A SPANISH PARTY: LAS FALLAS.

The “Fallas” is a very well-known holiday celebrated in Valencia, in Spain, from the fifteenth to the nineteenth of March. This holiday is in honor to San José, boss of the carpenters.

The name of “fallas” comes from the artistic sculptures made with inflammable materials. They represent famous figures called “ninots”.

There are many different groups of people called “falleros” in Valencia who make those “fallas” or monuments to participate in a quiz. Each year the winner is taken to a museum while the others are burnt in the streets. At night one can watch the fireworks as this holiday is strongly associated with fire.

During the holiday, people dress with the traditional clothes of the valencian autonomous community and participate in parades and there are music and dance concerts. Each year, a young lady is elected as “queen” and she participates in the party in a very special way. Many young girls have the dream to become queen of the “falleras” some day.

IT´S TEATIME!!!

My name is Cyril and I am from Ireland. I´m doing my homework in my bedroom, it is raining outside and…. I can hear my mum calling me for tea. It´s 6 o´clock in the evening. It´s teatime!!!! I run downstairs as I hear the teapot boiling in the kitchen. Did you know…????

Ireland is the largest tea consumer in the world. They take their tea VERY seriously! You won't find a convention, work meeting or other event that does not allow for a morning or afternoon tea break on the schedule! Everybody has tea in Ireland.

To have a nice cup of tea you add the milk to the tea cup first and then you pour in the tea.

Irish tea is served generally three times a day; 11:00 in the morning, 3:00-5:00 for afternoon tea and a high tea at 6:00 pm, serving as the evening meal. Afternoon tea is the more "fancy" of the three teas- the one with scones, breads, jam, curds and other dainties.

BONFIRE NIGHT IN LONDON LAST YEAR

Guy Fawkes Night or Bonfire Night is a celebration in the UK on the night of the fifth of November to celebrate that Guy Fawkes and his catholic friends couldn´t set the Westminster Palace, the Parliament, on fire.

So, to celebrate that the King was saved from the fire, people in England burn the image of Guy Fawkes in bonfires and watch fireworks. The day before, the children ask for money for the fireworks as they shout: “penny for the guy”.

There are typical dishes such as candy apples, jacket potatoes, black peas with vinegar or the bonfire toffee among others.

CHRISTMAS IN AUSTRALIA

Christmas in Australia is celebrated during the summer months, so in Australia there isn´t snow for Christmas.

Australia is a multicultural country and Christmas there is a mixture of traditions from other countries.

We can see in Australia Christmas Trees, Father Christmas, Christmas Carols and gifts, but Christmas Dinner may be a barbeque in the backyard or a picnic on a beach.

They drink champagne instead of eggnog or Pavlova instead of Plum Pudding. Christmas also coincides with the Summer Holidays and families often celebrate Christmas away from home.

People gather to sing carols on the beach or they go to outside concerts. They sit on blankets on the floor because it is warm at night and they light candles. These concerts are usually at Christmas Eve.

A TYPICAL ENGLISH BREAKFAST.

The full breakfast is popular throughout the British Isles and other parts of the English-speaking world. Depending on where it is served, it is called bacon and eggs, a fry, a full English breakfast… In Britain and Ireland, this cooked breakfast is often advertised as "Traditional English Breakfast" or "Traditional Irish Breakfast", but there is very little about it that is truly traditional in the historical sense.

For preparing a Full English Breakfast you need: 2 cumberland sausages, 2 rashers of smoked bacon, 2 eggs, mushrooms, 1 tomato, a tin of baked beans, 2 rounds of bread, black pudding, 2 hash browns, cooking oil, salt- to taste and brown sauce- to taste.

Slice the mushrooms thinly. Then slice the black pudding into rounds. Cut the tomatoes into half. Empty the tin of beans into a saucepan.

Grill the sausages, bacon and halved tomato. Add a little oil into a frying pan and fry off the black pudding and mushrooms together. Put everything on a plate.
Add more oil into the pan and place the slices of bread in and fry until golden brown. Next, fry 2 eggs.

Finally, serve everything on the plate together, make a nice cup of English Breakfast Tea, shake a dash of salt over your place, and a squirt of brown sauce.

DIWALI IS CELEBRATED IN INDIA

Diwali is a religious festival known too as the festival of Light. It is celebrated in India once a year and it is used as the beginning of the year for hindu people. During Diwali, people dress new clothes, share sweets and watch fireworks. It is a very happy night.

Diwali is celebrated in October or November and light is very important in this festival. Houses are cleaned in a special manner and they are decorated with candles. The tradition says that God will favour those people who give their enemies another opportunity to be friends again.

At night they light the candles and open the Doors of the house repeating a pray every time.

There is also the tradition of throwing a ship made of paper or little candles to a river, so if they go far, it means that the following year will be very happy.

EAGLES IN AMERICA

We can find Eagles in Europe and Asia, but the eagle with White head is the nacional symbol of the United States. It is a very beautiful animal, usually brown but with a very white head and tail. It is quite big and it eats small animals like snakes, rats, rabbits or fish.

They live near the Rivers or the great lakes where they can find a lot of food for their baby eagles.

You can see the image of the eagle in American coins and it is a protected animal all over the country.

THE GEORGIAN DOORS IN DUBLIN

When you go to Dublin, visit the south of the Liffey River. There you can see the famous Georgian doors in the buildings. The houses are from the seventeenth century and the colours of the buildings are dark and monotonous. That is the reason why people in Dublin painted the doors with bright colours like blue, yellow, green, red and even pink!!!

Today those doors are a symbol of the city. In Merrion Sqare you can find the most beautiful ones.

In Dublin there are many great places to visit, as the Trinity College, Oxford Street, the Ha´Penny Bridge, the sculpture of Oscar Wilde in Saint Stephen´s Green Park, the Guinness Factory, and of course there are a lot of bars where you can meet friends.…

If you go there, don´t take the bus number 45, as it is very famous because it is always late… I have experienced it…once I arrived two hours late to school and the teachers were very angry with me till I told them about the number of the bus I was waiting for!!!