Mobile World Congress

By Joaquim Torres

The Mobile World Congress is one of the largest world’s technological exhibitions, focused on the mobile industry. Every year this event attracts a hundred thousand visitors and a thousand operators and companies coming from two hundred countries. These figures place the city as a guide to see and touch the new mobile models that will be launched that year and to know more about all the innovations and new technology that will arrive at the market in the near future. 

Although the Mobile Word Congress is famous for being the main showcase of the mobile companies to present their new models, this event is much more than that, offering information about retail and digital commerce, internet of things, new advertising ways using mobile devices and emerging tech in general. All these topics are presented through exhibitor’s stands and conferences, the two main activities that form this event.

The Mobile Word Congress has been organized in Barcelona since 2006, taking this Catalan city as a word reference and consolidating the event as a fixed stop and a meeting point where all the firms share ideas and show their most upmarket products and sophisticated services.

In 2017, Barcelona will host again this event from the February 27 to March 2, distributing its content in two venues, “Fira Gran Vía” and “Fira Montjuïc”. 

The Mobile Word Congress is a challenge for Barcelona city, pushing to the limit all its services, hotels and means of transportations and a good example of the capacity of Catalans to organize massive events. For this reason if you are thinking of traveling to the city during these days you should book you hotel in advance and plan the trip carefully.

Music festivals

Music Festivals (by Marina)


In Catalonia there are a lot of music festivals all year round. In these festivals you can listen to all kinds of music: jazz, classical music, rock, indie, electronic,...

This are some of the most popular music events:

Jazz Festival of Terrassa (in March or April)

It takes place once a year in Terrassa, a city near Barcelona. For almost a month between March and April it brings together more than 250 artists from young emerging figures to amazing figures of international Jazz.


The last edition of the festival was the 35th and during these years more than 5.500 musitians have played in Terrassa and there have been over 1.100 concerts.


Moreover, this festival organizes dances, gastronomic events, lectures, exhibitions, videos, workshops and a film series, always with jazz as the central element.

The most massive activity of the festival is the Jazz Picinic that takes place in the Vallparadís Park  one Sunday. This event offers outdoor concerts and stands where you can buy food, drinks and t-shirts of the festival.


Primavera Sound (May-June)


It takes place in Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia, for 4 days. The days of Primavera sound 2017 are 31 May- 4 June and it’s a festival that has been celebrated in Barcelona since 2001.


This festival is organized to have a good experience of live music to all different generations. There you can listen to a lot of different kinds of music, but it’s strongly influenced by rock, pop and the most underground tendences of dance music.


Moreover, during the same days is celebrated in Barcelona the Primavera Pro, an international meeting of professionals of music industry that has become an international reference for independent music.


Festival Grec (June and July)


Festival Grec is the most important festival of music, dance, theatre and circus that takes place in Barcelona.


This festival is celebrated during the months of June and July every year.


Shows are in different theatres and concert halls. The act of presentation of the festival is celebrated in the Teatre Grec de Monjuïc, an outdoor theatre that was built for the Universal Exposition of 1929.


The last edition of Festival Grec was the 40th edition of this festival.


Sónar (June)


Sónar Festival was created in 1994 and it is celebrated in Barcelona every June for 3 intensive days.


Its first class reputation makes this festival a reference for other international ones. This is thanks to the combination of its playful nature and experimentation with newest trends in dance and electronic music.


Sóner festival is able to combine established artists with emerging talent, in all areas of musical and audiovisual production. This facilitates and improve the relationships between creativity, technology, innovation and business.


Sóner Barcelona’s activities are divided in two locations: Sónar by Day, which is located in Fira Monjuïc, and Sónar by Night, located in Fira Gran Via de l’Hospitalet.


Canet Rock (first Saturday of July)


Canet Rock festival was created in 1975 during the last year of Franco’s dictatorship. It was a movement against the government and the festival promised 12 hours of music and crazy atmosphere. In this edition played a lot of Catalan songwriters and singers and they sang controversial songs like L’estaca  and La gallineta which were prohibited by the government. After this edition this festival was never celebrated until 2014.


The festival is held in a waste ground in Canet de Mar. Canet Rock is a meeting point for around 25.000 people from all Catalonia who love Catalan rock. This festival goes on from 7pm until the sun rises.


Currently it continuos being a rebellion act against the government, specially against the Spanish government.

Catalan TV Marathon

LA MARATÓ DE TV3 ( Susana Roca)

La Marató de TV3 is a TV progam created in 1996 by the Catalan Audiovisual Media Corporation with a purpose: to promote and foster biomedical research, as well as raise social awareness about the diseases .

