Monday, October 08, 2007

Group B: Marta

A traditional London bus..



Photo by http://www.flickr.com/photos/esuzf/


Why have I chosen this picture? Because I simply love London! I have just come back from this exciting city and I'm already planning to go back there.. What I like most of London is its amazing mixture of cultures, colours, traditions and languages..everything there seems to be lively, vivid and full of energy! When I was in London I always travelled by bus, partly because I lived in the town centre and partly because it was the best way to "explore" and to get to know the city, its streets, its oddest people, its bright colours and, why not, its traffic! I think that this picture best represents my enthusiasm and my will to go back there, one day, and be part of that fascinating reality..


Here are two websites I would suggest to you to have a look at:

http://www.wordreference.com/

I have been using this free online dictionary since the very beginning of university; I find it particularly useful when, using the computer to write in English, I bump into a new or difficult word. Thanks to this website you can quickly solve many of your basic translation problems; moreover, if you just click on the right links, you can get images and samples of contexts for the word you are looking up in the dictionary.

http://www.timeout.com/london/

If you are planning to go to London, this is the website for you: it provides you with all the information you need about events, expositions, films, restaurants, pubs and TV programs that are on in the city. Each event is reviewed, and you can also get tips on where to eat nearby the place you want to visit! This website, as well as the Timeout Magazine, is largely used by Londoners to be constantly informed of what is new in their city.


5 comments:

ElenaCosta said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
tortina84 said...

Hi Marta!
On Wednesday lesson I noticed that you speak English very well: fluently, great pronunciation and typical English intonation!And now I've found out why...You've been in London!I suppose you've been there for a long time...What an envy! I've been in London twice, but just for few days, as a tourist. I like it very much and I agree with you when you say that it is a "mixture of cultures, colours, traditions and languages"; I was spellbound by the same things. Above all, I like the way in which many different cultures live together without problems, out of racial prejudices...here in Italy we haven't this open-minded social culture. I am sensitive to this problem and I can't put up with those people who have an unfair treatment of non-EU nationals. Very often there is a total ignorance beyond their behaviour, and this makes me laugh!
I would like to go to London again, but this time with my boyfriend...he has never been there and I would like let him get in touch with that reality!
If I'll go there, I'll certainly use the second web site you suggest!
It's great, this is a way to exchange useful information!Thanks!

Bye!
Martina

ElenaCosta said...

Hi Marta!
I definetely share your passion for London, I was there at the end of high school but the desire to visit it better and to feel its cosmopolitan atmosphere urged me to come back last year...it was probably the craziest weekend of my life and I have never walked so much but it was worth it! I will surely visit the website you suggested for my next trip to the British capital, so maybe I will avoid choosing another awful hostel like the one where I stayed! I also think that using the bus to move around is a great idea: the underground is faster but you lose the oppurtunity to see some parts of London that people generally forget (it's not all about monuments!). I hope you will tell us something more about your stay there!
See you soon,
Elena

Giovanna said...

Hello Marta! London is a beautiful city and I can easily imagine why you liked it so much. I think that being in the midst of that melting pot made you feel part of it and it surely was a great sensation. I would like to spend some time abroad, get in touch with different cultures and learn to speak english as a native speaker does! My dream is to visit Boston and and stay there for a very long time. I've also heard of a work-study program in Australia, organised by the MB agency in Padua. You should stay there for a year, attending classes in the morning and working in the afternoon. The retribution is quite high but the course is very expensive and I can't afford it,for the moment. Maybe in the future...

Sara DT said...

Hi Marta!
I visited London during a study tour I made in England in 2000, but I stayed there only for one day, so you can immagine how little I could see. I would like to go there again, but this time I want to spend in The City at least 10 days in order to visit it better and to "live" its atmosphere. Ithink the second site you've signalled will be very useful. Thanks!
As far as the Wordreference site is concerned, it is also one of the websites I visit the most when I have to write in English, and I'm using right in this moment!
bye!
Sara