Last summer holidays

On my last summer holidays I spent a fortnight in the Algarve with my family and then I was lucky enough to find some time to do spiritual exercises with the Verbum Dei community. What about you, did you have fun on your summer holidays? What did you do? Did you visit some special places? Who travelled with you? Where did you stay?


"My summer holidays were wonderful because I had a gread time!
First of all, the weather was so fine that I went to the beach almost every day. On the beach I met my friends and I swam in the sea and did some beach sports, such as volleyball and football. When the weather was not so good, I went to the swimming-pool or just stayed at home and played computer games.
Finally, my parents and I spent some time in Mafra and I saw interesting monuments.
In conclusion, I liked my summer holidays so much that I would like to do once again the things I did then."

João Pedro Oliveira - 8B, no.14

"On my summer holidays I travelled by car, by plane and by boat and I went camping. I stayed at a fantastic campsite. I played sports and made new friends. I fished with a net and bait. I had lots of fun catching a fish! Then I climbed to the top of a mountain. What a view! It was amazing! I visited some interesting places too. I loved my summer holidays!"

Vasco Martins - 8B, no.26

"Hello! My summer holidays were fun! On my summer holidays I rode a bike, played football and basketball and swam a lot – I can swim very well.:-)
The places I visited were fantastic! I visited a Safari in Alentejo and I travelled to Porto by car, where I visited the family of my father who lives in South Africa. (They had flown to Porto for the holidays.) I also spent some days in the Algarve, namely in Tavira. Tavira is a very beautiful place. It is situated in the South of Portugal and it is very close to Spain.

I liked my summer holidays very much. They were my best summer holidays ever!"

Guilherme Pereira - 8B, no.13 

“I spent my holidays in Portimão, in my neighbour’s apartment. Every day in the morning my father went out to buy bread and the newspaper. Next we had our breakfast and we went to the beach. We didn’t usually cook our meals, we had them in a restaurant. The food there was very good. (Once a famous person showed up there and played with my younger sister.) After lunch we stayed at home in the hours of hot weather and next we went to the beach. Next we had dinner and finally we went to bed. My holidays were very monotonous but I enjoyed them!”

Gonçalo Santos – 8B, no.12

"On my last summer holidays I flew to America, namely to New Bedford which is situated in the State of Massachusetts. I liked traveling by plane; it was my first time. I visited my relatives who live there and I stayed at my aunt and uncle’s house. I visited lots of special places, such as the Whale Museum, some ports, some beaches and a well-known city called New York. In New York I saw Central Park, the Statue of Liberty and the Fifth Avenue.
I spent two months in the United States and I’d love to go back."

Gonçalo Teiga– 8B, no.11

Every kind of people

I truly hope that in time this blog might be visited on a regular basis by my students and former students and that somehow, despite their different tastes and personality traits, they all find something here that they can relate to. It is said that "Variety is the spice of life" and I agree, but I also believe that “whether yellow, black or white, each and every man is the same inside”, as the late singer Robert Palmer sang in his 1978 song “Every kinda people”(that’s slang for every kind of people). Yes, I know, it’s a thirty-year-old song, but the lyrics are so meaningful and still so up-to-date! If you don't want to watch the videoclip, at least scroll down to the bottom of the page, look for the song in the playlist and listen to it as you read its lyrics:

Said the fight to make ends meet
Keeps a man upon his feet
Holding down his job
Trying to show he can’t be bought

Ooh it takes every kinda people
To make what life's about, yeah
Every kinda people
To make the world go round

Someone's looking for a lead
In his duty to a king or to a creed
Protecting what he feels is right
Fights against wrong with his life

There's no profit in deceit
Honest men know that
Revenge does not taste sweet
Whether yellow, black or white
Each and every man's the same inside

It takes every kinda people
To make what life's about, yeah
It takes every kinda people
To make the world go round
Doo doo doo......

You know that love's the only goal
That could bring a peace to any soul
Hey and every man's the same
He wants the sunshine in his name

It takes every kinda people
To make what life's about, yeah
It takes every kinda people
To make the world go round
Mmmm, every kinda people
To make what life's about

Let me know your opinion about this song by posting a comment. Thanks in advance!

Welcome!

     Hi there! :-) Welcome to the English galaxy. (I meant to call this blog “my English blog” but such an obvious name had already been taken by someone else.)  :-(
I’ve created this blog to give all my students a further opportunity to express themselves in English outside the classroom (hopefully both in a fun and didactic way).
     Although the main purpose of this blog is to enhance my students’ skills and knowledge regarding the English language and culture, if you’re just a blogtrotter who has found the English galaxy by accident, you’re by all means welcome to leave a comment, suggest interesting topics for discussion or simply come back anytime you want. Nevertheless, bear in mind that all comments MUST be written in English. They mustn’t be anonymous or contain curse words or insults. Furthermore, they are subject to my approval. 
     Thanks in advance for taking part!
     Enjoy the blog!