e-vent

Actors work free for Valencia at Teatre Micalet

2010-05-26T03:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I attended a round table with the stage director, the main actor and the translator of Eduardo de Filippo's El arte de la comedia, which will be on this Friday and Saturday only, at 19.00 and 22.30. Don't miss it! It is an opportunity to enjoy a very relevant play in our dismal cultural panorama.
Tickets at servientrada.

Classic cinema at the Luis Vives University Residence

2010-04-28T03:31:00.000-07:00

In May L'Aula de Cinema in the UV presents the cycle El major espectacle del món: Visions del circ al cinema, Wednesdays at 18.00h at C.M. Lluís Vives. Shows on 5, 12, 19 i 26 of The greatest show on Earth, Cecil B. De Mille, Gycklarnas Afton, Ingmar Bergman, 1953) and La strada (Federico Fellini, 1954). Also, with l'Institut d'Història de la Medicina i de la Ciència López Piñero, l'Aula de Cinema in the UV at Palau de Cerveró will show the cycle Medicine: science for health?, shows Thursdays 6, 13, 20 i 27. The Constant Gardener, Fernando Meirelles, 2005, Awakenings, Penny Marshall, 1990, The Third Man, Carol Reed, 1949 and Crimes of the Future (David Cronenberg, 1970).

More info
www.uv.es/cultura
auladecinema@uv.es

TECHNOLOGY IN OUR LIVES

2010-04-15T00:08:00.000-07:00

Technology has changed our lives. We can solve our problems with the Public Administration from home,we can have a long-distance call with our relatives who live abroad, we can manage our bank accounts from home without time limits...On the other hand, as our life gets easier, we loose the opportunity ofbeing in contact with people.First of all, technology has made our lives easier.
Nowadays we do thingsthat few years ago couldn't be possible. Mobile communication,Internet connection, cameras, MP3s, video cameras, … There are alot of gadgets that lead us straight to the world of technology. Andif we are able to learn how to use them, we will find lots of thingsthat we can do in an easier way.In fact, things like going to the bank or buying a flight ticket can bedone from home, or doing thousands of pictures without the need ofgetting them impressed, talking to anyone anywhere thanks to themobile telephone... are great advantages.
The main problem is that there are people who can't follow the rhythm of technology. These people find technology as an inconvenience. Furthermore, we can add the fact that sometimes technology makes usloose physical contact with people: maybe it's easier to make a phonecall than meeting someone for half an hour.To conclude, technology can provide us with great advantages, but wehave to be careful and not to become obsessed with it: there arethings that can be perfectly done without any technology.Patricia GuereroPaleNA2

Present and future of Valencian language

2010-04-13T08:00:00.000-07:00

Right now, Valencian society lives a paradoxical situation regarding its own language, a basic aspect that defines its cultural, political and sociological identity. From Transició period (and especially, from the moment the Use and Teaching of Valencian Act was passed in 1983) to nowadays, it has made many efforts in order to normalize the use of Valencian language. However, despite all these efforts, it hasn't succeeded: there are still some serious doubts about the vitality of Catalan in València and nobody is able to forecast for certain which future it will have.It's true: many efforts have been made, because Valencian language was on the verge of extinction, but they have been irregular and, in specific fields, clearly insufficient. Consequently, if Valencian society wants to keep its language, more decisive actions will have to be made in these fields. For instance in the mass media, increasing the presence of the language in them, especially in the public mass media, all of them integrated in the RTVV corporation and born specifically to promote Valencian language normalization. At the same time, Valencian society will have to keep on working hard in those fields where language is already visible, but not consolidated enough.Obviously, in order to take this new step beyond, Valencian society needs to strengthen what we could call the social consensus about the language. As society, it must answer again some essential questions, for example if it’s worth keeping this language (its own language) alive. If the answer is yes, it has to clarify which means will be needed to achieve this aim. The foundation of the Language’s Valencian Academy (AVL) could be a good means to achieve it and it’s a good sign of a renewed social consensus about the language.On the other hand, like other regional (non-state) medium languages, Valencian language faces difficult challenges. From this point of view, the most significant of them is not too obvious: one of the scenes where the future of the language must be analyzed is the global scene. For this reason, the role of a united Catalan language in Spain, in Europe and in Internet is so important. And also for this reason, it's so important that every Administration and every institution responsible for the academic and the political regulation of the language states its recognition of the language's unity and acts consequently.If we’d take a look outside we could find some interesting examples of languages which have succeeded in becoming global. For instance, we could focus on the Dutch Language Union, an agreement between the Netherlands and Belgium (in respect of the Flemish community) that proclaimed internationally Dutch language’s unity. Now, the Dutch Language Union is an institution that, among other important tasks, defines the standard language for every country where Dutch language is official. Thanks to this institution, the international weight of Dutch language (and, probably, its speakers’ self-esteem as users of this language) should have risen.Finally, obviously, we have to talk about the Valencian speakers and, also, about the non-speakers: we should consider every citizen, because the present and the future of the language must be, if we want it to be successful, a shared social and political project. Because of this principle, both users and non-users of the Valencian language should feel that this language is a useful tool for communication and social integration, available every time and everywhere. Usefulness will be the key for language's real use and, as significant as this aspect, for the social representation of the language that users and non users must share: that is, their shared views, believes, attitudes, etc. towards the language. In order to promote this usefulness, we need more efficient political measures: a clearer linguistic policy.All in all, we can say that if Valencian language becomes an effective instrument for communication and integration and it's really seen like this, its use will progressively grow; nevertheless, if this doesn't happen, if users and non-users can not experiment this usefulness and nor can they perceive it in their ordinary lives, language use will decrease gradually. This time, maybe, without possibilities of recovering.Miquel RuizPALE Course 2010ARGUMENTATIVE COMPOSITION

A New Future

2010-03-08T13:31:00.000-08:00

Today is The International Women's Day. That may not mean mcuh to some people who have been born after the seventies, but to the oldies this is a Big Day.

In 1971women marched through snowy London to demand liberation. Today women still march along the streets of most European cities. The equality we fought for in the past is still an illusion if we look at participaton in most companies' governing boards, or at the high numbers of gender violence crimes, or at the sex industry in most European cities.

It is true that women are still raped, it is true that, although there are more women MPs, numbers drop when we look at secretaries of state, or well-paid jobs. Nevertheless, conquests have taken place. For example women, nowadays, have more choices. They can decide what they want to be in the future. They can design their careers, they can decide whether they want to become mothers or not. Most women study in co-educational schools, where there is no discrimination for reasons of sex, as it was the case in Spain in the fifities, sixties and even seventies. This was very serious, because women were not prepared to take part in the public sphere, as men were. On the contrary, they were trained to be good mothers and good wives, good sisters, good carers of the elderly, of the young.

The most difficult battle for all is the one about symmetry in the home. What does this mean? That men have not been trained to be at home and sometimes they lack the necessary skills to be useful in the kitchen or in the family when someone is ill or disabled or even when there are children around who need to be taken care of. Only when men are ready to share their lot in the private sphere will women be able to really choose whether they want a top professional career. This battle is still to be fought. At the pace we are following maybe in 100 years equality will be a fact.

Obituary

2010-01-28T23:33:00.000-08:00

If you haven't read "The Catcher in the Rye", this is the right time to do it. The death of JD Salinger is a sad moment for literature. The novel, a tale of a rebellious and lonely teenager who has been expelled from school for his poor grades, published in 1951, has sold over 60 million copies and sells thousands every year.The novel is very controversial and has been banned in some schools because ot its bad language and antiauthoritarian stance.

The writer himself has been a mysterious individual who has lived in seclusion. What has he been doing in the last 55 years before he died? John Walsh, a journalist who works for The Independent, and many like him, wonder whether there's more writing in the drawer that might have been written while he was withdrawn from the world.

Meet Holden Caufield, the protagonist, and you will understand why
Salinger's voice is so powerful.

Give us your opinion!

School Trip to New York in March

2010-01-27T03:48:00.000-08:00

We are about to close the group for the trip to New York in March, so if you are still interested, please contact us as soon as possible at eventeoivalencia at gmail.comWe are just waiting for Iberia airlines to confirm fees for a smaller group.You'll have more information in a few days.Event

Camus forever

2010-01-24T10:57:00.000-08:00

Last week I read a French book by Albert Camus which is called “L’étranger”. In this book, the main character, whose name is Meuersault, tells us the last days of his life.

Everything started when he was told by mail that his mother was dead. Then,he attended the funeral, where he met his mother’s friends. Everybodythere noticed that he wasn’t sad. He didn’t cry, he slept all nightlong, and finally he even refused to see his mother’s corpse.

Infact, next morning he was on the beach having a good time with Marie, aformer work-mate who loved him. That showed he wasn’t sad.

Mariewanted to know if he loved her, and he said he didn’t. He wasn’t ableto feel anything. Words like love, fear, regret or hate didn’t make anysense for him. And, besides, he couldn’t lie, he was unable to make upan excuse.

Thislack of feelings drived him to shoot a muslim who had attacked hisfriend Raymond, who was also his neighbour. Raymond had had problemswith a girl who was the sister of the muslim who attacked him.

