The New Zealand men's national rugby union team, known as the All Blacks, represents New Zealand in what is regarded as its national sport. The All Blacks are the Rugby World Cup champions and they have held the top ranking in the world for longer than all other countries combined and in over 100 years only five of the top 20 test rugby nations have beaten New Zealand. The All Blacks perform a haka (Māori challenge) before each international match. The haka has been closely associated with New Zealand rugby ever since a tour of New South Wales in 1884. That’s why they are so important to the country (New Zeland).

Ana José nº4

Sofia Miranda nº16

12ºLH3

Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2nd October 1869 – 30th January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement. A pioneer of satyagraha, or resistance to tyranny through mass civil disobedience—a philosophy firmly founded upon ahimsa, or total nonviolence—Gandhi led India to independence and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world. Gandhi is often referred to as Mahatma Sanskrit: or "Great Soul," an honorific first applied to him by Rabindranath Tagore. In India, he is also called Bapu and officially honoured as the Father of the Nation. His birthday, 2nd October, is commemorated in India as Gandhi Jayanti, a national holiday, and worldwide as the International Day of Non-Violence.

Jéssica Xavier nº12

Tiffany Pereira nº20

12ºLH3

Nelson Mandela born 18 July 1918, served as President of South Africa from 1994 to 1999, and was the first South African president to be elected in a fully representative democratic election. Before his presidency, Mandela was an anti-apartheid activist, and the leader of the armed wing of the African National Congress (ANC). In 1962 he was arrested and convicted of sabotage and other charges, and sentenced to life in prison. Mandela served 27 years in prison, spending many of these years on Robben Island. Following his release from prison on 11 February 1990, Mandela led his party in the negotiations that led to multi-racial democracy in 1994. As president from 1994 to 1999, he frequently gave priority to reconciliation, while introducing policies aimed at combating poverty and inequality in South Africa. Mandela has received more than 250 awards over four decades, including the 1993 Nobel Peace Prize, due to the influence of his actions all over the world.

Ana Catarina Oliveira nº2

Carolina Oliveira nº6

12ºLH3

Is our city prepared to welcome foreigners?

0n the 23rd September 2011, with the mission of finding out if our city is ready or not to receive foreigners, our class went to the historical city centre to interview people (tourists, inhabitants and business owners).

We decided to approach people in English.

Here are some of the answers to our questions:

Paraxut Restaurant

"-Good morning! Do you speak English?

-Yes.

-Do you think English is important to improve your business in the historical centre of Guimarães?

-Of course.

-Why?

-Because Guimarães will receive many visitants from the entire world.

-If they are from all around the world why do we have to speak in English?

-There are other important languages like Spanish, but English is the easiest to learn and speak.

-Well, thank you."

Cervejaria Martins

"-Sabe falar Inglês?

-O básico, para atender os clientes, nada muito complicado.

-Can you tell us some sentences that you usually use?

-Hein?

-Nós explicamos, pode dizer-nos algumas frases que usa frequentemente? Or words?

-“Welcome”; “Thank you”;”Here is the menu!”; “Can I help?”; “The bathroom is down there”;”Beer”;”Bread”;”Spirits”.

- Well, thank you very much."

The mastery of other languages is important, but we should also consider the mastery of basic details of the historical and cultural knowledge of Guimarães, in order to be able to inform tourists correctly. In spite of the visible difficulty felt by the citizens and business people, it is also important to consider the effort made by many of them to overcome these communication obstacles. As an example, the city hall has provided a workshop —“Eu Sou Guimarães” —, aimed at business people which gives them the bases to better welcome the tourists that may “invade” our city next year.

12º LH3

Interviewing a British couple

This blog is 4 u!

We are working on it...