Yes, that’s great news! I was going to post something about that, as it might have some bearing on my own future. As a Brit, permit me to welcome you (well, your host country at least) to the EU! It looks like your host-countrymates need to fix up the judicial system, reduce organized crime, and improve food safety[sup]*[/sup], but those were always part of the deal. At least you know that EU entry will happen on January 1st, 2007, as planned! I would imagine that it’s a death knell for the Peace Corps - Bulgaria program, however, although not for a couple of years at least I would think.
I’ve been looking for postcards from my part of Silicon Valley for the last week or so (but have also been really busy). I think I’ll take some photos, print them to postcard size, and mail in an envelope. That way I can send one of the Googleplex in Mountain View – I assume that your students use Bulgarian Google for searching, so they can see that there’s a real building from which it all emanates!
[ [sup][/sup]As you may have heard, we’re having our own food safety problems here in California, with e.coli found in spinach from the Salinas Valley, “America’s Salad Bowl”.]*
Er, not really… you’re not supposed to do it while drunk, them bulls are dangerous (RUI will get you fined if it doesn’t get you killed). It was all born from herding. You see, there are several bullfights between the 7th and 14th of July; all the bulls and cows and oxen arrive beforehand and their pens are… well, they were outside of town, the town has grown beyond them now. In any case, quite distant from the bullring. So on the morning of each fight, that afternoon’s bulls are driven to the ring by their herders. At the end of the XIX century/beginning of the XX, Pamplona was still a relatively small town, surrounded by many farms (caseríos) and villages from which one could walk to town and back in the day; most of those farms had cows or oxen, so the farmboys were used to The Big Horned Ones. They’d join the cowherds, lend them a hand; then the townboys started joining too because hey, no famboy is more macho than me no way. At some point City Hall figured out that a) there was no way they’d be able to keep boys from being boys and b) putting up wooden walls, with space for the guys to shuffle out through the wood, on both sides of the path was a Good Idea.
And then that Hemingway guy came by aaaaaaand… the rest is business.
Well, it looks like your students aren’t alone in thinking that the vast majority of them won’t need English on a daily, in-person kind of basis.
Are you interested in postcards from English speakers who find it handy to know English as an international language for use in non-English-speaking countries? If so, I can try to send you one from Amsterdam - in my experience so far making travel arrangements there, English seems to be the default language of choice, with people addressing me in English even before trying Dutch (except, oddly, for the high-speed rail website, which has all been translated into English except for the important part where you input credit card info and indicate where you want your ticket to be picked up/mailed, but that’s a rant for another day).
Actually, now that I think about it, Dutch may be a good analogue to Bulgarian; there aren’t many non-native speakers of Dutch, but on the other hand the Dutch have used their knowledge of English (and other European languages) to pretty darn good advantage. Might be a good teaching example for learning languages.
And you’re telling me no alcohol was involved? Uh huh.
Eva, that would be awesome. Dutch is a really good analogy to Bulgarian. My parents love Amsterdam, and before they took a trip there in the spring, I asked them if they knew any Dutch. They said no. This was their third trip there, so I was surprised. (I mean, I learned some Italian in Italy. Like, counting to ten and the flavors of gelato. Priorities, people.) And they said, “Everyone speaks English!”
Bulgaria is a really beautiful country, it’s very inexpensive to visit (everything’s incredibly cheap by Western standards), it has a lot of “quaint” rural places that city folk find endearing, and it’s in Europe. All of these things could add up to increased tourism, BUT hardly anyone speaks English, and those that do live in Sofia or Plovdiv or in tourist sites along the Black Sea. (OTOH, it means sometimes I get to play translator for the few random tourists I occasionally run into, which is always fun.)
Antonius Block, I saw that thing about the spinach! There was an article about it in the most recent Economist…datelined from Petaluma, where I grew up! Totally weird moment; I couldn’t believe anything that happened in Petaluma would merit a mention in the Economist. And, of course, nothing did, they could have datelined that article from anywhere and it would have been the same.
As for Peace Corps…I don’t know. Our country director keeps saying that as far as he knows, we’re not going anywhere for now, but there is a persistent rumor among the volunteers that if Bulgaria joins the EU, we’ll be phased out. Supposedly we have a new TEFL class coming in the spring. I’ll be really disappointed if I can’t be replaced in 2008, I think it does the students a world of good to learn English from a native speaker.
Perhaps you’ll be replaced by other programs. The English classes I got in college were taught by people from the Instituto Americano, which is somehow linked to the US Embassy.
I took classes about 600km away, in Barcelona and because they were getting some 400 students from my school, the teachers came to us. So it would have had to be a real long hallway!
My college/major used to require us to pass exams in English and either French or German, but without providing classes. The year I started was also the start of the new program with the IA… you still had to find your own classes for German and French. After three years taking German at Berlitz I finally decided to try the French exam and got a 100% on it (having studied a grand total of 3 months of French at age 3).
Hm, well, I don’t know anything about that…I expect if us Americans have to leave, they’ll replace us with EUers. Then they can have British people and my counterpart can stop chiding me not to teach the kids American English. (What exactly were they expecting?)
Oh, and I forgot, today’s mail brought postcards from New York state, Las Vegas, Scotland, several from Manchester, and Florida! Most excellent. Especially as I see that tomorrow’s 5th grade lesson includes a dialogue that apparently takes place in Manchester. Now with pictures!
Veselin Topalov was born in Rousse on 15-03-1975. He is currently ranked number 2 in the World, and is playing a 12 game match for the unified World chess title in Elista, Kalmykia against Vladimir Kramnik (Russia).
Topalov has a fine reputation as an attacking player, whose games repay careful study.
Although he lost the first two games, he had clear wins in both. However the complications and pressure meant both players missed this.
I sent a large envelope to you today, but realized after I sent it that it didn’t have any identifying information, except my return. You should have it in 4 - 6 days, according to the USPS. I sent you stuff on various oddball attractions around the South Bay (SF Bay Area) that I thought kids 10 -12 would find interesting, regardless of their native language. I also included a short book on the Winchester Mystery House, which is written in about 8th grade English, but it has lots and lots of pretty pictures, so that should help. This was a lot of fun, I hope your kids enjoy it as much as I did!
OK, the Czech… no, the Bulgarian… um, I mean the postcard:smack: is in the mail! However it might not get out of the country before Tuesday, with the weekend and Yom-Kippur looming. Hope they like it, even if it’s a bit late.
Wow! I am really overwhelmed by the response I’ve gotten. The kids were very interested in the card from Scotland that had an X marked on the sender’s house. They don’t seem to believe me when I tell them the cards aren’t from ME, but from people around the world who want to say hi.
Yesterday’s haul: Texas, Akron, OH, Sydney, and two very different cards from Honolulu. Excellent.
I haven’t attached any cards to the wall yet, because once I do, I can’t use it as a teaching tool anymore! I’m just carrying them around with me.
and because they were getting some 400 students from my school, the teachers came to us. So it would have had to be a real long hallway!