Sting Meets With Brazilian Indigenous Leaders Posted by Rachel on Nov 23, 2009
Yesterday, British pop star Sting met with several indigenous leaders Caiapó tribe to discuss the Brazilian government’s plans to construct a massive hydroelectric plant in the state of Pará, which would affect the Caiapó’s lands. Sting met the leaders twenty years ago on the Xingu reservation, which inspired him to create a non-profit, the Rainforest…
Thanksgiving Vocabulary Posted by Rachel on Nov 20, 2009
In Brazil, there’s no such thing as Thanksgiving, but it’s useful to know vocabulary about your own culture so that you can share it with your friends in Portuguese. It’s much easier to explain something foreign when you know the right words. Let’s take a look: holiday = feriado Thanksgiving Day = Dia de Ação…
Favorite Christmas Recipe Posted by Rachel on Nov 19, 2009
The holidays are quickly approaching, and Christmas is the major summer holiday before New Year’s and Carnival in Brazil. For today’s interactive feature, the question is: What is your favorite Brazilian Christmas recipe? It can be for the main course or dessert, or a drink. Leave a comment here!
Brazil Business News Posted by Rachel on Nov 18, 2009
Let’s take a look at some of the business headlines from Brazil this week: Portuguese Lucro da Petrobras recua, Zero Hora Ampliação da matriz de energia é uma das saídas para evitar novos apagões, Correio Braziliense Petrobras anuncia descoberta de jazida de petróleo leve na Bacia de Campos, G1 Brasil gera 230,000 empregos e tem…
Lyrics Practice: Ana Carolina Posted by Rachel on Nov 16, 2009
Ana Carolina is a wonderful singer and composer, so today we’re going to look at her Portuguese adaptation of the song “The Blower’s Daughter.” Skip to the 2:00 mark for her to start singing. The lyrics are from the recorded version, so the live version is just slightly different, so keep a close eye on…
To have done Posted by Rachel on Nov 13, 2009
In English, we frequently use the present perfect tense to describe some sort of experience that we had in the past. In Portuguese, this tense is used very infrequently, and instead, the past simple tense is used with já (already). Let’s take a look at some examples. Have you gone to Disney World? Você já…
Favorite Brazilian Team Posted by Rachel on Nov 12, 2009
For today’s interactive question, we’re going to talk about futebol. I realize this can sometimes be a dangerous question, but which is your favorite Brazilian soccer team? (I.e. Flamengo, Corinthians, Internacional, Cruzeiro, etc). Let’s hear from you!