Soon after the murder, he was caught by the police. Some months later, the trial started. His lawyer tried to save him,but he had said he shot the muslim “because the heat” and he didn’tshow any regret, and it was impossible for the lawyer to save him.

Finally,he is found guilty because he hadn’t cried when his mother had died,and that showed he was a soulness person. Even when his life wasfalling apart before his execution, he was unable to feel anything.

Roque

Theatre El Musical in Cabañal

2010-01-24T00:33:00.000-08:00

Wonderful performance of this classic play with Juli Cantó and Cristina Garcia in one of her best roles. Exhilariating and funny, this absurdist farce by the French writer Eugene Ionesco will be on until Sunday February 7th. with 50% discount for bookings- 607.316.418 / lauder@tornaveu.com, tickets at 7,5 euros.

The Chairs is a play about the end of the world which wonderfully expresses that the world is what we make of it, but that at the end everything is useless: we are faced with the only reality of emptiness. Empty chairs on an empty stage littered withuseless confetti, give an impression of sadness. Disenchantment such as one finds in a ballroom after a dance is what is left at the end of our dreams; andit would be after this that the chairs, the scenery, the void, become the only reality.

Don't miss it. Give us your opinion!

Visit to MUViM next Thursday (January 28th)

2010-01-11T02:12:00.000-08:00

The Adveture of Thinking is he title of the permanent exhibition at the Muvim Museum. The exhibition includes sound, image and written documents on the way ideas have developed in the Western Wold since the Middle Ages until now (Freud, Marx).

The first meeting will be at the Museum's min door half an hour before. That is we shall start at 09:30 for the first group, and ten every half an hour there will be other groups. Just contact the English Department for reservations. Entrance is free. The visit is one hour long.There will be an audio guide in English explaining the exhibits.

1st group 09:30 (visit alt 10:00)
2nd group 10:00 (visit at 10:30)
3rd group 10:30 (visit at 11:00)

20 people per group.
Entrance free.
Contact eventeoivalencia at gmail.com to check for empty places.

Let's go to the cinema!

2009-12-13T04:22:00.000-08:00

Ken Loach's las film "Looking for Eric" is one of the best of his long career.

First, it is entertaining. The plot evolves around a Manchester United football fanatic, Eric Bishop, who is living with two youngsters from his former marriage, his stepsons. Eric is fragile and unhappy with his life so he wants to commit suicide, but he finds support in his friends (football supporters like him) and workmates (in the post office) to overcome the difficulties he finds, specially when dealing with his eldest son's criminal environment. Fighting to overcome problems makes him a better man and more couragous, too.

Memorable is the scene with his grandson as he meets his first ex-wifewhom he still loves. Interesting is the way the director Ken Loachemulates Woody Allen's technique in merging reality and imagination ina sort of magical realism series of scenes between the protagonist's hero (the footballer Eric Cantona) and himself in a mock psychonalityicrelationship between shrink and patient, which brings about most of hisconfidence to face a new and better life.

Secondly, the narrative is full of surprises as Eric moves from depression to heroism once he is able to face love and responsibility towards his sons. Therefore, there is at the same time a story about personal growth, a love story, a story about parenthood and adolescents, a story about friendship and the power of the group against the weakness of the individual, and, last but not least, a story of gangsters and crime which evidences that the British police do not play with dolls when fighting crime.

Finally, Paul Laverty, the scriptwriter, and the actors Steve Evets, Eric Cantona, Stephanie Bishop, etc. do a wonderful job. The film is appropriate for the many clues to British cultuture that is brings to us in OV (UGC and Albatros): the accent, the types, the popular culture around football matches, the police, the low-class youth, etc. A highly recommended funny film and a great comedy whose values are progressive to the root!

"He who is afraid to throw the dice will never throw a six" says Cantona when he is teaching Eric. That is the moral behind the film: he who does not take risks is already dead.

Let's laugh!

2009-12-03T00:08:00.000-08:00

"Participatory Theatre" is the formula used by "Moving on Theatre Company", whose new play "Food for Thought" will be with us onWednesday 16th of December, at 11 and 19.00. The Company has its own acting style which is extremely funny as it activates the audience to take part in the hilarious scenes.

You can get tickes from your teacher next week.

International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

2009-11-21T11:31:00.000-08:00

Which women are specially vulnerable to violence? Those belonging to minority groups? Refugee women? Migrant women? Women living in rural or remote areas? Elderly women?

We are all accountable for playing our part in reducing violence at the individual and community levels. Public awareness needs to be raised if we want to stop it. Creating a worldwide social conscience of the negative impact of violence against women on both social and economic life is urgent. No more lives, please!

Violence against women is a manifestation of historically unequal power relations between men and women, which have led to domination over and discrimination against women by men and to the prevention of their full advancement. This is one of the crucial social mechanisms by which women are forced into subordinate positions, compared to men.

In the first article of the Declaration of the Elimination of Violence against Women, violence is defined as any act of gender-based violence that results in, or is likely to result in, physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering to women including threats, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty.

The date chosen to commemorate the lives of the Mirabel sisters, three Dominican women assassinated in 1960 during the Trujillo dictatorship, is November 25th. These women were polictical activists who have become symbols of feminine resistance. They were brave, but they were cheated. They were not the first and unfortunatelly will not be the last. That is why impunity must end, adequate resources must be allocated, new laws need to be implemented and national plans of actions to address VAW are welcome.

Watch these videos.

Autonomy and learning

2009-11-18T03:14:00.000-08:00

Have you ever thought about how many opportunities of learning English you are missing? I am sure you haven't. "TV discourse as source material for autonomous language learning" is the title of the lecture Carmen Gregory (València University) will be giving next week at the Valencian School of Languages.

The lecture will take place on Wednesday 25 of November at 19:15 in the Main Assembley Hall, on the ground floor (Llano de Zaidia, 19, Valencia).
Intermediate and advanced levels prefered.

The lecture will approach cartoons, sitcoms and talk shows from a discourse analysis perspective.
Don't miss it!

Interested in New York?

2009-11-18T00:57:00.000-08:00

Hello everybody!

Here is the information I have about the trip to New York. As soon as I have new information I'll pass it on to you.

This link is a video of the hostel.

ITINERARIOS DE VUELOS:

====================

IBERIA 333 13/MAR/2010.- VALENCIA - MADRID 14.00 HS - 14.50 HS

IBERIA 6253 13/MAR/2010.- MADRID - NUEVA YORK 16.55 HS - 19.25 HS

IBERIA 6250 20/MAR/2010.- NUEVA YORK - MADRID 19.00 HS - 07.10 +1 HS

IBERIA 328 21/MAR/2010.- MADRID - VALENCIA 12.15 HS - 13.10 HS

BROADWAY HOSTEL

=================

ENTRADA DIA 13/MAR.- SALIDA DIA 20/MAR.

PRECIO EN HABITACIONES DOBLE POR PERSONA ............................................ 1433.-€

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

PRECIO EN HABITACIONES MULTIPLES POR PERSONA...................................... 1001.-€

(HABITACIONES DE 4 A 8 PERSONAS EN LITERAS) BAÑO COMPARTIDO.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

EL PRECIO INCLUYE :

____________________

AVION LINEA REGULAR (IBERIA). SALIDA DE VALENCIA Y REGRESO A VALENCIA.

TAXAS AEROPUERTO

HOTEL O HOSTEL. 7 NOCHES EN REGIMEN DE SOLO ALOJAMIENTO.

TRASLADOS AEROPUERTO / HOTEL /AEROPUERTO.

VISITA ALTO Y BAJO MANHATTAN CON BUS Y GUIA LOCAL

SEGURO DE VIAJE CON COBERTURA DE GTOS DE ANULACION.

NOTA: ESTE PRESUPUESTO ESTA REALIZADO PARA UN GRUPO DE 40 PERSONAS.

If you are interested, send us an email with your details
-telephone
-name
-type of room

Thanks
eventeoivalencia at gmail.com

Review of a place

2009-11-09T11:02:00.000-08:00

1. The Almoina Museum
2.Tarrazu Bar
3. The Kaf Café
4. Casa Tony

When the wall began to crumble

2009-11-09T09:22:00.000-08:00

Today the world is celebrating the day the Berlin Wall began to crumble. I remember I was doing a course for theatre directors with an eastern German director called Konrad Zschiedrich, who was then in Valencia. I had asked him about the wall before it crumbled and he had said that there were too many differences that made the reunion of the two Germanies impossible. The main one being the economy: too many differences would make it too expensive for the West. Well, tow days later, there was no wall. Berlin had become one.

The fall of the Berlin Wall on Nov. 9, 1989 signaled the beginning of the end of communism in Europe and the beginning of a new era. No one could anticipate the state of affairs today. The 28-mile-long Berlin Wall stood as a border between East and West Berlin from 1961 to 1989. Even today the remains are still impressive.

As things are told today, everything was ready for a dramatic change because the Berlin citizens were demonstarting on the streets demanding a change. Apparently, the detonator was a misreading of an official document. An inexact translation, a confused border guard and a natural longingfor a better life opened a hole in that wall that would eventually endthe Cold War. “The Error That Led to Unity” is the title of the article that revealed the details of the hours before the event that changed the face of Western Europe. Read more.

