alguém dirjir de Nova Iorque até Los Angeles em um dia?</span><br /><br />Espero que dê para você usar esta expressão agora!<br /><br />Até a próxima!<br /><br />*Advanced speakers only: Brazilians have a lot of <a href="http://www.euvoupassar.com.br/visao/artigos/completa.php?id=443">trouble deciding what form of the pronoun</a> to use over there. I've used the form considered correct in written Portuguese, but colloquially many people may use <span style="font-style: italic;">mim</span> instead of <span style="font-style: italic;">eu</span>.<br />**The second verb changes for eles and nós... but this will be the tópic for another tip...</div>Anandahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07094645291891093518noreply@blogger.com2