Hard to Believe Posted by Rachel on May 25, 2011
The other day, I was talking to a Brazilian friend and he used an expression that I wanted to share, since it’s perfect for using in everyday conversation. Por mais incrível que pareça / Pelo incrível que pareça This expression roughly translates as, “As difficult as it is to believe,” or “As hard as it…
Collective Nouns in Portuguese: Animals Posted by Rachel on May 24, 2011
While these nouns aren’t as vital to daily conversation as some other nouns you’ll learn here, they’ll help you sound like a much more experienced speaker. Today, we’re going to learn about animal collectives, or coletivos. alcateia = pack (of wolves, hyenas, wild dogs) cáfila = caravan of camels cardume = school of fish enxame…
Non-Verbal Communication, Part III Posted by polyana on May 23, 2011
One thing you don’t want to do when travelling, is to do or say something inappropriate or offensive in that country. In Brazil, people are usually accepting of these gafes, but it doesn’t hurt to learn a little bit of non-verbal communication no-no’s while travelling to Brazil on business or whatnot. So without further ado…
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…