Have a look at the above links from the New York Times and tell us your oppinion.

The French sculptor August Rodin's works in Valencia

2009-11-04T03:32:00.000-08:00

this link
Since yesterday Rodin's sculptures can bee seen in Plaza del Ayuntamiento (Valencia). Auguste Rodin (1840-1917) freed sculpture from the repetition of traditional patterns, providing the foundation for greater experimentation in the twentieth century. His popularity is ascribed to his emotion-laden representations of ordinary men and women—to his ability to find the beauty and pathos in the human animal. His most popular works, such as The Kiss and The Thinker, are widely used outside the fine arts as symbols of human emotion and character. Don't miss the open air exhibition! Tell us what you think.

The linguist Chomsky condemns the Afhghan war in an interview

2009-11-04T00:08:00.000-08:00

Have your say. Watch this video in which host, Stephen Sackur, asks tough questions, getting behind the surface that make the news - from international political leaders to entertainers; from corporate decision-makers to ordinary individualsfacing huge challenges.

"I bet he wasn't folding laundry."

2009-10-27T22:03:00.000-07:00

Carol Greider, winner of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Medicine, on what shewas doing at 5 a.m. when the big call came, and her thoughts onlearning of President Obama's Nobel Peace Prize.
Read more.

Psychiatry and Art

2009-10-21T03:37:00.000-07:00

The idea that there is a thin line between creativity and madness has been around for centuries. But now, for the first time, there's some insight into why the two might be mirror images of each other. The list of great artists who might have suffered from some sort ofmental illness is almost endless: Edgar Allan Poe, William Blake, LordByron, Sylvia Plath, Georgia O'Keeffe and Virginia Woolf are only thetip of the iceberg.Read More.

The University of Valencia has organized an exhibition of great interest at La Nau (C/Universitat, 2). It opens tomorrow with a Lecture by Hélène Tropé (Paris III). "Madness and Inquisition in Spain in XVI and XVII c." is the title of the talk that will take place at The Paraninfo.

The agenda for this term

2009-10-14T04:35:00.000-07:00

"Moving on Theatre Company" will be coming to our school with a new play "Food for Thought" on Wednesday 16th of December. There will be two shows, one at 11 and the other at 19.00. The show, as all those who came last year will remember is easy to follow and appropriate for students at basic and intermediate levels, although advance levels are also welcome.

The Coordination is also organizing a visit to MUVIM. In the above link you can download the audio file with an introduction to the visit.
Those interested should ask their teacher or contact the Department Coordinater at the blog address.
There will be a Guide in English and no entrance fee.
The permanent exhibition includes the main thinkers since the Middle Ages to the present day Darwin, Diderot, Marx, Einstein, Freud, etc.). Besides there is another exhibition of Valencian Design. There is the possibility of taking photographs of the labels of the posters with your mobile and translate them in English or, alternaltively write inspired captions of the ones you like best..

As the groups are limited to twenty people, we have to organize the visit in advance in order to book with the Museum, so, please, let us know your name and the best time and day for you. The visits will be between the end of October and beginning of November.

Finally, those who love OV films have the option of watching Tarantino's and Woody Allen's last releases at UGC, Babel or Albatros. Check with the daily paper for times and theatres. all of them have discounts with the EOI student's card!

E-vent

Please write to me at eventeoivalencia at blogspot.com

Not in English!

2009-10-12T23:18:00.000-07:00

This week the programme at The film institute in Valencia does not include any films in English, but for film fans this is always an opportunity to get to know work from Argentina, France or Italy. If you see any of these films don't hesitate to tell us about it and recomend the best choices to our readers.

Welcome to the new academic year 2009-2010 at Valencia EOI

2009-10-04T04:40:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody!

This message is to welcome you all to "e-vent", the English Department Culture Blog at Valencia EOI. As you can see a few changes have been introduced to make it easier for you to find the contents. Different tags will lead you to contents organised around five main areas: welcome, audio and video, agenda, cinema and students. This last section is for you to take the floor and publish your best pieces. Don't hesitate to ask your teacher for help.

As last year, the aim of the Cuture Coordination is to foster the relationship between language learning and the understanding of the world as a set of shared values, behaviours, customs, arts and symbols. The agenda will include information about whats on at The Film Institute in Valencia, at the Theatres, but also Exhibitions, Lectures and Courses. We understand that we are living in a global world in which English is widely spoken. As Spanish citizens who speak English we want to be able to communicate world wide with a variety of people who speak different tongues but whose common language is English.

This year's programme includes a trip to New York in March (13th to 20th) given that the one to London was so successful. This trip will give us the opportunity to visit Manhattan, the MOMA, and other sites we have been familiar with by watching films and reading novels located there.

We will also reapeat The English Tea Experience due to the interest both of teachers and students to share recipies and contribute to a good cause. We shall have interesting people talking about relevant issues, a visit to MUVIM, a show and some other funny activities.

Any suggestions? Do you want to collaborate?

Students contributions

2009-10-03T11:13:00.000-07:00

Writing in the blog is still scary for some students. Luckily, some of them have decided to take the floor and write again.
Ximo Rey

An adventure story

2009-10-03T11:01:00.000-07:00

I heard about this documentary in a podcast from The Guardian Film Review. I found it so amazing that I wanted to share it.

The situation today: peace or war?

2009-05-05T02:06:00.000-07:00

Conversational strategies between men and women differ. Traditionally, men rulled silently inside the family and women complained. They cried and shouted. They claimed: "This is unfair!" When they remained quiet, it was because they complained to the priest in church. He always found ways to motivate them and keep them going as good wives. Keep reading.

Santaemilia's talk was welcomed by the students because his presentation was clear and well supported by power point visuals, but he had promised more than he gave us. Of course he knows a lot about this field of "gender and language" and we did not want technicisms or too obscure ideas in a foreign language which would be difficult to grasp by intermediate students.

Anyway, he opened the case: the gender system has women in a disadvantageous place, therefore something has to be done in order to make this disadvantage visible. Gender Studies is an aspect of the work being done at Universities all over the world to amend the situation in order to prevent family conflicts or gender violence.

Dr. Santaemilia explained the difference between sex and gender, two concepts that are often confused for while gender is a cultural and dynamic concept, sex, on the other hand, is fixed, as one is born being a male or a female. Traditionally, gender and sex where undifferenciated and this constitutes the origin of the discrimination against women in society.

The speaker could not deal with historic issues to tell us the milestones of feminism and couldn't tell us about Simone de Beauvoir, Mary Woollstonecraft, Aphra Behn, Virginia Woolf, etc. But these woomen contributed enormously to create a new identity for women. Gender identity is the other key issue in Gender Studies. According to Wikipedia "The term is intended to distinguish this psychological association, from physiological and sociological aspects of gender. Acording to Wikipedia "Gender identity is how one personally identifies his or her gender regardless of their sex characteristics. It does not have to be either man or woman, but can be a combination of feminine, masculine and androgynous feelings." "Gender Identity does not refer to the placing of a person into one of the categories male or female; but without including the concept of interaction with society at large the term has no meaning. We are social beings."

Another key figure in the field is Alfred Kinsley, the father of sexology. He was the first to study sexuality from a feminist point of view. Kinsey's reports, which led to a storm of controversy, are regarded by many as an enabler of the sexual revolution of the 1960s. Women became independent and wanted equality.

From the linguistic point of view, if we have a look at jokes, we can realise how male oriented most of them are. "What's the difference between a battery and a woman?" says one. "The battery has a positive side", says the other. "Do you know what's the difference between a woman and a dog?", says one. "Walking the dog is relaxing", says the other.

These jokes show us how language has diminished women throughout history. The Holy Bible, for one thing, is the source of a huge amount of discrimination against women. Writers, such as Oscar Wilde, philosophers as Plato or Russeau have written disapprovingly about women.

Robin Lakoff, the sociolinguist, wrote about Language and Woman's Place in 1975. In this book you can see how language discriminates women. We have no time to deal with these examples here, but reading his book there is no daubt that language is sexist as he gives numerous examples.

The fact is that men don't listen to women (in general). Misunderstandings abound, just look around. The place of women is to be found in stereotypes, expectations, interaction, context. Not only in language, but also outside language. Fortunately, this situation has changed a lot and is still changing, thanks to action taken by progressive organizations and governments.

Did you attend the lecture? Do you have an opinion? Tell us about it!

The place of women in language: On gender, sex and power

2009-04-30T03:59:00.000-07:00

Dr. José Santaemilia, Associate Professor of English Language and Linguistics at the Universitat de València, as well as a legal and literary translator will be at the school this evening at seven oc'clock.

The title of his talk is "The place of women in language: On gender, sex and power" . Until very recently, women have been largely invisible in language. In this talk Santaemilia will introduce students to the field of gender and language studies, which looks at history, philosophy or psychology to understand the reasons for women’s subordination in language, for the different conversational strategies used by men or women, or for linguistic sexism.

Santaemilia's main research interests are gender and language, sexual language and legal translation (English-Spanish). He has edited Género, lenguaje y traducción (Valencia, 2003), Gender, sex and translation: The manipulation of identities (Manchester, 2005) and Gender and
sexual identities in transition: International Perspectives (Newcastle, 2008).