The main aim of the La Marató de TV3 is to raise funds from donations basically from the generous  citizens in Catalonia.

Last edition the programm is celebrating his  25 years anniversary with figures for participation and fund-raising that confirm it as the great party for solidarity, social awareness-raising and boosting biomedical research in Catalonia.

Last year (2016) the topic was "Strokes and traumatic spinal cord and brain injury". 

After 21 hours of live  broadcasting in the radio ant TV, the scoreboard for this edition is more than  8.400.00 euros.

Once again, La Marató 2016 enjoyed massive and enthusiastic support from members of the public, who this year organised a total of 3,427 activities in more than 700 places in Catalonia and some outside it. During the weeks before the programme, Catalonia turned into an immense party of support for La Marató, involving a million people around a wide range of activities. With connections all through the day, the people watching La Marató could enjoy a live experience of the charitable and festive atmosphere of the events around Catalonia.

Beaches and Coves

BEACHES AND COVES 

By Paula Martínez
In the sea of Catalonia there are differents coasts, the Costa Brava, the Costa Maresme, the Costa Barcelona and the Costa Daurada.

I’m going to tell you about the Costa Brava, that picture show the cities with beach of this area:

                                                              Beaches of Costa Brava.

The Costa Brava is one of the most famous corners of Catalonia and also of the country and where we can still find beautiful coves to get lost and enjoy its crystal water. In this area there are beautiful beaches, coves surrounded by nature, crystal-clear water, quite, charming fishing villages,etc.


This area hasmany kinds of beaches from little isolated coves to wide broad sand bays that stretch for kilometres (eg Pals or Palamos). With a coastline of 158 kilometres (100 miles).  A curiosity of this area is that around the corner of each big beach are usually a smaller cove or cala, normally with better sand or clearer water.


Each beach is unique. If you know where to look you can find the ideal beach for you. You can find fine sand, rock pools, bays for snorkelling, sailing, canoeing, completely natural, or surrounded by bars and restaurants.

Here there are many beaches and you can choose the best for you, either depending on what you prefer or what you need.You can go in a cove if you want be calm with your partner, for example, or to a beach if you want to be with your friends or family and play in the water.

Here I’m going to talk a little about some beaches in the Costa Brava:

Lloret de Mar is very famous for his beach and also for the parties and the night life. The coastline has 700m of largest. Moreover, isa very good place to do watersports like parasailing, flyfish or water ski, and also have a water park, the Waterworld.

Lloret de Mar by Joan Garcia Ferre

Tamariu is another beach situated in the Costa Brava. Families love it, because of its crystal-clear waters. It has a diving club, a sailing club, kayaks for rent and more. The beach is about 180 metres long and 40 metres wide and it is surrounded by trees. 

You can get your feet wet or sandy or just sit back and enjoy the sea breeze at one of the beachside restaurants. 

Tamariu by Alberto Romero

Sant Feliu de Guixols has many coves and beaches of outstanding features, among which are the Bay of Sant Feliu and Sant Pol beach, with its bathing huts features.

They are beaches to live them: where you will enjoy bathing and sun, we invite you to practice some of the many water activities to discover the seabed or enjoy the charm of small coves, scuba diving, kayaking, sailing, windsurfing, paddle surfing, snorkel... with a wide range of activities for all ages; as I also propose to make a boat trip to spend a few hours at sea, and know their coast from offshore.

Sant Feliu de Guíxols

Business and Industry

Proud of its own identity and language, Catalonia is one of Spain's richest and most highly industrialised regions, and also one of the most independent-minded.

In the business area Catalonia has powerful companies as Tous, Casa Terradelles, Puig, etc. But the biggest company in Catalonia is the “CaixaBank”

Catalonia is the first region in mainland Europe attracting foreign investment in business R & D since 2010.

Although we have big companies, the Catalan economy is based mainly for the small and middle business.

By Pere Gasol 

Gaudí, the art nouveau architect.

By Núria Terés

Antoni Gaudí i Cornet was a Catalan architect who has become internationally recognised as one of the top exponents of the modernism. He was born on the 25th of June 1852 in Reus, but some biographers claim that he was born in Riudorms, a small village near Reus where his family used to spend summer holidays. He was raised by a family of coppersmiths and that fact allowed Gaudí to develop a special skill for working with space and volume. As a result of spending much time in Riudorms, the architect found the essence and the meaning of this art by following patterns that exist in nature and by respecting its laws.

