Why the French are turning to fast food

Food in France is really appreciated, and there are some of the important restaurants which are well known around the world. 

But nowadays, 54% of total restaurants are becoming fast food and sandwich shops because people don’t want to spend a lot of money with food. There is the example of Balthazar de la Boude who opened a sandwich shop four years ago and he said that the crisis had been what has caused this change. 

A lot of people prefer to eat in an ordinary restaurant paying a low cost than to go to a good qualified and at the same time expensive one. Also, there are a lot of people who prefers to eat in the office and to don’t waste time at work.

On the other hand, the prices on the fast food restaurants have raised but it doesn't seem to affect the level of business.

MY OPINION

It’s true that sometimes we prefer to go to a fast food restaurant than to an expensive and well known one. Maybe because we are living a bad economic moment and we’re looking for cheap prices, or maybe because of the time.

We live in a stressed world and everybody wants to do their issues in a minimum time as possible. During the week, we don’t have time to go to a restaurant and sit down for a long time for eat, so we prefer to eat fast and in a cheap way. 

All in all, I think it’s not such a strange thing to read this type of news, but I agree fast food restaurants are not good for the health.

  

Rare: poc cuit
Bargain: oportunitat “ganga”

Outstripped: superar

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-25111208

HUMOR PRESENTATION

For this term we had to do a presentation about: beauty, humor, or new technologies. I’ve done this task with Tura and Marina and we chose the humor as a topic. 

I think we did a good presentation and I’m proud of our job. Like always there are things we can improve:

- We did some grammar mistakes. Also we have to improve our pronuntation because it’s an important thing we have to consider on an oral presentation. 

- About myself, I want to improve my movements. I have to learn and practice how to pose in front of the audience. 

- And finally, I want to say I would like to do another kind of topics. For example, things which are common on the teenagers’ life, or well…, I know it’s a difficult task to find a good topic to talk about in front of a group of classmates I think. 

FINAL MARK: 8.2

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyYZvSuWLzc

Body piercing controls wheelchair

A group of American scientist has come up with an incredible idea. The development is about the control of the movement of that kind of people who can’t walk or haven’t a normal life. They think they can transform the way people who has a paralysis live. 

Body piercings have been the solution, because it could be the way to control wheelchairs and computers. Especially they talk about the tongue piercings, because they think they the tongue it’s an amazing part of the body and a piercings on it could get important solutions.

The researchers believe they will be able to have a command for every tooth in the mouth. They say the piercing in the tongue produces an effect that changes the tongue movement.  

MY OPINION 

Every day I’m more and more fascinated by a huge number of scientists and researchers can get these impressive things. It’s really amazing how far they can go with the science and how many solutions they can discover. 

It’s not easy to find out something like what I have talked about, and I think we have to be so thankful to those groups of doctors and professionals who are working hard to solve some problems nowadays we have in our society. 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-25118896

Reticence: desconfiança
Charity: caritat 
Harnessing: arnès 

Protective measures are a 'death sentence' for rare dolphin say campaigners

Last 30 November of 2013, it was told that one of the world’s smallest and rarest type dolphins needs an extremely protection. It’s an important breed, even though there is a lot of people who isn’t conscious about that and they try to capture the animals.

Days ago some scientist found that there were approximately 55 Maui's left (it’s the name of the dolphin breed) above the age of one. This news is really alarming because it shows that the Maui's could be extinct within 20 years.

Maui’s dolphins are known to habit on the coast of New Zealand, but there, there is a huge number of people who goes there to fishing. But the New Zealand government has decided to make new restrictions on this activity.

“New Zealand's failure to protect the world's smallest and rarest dolphin is a bitter blow to marine conservation”, said Dr Barbara Maas. 

MY OPINION 

I think one of the worst things the humans can do is to destroy what we have on earth. I can’t imagine being a person who only want to get what he or she wants, without to think about the consequences or just about what can get hurt.

Hearing this type of news for me it’s horrible and I can’t express what I feel. It’s something I get really upset about, even I can’t do anything. Well, I suppose I can do something, at least I can inform around the world and to make everybody to be noticed about that. Luckily there are a big number of associations and groups which are doing this task really well. 

To feel threatened: sentir-se amenaçat

Cetacean: animal de mar

Seismic: sísmic

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-25145805

Dreams in life

In my point of view, it's not easy to find or to shout out which are my dreams. There are a lot of things in life but they are very important to me or just I really love, but I think to choose one of them as a dream it’s a difficult work. Otherwise, like everybody can say, to live a good and healthy life, around people I really love and to work or do whatever I can enjoy doing it, they could be (or I can confirm they are) one of my important dreams in my life. I’m 17 and now, my short term goals are clear, to pass batxillerat with good marks and to find an university degree I really could enjoy.

I’m one of those persons who always want to meet different people, discover new places and at the most, live a lot of different kind of experiences. So in life, I would like to travel around the world with a special person, maybe that person I can be for hours with and never get tired of.  