Don't miss it!

Event invites all of you to write a summary of the talk to inform others who haven't been so lucky and couldn't attend.

International Book Day

2009-04-23T01:00:00.000-07:00

Today, as you all know, we celebrate The International Book Day, The same day Miguel de Cervantes and William Shakespeare died, according to tradition. But 2009 has not been a very good year for publishers, who are undergoing a great crisis due to a growing competitive digital industry. Small bookshops are suffering most from this situation. But in our Information Society traditional literacy is becoming something of the past. Digital literacy is what is at stake now because we are running the risk of leaving a great part of our population behind if we do not do something to fill the digital gap. See Europe's Information Society
to read how ICTs affect our lives every day.

Going back to books and reading, the situation is not as alarming as some think because reading is still one of the cheapest ways of spending free time and it is still one of the less expensive presents we can give our friends and relatives. Reading habits are still on the rise, which is amazing, even though the Valencian Community occupies one of the lowest positions in the ranking.

Something interesting is that in Valencia, Catalonia and Mallorca lovers exchange a book and a rose on April 23rd. This last present comes from an old tradition that goes back to the Middle Ages. Apparently the knight Saint Jordi saves a princess from the mouth of a dragon. The story says that from the dragon's bood grew a beautiful rosebush.

You might be able to get a free book from Metrovalencia today. The company is celebrating The International Bookk Day giving free copies of "Els amors de Tirant i Carmessina" and "Leyendas románticas" at Colon, Angel Guimerá and Benimaclet stations. The idea is part of a campaign to promote reading habits among commuters.

This year we also celebrate the 400th anniversary of the expulsion of the Moors in 1609. The event was a decisive demographic and economic factor which greatly affected the Valencian Society of the time.

Something sad is that state schools are very angry with our political representatives. The platform are giving 13 yellow roses to the MP Font de Mora in protest for the lack of sensibility towards their claims. Each of the roses is a symbol of one of the claims stated in the Manifest in favour of state schools.

If you are interested in what is going on in the publishing world, you should go to The Valencian Book Fair which opened yesterday in Viveros Gardesns. The Fair, which will be open until May 3rd (11 to 14 and 17 to 21 ), is an opportunity to meet your favourite authors (José Luis Sampedro, Luis Eduardo Aute, Carmen Amoraga, Benjamín Prado, Vicente Verdú o Carmen Botello), have fun with your kids (there will be reading aloud activities for them) or attend one of the several lectures that will take place in the following days.

See programme of activities and exhibitions (El Flaco photographer, book designers, etc.).

VI EOI National Conference

2009-04-07T03:33:00.000-07:00

Towards New Horizons was the title of the EEOOII Conference held in Las Palmas (The Canary Islands) last week. About 300 teachers from most Spanish Autonomous Communities attended it (April 2-4). Most Local Governments have committed themselves to the modernization ot the Official Language Schools as languages are becoming more and more a deciding factor in the opportunities offered to the citizens. Besides, as an Arabic proverb says “If you want to prevent a war, learn a language”, so learning languages has many advantages in our developing world, as they help us find a better job, get in touch with people who share interests with us or access information. On the other hand, learning a language allows us to make better deals in business and politics. Languages are invisible capital.

The fact is that since local governments have complete authority regarding educational issues some Autonomous Communities are better positioned than others to face the challenges of the XXI century. Thanks to the Autonomous Communities we can use our own resources to improve the education of our citizens, but are we getting as much as we deserve? Yesterday the discussions of the ROF at the Mesa Sectorial were interrupted. Schools, Unions and hedteachers are really worried about the danger of having groups and languages discarded. Our interlocutors seem not to open their ears to listen to us. Working conditions are changing and we are losing the leading role that we used to have in the past. We need more investment in resources for the Official Tests so that validity and reliability are guaranteed for all; we need good practices which agree with those in other European Institutions. We can’t allow ourselves to miss this train.

But let’s go back to the Conference and see what it had to offer. We can’t forget that we are a country which has given its back to the world for many years, as Ramon Trujillo said. A country which has persecuted intellectuals. Now we talk about pluricultural and plurilingual competences. But what does this mean? Well, according to Angeles Ortega, this means that we need a better cultural and linguistic offer, better certifications, better methodologies, better perspectives. Speaking a foreign language is a multidimensional behaviour which is learned by interacting with others. It means adjusting our behaviour to that of others and to the environment. It means self learning and autonomy. It means intercultural competences to deal with a diverse world.

Three intense days in which we have been able to learn about methodology, assessment, certifications, TICS, and discuss among us about the challenges we are facing. On the other hand, we are aware that we are stronger than when we first met in Lleida a decade ago thanks to the work done by the associations. They should have all our support for the work they still have to face.

To sum up, as we can’t go into everything, let us just thank the AOEOIC for the excellent organization and hope that in two years’ time our schools can be as proud as other communities’ because our administration has finally understood that they have a key role to play in empowering Valencian schools to provide better services to the citizens.

Read more at: aprendemás; eeooiinet; apeoi canarias

Jim Jarmusch, at the Film Institute

2009-04-07T01:38:00.000-07:00

This week, the Film Institute is showing Dead Man, an anti-western, by Jim Jarmusch, an American independent filmmaker and script writer, whose films are admired by some of us because of his original approach. Stranger Than Paradise and Down by Law are some of his early films. Jarmusch worked as an assistant to director Nicholas Ray. Through Ray's efforts, he became a production assistant on Wim Wenders' documentary, "Lightning Over Water" (1980). Read more at the wikipedia.

Among his later films Coffee and Cigarettes, a collection of short film vignettes full of acid humour and deep understanding of human nature, is worth mentioning. He is fascinated by different cultures' views on violence, and by textual appropriations between cultures.

Don't miss Dead Man at the Film Institute (see programme on the right hand side of this page) and don't forget to tell us what you think!

The London Trip

2009-03-24T02:19:00.000-07:00

Going to London is going home. So much do we love this city, which represents freedom. The first time I visited it, it was under Franco’s regime, so London opened many windows to my generation. We fell in love with the language, with the city, with the people. We read Virginia Woolf, whose novels so well describe the streets of London and its people. We discovered Shakespeare, whose plays were inspired by this extraordinary city. We listened to The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. We went to concerts given by Bob Dylan and became hippies at least for a few weeks. Life was full of promises. Everything was possible.

For the students who travelled with us, the world is harder. There is unemployment spreading itself like a plague. Salaries are too short for the needs of a developed world, and too many people are trying to fight for the same goals. Visiting Canary Warf, Margaret Thatcher’s project for a Manhattan Financial City in London’s Dockland, the feeling of having been cheated by the people in the top offices haunted us, as we walked along the beautiful water canals among the skyscrapers. The feeling was overwhelming in spite of the wind and the cranes, the workers…
Back in Valencia, we all felt invigorated by the London experience, a trip we shall not forget!

We had an ambitious plan, open to variations, changes and personal choice. See the plan!

Please send your inpression of the city!

2009-03-10T09:19:00.000-07:00

The Valencian Filmoteque (now “Instituto Valenciano de Cinematografía Ricardo Muñoz Suay”) was created in 1985. The IVAC concentrates everything related to cinema and film for it preserves, restores, catalogues and makes known our cultural and film heritage on the one hand, and, on the other, it promotes, produces and trains audiovisual and film professionals, as it is responsible for the grants and subsidies to the Valencian audiovisual sector.

Some of the directors whose films will be shown are:
Robert Rossen
Sam Peckimpah
Nicolas Ray
Raul Walsh
See the programme for March.
20-21
24-29

Multicultural EOI

2009-03-10T03:00:00.000-07:00

Official Schools of Languages have a tradition of being open to different cultures and languages. Our students come from very different backgrounds and nationalities. There appears to be no incompatibility between multuralism and valencianism as Valencian culture itself is multicultural in its origin as we all know.

Who are our students? For a long time our school has been composed of American, British, Canadian, Argentinian, Colombian, Arabs, Chinese, German, Italian, etc. We are made up of a diverse range of cultures and identities, that is why we emphasize the need for a continuous process of mutual engagement and learning about each other with respect, understanding and tolerance.

In this effort one of our most engaged teachers, Carmen Torres, has asked her students to write about their countries of origin. Look at the widget to see what they have to say.

"Many things have changed in Valencia in the last years. One of these changes is that you can see more foreign people living here. Some of these people have decided to study English in our school. I am one of the teachers in this school who can enjoy sharing diferent cultures and nationalities in a class. I thought they could write something about the countries where they come from. It has been difficult for them because they are in “Basico 1” (except Viviana who is an ex-student of mine in “Intermedio 1”. They´ve written beautiful compositions full of interesting information which I hope you´ll enjoy as much as me. I also encourage other foreign people studying English in the school to write about their countries and contact with the blog of the English department (eventeoivalencia@gmail.com) to share it with us." C. Torres

ARGENTINA

I’m from Argentina, a wonderful country in South America. It's full of contrasts and it became the home of thousands of immigrants who escaped from European wars. This country lived through a big economic crisis and it's still standing.

