That’s the end of English for Tourism in Brazil. Just take a look at some of the things you learned on this module:
- compare and contrast different settings by describing them;
- improve your reading comprehension by finding specific information in a text;
- raise cultural awareness by analyzing what foreigners think of Brazil;
- use the internet as a linguistic and professional resource when practising your language skills;
- give instructions in English;
- improve your writing skills by writing emails;
- find specific information in an article;
- understand and use the vocabulary needed to talk about what life in a favela is;
- give advice to travellers on how and when visit a favela;
- practise your listening skills;
- reflect on how the image of a country can be positively or negatively associated with a foreigner artist;
- improve your writing skills by explaining your point of view on the topic;
- understand the implications an international event such as the Pan American Games has to its hosting country;
- reflect on how staff can be trained to better support the participants and tourists;
- improve and practise your reading skills;
- write a persuasive text promoting a tourist attraction.
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In your final assignment will work with one of the most extraordinary natural attractions of Brazil and of the world: Iguassu Falls.
Your task is to write a 250-word persuasive text promoting
this video about the Iguassu Falls (Allow some minutes to load the video and it works best using Internet Explorer). Make sure you reinforce the natural attractions as well as the infra-structure shown in the video.You can also read
this article to give you some ideas. Good luck!
Remember!
By the end of this lesson you will have:
- written a persuasive text promoting a tourist attraction;
- practised your reading and writing skills.
This work is licenced under a Creative Commons Licence.
Next year Rio de Janeiro will host the XV Pan American Games and it will atract the whole world’s attention. Read the text below about the legacy of the Pan American Games to Brazil and how the country will benefit from hosting the games in 2007. Then answer the questions that follow in your notebook.
Winning the right to host the Pan American Games is much more than organizing a huge sports competition. For the host city and country, and even for the American continent, it means to an event that will give rise to profound social and economic changes that will remain for the long term. The Games thoroughly modify the host cities; the South Korean capital, Seoul, and the Spanish city of Barcelona being clear examples of such changes. These cities were revitalized in various aspects after the respective 1988 and 1992 Olympic Games.Rio’s victory in the competition to host the Pan American Games has already resulted in an increased international credibility as far as the capacity of a Brazilian city to organize out a major international event is concerned. So much so, that, right after the confirmation that Rio would be the Host City for the Games, there were three concrete consequences. Rio won the right to organize three World Championships; the Modern Pentathlon, in 2006; and Judo and Slalom Canoe, both in 2007.
During the preparation and competition period, the Games will tighten the bonds of both Rio de Janeiro and Brazil with the countries of America. Besides, they will provide the city with the necessary experience to carry out an operation of this caliber. Rio will be presented to the world as a city with organizational capacity and rich in terms of sports, arts, culture and natural resources.The creation of job vacancies – some of which temporary and some others to become permanent after the Games is one of the social benefits in the years leading up to 2007 and beyond. New events will take place, trading will grow, and more investments will arrive. Tourism will receive a great boost with the construction of new hotels and the improvement of the city’s tourism infrastructure. This will represent the consolidation of Rio as the leading Latin American city in the tourism industry. The Rio 2007 volunteering program and the creation of such new jobs will lead together to the development of qualified workforce in different areas, but mainly in services for foreign visitors.Tourism accommodation will also improve, as well as sport facilities with many others still to come. All of them will remain as a significant legacy for the city and the country, allowing for the development of sport activities, discovery of new talents, and the formation of a technical body and centers of excellence. All this will modify the urban infrastructure, since the areas adjacent to sport facilities will also experience improvements. There will be an important evolution in sectors such as technology, telecommunications and specialized sports medicine.And, above all, we will be left with a lingering memory of a special moment in time, which gathered athletes from all American countries in a historic meeting that focuses on the true values of sport. source
1. What were the immediate positive implications that has been noticed since BR won the bid to host the games?
2. What image of Brazil do organizers want to give to the rest of the world?
3. What impact will the games have on employment in Rio de Janeiro?
4. How tourism in Brazil will benefit from the event? Give some examples.
5. In light of the games more people will have to be trained to best support the participants and tourists during the event. What skills do you think would be useful for these people to learn? After your write them down in your notebook, compare your ideas with what
the government has proposed and see if they are similar or/and you agree with them.
Remember!
By the end of this session you should be able to:
- understand the implications an international event such as the Pan American Games has to its hosting country;
- reflect on how staff can be trained to better support the participants and tourists;
- improve your reading skills.
Further browsing:
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In 1995 Michael Jackson went to Brazil to record a video clip for his latest song at the time: They don’t care about us. The Brazilian version of the video clip was recorded in the colonial streets of Pelourinho in Salvador and in a favela in RJ.
