AN E-MAIL TO A FOREIGN STUDENT

Hello Zoey,

We look forward to seeing you here in Spain. Just wait and see; we are going to show you a lot of things. We have already made the program of the things we will do each day.

Here is what we have planned:

-Day 1: You will arrive at Madrid´s airport, and you then take a bus to Salamanca. This day you won´t do anything because you will be tired after the flight.

-Day 2: We will visit Salamanca and show you the most important places and buildings in the city, like the cathedral and the Main Square. We will also show you the academy where you are going to learn Spanish. After that we will go home for dinner and that’s the end of the day.

-Day 3: You will have to wake up early to go to the academy. The classes are from nine o´clock to two o´clock. After that you will have lunch in Salamanca with the other students who go to the academy, and when you have had lunch you will have free time for doing whatever you want.

-Day 4: You will have classes in the morning and in the afternoon we will have an excursion to Zamora to see one of the famous processions which are typical for the Spanish Holy Week.

-Day 5: You won´t go the academy because we will make another excursion to Madrid, to see famous places like the Royal Palace and the Main Square. After that we will eat there and we will come back to Salamanca late in the afternoon.

-Day 6: You will go to class like the other days, and after that we will go to La Alberca, which is a very beautiful village in the mountains. Perhaps we can also go to La Covatilla, which is a skiing resort.

-Day 7: You will take a bus to Madrid, and then you will take a plane in Barajas to go back to England.

We hope that you will enjoy your stay here. See you soon. Best regards,

Elián and Julián.

   

GLOSSARY UNIT 5 GEOGRAPHY

-NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY: is the power of a state to do everything necessary to govern itself, such as making, executing, and applying laws; imposing and collecting taxes; making war and peace; and forming treaties or engaging in commerce with foreign nations.

-CONSTITUTIONAL MONARCHY: a monarchy governed according to a constitution that limits and defines the powers of the sovereign.

-THE CROWN: the part of a constitutional monarchy represented by the king.

-ARBITRATOR:  A person chosen to decide a dispute or settle differences.

-DECENTRALISED GOVERNMENT: a system of government in which decision- making is devolved to a local level and is therefore closer to the citizens.

-MINISTERS: government officials that, together with the president, make up the Spanish cabinet.

-MUNICIPALITY: the most basic administrative body in the Spanish territory.

-MAYOR: is the highest-ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city.

-COUNCILLORS: government officials that together with the mayor make up the town council.

-PROVINCE: an administrative body made up of several municipalities in the Spanish territory.

-SELF GOVERNMENT: is an abstract concept that applies to several scales of organization.

-STATUTE OF AUTONOMY: is a law hierarchically located under the constitution of a country, and over any other form of legislation.

-SUBSIDIARITY: the principle of devolving decisions to the lowest practical level so that services are closer to the citizens.

-AUTONOMOUS COMMUNITY: one of the 17 regions that form part of the Spanish territory.

-EXCLUSIVE AUTHORITY: is a government's assertion of its legitimate authority over a certain territory.

-SHARE AUTHORITY: the local government and the state over laws related to the transport or the labor market.

-WELL BEING: the level of satisfaction of a population as measured by education levels, health care, live expectancy and consumption.

-LIFE EXPECTANCY: the number of years a person or population is expected to live.

-ILLITERACY: is the inability to read and write one's own name and further for knowledge and interest, write coherently, and think critically about the written word.

-EXTENDED FAMILY: defines a family that extends beyond the nuclear family, consisting of grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins all living nearby or in the same household.

-NUCLEAR FAMILY: is a term used to define a family group consisting of a pair of adults and their children.

IS IT IMPORTANT TO HAVE A CONSTITUTION?

I think that it´s indeed very necessary for a country to have a constitution. This is because it helps to organize the country and the way people live together within that country giving a set of rights and obligations. If people don´t have a constitution, they can easily turn the country into a chaotic place to live. Without rights there would be a lot of injustice; without rules and obligations the people would not work for the community and there would probably be a lot of crime. In conclusion, it´s necessary to have a constitution in order to construct a harmonic society.

GLOSSARY UNIT 4 GEOGRAPHY

-GDP: Gross Domestic Product.

-CAP: Common Agricultural Policy.

-CFP: Common Fisheries Policy.

-BUDGET: a sum of money to be used for specfic purposes by a government.

-COHESION: the act of working together.

-SURPLUS: an amount or a quantity greater than needed.

-TREATY: a formal agreement related to international laws and relations between two or more countries.

-INVESTMENT: to buy property or another possessions in order to gain future benefit.

-OUTSKIRTS: bordering areas of a region or a city.

-CURRENCY: the money that a country uses.

-OMBUDSMAN: a government official who hears and investigates complaints by private citizens against other officials or government agencies.

ENGLISH MAGAZINE COVER

Here is the magazine cover that I did with Julián:

WISHES FOR 2014

Here is my VoiceThread about my wishes for the new year: https://voicethread.com/share/5335648/

CHARACTERISTICS OF DENMARK

Here is my presentation of social science: