We're all under the same sun: Terrific magical places

Your eyes are about to trick you. This is not photoshopped or taking badly: this is a very real lake called  Lake Sørvágsvatn (also known as Lake Leitisvatn) at Faroe Islands. The lake is the largest in the islands, and the lake appears as if it’s lifted hundreds of metres above the sea, with the ocean under its placid waters.

But  Lake Sørvágsvatn is actually no more than about 30m above sea level. A steep cliff in front of the lake and the perfect camera angle make the lake appear to be higher than it really is.

Another breathtaking landscape is situated in in Ryfylke, Norway. It's the spectacular precipice of Preikestolen, proper of a fantasy film rather than a real location. 

Preikestolen is a rocky 25m by 25m rocky plateau that towers 604m above the clear waters of lake Lysefjord.

But one of my favourite locations ever is a castle in Southwest Bavaria called Neuschwanstein Castle, a Romanesque castle that is is said that inspired Disneyworld's Cinderella Castle and Dineyland's Sleeping Beauty Castle. 

Actually, the castle was originally built in 1869 by King Ludwig II, ruler of Bavaria. After his death in 1886, it was opened to the public and today more than 1.3 million tourists visit it each year.

Essay: The purpose of education

Education is defined as the act or process of imparting or acquiring general knowledge, developing the powers of reasoning and judgment, and generally ofpreparing oneself or others intellectually for mature life or the act or process of imparting or acquiring particular knowledge orskills, as for a profession. Chomsky, as we saw in the video, thinks there are different kinds of education, generally two of them.

            He distinguishes between the traditional education, the one which highest goal is to create, to promote imagination and self-study with the teacher as only a helper.  It is the one that helps people to discover what they love, what they want to do and on what they are better. The levels are not very important here, just the discover. The other one is called indoctrination that is it, a framework created for all the people, no matter what they love or what they like. If you do not adjust  like this framework orders you to, you are considered no valid. That is not fair; you can be very good at maths but maybe you are not good at painting and so on. I do not think that indoctrination is the perfect way to educate.

            Another matter is use of technology in education nowadays. Technology, as Chomsky said, is neutral. You can give a person thousands of books, but if you do not what to use them for, it is not valuable. Same happens with internet, computers and other new technologies. If we do not know what to use them for, they are worthless. In my opinion, there are very powerful tools, but we have to learn how to use them and when is the appropriate moment to use them. Otherwise, they are not valuable, and even harmful.

            I have the same point of view as Chomsky: education is an investment. It is a valuable tool because it helps to create better human beings, which derives, perhaps, into a better society, more advanced and which will value more than us the importance of education. Maybe it do not seem fair to pay schools and university if we do not attend, but maybe your children are, or your little neighbor, who want to be a doctor to save lives someday.

            Another matter are tests. Nowadays we live with fear, fear of fail the exam, fail of being again at the same course. Tests can be a very useful tool for teachers and students; teachers can see what can be wrong with the class, what are the weakest points where he or she should focus the effort, and students can also see where they fail or what the weakest points are also. But if we turn the exams and tests as a way to pass only if we know perfectly the matter, something is wrong. They can be useful, but without paying to much attention.

            Overall, education is a way to create a better society. If we educate little children, when they grow up they can appreciate the value of education, making it fundamental for the society. There are a few things wrong in the educational system, but the first step is recognizing something is wrong. Luckily, we realize, and it is in our hands to change that. 

We're all under the same sun: Rising cities

    We barely known anything about the prehistoric history of some civilizations. One of the reasons is because they dissapeared without trail. Maybe your are thinking about the fabolous Atlantis of Plato, but there is some cities recently discovered less legendaries than Atlantis.

     One of these submerged cities is in Spain, at Isla Cristina, Huelva. It's a Roman city 8 meters deep in the sea submerged by a tsunami product of a earthquake or maybe by the changes of the shore. But the ancient site is threatened by time and thieves and plunderers.

   

   Another rising city is located in Mexico. Actually it is a church from the 16th century, abandoned in the 18th century. It was flooded by the construction of a reservoir, and it is usually covered by 30 metres of water, but during periods of drought, the church came to the surface, showing up that once a civilizated town was placed there. 

   Another wonderful site is the palace of the Egyptian queen Cleopatra in Alexandria. It was lost for nearly 1.600 years, submerged by earthquakes (which also destroyed the famous lighthouse of Alexandria). But recently its secrets have been discovered, and an underwater museum is planning to show the wonders of this great place. 