“There is no excuse to not try”, it’s one of the sentences Barack Obama says on the speech and I want to comment on. I’m a stubborn person and I try to don’t give up if something goes wrong. Everybody can do everything they want if they really fight until the end, face challenges and put their best effort. So, personally I want to say if there’s someone who really wants to get something, he has to work hard as far as he could, and it’s very important to don’t give up.. If you never try it’s obvious you’ll never succeed, and I think that’s what I think it’s a failure. So, I will try until I get it.  

Dreams in life are essentials, it’s important to have challenges and goals to fight for, and I think we don’t have to get obsessed if now we don’t have met our dreams yet. One day we will find something special we can consider as an important dream, in that moment we will begin a new “life” with new challenges and experiences.  

Beauty and youth

I think in life there are more important things than youth and beauty. It's true most of the times when you get older you lose this sense of beauty, but I don't think it's so horrible and something you have to be upset about. 

As the time goes by, we change and that's something we have to accept. Well, if you don't want to accept it or you can't, you can visit a surgeon, but I don't think it's the best choice.

We're made to be changed by the time and to be prepared to live in a different ways.

Nowadays, we live in a world where is an important thing and something we would have, and I really don't agree with this idea. I would prefer to live in a world where honesty, for example, would be the most important thing in our lives.  

Nip-tuck dialogue

Scenario: a married in a consulting room

Characters: Doctor, Vanessa (20 years old), Charles (50 years old)

- Doctor: Hello, I’m Dr. James, tell me your problem.

- Vanessa: Well… Can you appreciate my boobs? I think they’re right, but my husband doesn’t agree with it.

- Charles: You’re wrong, I only said that you could improve them…

-Doctor: My view as a doctor is that these boobs are right for her age, of course it can be better, but I can’t do an operation if she doesn’t want new boobs.

-Vanessa: He’s packed, he would pay my surgery… you know what I mean, darling.

-Charles: yep, I think this plastic surgeon can change our relationship and I’m not talking only about our sexual life… (he made a racy look at her).

-Vanessa: Doctor, what are the risks on it?

-Doctor: It isn’t a complicate operation, I have done a lot of them. But when you enter in a surgery you ever have the probability to…(interrupted by Charles)

-Charles: Shut up, you!!

-Vanessa: What’s wrong with you?

-Charles: I want you to get a bigger boobs, so…

-Vanessa: And if I told you I didn’t want? What’s about me? Do you think I’m a doll?

-Charles: Not exactly a doll…

-Doctor: Please, can you argument it at your home, or better with a psychologist, please? Cause I’m not your psychologist!

(Vanessa stands up and she leaves).

- Charles: doctor… I want to tell you something.

- Doctor: tell me!

- Charles: mmm.. I want to take advantage of this situation to talk about my…

- Doctor: Your what?

- Charles: You know what I’m talking about…

- Doctor: Penis surgeon?

- Charles: (He embarasses himself) Yes..

- Doctor: Can we meet another day and talk about this?

-Charles: Yes, thank you.

A new menu

A group of creative cooks like Michelin or David Faure offers an alternative menu in some of their restaurants in Paris. They have wanted to introduce in the current gastronomic world some insects as food.  
They have found some new sources of food where, for example, scorpions are the protagonist. To have an idea, these are some examples of what they offer in the restaurant; water scorpion with preserved peppers and black garlic, or grasshopper with quail's eggs. Most of the material and the insects come from Thailand.
They don’t want to use the insects as sauce; they want to make snacks with them where we can appreciate the taste, the textures and the colors of these animals. To eat this kind of menu it’s not cheap, because every snack costs 10€, even though they have succeeded. 

MY OPINION

I have chosen this news to talk about it because I found it really amazing. I can’t believe how a person can eat insects, or what’s more, to pay money to eat a scorpion with some sauces… I haven’t eaten nothing like that, and I think I won’t ever do it.


I know it depends on the culture, because there are some other cultures really different from ours and some countries where they use to eat insects every day, like we eat tomatoes or meat (for example). Even though, I think it’s one of the worse think you can eat in your life, it’s really disgusting…  I know some people who have travelled to Thailand, for example, and they have tasted it. There, it's a typical food and everybody who lives in this country eat it as a meal.  

To final I want say that they also use pate de foie gras for some of the meals, which for me it's really funny and shocking.

CRICKETS= any insect of the orthopterous family Gryllidae, having long antennae and, in the males, the ability to produce a chirping sound by rubbing together the leathery forewings.

GARLIC= a hardy widely cultivated Asian alliaceous plant.

MEALWORM= the larva of various beetles of the genus Tenebrio, esp T. molitor, feeding on meal, flour, and similar stored foods

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-24912602

Joke

https://audioboo.fm/boos/1639830-lidia

The sun people

Last week in class we did an interesting activity, and I want to do a post talking about it.

First of all, we had to think and choose which kind of people we think we are (I have to say I didn’t spent a lot of time thinking about it). I know myself and I also know what my personality is, what I want in life and what I really like of me. We could choose between the sun, the tree, the air or the earth people, four important elements of our lives.

