Está servido? Posted by Rachel on Feb 9, 2011
Eating with friends and family is an important part of Brazilian culture, so it’s important to learn phrases and expressions that deal with meals. Está servido is a useful phrase to know for eating with others, and it can be a little confusing if you hear it for the first time. Literally, this expression means…
Carnaval 2011 Countdown – Chiclete com Banana Posted by polyana on Feb 7, 2011
Carnaval is in five weeks! In exactly one month, I hope to be dancing in the streets of Olinda, Pernambuco for their traditional Carnaval festivities, and I can’t wait to share it with you all! Do any of you have plans for Carnaval this year? For my next posts until Carnaval, I’ll be posting different…
Sarcastic Depois Posted by Rachel on Feb 4, 2011
We’ve learned about sarcastic expressions before, but here’s another one you can use. Depois is normally used to mean after or later, in this context: Vou terminar o projeto depois. I’m going to finish the project later. Ela foi para casa depois de ver o filme. She went home after seeing the movie. But you…
Months in Portuguese Posted by polyana on Jan 31, 2011
Can you believe tomorrow is February already? Thinking about how fast time flies, I realized we haven’t written about the months and in Portuguese here yet. The months in Portuguese are actually quite similar to English, so it shouldn’t be hard for you to memorize them! One thing to note, however, is that when you’re…
Summer Vacation in Brazil Posted by Rachel on Jan 31, 2011
One of the most important things to know when traveling, studying, or working in Brazil or with Brazilian companies or government is to remember the sanctity of the summer vacation, or férias de verão. For students, the break can last from mid- or even early December to February, and adults typically take a holiday during…
What Went Wrong? Posted by Rachel on Jan 27, 2011
You’ll find plenty of funny viral videos from Brazil on the Web, and they’re great learning opportunities if you’re learning Portuguese. Let’s take a look at a couple. Game Show Can you correctly answer the question? Here are the clues: 1. É um pais da Europa; 2. No passado invadiu o Brasil; 3. Terra das…
Watch Carnival Online Posted by Rachel on Jan 26, 2011
Exciting news! This year, you’ll be able to watch Carnival live on YouTube for free, directly from Salvador, Bahia. The channel is already available here. Here are two of the videos they have up as a little preview for the festivities: From Jornal do Brasil: “Levar a cultura brasileira para diversos países em tempo real…