Space debris

      We cannot see them, sometimes we forgot they are there. But the fact is that Earth's orbit is full of space debris, almost 17.000 units of rubbish are in orbit around Earth. They are made by humans, but the panic is pretty big when they fall on Earth. Space debris can be a danger, but usually they do not represent any threat.

       It is a fact that sometimes they fall on Earth due to the gravity. Some people find them in the middle of a field, and even near the shore, or, who knows, on their roof. The panic is pretty big when someone finds them. They tend to thik that is a sort of alien spaceship, commonly called UFO. But reality is far of that. Also, there are a lot of documented cases such as in Brazil, Australia or Murcia, in Spain.

      Physicists and astrophysicists of the NASA are thinking a way to clean up the space and the orbit of the Earth, but it is such a task. Instead, they make the gravity do its job, and sometimes they even push the rubbish onto the Earth, landing the objects on the ocean to prevent any harm to the population and to the buildings.

     Beyond the physical harm to the buildings or that sort of things, some people are concerned about the environmental problems that could happen, such as radioactivity, an explosive artefact or contamination of the fields or the oceans. Some of the objects that fell to the Earth are dangerous, but they are very well manipulated by the responsible organization.

   The falls are rare, but they can happen. The orbit is full of rubbish product of the many missions and space operations. However, it should be no panic: experts conclude they are not dangerous in any way, and they are not made by other intelligent beings from other planets but humans.




   

We're all under the same sun: Is English breakfast the most delicious breakfast?

     One of the most iconic recipes associated with England is the breakfast. It usually consists of two eggs, sausage, bacon, baked beans, fried tomato and toast, and usually with tea or coffee. English say that is the best medicine against hangover ever created, and they also say that with only three plates like this one, you can go all over the day always with full energy. It is certainly a calorie bomb that can fill you up until dinnertime.

    But we can deny the magnificence of a maditerranean breakfast: toast with jam or tomato and oil, a big mug of milk, coffee or fresh orange juice and even some fruit like an apple or a banana.It has the power of making you feel healthy, and also provides you energy to get trough a hectic morning.

I'm glad to open a debate here. Do you prefer English breakfast (even if you have never taste one) or the typical Mediterranean-Spanish one?

Thesis statement + outline

Merlin is one of the most famous wizards in history, a mithical character whose roots are deep inside the history of Great Britain.

II. Origins
2.1-Leyend: Lailoken and Ambrosious
2.2- Name by Geoffrey of Monmouth

III. Leyend itself
3.1-Powerful wizard
3.2- Took care of Arthur
3.3- In love with Nimue

IV. Role in the Arthurian Myth
4.1- Guided King Arthur

Man of the edge

It was a normal day at the city. Bussinessmen, tourists, taxi drivers, people looking a way to make a living... And then a man wearing a blue jacket with a heavy luggage. You would not suspect from him, it was just a normal guy in a bit city full of people. He looked live he wanted to stay in a hotel. He went to one of the higgest rooms in the hotel. When someone realized he wasn't in the room, They took a look outside: the man was absolutely decided to jump and finish his life. He was living a nightmare, a life full of problems to which he wasn't able to find a solution.

You can't believe what happens next... Without hearing at the police and the psicologist, he jumps thinking about the job he just lost, about the girlfriend he lefts behind and all his dearest ones. While he is cutting the air with his body, he realizes that he don't want to finish his life. He cries desperately. When he touches the ground, he discovers himself near his huge bed. He felt while dreaming. When he stands up, he can see perfectly his beautiful wife holding their newborn baby, both sleeping deeply.

Structure of problem-solution

A problem that has always concerned us is poverty. There are countries which are the richest in the world, but that is just be cause men and women who own a los of money live there. Even in the country is rich, it may be people who are starving without a proper house or even with a lot of children. No the other hand, the problem is bigger in countries which are considered third world. The country is not rich, and so are the people. They may die for starvation, and They live in miserable conditions, surrounded by illness, violence and feeling abandoned.

This problematic fact can have plenty of solutions, believe it or not, for example there must be a tax paid by wealthy people to provide people with everything they may need. Sharing must be taught at schools, because children should keep in mind that they should be generous.

We're all under the same sun: The Jurassic Coast of England

Do you know that you can find  fascinating Jurassic beaches in Britain's south coastline? Dinosaurs no longer wander here, but you can find fossils, very old rock formations and also a collapsed old castle. The Jurassic Coast is 180 millions years old, and is 95 miles long, from East Devon to East Dorset, a coastline with a lot of history. Also, can you imagine a tropical England? In fact, this coastline used to be a tropical sea 155 millions years ago.