In 1870, he moved to Barcelona to pursue his academic career in architecture, working at various jobs at once in order to pay on his own his studies. At the Paris World’s Fair of 1878, Gaudí displayed a showcase he had produced that lead him to work on the Güell Estate and Güell Palace, among others. That year, he obtained his degree at the School of Architecture too.

During his mature period, followed one after another. The Bellesguard Tower, Park Güell, the restoration of Mallorca cathedral, Casa Batlló and La Pedrera are examples of some of his impressive contributions to architecture, however in 1883, Gaudí was charged with the construction of a Barcelona cathedral called Basilica i Temple Expiatori de la Sagrada Familia (Basilica and Expiatory Church of the Holy Family), which would become in his most outstanding project.

Gaudí died on the 10th of June 1926, in Barcelona, after being knocked down by a tramway while making his usual way. In that moment, he hadn’t finished working on la Sagrada Familia but he left instructions on how he had imagined the building. Nowadays, the cathedral is still under construction and the extraordinary structure has a final completion target date of 2026, to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the architect’s passing.

Two of the architect's best-knwon masterpieces are the "Casa Batlló" and the "Casa Milà" also known as "La Pedrera". Watch the videos to admire the beauty of this magnificent architecture.

Catalan cuisine

 Catalan cusine
by Maria José

Catalan pa amb tomàquet (bread with tomatoes). Image by Jo Cooke / Lonely Planet

Catalonia’s culinary  heritage  comes from Greek and Roman traditions. These two cultures are at the origin of the three key ingredient  in the Mediterranean  diet: olive oil, wheat and wine.

But Catalan cusine also owes to the Moors , who introduced new farming methods, as well as new products, such as rice, sugar and aubergines.

The evolution of Catalan cuisine  was also marked by the discovery of America and the introduction of such products like the tomato, which has been used in almost every dish ever since. Above all, tomatoes are the key ingredient in “sofregit”, a sauce containing a mixture of peppers, garlic, onions and tomatoes slowly simmered over a low flame, and which forms the basis of countless Catalan dishes.  Catalan cuisine has constantly absorbed influences that have helped to shape the country’s rich and diverse culinary traditions, in the region's culinary culture: sea and mountain;

The four culinary seasons

Autumn : Several mushroom types.

Winter : “Calçotada” (calçots are long, sweet onions that are grilled over red-hot embers);” xatonades” (xató is the traditional local salad, made from escarole, tuna and cod salad), rice dishes and casseroles, with white botifarra sausage and omelettes; as well as countless cod dishes.

Spring: strawberries  and cherries, These include the Snail Festival in Lleida and the fish casserole (suquet) season in Empordà county.

Summer : llonganissa dry-cured sausage, seafood platters (mariscada) at one of Catalonia’s fishing ports.

Tapas:

An original way of dining out, serve aperitifs and “vermouth”, an aromatic wine before lunch.

Catalan pa amb tomàquet (bread with tomatoes).:is the most simple dish  it serves  with ham , dried pork sausage or cheese..

The Catalan version of the pizza is the coca:

There are many variations, both savoury and sweet. The savoury option can come with tomato, onion, pepper and sometimes sardines. The sweet version, generally almond-based.

Traditional desserts:

Crema Catalana,  “ mel i mató” honey and fresh cream cheese, and “músic” – dried fruits and nuts served with a glass of sweet muscatel wine.

To know more bout it:

Recommendations

Students answer the questions "What makes Catalonia such a good tourist destination? Why  may anyone want to visit Catalonia?" They talk about their favourite destination or their hometown.

 Laura

 

Marina 

Mireia

 

Víctor 

 

Pere

Adrián

Dolors

Joaquín

 

Iris

 

M.José

Meritxell

Anna

Xavi

Who we are

The school: EOI lleida

The Official Language Schools are public centers dedicated to the teaching of languages to adults.

Our aim is to develop:

- the student's ability to use a language effectively as a general vehicle of communication.

- the acknowledgement of and respect for linguistic and cultural diversity as a tool for dialogue between different people.

 8 different languages are taught in our school: Arabic, Catalan, English, French, German, Italian, Russian and Spanish for foreigners.

To know more about it visit  the school's website.

The teacher:  Dolors Farran

Hello everyone,

I am a teacher of English at the EOI Lleida and responsible for this project. I succeeded in finding partners in schools around Europe using eTwinning platform. I want to thank them all for their enthusiasm and for accepting my invitation. This is what gives the project a purpose and a reason to exist :  our willingness to exchange information about our countries in order to reach a better understanding of peoples and their culture. 