Before everything, I want to recommend the typical food, it's worth eating a good barbecue, because the meat is the best in the world, there isn't doubt about it. Other Criolla foods are the Locro, the empanadas, the Dulce de Leche, and the alfajores. The huge European influence in Argentina is clearly visible in the food. For example the Spanish have made paella, the French medialunas (croissants), the Italians pasta and pizza among other nationalities.

The weather and the landscape are very diverse. Argentina has the privilege to have the four seasons at the same time. If you want to visit my country, you could take advantage of tourist offers to choose the destination. There are natural and unique attractions, that there are nowhere else in the world. I think, the most important places to visit are: “Las Cataratas del Iguazú” (jungle and waterfall), Salta in the Northwest (colorful mountains and “Train of the Clouds”), Bariloche (snow, lakes and mountains), Buenos Aires (cosmopolitan city), Calafate (“glaciar Perito Moreno”), and Península de Valdés (whales and penguins).

Argentina's fascinating and unique culture is a mix of strong European influences fused with indigenous tradition. It is famous for “gaucho”, “mate”, tango, football, psychologists, and literature. It is a country to welcome tourists from everywhere with open arms.

In conclusion, I think the best thing about Argentina is the people. They are hospitable, helpful, really lovely people, they make you feel at home and you’ll spend an unforgettable time. By Viviana Juárez.

Keep reading:
- Romania
- Palestine
- Brazil
- Italy

Don't know what to do this weekend?

2009-03-05T04:25:00.000-08:00

Are there any films you still haven't seen? After the Oscars, who hasn't seen Vicky Cristina Barcelona? If you are one of them, the film is still on at UGC. Never been to Australia? Although not an unforgettable film, you can go to enjoy the landscape and the actors. The film is still on there.

Two films you mustn't miss are The Reader and Revolutionary Road. In the second "a young couple living in a Connecticut suburb during the mid-1950s struggle to come to terms with their personal problems while trying to raise their two children. Based on a novel by Richard Yates". Read more at their page.

Other interesting choices for the weekend are:
- My name is Harvey Milk (starring oscarized actor Sean Penn)
- The fighter (El luchador)(with nominee Micky Rourke)
- The Challenge (El desafío) (Frost againts Nixon)
- Grand Torino (Clint Eastwood)

A few weeks ago I went to see The Reader and was applalled by this story of sexual awakening and moral dilemmas. I strongly recommend it!

Don't forget to write your opinion or recommendation!

Women's rights

2009-03-03T04:31:00.000-08:00

Violence against women is a serious problem in our society. Violence and abuse affect all kinds of people every day. It doesn't matter what race or culture you come from, how much money you have, how old you are, or if you have a disability. Violence does not discriminate. Being a victim of violence is widely recognized as a cause for mental health problems, including post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, and panic attacks.

Help raise awareness about violence against women This Wednesday March 4th, at 20.00 there is a demonstration in front of Valencia's Town Hall.

Show your rejection about women who are abused.

Bye Bye Pepe

2009-03-02T04:50:00.000-08:00

Pepe Rubianes has gone for ever. He was a great and compromised artist who smashed the reactionary right wing with the weapons of his sardonic humour.

Suffering from lung cancer for the last few months, he made us burst with laughter every time he went on stage. Living in Barcelona most of the time, he followed the trail of great comedians before him such as Mighel Gila. His provocative sense of humour went sometimes too far. The critic Marcos Ordoñez (El País) compares him to Andy Kauffman and Leny Bruce.
A scandal broke out when he criticised the Spanish flag in an interview. The right wing threw up their hands in horror. Virulent but ready in his response to injustice, he leaves behind a wide smile and two witty eyes that tell us he will be watching and laughing at our weaknesses from the stars. Bye Bye, Pepe.

Luggage, timetables and various other things

2009-02-24T08:12:00.000-08:00

Information for students:

Hand luggage: 55 x 40 x 20 cm. (on the plane)
Check in 1 piece under 20 kg. per person. No measures.

LONDON TRAVELCARD: London Travelcard valid per 1, 2, 3 o 7 days with unlimited access to underground and buses in the center of London. PRICE PER PERSON................. 6.50 €

LONDON EYE: PER PERSON................. 17.85 €

THE LONDON DUNGEON: LIVE ACTORS. 1 h y 30 min. aprox.
PRECIO PER PERSON ............... 21€

HISTORIC TOUR & MODERN LONDON: Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, Covent Garden, TICKET TO Londres Tower & crown jewels, special ticket to St. Paul & Thames cruise.
PRICE PER PERSON................. 74,67€

FLIGHTS:
====================

EASYJET 5152 16/MARCH VALENCIA - LONDON ( GATWICK ) LEAVES 15.45 HS - ARRIVES 17.10 HS
EASYJET 5151 20/MARCH LONDON - VALENCIA ( GATWICK ) LEAVES 12.00 HS - ARRIVES 15.15 HS

HOTEL ROYAL NATIONAL
====================
38 - 51 Bedford Way
Tel. 00 44 2076372488
LONDON
---------------

BE AT MANISES AIRPORT. 2 HS AND A HALF BEFORE LEAVING. ( 13.15 HS ). EASYJET CHECK IN DESK.

Tea, Cakes and Indian Women

2009-02-18T09:54:00.000-08:00

Today we had a great day at the school. Lots of students brought cakes: apple cake, ginger breads, cookies, nuts cake, banana cake, carrot cake, etc. They sat in groups and had a relaxed chat in English while they drank their tea.

Thisa morning, Igor, from Rudraksha, gave a talk about their project in North India. This organization is located in Valencia, at 19 Doctor Motserrat Street. Their aim is to help Indian Women in several ways.

The Northeast region of India is one of the poorest in India, where women are less than animals. More than a millon wome fetus are killed every year. Women are not educated. Most of them can't read or write. Their only way to survive is by marrying, but even if they marry they can be abandoned by their husbands and this is a tragedy, because their environment doesn't help them in any way.

Rudraksha has three projects at the moment:
a) Workshops in which women learn to saw, embroider and paint on material. When they finish the workshop they work in a cooperative which sells their work. The workshops have a kindergarden for the children with a tutor who teaches them basic skills. Some of these wome have to walk more than 20 kilometres to get to the workshops. About 150 women are trained every year.
b) "Heart to Heart" which is sisterhood with an Indian woman in order to help her study and work.
c) A building to help women who need leagal advise and other kinds of help because they are rejected by their husbands and families.

Rudraksha has been working on projects in North India for about six years.

Tomorrow Thursday we shall have tea and cakes in the morning and afternoon. There will be a talk in Spanish by a Rudraksha member who will explain their work with illustrations and pictures. The fair market will go on on the first floor. See you there.

Donations are welcome.

Language Exchange

2009-02-16T07:24:00.000-08:00

Tandem, a new language exchange meeting, has opened on Tuesdays from 19.00 to 20.00 at Sofa-Club. Avda. Tirso de Molina, 16. 1st Floor, Mercado Fuencarral.

This is a great opportunity for those who need to improve oral skills in natural environments. If you try it, please let us know about it. What was the experience like?

Reschedule

2009-02-15T00:47:00.000-08:00

The London trip meeting has been rescheduled to Saturday 28. There was a mistake in the previous post. I am sorry.

The group tickets for Les Miserables are only 15 pounds. Those who are interested in getting tickets have to bring this amount to the meeting as they have to bee bought before the end of this month.

The Agency will be grateful if you can pay the rest of the ticket by February 23rd.

Madame de Sade

2009-02-12T05:00:00.000-08:00

Those interested in seeing Madame de Sade, starring the great actress Judy Dench can email me so that I can get the tickets for Tuesday 17th, 19.30 at The Wyndham's Theatre in London.

The best tickets are 32.50. Please confirm at eventeoivalencia@gmail.com

Les Miserables

2009-02-12T04:32:00.000-08:00

Those coming to London on March 16th who are interested in getting tickets for this London Musical on March 19th, please contact me saying so. The sooner we get the tickets the better. There are discounts for groups of ten or more people. The best seats are 55 pounds without the special price. Here there is an interesting page you want to search for more information.

We are thinking about a meeting on Saturday February 18th so that everybody can get together. What do you think?
eventeoivalencia@gmail.com

British Film and Television Awards

2009-02-08T23:38:00.000-08:00

Exciting evening at the British Film and Television Awards at Royal Opera House in London. Penelope Cruz won the award for best supporting actress in Viky Cristina Barcelona, while Kate Winslet got the best leading actress award for The Reader (a film I am looking forward to seeing) beating Maryl Streep (Doubt) and Angelina Jolie (Changeling). Mickey Rourke got the best leading actor award for The Wrestler while Heath Ledger got the best supporting actor award for The Dark Night.

Slumdog Millionaire is the film which got most awards: best film, best director, cinematograsphy, adapted screenplay, music, sound and editing.

You can see a a picture summary of the evening where the artist glitter at their best. At the same time as the awards were being given, heavy rain was falling outside. But rain didn't prevent the amazing party.

It has been a great year for films! Let's go and see the new releases! Give us a comment.

Teacher training course

2009-02-08T00:47:00.000-08:00

As most people know, Language Schools are undergoing huge changes in teaching and assessment. This weekend two members of The European Center for Modern Languages, Waldek Martyniuk and José Noijons, have been in Valencia to train EOI teachers in ways in which these changes can be carried out.

