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Disneyland

February 27th, 2013 | Posted by rachael in Culture | For kids - (0 Comments)

Disneyland was built in Anaheim, California way back in 1955. The park was the only one which was personally designed and built by Walt Disney. He envisioned that people would come to the park to relive his famous animated movies come to life.

Source: google.com via Stephanie on Pinterest

Disneyland, the park layout

The park is laid out into ” lands”  Fairy Land, Adventure Land, Main Street USA, New Orleans Square, Frontier Land, Critter Country, Mikey’s Toontown and Tomorrow Land. Each land has a separate “feel” and atmosphere. To get a feel of the whole park, take the Train which goes around to each of the lands. Take the Monorail to see Disneyland from the sky.

Main Street USA

As you enter the park, you are in Main Street USA, which is set up to feel like a typical Main street in the Midwest in the 1900′s. There are stores, an old fashioned cinema, where you can “Meet Mr. Lincoln”, see old fashioned cars and a horse drawn buggy. Many times you can meet Mickey Mouse posing for pictures. Other characters from Disney are roaming around the park, waving hello, dressed up in over-sized costumes. Minnie Mouse and  Goofy, are a few that you will meet.

Rides in the Lands of Disneyland

In each Land there are rides for different ages. One of the most famous rides that actually made it into a series of movies is the Pirates of the Caribbean, in New Orleans Square. This is a water ride that features the song, Oh Ho, Oh Ho a Pirates Life for Me. Inside is also an expensive restaurant.

There are also thriller rides, such as the Matterhorn, which is a fast paced roller coaster, made more scary because much of the ride is inside the mountain, where it is dark. When I used to visit Disneyland, you had to buy tickets to get into each ride. The roller coasters all were an “E” ticket which means they were the most expensive.  ”A” and “B” tickets were for the Merry Go Round, and Uncle Toad’s Wild ride.

Being a guest in Disneyland

One thing that makes Disneyland different from other amusement parks is that you feel like you are really living somewhere else. All the park goers are “Guests” and the workers are “Cast.” You are treated with respect, and the park employees do their best to make sure that your stay at the park is a Fairy Tale come true.

 

 

 

 

Visiting the American National Parks

November 19th, 2012 | Posted by rachael in Traveling - (0 Comments)

As an English teacher, on line I get to “travel” to many different places with my students. I have heard about all sorts of places where people love to visit.

A few of my students from Europe like to travel to the United States, not to go shopping in New York, although that is very interesting, but to see the great natural beauty of the American National Parks.

One of the most interesting National Park is Yellowstone National Park in Montana.  This park is known for the natural geysers which spew up water and steam from deep inside the Earth. There are literally thousands of geysers in the park, the most famous and punctual being “Old Faithful.” Yellowstone was established as America’s first National Park in 1872.

Source: tumblr.com via Stephanie on Pinterest

Yosemite is another favorite, located in Northern California,  you have to reserve your cabin inside the park about a year ahead of time, because it fills up fast.  In the summer the whole park is open and you can drive for miles admiring the beautiful vistas that open up through the mountains. If you plan a winter trip, check the website for road closures because of snow. Anytime you go you will be amazed.

Another National Park worth visiting is to the south in Arizona, the famous Grand Canyon. The canyon was made by the Colorado River carving out the rock on either side to show the different layers of rock from the Earth’s geologic history. The Grand Canyon was also home to Indians at least 12,000 years ago.

America’s National Parks are a treasure that has been preserved for us to appreciate. Plan your trip in advance and enjoy your visit!

 

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The American Dream

October 25th, 2012 | Posted by rachael in Culture - (0 Comments)

What is the American Dream? The American dream is that everyone, regardless of their social position is entitled to succeed in life. The United States was founded upon the ideal that there was no fixed social position. Anyone could become famous and successful. There are many examples about people who started out with nothing, from poor families and by their hard work were able to be successful.

One of the most famous real live story is about Sam Walton, who used to milk cows and sold magazines. When he was 26, after the Army, he took the $5,000 from the Army and a $20,000 loan from his father-in-law, bought a Ben Franklin variety store. It became so successful that he expanded it, founded the well known store: Walmart. He died in 1992, worth millions.