If you feel fascinated by fossils, you have to head over the Jurassic Coast. Take a walk around the beach, and if you pay attention maybe you can find ammonites, reptile's skulls, footprints and even 180 millions years old teeth. But for keen photographers this is the perfect place. Turquoise waters, chalk cliffs, breathtaking bays, the Corfe Castle, which is believe it is more than 1000 years old and also a living coastline with a lot of artists, boats, markets and away of the noise and hustle of a touristic zone.

We're all under the same sun: New Zealand's never-ending fire

Near the lonely little village of Murchison, New Zealand, a strange phenomenon is taking place since the 1920s, or at least that is what I have read, when a couple of hunters stop to smoke, igniting the gas. The natural methane gas comes to the surface continously from the ground. It's amazing and also very extrange to see a flame leaking from the earth itself, but make no mistake: the flame is continous, but somedays, after heavy rains, the gas has to be igniting again. It's an unknown place for tourist and even the native ones, but there's a family that uses the flames to cook and boil water if they want to invite the visitors to sit and drink a hot tea.

Also, there are at least another nine places all over the world where natural gas is leaked from the ground. The two best known are located in Olympos Mount, in Turkey, where they've been blazing for at least 2500 years and also in the sacred temple of Jwalamukhi, in India, where they've been worshipped as a deity.

Source: http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20150810-new-zealands-never-ending-fire

Contrast paragraph: Johnny Rotten and Rostropovich

Johnny Rotten (also known as John Lydon) and Mstislav Rostropovich are both musicians, but they are very different, more than you can imagine. Starting from the name and the country, it is pretty obvious that they are from different countries: Johnny Rotten is an English singer, songwritter and muscian, leader of the punk band Sex Pistols, while Rostropovich was a Russian cellist and conductor. As we can see, they played a very different role on the music world. Also their personalities are different: Johnny Rotten is seen as an impulsive and provocative person. On the other hand, Rostropovich was a recognized as an advocate of human rights and also seen as a very formal man. On one hand, the style of Rotten is very punk and alternative, something that identifies him with the 80s, but Rostropovich was always well-dressed, usually with shirts and suits.

Johnny Rotten

Mstislav Rostropovich

We're all under the same sun: Aurora Borealis shows over Wales and Yorkshire

It's a great phenomenon that you can only see in the North Pole or even in Sweden, Finland or Norway. Or, at least, that's what I thought. I was navigating on Twitter when I saw an incredible photo: northern lights over Yorkshire. I thought that it was a mistake, but then I made some research and I discovered that due to an extreme solar storm and also that the Earth is aligned with the Sun, it is possible to see the Aurora over England and Wales. I was surprised. I think that the northern lights are amazing and breathtaking, and also amazed because it was happening over England! I agree, it's Northern England, but it's also a southern place to see the Aurora. This is just a notice very peculiar that I like and I wanted to share it with all of you. Here I left some links just in case you want more information and also some links of Twitter to prove that it's real.

http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2015/10/08/northern-lights-put-on-spectacular-show-over-wales-and-yorkshire-aurora-borealis-uk-pictures_n_8261768.html?utm_hp_ref=uk-tech&ir=UK+Tech

https://twitter.com/romclaughlin/status/652030328731795456/photo/1

https://twitter.com/ericfisher/status/651948697962565632/photo/1

https://twitter.com/willdawesphoto/status/652005051481899008/photo/1

https://twitter.com/wittwoophoto/status/651872262816157696/photo/1

https://twitter.com/jpaulsmith2012/status/651990298009145344/photo/1

Opinion paragraph

         I'm going to be clear: I disagree about smoking in public places. Nowadays, people are most conscious about the danger of smoking and also they want to be healthier, so they try to stop it. Since smoking is really bad to our health, people that don't smoke don't have to "pay" with their health just because they are near a smoking person. I know it's a difficult habit to quit, but smokers have to make the effort. Their pockets and healths will reward them.  It great not to smoke in public places (even if they have non-smoking areas) because if you are with your family or your friends and you want to smoke but they don't want you to, you only have two options: get outside alone to smoke or stay with them, enjoying their company. Also, if you remain with them, it may force you to stop the bad habit. If you smoke near them, you have to admit that, indirectly, you're harming them. Also, smoking is quite expensive, so if you stop it, you are going to save money to yourself and to buy other pleasures, even to travel more or buy some art, a new phone, whatever you want. To be honest, I can't find any good reason to smoke, and also I can't find a hundred of them to stop smoking and getting healthier.