I chose to be the sun people and now I want to explain you why. As a lot of people who know me says I’m a cheerful person and someone who always draws a smile face, and that’s something I really like to hear of me. It’s true, I like to share good moments with my friends, who I can laugh for a long time with and never get tired of.

A legend says “Life’s too short to be serious”, so I follow the instructions very carefully and I try to never get upset in vain, and always be in a good mood. The sun it’s something we think means happiness, life, joy, humor… it’s one of the reasons I chose it for.

Another trait of sun people is one I really like. We are this type of friend who is the only one who always is one time, and then he or she has to wait for the rest of the group. It’s obvious the sun is really timely; I don’t like to be late and make the others have to wait for me, so I always try to be already on time.

These are some of the characteristics of the sun people, even though I have to say I’m a person and sometimes I make mistakes. It’s true I’m not always happy and in a good mood and sometimes I get angry about silly things, and also it’s true I’m not ALWAYS on time. But I try to do it as well as possible. I hope if someday I fall sleep and I’m not on time, someone wouldn’t want to take me off of the group of sun people.

IS HUMOR NECESSARY?

Nowadays, we are accustomed to be concerned about everything, we live in a stressed world and the majority doesn’t know the importance of humor in our lives. As a rule, we agree it’s not easy to be in a good mood everyday, nevertheless we need this sense of humor to live as good as possible.   

In our opinion, as a teenagers, we think we are living in a difficult period of our lives and our sense of humor is affected by that. During these weeks of hard work and exams that we have proved the difficulty to be in a good mood. 

So If we take a little time to laugh or have fun, our mood really improves and this difficult week is going to become easier. Moreover, if we talk about mental health benefits we can say that we aren't stressed at all if we take some laughter time, on the same week as we talked about before. For this reason, laughter protect us from damaging effects of stress, and that's we feel better.

What's more, about physical healthy benefits, the days we're really stressed, our muscles are really tensed, so there's nothing better than a laugh that brings our body back into balance and relaxes our muscles. And to sum up with its benefits, we only have to talk about the social ones, that the most relevant effect is that laughter keeps relationships fresh and exciting, and unites people during difficult times.

In conclusion, we can only say that without happiness, laughter and humor is impossible to survive in the current society. We need it for every moment we live, every second in life. So it’s better to take a time every hole day to relax, to have fun a little moment and forget everything that’s around you.

Where's the magic?

Magic always has been one of the things I have been fascinated by during all my life. Since I was a child, I have been to lot performances where magicians have done things which are incredible. They are under pressure, even though most of the times they do it well and all the observers want to know how they can do such an amazing thing.

I remember being amazed by a magician for the first time at a friend’s birthday party when I was six. I remember this experience because I was really surprised when a rabbit appeared on the table in front of me. It had not been there before!  

I’m seventeen and I continue to be amazed even though I know it’s all an illusion. One day I watched a TV program where some magicians showed the truth, it’s shocking when they show you that sometimes it’s only a simply thing.

I like to think that there’s still a bit of real magic left in the world for children like the six-year-old I was some years ago. 

What about climbing?

Last weekend I was with my group of friends and we decided to do something different from all the things we usually do. What about climbing? I hadn’t tried yet and I had heard talking about it a lot. I really enjoyed the experience, it was so funny.

This type of sport keeps you fit and gets the adrenaline, also you can do it indoors and outdoors, so it’s a sport you always can do it.  It involves your mind, body and emotions because it’s not easy and you have to be so concentrated. Some climbers say “It’s one of the few sports where you compete against yourself”.

 A lot of people are scared of this sport because there is the risk to fall or get hurt, even though falling is not a problem at climbing centers. They know they are attached by a harness and there are other persons who are around them. Well, of course there is the possibility to fall or to live an accident, but before to do it you have to be sure that you are safe.

I recommend doing this sport because it’s really interesting, and what’s more, if you are with your friends I have to say it’s very funny. 

Typhoon Haiyan: Philippines destruction "absolute bedlam"

An awesome typhoon named Haiyan arrived in Philippines on Monday. It had been described as "absolute bedlam” because it caused approximately more than 10.000 dead people.  Also, there are more than nine million people who were struggling to get something to eat or drink.

A lot of people are lost too, and they were looking for food or clean water to survive. Many of roads, houses, buildings or airports had been damaged. For example, a big building was shattered in the middle of the city where there were a high number of people, caused a lot of important damages. 

Philippines is living a terrible situation which, nowadays, is known around the world. Some countries, like Spain, are organizing some campaigns to recollect food and everything which is really necessary for people of Philippines who lost their house and all belongings. Also, US military personnel help and try to get goods for Tacloban. 

MY OPINION

To hear some bad news about this kind of topics is really terrifying. What people of Philippines are living is incredible; death people around the ground and houses it’s just one of the worst things a person can live in life. 

Days after Typhoon Haiyan, aerial photos showed the devastation along Philippines and how everything was shattered and devastated. 

I think if it would happen here it would be more terrorific because we aren’t prepared enough to live one of these situations.  

Border: frontera

Awful: horrible

Supplies: subministraments

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-24894529