James Cash Penney, was also one of the Rags to Riches stories. He was told by his doctor to go out west. He ended up in Wyoming, and opened a general store. He was in a company town, but he only took cash, not the company “script.”  In this way, he succeeded to leverage his stock. He listened to his customers, even calling his store “The Golden Rule Store.”  He wanted everyone to know that when they came to shop in the store, they would get a fair deal. When he would be interviewing new store managers for his expanding chain of stores, he would take them out to dinner. If the candidate salted his food before tasting it, that person would not be hired.  Why?  ”I want my store managers to at least try the food, and then make a decision whether to put salt!” This was a reflection of the way the Penney made his business decisions. Gather all the facts and then decide what to do. Later on, in 1913, the already large chain of stores was incorporated in Utah, called J. C. Penney Company.

If you work hard, and are honest, then you can become the next recipient of the American Dream!

 

 

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Max Marty and the new Silicon Valley

October 25th, 2012 | Posted by rachael in Business English - (0 Comments)

Max Marty has a wonderful idea to help start-ups to integrate into Silicon Valley.

Start your business on a boat that is floating 10 km out in San Francisco Bay. View and pay attention to this video, it just might be the model for more types of business start-ups in the future!

 

Video Quiz

What advantages do you see with this type of business model?

Who is the main backer of this project?

What will happen when the businesses get too big for the incubator ship?

Over to you

Would you take advantage of this opportunity?

What type of projects do you think would work best?

 

Good luck for your innovative IT project!

 

 

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A trip to New York

October 23rd, 2012 | Posted by rachael in Traveling - (0 Comments)

You are on your way to New York City. There is a lot to see and to do there! Expect to spend a least a week in New York. You will want to go to the famous restaurants, see at least two or three museums, take a walk in Central Park and go to the site of the World Trade Center memorial.

First buy a pass to travel on the Metro and the busses. This way you can get around Manhattan easily.

The Met

The most important museum of New York is The Metropolotoam Museum of Art.  http://www.metmuseum.org  Here you can see ancient Egyptian vases, Roman statues, and the most famous of all, Rembrandt’s masterpieces. The museum is so big that you could actually spend an entire week there.

Central Park

Next you want to take a walk through Central Park. The Central Park Conservatory offers 13 different free walking tours of Central park, with a guide. You can learn about Art in Central Park, the history of the War of 1812, and only on Memorial Day, and Veterans’ Day, learn about how New Yorkers honor their veterans.



Greenwich Village

Greenwich Village is full of history too. It has a European flair, with its winding streets and small shops and pubs. Even now, many artists, musicians and writers make their home in “The Village.” You can take a tour of Greenwich village and get a taste of the neighborhood with its history and delicious food.

The Empire State Building

The highlight of any tour to New York City is the Empire State building which celebrated it’s 80th anniversary in 2011. There is an observation deck on the 86th floor as well as on the 102nd.

World Trade Center Ground Zero Memorial




No trip to New York is complete without going to the Ground Zero World Trade Center Memorial. The highlight of the site features the names of all the people who died in the disaster. There are walking tours, some even for free, or a small fee. There is a visitors center and a gift shop which helps finance the museum and the upkeep of the site.

Have fun on your trip to New York! Be sure to take lots of pictures and post them on all your social networks.

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Relocating to the USA

March 5th, 2012 | Posted by glenn in Traveling - (0 Comments)

Relocating to the USA is a big change.  It can be intimidating thinking about getting a new job in another country, finding somewhere to live, schools etc.  Here are some steps to making sure that the relocation process goes smoothly:

Be prepared when you relocate to the USA

  • - Start to plan 3-4 months before you intend to move as it takes time to process the visa and to collect all the documents that you need from different places.
  • - Make sure that your passport is not going to expire in the next 10 months.
  • - Get your tax number or social security number from your own country.  Also prepare your references and other proof of work history, your birth certificates and other identification.  If you intend to drive, get an international driver’s license.
  • - Familiarise yourself with the rules and regulations of the US in order to avoid embarrassing incidents.

Having a truly American experience

Once you are in the States, integration should be your primary focus.  Joining clubs, classes or doing volunteer work are all great ways to meet people and to get out of the house so that you quickly get used to your environment.

Your area may or may not have a community of expats (people from your country).  But in my opinion, it is important not to seek out expats in the first couple of months as this may lessen your determination to integrate and let’s face it, you are probably there to improve your English, right?

Integration means getting to know the way Americans think and do things; understanding the American culture.  At first this might get a little lonely for you as everyone goes through the “homesick” stage of being in a new country.  But, it is important not to rely too much on the community of people from your homeland or you will always be looking at the American culture through a “foreign” perspective.

To help you get ready for your relocation to the USA, take some English conversation lessons with an American teacher before your trip.

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