jueves, 22 de abril de 2010

A Bit of gastronomic culture


Gastronomy


Important Italian cuisine was the discovery of America, due to the acquisition of new vegetables like potatoes, tomatoes, peppers and corn, but were not used on a large scale until the eighteenth century. The cuisine of Italy is varied: the country was unified in 1861, and their cuisines reflect the cultural variety of its regions and its diverse history. Italian food is included within the so-called Mediterranean cuisine is imitated and practiced throughout the world. It is quite common to meet the cuisine of Italy's most famous dishes such as pizza, pasta and risotto, but the truth is that there is a kitchen where the rich aromas and flavors of the Mediterranean. It is a cuisine with which you have managed to perpetuate the old recipes like polenta (food of the Roman legion) that today can be eaten in any Italian trattoria.

viernes, 16 de abril de 2010

A little bit of Norwegian culture

Language

The North Germanic Norwegian language has two official written forms, Bokmål and Nynorsk. Both are recognized as official languages, which are both used in public administration, schools, churches and media, but Bokmål is used by the vast majority, about 85-90%. About 95% of the population speak Norwegian as their native tongue, although many speak dialects that may differ significantly from the written language. In general, most Norwegians are among intelligible dialects, although some may require considerable effort by a listener to understand. Several Finno-Ugric Sami languages are spoken and written throughout the country, especially in the north, the Sami people. Speakers are entitled to receive education in Sami language no matter where they live and receive communication from the government in various Sami languages. The minority Finno-Ugric language spoken Kven Kven / Finnish. No promotion of Norway for taking sign language an official Norwegian language.

In the 19th and 20th century, the Norwegian language was the subject of political and cultural controversy, which led to the creation of Nynorsk in the 19th century and the formation of the alternate spelling rules in the 20th century, including the standard Riksmål , which is more conservative (ie more similar to Danish) than Bokmål.

Norway is similar to the other Scandinavian languages, Swedish and Danish. The three languages are mutually intelligible and can be, and are commonly used in communication "among the inhabitants of Scandinavia. As a result of cooperation within the Nordic Council, inhabitants of all Nordic countries, including Iceland and Finland, have the right to communicate with the Norwegian authorities in their own language.

Any Norwegian student who is a child of immigrant parents are encouraged to learn the Norwegian language. The Norwegian government offers language instructional courses for immigrants wishing to obtain Norwegian citizenship.

The main foreign language taught in Norwegian primary school is English. The majority of the population is fluent in English, especially those born after the Second World War. German, French and Spanish are also commonly taught as a second or third language. Russian, Japanese, Italian, Latin and rarely Chinese (Mandarin) are available in some schools, particularly in cities. Traditionally, English, German and French were considered the main foreign languages in Norway. These languages, for example, were used in the passports of Norway until the 1990s, and college students have a general right to use these languages when submitting his thesis.

jueves, 15 de abril de 2010

A Brief History of Switzerland


Switzerland (German: die Schweiz, [b] in French, la Suisse, in Italian, Svizzera, in Romansh, Svizra), officially known as the Swiss Confederation (Confoederatio Helvetica in Latin, hence its ISO codes are CH and CHE) , is a landlocked country located in Central Europe and has a population of 7,725,200 inhabitants (2009). [4] Switzerland is a federal republic of 26 states called cantons. Berne is the seat of the federal authorities, [a] while the country's financial centers are located in the cities of Zurich, Basel and Geneva. Switzerland is one of the richest countries in the world according to their GDP per capita, amounting to U.S. $ 67,384. [5] For its part, Zurich and Geneva are on the second and third place in the cities with better quality of life in world [7].

Switzerland Germany bordered to the north, the west by France, Italy to the south and east by Austria and Liechtenstein. The country is characterized by its neutral foreign policy, without having actively participated in any international conflict since 1815, and is home to several international organizations including the Red Cross, the World Trade Organization and one of the two offices UN in Europe. Switzerland is not a member of the European Union but since 2005 is part of the Schengen area, is a multilingual nation and has four national languages: German, French, Italian and Romansch. The date of establishment of Switzerland as a nation set the August 1, 1291 in accordance with tradition, each year there is held the same day a national holiday.

Currently, Switzerland is perceived as one of the world's most developed countries. For his policy of neutrality, the country produces a large number of immigrants from nations from several continents, so it is considered one of the European countries with greater cultural diversity. Finally, is internationally renowned for its mountains, watches, chocolates, banks, trains and cheeses. [8

Carnival in Rio de Janero


Carnival in Rio de Janeiro

The Brazilian Carnival, held annually 40 days before Easter and marks the beginning of Lent. Carnival is one of the most visited and known in the world. In Rio de Janeiro is famous for the samba schools that parade in front of the spectators in the Sambadrome. The whole town is upset the second week of February for Carnival. Reservations are required well in advance and it is common for hotels raise their prices and offer the entire week.

martes, 13 de abril de 2010

Tourism in France


The French are countless attractions and each person making tourism in France have their preferences and wishes. It is not our objective to present anything else that could make a tourist in France if he had many months to vacation but we will look for the most important and representative sites trying to make a realistic short tour you can visit to get to your destination .

The entrance to each attraction has a price generally accessible, but if you add many attractions, it is clear the total cost will be quite high. However, if you do a good vacation plan and organize your trip can save a lot of money. There is a pass that you can buy in France that allows access to more than 60 tourist attractions in the country. If the list of attractions you plan to visit include many of the attractions which this pass gives you access, you can save money to buy and sightseeing in France.

In France you can visit the Eiffel Tower, Notre Damme, The Arc de Triomphe, also one of the most famous museums in the world at the Louvre Museum in Paris, the Cannes film festival, the castles of Loria Mount saint michel and the palace of Versailles among the best known