A presentation of an important institution for the African economy: The African Development Bank.

The African Development Bank (ADB) is a bank established in 1964 with the intention of promoting economic and social development in Africa. It is a conglomeration of the African Development Bank (ADB), the African Development Fund (ADF), and the Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF).  its first goal is  to make loans and equity investments for the economic and social advancement.The bank has highlighted over the years  the role of women, education and structural reforms, the fight against HIV/AIDS and lent its support to key initiatives for the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC’s) and the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). It is composed of 78 members: 53 countries in Africa and 25 American, European, and Asian countries.

to promote: promouvoir

a goal: un but, une visée

a loan: un prêt

to highlight: mettre en lumière

to support: soutenir

a partnership: un partenariat

Petit mot sur le film  » The Other Boleyn Girl » avec Nathalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson et Eric Bana. Je passe sur l’infâme traduction en VF du titre  » deux soeurs pour un roi », qui gomme toute la référence historique de la VO. Ce film, bien que l’adaptation du roman de Philippa Gregory paru il y a encore deux ans ( que j’avais lu un peu par hasard) retrace bien la question de la liaison entre Henry VIII et Mary Boleyn avant qu’il n’épouse la soeur aînée de celle ci, la fameuse Anne Boleyn qui finira guillotinée.

Ou bande annonce du film « Ratatouille »

American vision of the famous French cuisine, Paris and its restaurants, French cheese and so on…quite a funny movie !!

French people who wears berets, eat camembert with their cup of coffee in the morning, eat snails and frog’s legs !

La crème de la crème

Well, a rat in a Parisian restaurant: it may be the wrong message , don’t you think?

As it is the « Semaine du Goût  » in France , let’s talk about the fight against obesity lead in the United Kingdom as we fear that half the poulation will be obese in 25 years if the current trend continues .

We heard that the young are getting fatter and in some areas of the country, a third of children are leaving primary school overweight. There is a need for health education in the home and at school .

Regardons l’exemple d’un programme diffusé sur les chaînes principales anglaises avec le fameux chef anglais Jamie Oliver visant à éduquer les enfants à bien manger à la cantine: cette bande annonce assez drôle montre le combat difficile à mener contre la malbouffe !

VOC/

Trend: la tendance

a third of : un tiers de

Overweight: en surpoids

Heath: la santé

Pour plus d’infos,

1- Le site du journal Métro sur les mesures prises par le gouvernement:

http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=70429&in_page_id=34&in_a_source=

2- Le blog de Thierry Sadiki sur le film « Super Size Me », documentaire au coeur de la junk food

http://www.lewebpedagogique.com/englishteacher/

A new post about an important subject: the current dramatical situation in Burma and the monks’ demonstrations in this country.

It is one of the historical event of the XXIth century to see anti -governement protests in Burma and the fight for the leader of the Burman opposition’s freedom Aung San Suu Kyi.

There are now worlwide marches :campaigners in 30 cities are stagging a serie of rallies against the bloody crackdown in Burma . It started at noon in New Zealand then moved to Asia and Europe , ahed of North America later.

The marches come as Western powers at the UN to condem the junta.

VOC

A monk: un moine

A demonstration: une manifestation 

bloody: sanglant

A crackdown: une répression  

Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the sixteenth President of the United States, serving from March 4, 1861 until his death on April 15, 1865. As an outspoken opponent of the expansion of slavery, he won the Republican Party nomination in 1860 and was elected president later that year. During his term, he helped preserve the United States by leading the defeat of the secessionist Confederate States of America in the American Civil War. He introduced measures that resulted in the abolition of slavery.

On this day in 1862, President Abraham Lincoln issues a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation, which sets a date for the freedom of more than 3 million black slaves in the United States and recasts the Civil War as a fight against slavery.

Today, we are to celebrate the first step towards the victory of egality, Human rights in the American History with the end of the slavery abolition .

Hello Everyone

I’m back after a beautiful summer abroad : such a pleasure to spend one more year with you and to enjoy life even if I’m moving to London for several months!

Let’s thank Internet to keep us together !

Vocabulary:

cinnamon: cannelle
concrete: béton
sapphire :saphir
=> or: gold / argent : silver /diamant: diamond /émeraude: emerald

To sip tea: siroter du thé ( terme très idiomatique)

To fool someone: tromper quelqu’un …ATTENTION: a fool: n’est pas un fou mais un imbécile

a hair do: une coiffure => a hairdresser: un coiffeur / a comb: un peigne/ a hairbrush : une brosse

GRAMMAR

I Emploi particulier du comparatif:

the more…the more….= plus…, plus …

a) ex: plus on fume, plus il est difficile d’arrêter

The more cigarettes you smoke, the more difficult itis to quit

b) pour exprimer le superlatif, on peut employer un comparatif

Dans une famille de deux enfants: he is the elder : c’est le plus âgé

Dans une famille de 3 enfants et plus: he is the oldest : c’est le plus âgé

c) Elle est plus grande que moi: she is taller than I et non pas: she is taller than me

II verbes à particules

En anglais, les prépositions sont très importantes:elles apportent beaucoup de précision ET peuvent même changer le sens d’un verbe

Ex: to run:courir

to run out: manquer de, être à court de

Ici, put your record on : to put on = mettre en marche alors que to put = poser

Quelques expressions idiomatiques:

to put up with :supporter

to be to : idée de prévision

Three little birds sat on my window.
And they told me I don’t need to worry.
Summer came like cinnamon
So sweet,
Little girls double-dutch on the concrete.

Maybe sometimes, we’ve got it wrong, but it’s alright
The more things seem to change, the more they stay the same
Oh, don’t you hesitate.

Girl, put your records on, tell me your favourite song
You go ahead, let your hair down
Sapphire and faded jeans, I hope you get your dreams,
Just go ahead, let your hair down.

You’re gonna find yourself somewhere, somehow.

Blue as the sky, sunburnt and lonely,
Sipping tea in the bar by the roadside,
(just relax, just relax)
Don’t you let those other boys fool you,
Got to love that afro hair -do.

Maybe sometimes, we feel afraid, but it’s alright

The more you stay the same, the more they seem to change.
Don’t you think it’s strange?
[....]

‘Twas more than I could take, pity for pity’s sake
Some nights kept me awake, I thought that I was stronger
When you gonna realise, that you don’t even have to try any longer?
Do what you want to.

Girl, put your records on, tell me your favourite song
You go ahead, let your hair down
Sapphire and faded jeans, I hope you get your dreams,
Just go ahead, let your hair down.

After a litte discourse on Dublin, we’ll  have now a look on London city..

A website quite interessing if you are planning to spend a week-end, a week, a month, a year  or your all life there….

 http://www.visitlondon.com/whats_on/

I wanted also to make you discovered a neww British artist , called Corinne Bailey Rae and I will use some of her lyrics to have your learn some vocabulary