We're all under the same sun: The Giant's Causeway

In found the Giant's Causeway (the landscape of the picture) very breathtaking. It is located by the sea, so to the amazing formations of the rocks we should add the magnificence of the sea. I feel a little bit anxious about the sea, it is too close, but the fact that the waves broke against the rocks makes it even more beautiful. Also, the natural form of the rocks is amazing, adding up more fascination for the sea and the coast. In a brief, is an imposing landscape where the rough sea meets the amazing rocks formations of 60 millions years of age.

Describe how Guernica makes you feel

Picasso is trying to describe the anxiety of a bombing. Even if it is a painting, the people screaming, the animals out of control make me feel terryfied, and also a little bit suffocated. Picasso knew how to express the confusion of people during the attack, and he was able to paint it and make us feel not as worried as they were, but also very desesperates. The confusion is general, there are a lot of riot as we can see, and I also can imagine all the screams and the noise. People are running everywhere, they were afraid and fulled of fear, and Picasso knew exactly how to paint it to make us feel terryfied and uncomfortable as well.

Describe someone+Peer response

Describe someone
I would like to talk about my little brother. When I was just a little girl and he was born, I have to admit that I was a little bit jealous, because all the attention was focused on him. Even when he was just a little boy, he tried to protect me and take care of me, and I took care of him as well. Now he is 13, and he is one of my most beloved ones. Sometimes he can make me nervous, but deep inside me I love him very much, I can tell him all my problems and opinions, and he tries to hel me, and so do I, I only want the best for him. Sometimes we fight and we have arguments as well, but we love each other very much, I'm sure of it.

Peer response by Adriana
Dear Mª José, this is a wonderful description. It has helped me to know really how your brother is. The structure is good, but if I were you, I would make a stronger topic sentence because your text would show off ever more than it does. The supporting sentences are great because they're made me understand the text without difficulties. You have also given a lot of reasons that show you love the person you are describing, your brother.
The vocabulary is great, you have avoided repeating the words and you've used synonims.
The concluding sentence is the best part of the text, because the length is perfect and it doesn't add new information, but sumarizes the whole text with just a sentence.
In a few words, your writing is wonderful, and it's difficult to improve it. If soon noticed that you're very fond of writing and you normally do it in your daily life.

Everyone is like a star

Have you ever looked up to the sky just to see the stars? Of course you have.
Now think of the stars as people. Or people like stars.
You met a lot of people on your life. Some of them are just knowns, others are classmates, friends, best friends, girlfriends, boyfriends, family, special people you met. Some stay with you and other just left.
Some people are tiny stars with a tiny shine. They are there, but you have to strive to see them. However, other stars shine bright, leading you as a compass. They are possibly dead, but its light is still guiding you. They are all different: white ones, yellow ones, blue ones; large ones, medium ones and little ones. They can be dead or maybe they are newborns. But they bring light to your life, guiding you and making you feel safe and sound.

You can pick your favouite one. Mine is Polaris, most known as Pole Star. It's far away, but its light has guided people for thousands of years. Now, I like to think that it is guiding me. 

Fear

Fear of waking up alone
Fear of not waking up at all
Fear of lose everything for not being good enough
Fear of little things
Fear of big problems
Fear of not being able to protect my beloved ones
Fear of excessive darkness
Fear of not having enough light
Fear of not reaching my dreams
Fear of making the wrong choice
Fear of regretting things I haven't done
Fear of focus myself on things that don't matter, letting go the real ones
Fear of hear my heart tearing to pieces
Fear of not being understood
Fear of the inability to express myself
Fear of not being able to tell a story
Fear of fear
Fear of the last kiss
Fear of the last goodbye
Fear this day will end without saying one more time 'I love you'
Fear of waking up to find that it wasn't a nightmare
Fear of not loving and fear of being hated
Fear that those who I love the most one day would betray me
Fear of not having courage
Fear of everyone
Fear of myself
I've said that

Getting ready to write: freewriting (Práctica 1)

       We never ask ourselves how to start writing. We have never finished a great novel or even a little story. But there are some techniques to let our imagination free, like brainstorming, freewriting or mapping. Brainstorming is a way of gathering ideas about a topic; when you freewrite, you don't even think about you are writing; and by mapping, you can relate all the ideas that came to your mind.

     
     My favourite technique is,without a doubt, freewriting. It is a short exercise that helps you practice fluency and your imagination is working faster than ever. It's a technique a little bit chaotic, but then you can review and revise what yoy wrote. It is awesome: when you make a mistake, you just crosse it out and continue writing without thinking. It is quickly and you can write whatever you want!