Just a few comments
You used lots of very nice expressions again, Silvia, in your last two postings, such as:
make up for lost time
he tried to capture his dreams and obsessions
in the limelight
A few comments and improvements:
A seminar that lasts for two days is a two-day seminar. So what's:
a journey that takes three hours?
a holiday that lasts one week?
a course that lasts four years?
I think Juana la Loca means 'crazy Juana', doesn't it? Why was she called that? (I think she finally united the kingdoms of her parents, Castilla and Aragón - i.e. joined them together in one kingdom - right?)
Colón is known in English as Christopher Columbus. When I first went to Spain and came across the name Colón, I didn't realise it was the same person at first!
The cartographer that had to draw the map of the new world credited Americo with the discovery - i.e. said that Americo was responsible for the achievement. 'Grant' means to allow someone to have or do what they want - e.g grant permission, grant a request.
Miguel de Cervantes was a novelist, poet and dramatist who is still considered to be one of the most outstanding figures of [not 'the'] Spanish literature. His novel, El ingenioso hidalgo don Quijote de la Mancha, has been described as the first modern novel and one of the greatest works of [not 'the'] world literature. It has also been translated into nearly every language.
“ En un lugar de la Mancha, de cuyo nombre no quiero acordarme…..” (In a certain village in La Mancha, which I do not wish to remember…..) Isn't it really "whose name I do not wish to remember"? Remembering the village is a different thing from remembering its name. Anyway, the opening seems quite easy to read in Spanish, but I suppose it gets more difficult after that.
Picasso is known worldwide or world-famous. He was the most important painter of the twenty century.
One of his masterpieces is, without a doubt, the Meninas, which isn’t nearly as impressive [in a book? in a reproduction?] as it is when you’re in front of it.
I have to admit that I’m very fond of reading
I'm a tea lover....how british I am!
I’m always waiting for a new book by him to be published.
And another example where you need to change the word order: That’s why turrón and almond cake are so traditional.
In Poland we also get really good Spanish oranges at this time of the year - and lettuce from Murcia!
And I agree that Barcelona is a fantastic place, with loads of history, and loads to see and do.
Myen - You should really just eat small amounts of each of the 12 Christmas dishes, although it can be hard to resist the temptation. You did some good detective work, and you reported it very entertainingly! I think your suspicions are justified. It could be:
"The word 'Romance' is ultimately derived from 'Rome' - it was used as "THE" name for a certain type of mediaeval literature."
..... but perhaps 'a name for' is more likely, or 'the name of'.
That's all for today, folks!
Comments
Hello Jonathan! Could you give us some tips to brush up our English speech please? Best wishes, Ana Paula.
Hello Jonathan. I am so happy that you wrote about my country and its traditions in such an interesting way. I am fond of visiting art exhibitions. There are 3 amazing ones in Warsaw now. We can see the art of old Flanders masters at the National Museum; works of Wilhelm Sasnal (the most famous polish painter now) at the National Gallery Zacheta and the treasures of german art at the Royal Castle. So if you are in Warsaw next time ... I like modern art as much as classical one. It doesn't matter how old it is. The most important is beauty. But what decide that something is beautiful or not? I'm afraid it is a question without an answer. But now I'm reading a fascinating book about it. "The history of beauty" written by Umberto Eco. This is an exciting travel through several ages of European culture. I recommend it to all people who love art. I would like to ask you a question. I have got a problem with that task from my English Grammar Book. What is difference between these phrases:"a pair of socks" and "a couple of socks"? I would be grateful to you for your help. Bye.
Hello Jonathan, do native speakers also have problem with articles? You must have noticed we non-native speakers make mistakes with articles very often. I have to admit that I'm very weak in articles. I would like to ask a couple of questions about today's language points on articles.1)Why can't we use 'figures of the Spanish literature' in the above example?2)Why is it the greatest works of world literature and not 'the world literature'? I think I get confused with these kinds of structures. And the HW:1)a three-hour journey.2)a week holiday.3)a four-year course. Have a nice day! Naheed
Hello Jonathan! I was thinking of how to apologize to Miss 'THE' for my wrong doubt, then you say "I think your suspicions are justified" (I go bananas!). In fact, I wondered why it wasn't Miss 'THE' but her son 'A'. Thank you so much for elucidating the mystery (A name for... or THE name of...) and also for the name of Colón - when I read Silvia's blog I thought it was Christopher Columbus but was not 100% sure. Anyway, I was wrong when saying twelve dishes symbolizing twelve months of year. Sorry! (:-)) Yeah, to taste something means to eat a small amount of it so it's easy to be in luck during the coming year. Have a nice weekend! See you next time, Myen.
Hi there , Who are you all feeling ? Yesterday ( Friday ) was our weekly off day in Iran and as a workwomen I had loads to do as usual , so today I 'm really , fed up . Any way , Jonathan I was interested that you 've been impressed by the few Iranian films that you 've seen before . I wish , you could remember the names or even the film 's subject .And Did you watch them in Iranian film festivals or some thing like that ? I guess the directors might be " Mohsen Makhmalbaf " or " Majid majiday " or " Masood Kimiai " ,innit ? . About the Persian name of Poland , yes you are right , I surfed the net and I realized that as you said one thousand years ago , the nation who lived in Poland were called ( Is it grammatically correct ?) , " Lah " by their eastern neighbor ( Tartars and Ottomans , now Turkey ) and we have followed them .Have a nice weekend and send my hello to your other half and Bye
Hello Jonathan, I've also seen the film " Das Leben der Anderen" and think, that it is a very good one. Yes, you have to say, or write " information" and not " informations".Really it is the same like in German.Your blog is a very good way to improove my English skills. Luckily the weather has changed, it's now cold and frosty and the weatherreport predict some snow...We will see. This evening I visit, together with my husband and my daughter, the "pretty ugly dance company" by Amanda Miller. We go by train to Cologne and will see the performance in the playhouse.I'm looking forward to it. Have a nice weekend, bye...
"when you’re in front of it." what do you mean?
Marhaba Jonathan, these days are the run-up to Eid al-Adha in all the Muslim countries. Eid al-Adha is a religious festival and it is one day after the pilgrims in Hajj (Mecca). Some say it is the biggest Eid in Islam and it commomerates Prophet Ibrahim's willingness to sacrifice his son Ismael for God. Instead he receives orders from Him to sacrifice a sheep...
Hello Jonathan, in you last posting you wrote "...poet and dramatist who is still considered TO BE one of the most outstanding figures...". What is your correction based on? Is there a certain rule why we should and should not use "TO BE" after the verb "consider"? E.g. I consider it __ a great honour to be invited and They consider themselves TO BE Europeans. Thank you in advance. Ana
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