Waldek's job was to familiarize us with the main concepts of the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference), its guiding principles, policy instrument, and programme of activities.

Relating examinations to the CEFR is the challenge we are facing now in the Valencian Community. These tow experts have been informing us of ways in which this could be done. By using the Stonehenge Metaphore, they were very clear about the CEFR limitantions and potentialities.

Implementing the plurilingual concept of the CEFR means supporting independent and co-operative learning, adopting a postive approach to learning, supporting learner autonomy, catering for individual needs, providing valid, reliable and fair assessment and securing comparability of outcomes.

We find ourselves at the beginning of a new era in language teaching and assessment. This is our second year after the new curriculum was implemented last year for A2 and B1. This is our first year for B2 and we are a little bit scared about its outcomes. Will the exams improve? Will the authorities be aware of the huge responsibility they are facing? Will they provide enough support to teachers and exam writers and administrators?

After these two days of hard work we are more aware of the requirements of a high quality test to meet quality standards, we hope that from now on the dialogue between exam writers and administrators and teachers will be open, sincere and transparent in order to improve our efficiency and acountability before test takers and society in general.

Training is necessary in all areas of human performance but in educational settings and in Language Institutions in particular is a necessity we can no longer avoid. Thanks to APEOICVA for this great opportunity to develop professionally!

Meeting to organize trip to London

2009-02-02T08:09:00.000-08:00

As I told you in a previous post we are busy organizing the Fallas trip to London. As some of the travellers work mornings, we are meeting again this Thursday (February 5th), at 19.00 in Anexo 1 (Salón de Actos). Those who are attending for the first time should bring ID or passport with them.

If you want to organize the trip, have a go at this link. There you can write a plan for the three days, as you have links on the left hand side where you can get information about London. The first thing is decide on "must" activities, such as: see a musical comedy or visit the oldest pub in London.

Hope to see you on Thursday!

Film Institute

2009-01-28T01:55:00.000-08:00

New films at the Film Institute: David Lean's Ryan's daughter, among other interesting movies.

EOI students to visit BIOPARC

2009-01-26T02:57:00.000-08:00

EOI students will visit Bioparc next Friday 13th of February. Come and enjoy this experience (Sabana, Madagascar and Africa) and live with a wide variety of animal species.

All the USA presidents' speeches

2009-01-19T23:38:00.000-08:00

Words of commitment, duty, responsibility. In this website you can read summaries of all the presidents' inaugural speeches and also the full texts just by clicking on the icons.

English Tea Experience

2009-01-16T11:17:00.000-08:00

Do you have a sweet tooth? Have you ever had traditional English tea?
Well, if you haven't, the English Department is preparing a party for you. But we cannot do it alone, we need your cooperation.

The party will be on behalf of Rudraksha, a non-governmental organization which works in the development of women in northeast India.

All you have to do to participate is cook one of the typical recipes such as: gingerbreads, shortbread, scones, etc. You can find copies in the Department. Ask your teacher!

If you are not a confident cook, why don't you join other classmates and cook together for fun? You can always keep them in the freezer. Then on the 18/19 bring your cakes to the EOI for everybody to enjoy. What do you thin? Any other recipes to share?

Meeting to organize Trip to London

2009-01-15T00:20:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday 27th of January, at 13.00h. there will be a meeting at the Salón de Actos of the language School to organize the trip to London in Fallas. Bring a copy of the bassport or DNI you are going to travel with. If you cannot attend, ask somebody to attend in your place as there will be important details about the trip you should know.

If you have any queries before the meeting, please contact Inma at the event e-mail.

Fictional presidents

2009-01-13T23:51:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I learned that MUVIM Museum is prerparing a series of lectures and films about the Amercian presidency. Here you can read about films which have featured USA presidents. Thee inauguration of US president Barack Obama, which will be held next week, will be seen by millions of viewers around the world as it will be broadcast by Eurovision in High Definition (HDTV) for the first time. All over Europe, networks are planning special programming to bring this historic day to their viewers live. Don't miss it!

Click here for an interactive Obama timeline.

Start the year watching films in English

2009-01-08T00:05:00.000-08:00

New DVDS in English at the Language School Library. Among them Death in Venice (1971) by Luccino Visconti, Lolita (1962) and Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb by Stanley Kubrick (1963), Gone with the wind (1939), The American comedy Little Miss Sunshine (2006), Cat on a hot tin roof (1958) (with Paul Newman), Tom Jones (1963) based on the novel by Henry Fielding, Raising Arizona (by the Cohen Brothers), Marx Brothers Collection, Accidental Hero (1992) by Stephen Frears, the British comedy Full Monty (1997), After the Dust (with Salma Hayek and Colin Farrell) are some of the films you can watch.

Some even have a bonus DVD with interviews with actors and director or documentaries about the shooting and other gossip. Do you like movies? Have you watched any of them? Tell us about it.

Start the year watching films in English

2009-01-07T23:57:00.001-08:00

New DVDs in English at the School Library:

Start the year watching films in English

2009-01-07T23:57:00.000-08:00

New DVDs in English at the School Library: Death in Venice

Highs and lows in 2008

2009-01-04T03:03:00.000-08:00

The Guardian Film Critic Jason Solomons interviews Irish actor Stephen Rea and director Stephen Daldry (The Reader), a film about the Holocaust soon to be released. Listen to this audio file.

Finally, Xan Brooks joins him to round up the year's best films. Have you seen them?

What are the best films you have seen in 2008?

Personally, I liked Juno, No Country for Old Men, In Bruges and Forasters. What about you?

Christmas Carols

2008-12-25T02:57:00.000-08:00

Do you like traditional Christmas Carols? Well, a lot of people don't. Some of us actually hate walking in the Mall and hearing tha tacky melodies all along, once and again, endlessly repeated till one is sick.

Luckily, inferior quality divas aren't the only ones to sing them. Rock stars are also conquered by the Christmas Spirit. Some of them have their own version whether from their own creation or adapted from the classics.
Lynyrd Skynyrd, "Christmas Time Again", Flaming Lips, "Christmas at the Zoo", Beck's "Little Drum Machine Boy", Subjam Stevens' "Songs for Christmas", Bright Eyes, "A Christmas Album", Barenaked Ladies, "Green Christmas", AC/DC, "Mistress for Christmas" and Darness, "Christmas Time" are some of them.

So, if you want to get out of the trodden path, try one of these to create an original atmosphere at home. What do you think?

Theatre as event

2008-12-14T07:21:00.000-08:00

According to Aristotle's seminal theatrical critique Poetics, there are six elements necessary for theatre: Plot, Character, Idea, Language, Music, and Spectacle, Moving On Theatre Company used mainly Interaction, which is an element Aristotle didn't take into account. Interaction is something which has become essential nowadays, both in communication and in education. Not that interaction wasn't present in Shakespeare's days, interaction has always been present in performance arts, and of course in Shakespeare and Lope de Vega's days, when audiences ate and drank and shouted at the actors without any restraint.
Lope de Vega wrote that for theatre one needs "three boards, two actors, and one passion". That is exactly what Moving On Theatre Comapany offered us at the Language School. Music and Spectacle together with an ability to involve audiences and make people participate. Everybody enjoyed seeing our students go on stage and take part as the professional actors asked volunteers to act when they realised that the audience was there waiting for them to put on a play.
Did you see the show? Give us your opinion.

The magic city

2008-12-04T03:16:00.000-08:00

If you would like to dicover this magnificent city, if you have never walked along the streets of this magic city, you can still try to find a place in the trip the English Department is organizing. Contact us at eventeoivalencia@gmail.com or call Rosa at 963823433 as soon as possible. We are going to close the passengers' list before the Christmas Holidays

Quiz

2008-12-02T12:50:00.000-08:00

Cecilia invites us to a Quiz in Valencia's Pubs.

Juan Marsé, Premio Cervantes 2008

2008-12-02T10:59:00.000-08:00

Spanish novelist, Juan Marsé (Barcelona 1933) belongs to the group of realists from the 50s rooted in Barcelona, together with Jaime Gil de Biedma, Carlos Barral, José Agustín Goytisolo, Juan García Hortelano, Manuel Vázquez Montalbán, Juan Goytisolo, Terenci Moix and Eduardo Mendoza.
La oscura historia de la prima Montse, is a key novel in his career as a writer as this is the novel where we can find the events and characters that have obsessed him throughout his life as a writer. In this book he expresses strong feelings and opinions about Catalan society under Franco's regime.
Some of his novels, such as Últimas tardes con Teresa, Si te dicen que caí, La muchacha de las bragas de oro and El amante bilingüe, have been adapted for the cinema or the theatre with little success.
Marsé analyzes the moral and social downfall of postwar Spain, class differences in his native Barcelona, the memories of those who lost the Civil War, the fight between workers and burgeois students and lost childhood. He analyzes Spanish society with the techniques of social realism, although, sometimes, he also experiments with other more avant-guard mechanisms, always with irony and satire and humour. His books have often been censored in the past.
Have you read any of his books. Well, if you haven't, this is an opportunity to see if his writing is still alive. Did he deserve this prize? Tell us your opinion.

