Archive for 'Culture'
Listening Comprehension: Fortune Telling Posted by Rachel on Jun 3, 2010
Today we’re going to do a little listening comprehension exercise using a short report from BBC Brasil (which by the way, is a fantastic resource for Portuguese students). Questions 1. Where is the healer from? 2. What does the healer foresee about the World Cup, and how did he find out? 3. How many people…
Figurinhas de Futebol Posted by Rachel on Jun 1, 2010
An interesting element of Brazilian soccer culture that not many gringos know about is figurinha collecting. Akin to American baseball cards, figurinhas, or stickers, feature soccer players, and are wildly popular during the World Cup. The stickers resemble cards and feature soccer players from Brazil and around the world, and stickers are issued for both…
Circuito Inffinito Posted by Rachel on May 28, 2010
Great news, Brazilian Portuguese fans! The Inffinito Brazilian Film Festival may be coming to your city this summer. The festival will be in New York from June 5 – 12, in Vancouver from July 15 – 18, in Miami from August 13 – 21, and in London from September 1 – 5. This is not…
Side by Side Lyrics Translation: Jorge Ben Jor Posted by Rachel on May 26, 2010
One of my favorite songs about Brazil is Jorge Ben Jor’s “País Tropical,” an ode to Brazil and in particular, to Rio de Janeiro. The lyrics are very simple and quite easy to understand, so it’s a good song for beginners. Just a note: he refers to two very specific things: Flamengo, a popular Rio…
Watch Your Favorite TV Shows in Portuguese Posted by polyana on May 24, 2010
Since being in Brazil, I’ve been getting my American TV shows fix online. Since I have the privilege of speaking English and having a great internet connection, I don’t have to wait until the episodes get to cable tv in Brazil in order to keep up with my American friends’ Facebook comments on different shows…
Samba da Vela Documentary Posted by Rachel on May 21, 2010
Though many foreigners assume Rio de Janeiro is where samba thrives, São Paulo is also a great place to hear one of Brazil’s most beloved musical forms. I found a neat little documentary about samba da vela, or candle samba, and the community that has grown around it in the Santo Amaro neighborhood of São…
Basic soccer/football vocabulary Posted by André on May 20, 2010
As the World Cup is about to kick off it’s time to learn or look over some basic soccer vocabulary. I hope the list below can get you warmed up and ready to play the game. Vocabulary: Futebol – Soccer/football Time – Team Seleção (brasileira) – (Brazil’s) National team Jogador – Player Juiz/árbitro –…