I have always been very interested in exploring the possibilities that New Technologies offer to learn and teach a foreign language. I am always on the lookout to provide my students opportunities to communicate in English in a real context. This project is the result of both interests. It intends not only to give them the chance to get to know other students of English but also the possibility to explain Catalonia to people who may know little about this part of the world we live in. Each student has chosen an aspect of our own culture, tradition, current lifestyle, geography...  that he or she was most interested in and has written about it. I hope you find it interesting.

The students:

Susana Roca

My name is Susana. I was born in 1975, in January the 11th. My birthplace was Palma de Mallorca, and I lived there until I was 6. Then we moved to Lleida, my home town now. I’m the third of 5 sisters ( I know, I know, so many women!!) and my family tree is a bit complicated!

I am married with the love of my life. We’ve been together since 2003. We have a daughter called Elodia (11) and our wee man Bruno, who is 8.

I love sinister music, going to concerts, spend time with my family and friends, terror films, and learning. And I am a big fan of Stephen King, I read near 60 books of him.

I worked as a beauty specialist s from the age 19 from 39, when I had to leave my job because of an illness. I’ve  had  two breast cancers  in the last 3 years and I half, and because of that I am not  able to work . And, of course, it changed all my life and the way I lived. 

Nowadays I am studying English ( fourth level) and  Political Sciences at online University.

The blog project is very interesting for me because I love writing, and learning things about other people from others countries.

I hope you enjoy our blog. Welcome and feel free to ask whatever you want.

Maria José

Hello!

My name is Maria José, I live in Lleida a city from Catalonia in the North East of Spain. I started learning English 2 years ago because I think it’s good to know the language  for travelling and helping  my sons with their English homework.  I would like being able to speak English fluency because for me  it’s a challenge since I was  a child  I am very bad at learning languages, but I am stubborn and I  have always  had these two thoughts  “never give up” and” there is a big lie in life to say I can’t”, So little by little I’ll try to be able each time to improve my English . So I'm trying to improve little by little.

 I’m 42 years old. I work as a civil servant. I like cooking for my family, I’m a bit imaginative I always invent new dishes with the ingredient that I have in my fridge, so I’ve never cooked the same dish twice. If somebody try a dish and would like to try again… I’m sorry but it will be impossible. However, I have a few dishes that I cook to the same way. I like practicing Brazilian Jujitsu it’s an amazing sport I fell in love with this sport three years ago  I go to the  gym three times a week and for the moment I have got the blue belt . This sport is a fight between two people but there isn’t violence just use the force without hitting. This sport makes me feel good and keep me fit. I have 2 children, they are 13 and 16 years old.  They are everything in my life. The youngest  is a active boy he is always happy and he is very affectionate. The oldest is a pretty girl she is adorable but a little bit smug. I would like imagine my children when they were old and to know how will their lives be because this makes me feel worried.

Paula 

Hi!

My name is Paula, I’m 18 years old. I’m from Sant Feliu de Guíxols but now I’m living in Lleida in a shared apartment with other girls that also live in my town. I’m studying Childhood Education in the University of Lleida, this is my first year of the degree. Moreover, I’m studying English in the Official School of Languages, I studied in the Official School for three years.

I think that have languages is very important for different reasons: in order to finish the degree, to look for a job, to communicate with other people, etc. I can speak and write very well Catalan and Spanish, and a little of English and French. Now I have the PET and the DELF B1 of French.

How DO I spend my free time? I like painting landscapes, and when I have time I go to classes of painting. Also, the weekends, when I arrive on my origin town I meet my friends and I visit my family, I love be with them. Another of my hobbies is  travelling, I visited different regions of Spain, like Lanzarote (Illes Canaries) and Andalusia (Granada, Còrdova, Sevilla, and Màlaga) and outside my country, I visited Italy (Naples), France (Lyon, Carcassonne) and Vienna, Austria. In the future I want to visit a lot of more countries and cities.

Marina

Hi!

My name is Marina Respecta and I’m 18 years old. Currently I’m living in Lleida with three oder students but I’m from Sant Feliu de Guíxols, a village in Girona.

I’m on my first year of the degree in Human Nutrition and Dietetic in the UdL (University of Lleida). When I finish my degree I would like to do a master in free animal protein diets or some other master related with that in another country.

This is the first year thatI'm studying English in the Official School of Languages. Before that I studied it in the school and in my house with a teacher who was from the UK. I’m studying English because I need it to finish my degree and because I think that nowadays it's something essential for everything.

I have a lot of hobbies. For example I love music. In my opinion without music there’s not life. I’m always listening to music or singing in my head or making rithms with anything. I also play the violoncello and the electric bass. Music makes me feel free and helps me to express my feelings.