Barcelo's dome

2008-11-27T00:33:00.000-08:00

500.000 euros from The Development Aid Fund have been spent in decorating room XX United Nations building in Geneva. During the Spanish Republic, Jusep Maria Sert, the Catalan artist, painted three murals in this building. Eighty years later The United Nations asked the Sapish monarchs to make a second contribution to the building. Miquel Barceló was the artist chosen for a job that has taken him 13 months and has needed 35.000 kilograms of colour, besides much talent and engineering.

"Un planeta-cueva que reúne a los hombres y que viaja al futuro", that is the idea for the dome swept by waves and pointed by thousand of stalactites which summarizes his vision of the world.

Finanzing this art work has not been easy. ONUART, la institution created to carry out the project, is 60 per cent private, with some of the most important Spanish companies involved, and 40 per cent public. The work cost 20 million euros (40% by the government while the rest is private).

In his defense, Moratinos, the Spanish Foreign Office Secretary, said that according to article 68 of the law 42/2006 from december 28, finianzing the Human Rights and Civilizations Aliance Room -as Room XX in the United Nations Palace will be called - "cae bajo la categoría de ayuda al desarrollo".

Controversy is served. Give us your opinion. Write a comment!

Juan Goytisolo, the outsider

2008-11-25T12:46:00.000-08:00

A whole life devoted to the Spanish language, mostly outside our borders, Juan Goytisolo has received the National Prize (Premio Nacional de las Letras) from the Spanish Ministry of Culture with a cold attitude. His work has been at last recognized with 40,000 €.

Apart from novels, Juan Goytisolo has written essays and travel books, and is also well known for his opinion articles in El País newspaper, where he expresses his anger against injustice, for he is seriously compromised with improving our world and uncovering hypocrisy. Above all, he fights against crimes committed against immigrants in Europe, for, as he says, «una cultura es la mezcla de las influencias externas que ha ido recibiendo con los años. Y yo, personalemente, de la mezcla cultural he aprendido tanto como de Cervantes».

Finally, Juan Goytisolo maintains that «más que nunca, en estos tiempos difíciles y de crisis, la cultura es un asidero para la gente. Hay muchas causas dignas de ser defendidas, podría estar toda la noche enumerándolas».

Theatre at the Language School

2008-11-20T04:00:00.000-08:00

Laughing is the best way to overcome the hardship of reality. Our students love theatre in English, but it is not easy to see a show unless the English Department organizes the event at the school.

Next Thursday 11th (December 2008) Moving on Theatre Company will visit us. There will be two shows. One at 11.00 a.m. and the other at 7.00 p.m. There are plenty of activities to do related to the show, as you will see, but the company keeps the story secret, so the performance will be a complete surprise. Don't miss it!
Today could be your big day!is the title of the show which will last for about one hour ten minutes. Don't forget to tell us what you think about it.

Hottest band

2008-11-18T01:10:00.000-08:00

Glasvegas has just published an album in Spain. This is the hottest band now. They are from Glasgow (Scotland) and have worked very hard to find their own voice. Have you heard about them?

The boy in the striped pyjamas

2008-11-17T07:42:00.000-08:00

If you haven't seen the film or read the book, you can still see it in English at Babel Cinema at 0'55.
Here you can read a review.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas" is not only about Germany during the war, although the story it tells is heartbreaking in more than one way. It is about a value system that survives like a virus.

Alternatively, you can read the book, which is written in very easy English, as it is narrated from the point of view of an eight-year-old child.
Then, tell us your opinion by writing a comment on this post. Thanks!

A Weekend in London

2008-11-13T05:09:00.000-08:00

Some classmates of mine, Carmen Torres, our last year´s English teacher and me went to London to spend a weekend in October. I think we had a good time and fantastic weather.

First I’d like to thank Viviana and Lorena (two of my classmates) for their efforts in all the preparations for the flight , accommodation, plans……

We travelled by plane with a low-cost company and we stayed in a cheap hotel near Kings Cross Station.

The Valencia – London flight was very pleasant. We met an Indian Englishman who we spoke with about a lot of things.He even wanted a photo with all of us!!. Well, he spoke to us much more than we spoke to him because our English is still limited

When we arrived in London at about 19:00 pm (I don’t know exactly), we went to the hotel by underground. I liked my very small and tiny room (please don´t go if you suffer from claustrophobia) and the hotel in general but the waitress was very unpleasant ( she didn’t seem an Englishwoman but she had the same stiff upper lip).

At night, we went for a walk around London : Coven Garden, Trafalgar Square, Soho…. We went shopping , and had dinner in Pizza Hut ( yes , it may seem strange but we were hungry ).

The following day , we caught a bus to London centre , went for a walk around Hide Park , and went on a tour with Alex, our tourist guide.for three hours. We could see Wellington park , Napoleon´s nose on a wall, the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, the Changing of the Guard ceremony outside Buckingham Palace and St. James Palace (Lady Di´s last residence), and we went shopping once again

We went on a boat trip along the Thames. Riverboat services are a great way of beating the traffic while soaking up fantastic views like the Bridges, London Eye, Canary Wharf, Tate Modern, London Bridge, Tower of London, a lot of London Docklands Riverside until getting to Greenwich.

We tried to have lunch in a London Pub, but it was impossible because it was too late. We had just a Marks & Spencer sandwich for lunch (typical of London).

Well into the evening, some of us went to Harrods , a big English department store and others went to look for a restaurant to have dinner between Piccadilly Circus & Soho.

The next day we were in a hurry. Some people visited St Paul's Cathedral and Camden Market Street and we all arrived at the airport by the skin of our teeth (the underground broke down on our way to the airport and we had to take an express train , very expensive public transport).

We have a lot of anecdotes about this journey but we´ll keep them to ourselves. I hope you understand it.

INMACULADA GARCÍA GUILLAMÓN
Intermedio 1

London seen by a student

2008-11-13T05:02:00.001-08:00

A trip to London for only a weekend requires a fair bit of planning. First we booked the flight tickets before summer so that they were cheap. We were eight English classmates, our teacher Carmen and also one funny character that joined us at the very last minute. It was a tiny sevillana doll we bought at the airport. You can see her in some of the pictures, we called her Jenny.
When we arrived at Heathrow Airport, we bought a TRAVEL CARD for 3 days, zone 6. so we didn’t waste time and we saved money.
We stayed in Howard Winchester Hotel, near King Cross Station and St. Pancras. We were very lucky because the rooms were a bit small but very tidy and inexpensive. The English breakfast was included in the price.
If you want to see the best views of London, I recommend you to take a fabulous full-commentary sightseeing cruise along the river Thames and get on the London Eye.
Don´t forget to visit Camden Market on a Sunday morning. You'll buy some clothes, shoes, etc and also you'll taste international food near the canal.
We had a good time. The weather was mostly cloudy but it didn´t rain any day.
London is undoubtedly the most exciting city in the world. I recommend you to go across its streets, look at its houses and talk with the people, you’ll love it.
In conclusion, I think London is a city with an unbeatable charm. I'm sure I’ll go back as soon as I can.

VIVIANA JUAREZ
Intermedio 1

London seen by a student

2008-11-13T05:02:00.000-08:00

LONDON

A trip to London for only a weekend requires a fair bit of planning. First we booked the flight tickets before summer so that they were cheap. We were eight English classmates, our teacher Carmen and also one funny character that joined us at the very last minute. It was a tiny sevillana doll we bought at the airport. You can see her in some of the pictures, we called her Jenny.
When we arrived at Heathrow Airport, we bought a TRAVEL CARD for 3 days, zone 6. so we didn’t waste time and we saved money.
We stayed in Howard Winchester Hotel, near King Cross Station and St. Pancras. We were very lucky because the rooms were a bit small but very tidy and inexpensive. The English breakfast was included in the price.
If you want to see the best views of London, I recommend you to take a fabulous full-commentary sightseeing cruise along the river Thames and get on the London Eye.
Don´t forget to visit Camden Market on a Sunday morning. You'll buy some clothes, shoes, etc and also you'll taste international food near the canal.
We had a good time. The weather was mostly cloudy but it didn´t rain any day.
London is undoubtedly the most exciting city in the world. I recommend you to go across its streets, look at its houses and talk with the people, you’ll love it.
In conclusion, I think London is a city with an unbeatable charm. I'm sure I’ll go back as soon as I can.

VIVIANA JUAREZ
Intermedio 1

Tonight is the answer!

2008-11-04T23:26:00.000-08:00

If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer.

It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voice could be that difference.

It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white, Latino, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled -- Americans who sent a message to the world that we have never been a collection of Red States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America.

It's the answer that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and fearful, and doubtful of what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it once more toward the hope of a better day.

It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this defining moment, change has come to America.

I just received a very gracious call from Senator McCain. He fought long and hard in this campaign, and he's fought even longer and harder for the country he loves. He has endured sacrifices for America that most of us cannot begin to imagine, and we are better off for the service rendered by this brave and selfless leader. I congratulate him and Governor Palin for all they have achieved, and I look forward to working with them to renew this nation's promise in the months ahead.

I want to thank my partner in this journey, a man who campaigned from his heart and spoke for the men and women he grew up with on the streets of Scranton and rode with on that train home to Delaware, the Vice President-elect of the United States, Joe Biden.

