Conversation class 29/1/2009

Todays class has been very long and very productive. As I felt that I was taking profit of the class I decided to stay for the second hour and continue talking. We talked about a wide variety of things, but with a very normal style, it really felt like a normal conversation in catalan. We started talking about the exam time, how were the tests going and our thoughts about the future subjects. I had had a hard exam the day before and I talked about my bad opinion about the teacher and the subject in general. After that, we discussed the advantages and disadvantages of working in a group or alone when writing the projects in the degree.

Andrea Sofia had brought a sheet with some topics around dreams and we talked about it. The conversation then changed to the Vila Universitaria and we compared it with the dorms in the USA. We explained Andrea Sofia how was the day of the heavy wind episode here in Bellaterra and in the rest of Catalonia (for example, those poor 4 kids in Sant Boi...). Then we talked about driving and the fact that in the USA a sixteen year old person is able to drive a car and we agreed that this isn't a good idea.

I would rate my English today as very good. Everything was going right, apart from some normal doubts and some words that didn't come to my mind as fast as the rest, and I was improving as the class was going. I learned some vocabulary today too:


Bankbed: "llitera"

Matress: "matalàs"

Bedframe: "somier"

Fences: "tanques"

I always try to define words with my own expressions, but I can't even define them in catalan, so I suppose that it is valid to just translate them.

Time Spent: 2:30

Conversation class 21/01/09 and other things

I had a meeting with you yesterday and we talked about the things that I should do for the last month of the CAL. The work since today has been okay and doesn't need to be changed. The most important thing is to publish something in the blog each week, even if I don't have anything to publish. Is a way to show that I am concerned about the CAL. This week I think that I will only go to one conversation class. Next week will be focused on vocabulary because I am not sure that I'll be in the UAB after Tuesday.

I went to a conversation class today. I think that today's class has been very positive for my confidence. I don't know why I feel that confortable some days, and why I am completely useless in others. It doesn't have a concrete reason, or I think so. Maybe it's the topic, how sleepy I am or what I have eaten for lunch. Today we talked about the differences between the pre-university exams in the States and in Spain. She told me that the exams there were much more difficult and it was hard to get to the university you want. My feelings about our 'selectivitat' are the complete reverse. I explained that I found it quite easy. After that I talked about some particularities of our catalan. The main point was that incredibly useful word that we in Osona use always for everything. Yes, I am talking about 'cardar'. The other student that was in the class was a bit astonished when I explained our uses for the word, but it's normal, it happens usually.


Time Spent: 1:30h

Vocabulary work 08/01/09

Today I worked again in my vocabulary as I couldn't go to the conversation class because I wasn't in the university at that time. This time some things have became clearer to me because I amb getting used to the technical words used in the news today (the Israelian problem, economical problems...). As a result, I got a little less vocabulary. Here's some vocabulary and links:


http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/jan/08/carlos-tevez-west-ham-inquiry-premier-league-fa

http://www.guardian.co.uk/politics/2009/jan/08/miliband-gas-ukraine

cabinet: the ministers of a government

premises: land and buildings together considered as place of business

ransom: freeing from captivity

dwindling: becoming gradually less

rekindled: to become important again

swamped: swanked

allegedly: declared but not proved

jointly: in conjuction with, combined



Time spent: 1:30h

Vocabulary work 07/01/09

As I went to the library and the teacher wasn't there I worked in my vocabulary today. I surfed through the BBC page and I wrote down the vocabulary I didn't understand. I have a pair of links to some of the news that I read:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7815929.stm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/7814987.stm


Here's the vocabulary:

truce: ceasefire, stop a war for a determined time

lull: period of calm

halted: to be stopped (the troops)

smuggling: Illegal trades through the frontiers of the country.

tatters: to be in tatters is to be in a very bad condition.

gross: flagrant, brutal

stalemate: to be stuck somewhere (in a negotiation)

hinges: the piece where a door can turn (bisagra)

ditches: to get rid of

playwrights: the person who writes theatre plays

unrest: disappointment

thug: person who gets paid to make violent actions


Time spent: 2h