Archive for May, 2011
Non-Verbal Communication: Part II Posted by Rachel on May 17, 2011
Continuing with our non-verbal communication series, we’re going to learn another hand gesture common in Brazil. The two hand slap This gesture is used to express the idea that you don’t care, or that something doesn’t matter to you. Let’s say you’re talking with your friend about how your friends got tickets to a show…
Nipo-Brasileiros – Japanese Culture in Brazil Posted by polyana on May 16, 2011
Yesterday afternoon, one of my friends invited a bunch of us to her house for Sukiyaki, a traditional Japanese dish her family makes every once in a while, owing tribute to her father’s Japanese ascendance. This friend of mine is what we call here, mestiça. We use it to define someone’s race as “Brazilian,” and…
Non-Verbal Communication: Part I Posted by Rachel on May 13, 2011
We’ve talked a bit about non-verbal communication in the past, namely about hand gestures used in conjunction with certain themes in Brazilian Portuguese. We learned that when using depois, you can use a hand gesture to signal “maybe later” or “come back later.” In a new series, we’re going to learn about hand gestures you…
Reading Comprehension: Rock in Rio Posted by Rachel on May 12, 2011
Rock in Rio is a series of music festivals held in Brazil, Portugal and Spain. The first concert series was held in Rio de Janeiro in 1985, attended by 1.5 million people. Two other shows were held in Brazil in 1991 and 2001, and now the mega-show is coming back to Rio in 2011. Today…
Rodeios & Sertanejo Posted by polyana on May 9, 2011
Rodeio season has started in Brazil! It’s when it starts to get “chilly,” and gives us big city folk a reason to go to the countryside, wear our cowboy boots, big belts, big hats, and go to sertanejo concerts (Brazilian country music)! I went to the Jaguariúna Rodeio, a town an hour or so away…
Hopefully Posted by Rachel on May 6, 2011
There’s a number of ways to say “hopefully” in Portuguese. Let’s take a look at the various expressions and learn how! 1. Oxalá If you know Spanish or Arabic, this word will look familiar to you, and with good reason. It comes from the same meaning (in sa alla in Arabic, ojalá in Spanish), which…
Subtitles and Dubbing in Portuguese Posted by Rachel on May 5, 2011
When living or traveling in Brazil, you’ll notice that there’s quite a lot of foreign movies, TV shows, and music being consumed. Most of the time, you’ll find one of two things: subtitles or dubbing. We’ve talked a bit about this in the past, and as far as learning is concerned, I highly recommend both…