Around the world...

English is an international language. There are lots of English-speaking countries, as we saw some weeks ago. Here we have a video about touristic destinations all around the world. The video is in Spanish but it shows images of very interesting cities. Do you know in which of these places they speak English as the official language? I am sure you can. You can find more information in the Anglosphere post.

Ireland in words: Lake Isle of Innisfree, by William Butler

Have you ever travelled to Ireland? You can learn more about this fantastic country with a poem by William Butler Yeats: Lake Isle of Innisfree.  Now, close your eyes and listen to this...
Do you like it? So let's read the poem and enjoy a fantastic version: a song by Tony Bardon in Jamendo.

  © Copyright Kenneth Allen and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.

Lake Isle of Innisfree I will arise and go now, and go to Innisfree,
And a small cabin build there, of clay and wattles made:
Nine bean-rows will I have there, a hive for the honey-bee,

And live alone in the bee-loud glade.                                      

And I shall have some peace there, for peace comes dropping slow,
Dropping from the veils of the morning to where the cricket sings;
There midnight's all a glimmer, and noon a purple glow,
And evening full of the linnet's wings.

I will arise and go now, for always night and day
I hear lake water lapping with low sounds by the shore;
While I stand on the roadway, or on the pavements grey,
I hear it in the deep heart's core.

Poem by William Butler Yeats

Royalty-free music for professional licensing

Camden Market

Camden Market is, in fact, a group of markets located in Camden Town (London): Camden Lock Market, Camden Stables Market, Camden Canal Market, Inverness Street Market, and Camden (Buck Street) Market. Nowadays, it is the fourth most-visited tourist attraction in London and it is the largest street market in the UK. There are hundreds of designer workshops, studios, stalls, shops, cafes, restaurants and bars selling high quality goods from designer, alternative & vintage clothing and accessories to one-off pieces of art, furnishings, antiques, jewellery, records & CDs, collectables, arts & crafts and international food. One of the most interesting things to do in Camden is looking at the fronts and windows of the shops. They are incredible!

Remember, remember the fifth of November

The houses of Parliament (London, UK)

Remember, remember the fifth of November
The gunpowder treason and plot.
I know of no reason why the gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.


This is the beginning of a very old traditional rhyme about the Gunpowder Plot of 1605, a failed conspiracy to assassinate the King James I of England. (You can listen to it here).

Not everybody in England liked the king, so some people decided to blow up the Houses of Parliament with the King inside. Guy Fawkes was one of them. They planned to use gunpowder to blow up underneath the King’s chair, so 36 barrels of gunpowder were put in the basement of the Houses of Parliament on November 5th. The barrels were found so they never exploded. Guy Fawkes and his friends were arrested for trying to kill the King. They confessed everything about the plot and, as a result, they were hung.
Now, every year on November 5th some British people remember how his plan failed. They have fireworks outside, and they burn bonfires with a Guy Fawkes on top: children make it with old clothes and newspapers. They call this festival the Guy Fawkes Night or the Bonfire Night. They eat sausages, jacked potatoes, toffee apples, etc.

HALLOWEEN

Yesterday, on October 31st, millions of people around the world celebrated the Halloween night. This is not a Spanish tradition; instead we celebrate today, on November 1st, the Christian festivity of All Saints. Nowadays, some Spanish people also celebrate Hallooween. As in other western countries, this celebration has spread around the world mainly through American films and television. However, this is not originally an American tradition. In fact, it comes from ancient Celtic traditions.
Halloween symbols are known all over the world, but do you really know where they come from? Come and see...