I would not be standing here tonight without the unyielding support of my best friend for the last sixteen years, the rock of our family and the love of my life, our nation's next First Lady, Michelle Obama. Sasha and Malia, I love you both so much, and you have earned the new puppy that's coming with us to the White House. And while she's no longer with us, I know my grandmother is watching, along with the family that made me who I am. I miss them tonight, and know that my debt to them is beyond measure.

To my campaign manager David Plouffe, my chief strategist David Axelrod, and the best campaign team ever assembled in the history of politics -- you made this happen, and I am forever grateful for what you've sacrificed to get it done.

But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to -- it belongs to you.

I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn't start with much money or many endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington -- it began in the backyards of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston.

It was built by working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give five dollars and ten dollars and twenty dollars to this cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their generation's apathy; who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less sleep; from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to knock on the doors of perfect strangers; from the millions of Americans who volunteered, and organized, and proved that more than two centuries later, a government of the people, by the people and for the people has not perished from this Earth. This is your victory.

I know you didn't do this just to win an election and I know you didn't do it for me. You did it because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime -- two wars, a planet in peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after their children fall asleep and wonder how they'll make the mortgage, or pay their doctor's bills, or save enough for college. There is new energy to harness and new jobs to be created; new schools to build and threats to meet and alliances to repair.

The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even one term, but America -- I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I promise you -- we as a people will get there.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government can't solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way it's been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years -- block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

What began twenty-one months ago in the depths of winter must not end on this autumn night. This victory alone is not the change we seek -- it is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It cannot happen without you.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism; of service and responsibility where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves, but each other. Let us remember that if this financial crisis taught us anything, it's that we cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers -- in this country, we rise or fall as one nation; as one people.

Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House -- a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity. Those are values we all share, and while the Democratic Party has won a great victory tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours, "We are not enemies, but friends…though passion may have strained it must not break our bonds of affection." And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn -- I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world -- our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down -- we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security -- we support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright --tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

For that is the true genius of America -- that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

Watch the video of Obama's speech

A Journey from Gloss to Misery

2008-10-31T11:17:00.000-07:00

Dr. Carmen Manuel took us by the hand to a long journey from the gloss of handsome president-to-be Barack Obama and his wife Michelle to the misery of one of the most horrendous episodes of humanity: slavery, which is linked to American history, because American History cannot be understood without the segregation of balck and white, without stories of pain and sorrow.

But Carmen made this journey as entertaining as possible, although the task was not easy. Summarizing the story of North America in a lively and enjoyable way is a mammoth task which she performed successfully before an enthisiastic audience. It was a great pleasure to have her at the school. I am sure everybody benefited from her energy, enthusiasm and ability to communicate.

Did you enjoy her talk?

Did you know that Billy Holliday's song referred to lynching, an amazing past American sport?

download list of travellers

2008-10-31T11:05:00.001-07:00

Last list

Lista definitiva de viajeros.pdf

Obama and the Legacy of American Racism

2008-10-28T03:23:00.000-07:00

USA Presidential Elections will be held next November 4th. Democarats and Republicans are fighting hard to win them.

The EOI Valencia Coordinación Cultural has invited Dr. Carmen Manuel (University of Valencia) to give a talk on the Democrat candidate and the issue of racism in USA, which can be a crucial one on November 4th.

The title is "Obama and the Legacy of American Racism". After the talk there will be a debate.

Time: 17.00
Place Annex 1 ground floor

Everybody is welcome!

Don't miss it!

Is America a united country?

Give your opinion. Register in gmail.

Book your ticket

2008-10-24T04:03:00.000-07:00

Finally the Travel Agent has been able to enlarge the number of travellers to London on March 16th.

FERNANDO ORFILA ABADIA and FRAN JOVER FERNANDEZ will coordinate the last ten travellers in the list, while INMA GARIN MARTINEZ, the English teacher, will coordinate the first twenty three. The list can be downloaded from the widget on the right of the page.

A deposit of 200 euros is necessary with your full name (the same you have in your I.D. or passport).

DATOS BANCARIOS:

" SAIMA TRAVEL, S.L "
------------------------------------------
Caixa Penedes

cta nº. 2081 0653 10 3300000228.
===========================

PONER EN EL INGRESO VIAJE A LONDRES.

If the deposit is not in the bank before October 30th, we understand that you are not interested in the trip.

If you want your name to be removed from the list so that somebody in the waiting list can take your place, please send a note to: eventeoivalencia@gmail.com as soon as possible.

Listado de viajeros definitivos

2008-10-23T05:11:00.000-07:00

Tras un sorteo realizado en la Sala A-1 de la EOI con los asistentes, ya tenemos el listado definitivo de las personas que pueden proceder a realizar el ingreso-reserva de 200 euros en la CC de la Agencia, cuando sea el momento oportuno. Este listado se puede consultar en el tablón de anuncios del Dto. de Inglés.

Si hay alguien que quiere ser sacado de la lista por favor que informe a la coordinadora Inma Garín con un correo a:
eventeoivalencia@gmail.com
O mediante una nota en un sobre a su nombre en centralita (planta baja).

Estamos viendo la posibilidad de hacer más grupos, pero, de momento, no podemos anticipar nada todavía. Cuando tengamos más información la iremos poniendo en el blog y en el tablón de anuncios.

Meeting

2008-10-21T03:17:00.000-07:00

This Thursday 23rd of October there will be a meeting to discuss the trip to London. The meeting will be held in room A-1 on the first floor.

72 students have signed up for the trip. This is amazing!

If you are not able to come to the meeting, ask someone to be there for you!

Dates: March 16-20
The price includes:
-Flight (low cost).
-Three star hotel in triple bedrooms with bathroom (next to British Museum; Breakfast included.
-Transfer from and to the hotel.
-Cancellation Insurance.

440 euros/ per person

An advanced amount of about 200 euros will be necessary to book the trip.

The price can be modified as this is a low-cost flight. No changes or cancellations will be possible unless justified by a hospital/ doctor, etc.

FAQs

2008-10-19T13:57:00.000-07:00

Q. Who can write?
A. Teachers and students at Valencia EOI are the target audience.
Q. Do you need an account?
A. Yes, you have to follow the steps and get one if you don't have one already.
Q. Why should I write?
A. Because you want to express yourself or share knowledge with the school blogger community.
Q. What are the characteristics of a post?
A. It deals with only one topic. Its information is structured and it is brief, as it has only about three paragraphs.
Q. What are the functions of the blog?
A. To inform, to give help, to give an opinion, to open a debate, to keep in touch with the discoursive community.

Exiled Valencian artist back

2008-10-19T13:40:00.000-07:00

La Universitat de València, La Nau has brought back Antonio Bernard, a great Valencian artist who belonged to tha surrealist mouvement in La República Dominicana, after having spent some time in the French republican concentration camps.

Why don't you write a review of this exhibition? Don't linger and delay. It will only be on until Nov. 22nd.

Trip to London

2008-10-14T10:33:00.000-07:00

The announcement that a trip to London is being organized by the English Department Coordinación Cultural has been very well received by students. The budget will be published this week and we hope it will not be too expensive, so that people can sign in. As soon as the budget is published there will be a meeting to discuss the details of the trip. Event will keep you informed.

For the moment, if you have time, visit London from your laptop or the Multimedia room or the school library! There you will find "what's on", places to go, etc. Finally, if you find other websites of public interest about this wonderful city, don't forget to write a post and tell us about them!
Remember, in order to write a post, you have to register and open an account!

Valencia's Cultural Agenda

2008-10-13T02:57:00.000-07:00

The Town Hall has a very complete guide to events that take place in Valencia. Visit it and recommend something to your schoolmates.

News

2008-10-09T07:56:00.000-07:00

The French writer Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio has been awarded The Nobel Prize for Literature. What do you think?

October Activities

2008-10-08T13:42:00.000-07:00

Mostra de Cinema
Muvim
Museu Valencià d'Art Modern
Museu Pius V
UGC Cinemas (Campanar)
Cinemas Albatros and Babel
Filmoteca de Valencia

New Releases

2008-10-07T03:50:00.000-07:00

This Friday, October 10, new release at UGC Cinemas, in Campanar: Happy go lucky, a comedy by Mike Leigh. The film is about the life of Poppy, a cheery, colorful, North London schoolteacher whose optimism tends to exasperate those around her.
Poppy (Sally Hawkins) is a life-loving, irrepressibly cheerful, Pollyanna-type primary school teacher who is thirty years old, single, and infinitely optimistic and accepting. She lives with her best friend and flatmate Zoe (Alexis Zegerman) in London. She is tested by a repressed driving instructor with anger problems (Eddie Marsan), and tests him in turn. She has exciting flamenco lessons, an encounter with a homeless man, a row with her pregnant sister, and a love-affair with the social worker guiding one of her students.
Don't forget to write a review!

Read

2008-09-16T04:37:00.000-07:00

The Grass is Singing by Doris Lessing, a wonderfunl novel about a woman who leaves her life to get married.

Watch

2008-09-16T01:48:00.000-07:00

"Vicky, Cristina, Barcelona" opens this week in Valencia's Cinemas.
Don't forget to watch it in V.O.
Enjoy it!