1. Download today’s task here.
2. Listen and watch the video clip on this link and complete the lyric with the missing words.
3. Watch the video clip again and this time reflect on the lyric and how it is associated with Brazil. Then write a paragraph answering the following questions:
Considering the content of the song and the scenes shown in the video clip, how is Brazil portrayed in the video? What good and bad aspects of BR are highlighted in the video? What impact could it have on tourism in BR?
Remember!
By the end of this lesson, you will have:
- practised your listening skills;
- reflected on how the image of a country can be positively or negatively associated with a foreigner artist;
- improved your writing skills by explaining your point of view on the topic.
This work is licenced under a Creative Commons Licence.
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Brazil is famous for its beautiful scenery and good weather. However, it is also known that many tourists think twice before coming over when the matter is safety. Foreign newspapers regularly broadcast favelas (shanty towns) as a source of crime and danger but some people in Rio de Janeiro (RJ) are trying to change this image. Here’s your task:
Read this article about Favela tours and answer the following questions in your notebook:
1. How does the article describe what a favela is?
2. What famous fastfood restaurant is located in this favela?
3. By what means do residents have basic infrastructure, such as water and electricity?
4. What is the relationship between the favela residents and the local drug cartels?
5. How does the author of the article characterize the people who live in favelas?
6. What piece of advice does the author give to travellers willing to visit a favela?
7. What do you personally think of this hostel? Would you be happy to stay there and / or suggest it to someone? Answer this question by leaving a comment on this post.
Further browsing:
Favela Tour
Pousada Favelinha
Sustainable Tourism in Brazil
Remember!
By the end of this lesson you should be able to:
- find specific information in an article;
- understand and use the vocabulary needed to talk about what life in a favela is;
- give advice to travellers on how and when visit a favela.
This work is licenced under a Creative Commons Licence.
One of the most challenging situations a newly-arrived in a foreign country faces is to be able to move around in the city without major problems. Although travel guides give you a general idea of how it can be done, the reality is usually rather different.
Today’s task requires you to help two couples how to best explore two cities without much trouble. Considering that both of them have a tight budget, they will have to use public transport.
The first couple is visiting Sao Paulo. They are staying in a hotel in the neighbourhood of Tatuape (metro red line) and they want to visit the Museum of Modern Art of Sao Paulo (MASP – on the metro green line). Visit Sao Paulo Metro’s website to find out what is the best route for them to get to their destination. Then write a fictional email explaining how they can get to MASP using the Metro. Remember to mention the cost and maybe suggest some other attractions nearby.
The second couple is in Salvador and they are planning to spend a day at Praia do Forte, about 80km away from the the city center. Again, write them an email suggesting the best ways for them to get to their destination. Don’t forget to mention at least two options.
Bring both assignments to our next clasroom meeting.
Remember!
By the end of this session you should be able to:
- use the internet as a linguistic and professional resource when practising your language skills;
- give instructions in English;
- improve your writing skills by writing emails.
This work is licenced under a Creative Commons Licence.
Exotic. Interesting. Vast. Multicultural. Rich. Poor. Safe. Risky. Home. Holiday destination. Brazil is perceived by people in different ways. As a Brazilian-born, you certainly picture your country in a very specific and unique way. Foreigners, on the other hand, might have a complete different concept of what life in Brazil is like. It is very important for those who work with tourism to know what foreigners generally think of Brazil. This will help you be prepared to expectations your clients might have.
In today’s task we will learn a bit more of what tourist people of Brazil.
First, look at the two pictures below and write down in your notebook a short paragraph describing what you see in each picture. Imagine this is the first time you are going to spend holidays in Brazil. What would think of the country by these two pictures? How would you feel in each place?
Second,let’s find out what some foreigners think of Brazil. Read the interview with
Bill McCrossen and
Kim Buarque. Then complete
this chart with the information required. Print it out and bring it to the next classroom meeting.
Remember!
By the end of this session, you should be able to:
- compare and contrast different settings by describing them;
- improve your reading comprehension by finding specific information in a text;
- raise cultural awareness by analyzing what foreigners think of Brazil.
This work is licenced under a Creative Commons Licence.
Hello and welcome to English for Tourism in Brazil. This weblog is an extension of our classroom meetings and it is where you will find most of the assignments for this course. I will post the tasks here on a weekly basis. Each task will be published on a different entry and they should be taken to the classroom meetings.
As it was said in the first classroom meeting, the aim of these online sessions is to help you write and read about tourism in Brazil. Throughout the sessions you will learn some vocabulary and by the end of the course you will be expected to be able to read, understand and write about different aspects of Brazil: culture, population, attractions, infra-structure and so on.
Don’t forget to write a comment on some of the entries saying what you thought of the tasks or if you found them useful, interesting, difficult and so on. I hope you enjoy the experience of using the Internet to enhance your learning.
Deivis
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