Another of my hobbies is exploring the world. I love discovering different  countries with their cultures and meeting new people. I like travelling alone, with my family, with my friends… I don’t care. This is another reason to study English.

I hope you enjoy our blog and our country!

Laura

Hi!

My name is Laura and I’m 29 years old. I live in Lleida a small city in Catalonia.

I’m a clinical psychologyst. Currently, I’m working in Down Lleida, a non-profit foundation for people with Down Syndrome and other types of mental disabilities.

I’ve recently resumed my English studies, after 10 years saying that I would have to do it (I always said it and never did). And here I am, finally!

What else can I say about me? I have many hobbies. I like music, listening and playing. When I was a child I played the violin. Some years later, in my teens, I changed it for a bass. Currently, I don’t play any of them because I don’t have any time.

I also like outdoor activities. The accomplishment I’m most proud of is the “Carros de Foc” (Chariots of Fire), a mountain track in the National Park “Aigües Tortes” in the Catalan Pyrenees. I did it 4 years ago.

However, what I like the most is spending time with the people I love and to travel around the world, so for this reason speaking English properly will be incredibly helpful.

I’ve lived with my live in partner for the last 3 years. He is my best travel partner. We’ve traveled together to many places: NY, Berlin, Zurich, Paris,... And that’s only the beginning. We are already ready for the next adventure.

Pere Gasol

Hey, my name is Pere Gasol Fíguls, I’m 20 years old and I live in Lleida, because I’m studying Business Administration at university. I was born and grew up in Santpedor, a little town near Barcelona. Nowadays I’m living in a flat with my friends and two dogs. I also work at the weekends.

I love play sport, meet with friends and being busy. These days I’m doing a technological project and a course in stock market.

I’m studying English because is really important to have a good level of English. I also must have B2 certificate in order to get the Business Administration degree. 

Finally, I’m really happy to taking part in this project, I hope to improve my English level and learn new things of different cultures.

Adrian

Hello!  

I'm Adrián Lorenzo Plaza, I'm 21 years old. I live in Lleida, with my uncle and aunt, but in a few months i will become independent and move into my own apartment. Now, I'm studying English to improve my professional & personal qualities in the comunicative area. I'm a technician programmer, and I would like to join university next year, to develop my knowledge of programming methods to the next level. When I finish my degree on Computer science, I would like to move to London to finish my academic CV by doing a postgraduate degree in AI (Artificial Intelligence) or VR (Virtual Reality) or both, I will decide about it in the future. 

I have several hobbies: I'm a passionate game creator, and I would like to work in this field. My motivation has led me to study computer science. Other hobbys I'm playing the piano, having interesting conversations about polithics, being informed about the current affairs, and spending time with my friends and my family. 

Well, I think that's all about me. I hope to have some common tastes with people who read my profile. 

See you around!

Núria T.

Hi! I go by Núria and I’m 19, but not aware of having lived that long.

Currently living in Lleida, however I’m still looking for home. I’m taking a year-off before going to university in order to prepare on my own the next PAU, an exam that gives access to university.

My favourite hobby is thinking. Since I was a child I’ve been thinking about everything that has been around me, as if in every new speck that I find there was an undiscovered universe of possibilities, and then, there was a moment when I realised that I was creating them. I can’t find enough words to describe what music means to me, unless poetry lends me a hand. I’m a great fan of how words with “s” are pronounced in Spanish, but I love playing with the other sounds too. Oh, and the piano. The piano is a wonderful way to express how I feel or how music makes me feel with no words, even though I’ve been playing it just for less than a year. Someday, I’d like to write a book, or maybe more than one, who knows, but I’m sure that at least I’ll write one novel. However, to achieve my goal first I need to read more than all the books that I have in my shelf!

As I said, I love reading books but in my shelves you can also find mangas and some comics. I love Japanese culture and how they relate their stories, either in manga, anime or films. Visiting this country is one of those things that I have to do before taking my last breath, but I’ll have to prepare myself because some of the cities that I want to visit are very crowded and I’m very sensitive, that’s why that overstimulation could affect me.

Well, I don’t know what else to say, I used too many words to describe not many aspects of myself, but writing is so nice...

Feel free to visit our blog anytime you want, you’ll always be welcome!

Mireia V.

Hi!

I’m Mireia. I’m a university librarian, and I'm working  in University of Lleida libraries since 2000. Do you think being a librarian is boring? Not at all! An university library is more than a place to study and to be quiet in silence! Now it is like a digital library! Besides, I’m studying a degree in Communication at Open Universityof Catalonia. So, I have little time!

My family comes from the North Catalonia, but nowadays I’m living in Lleida. I share a flat with a black & white cat called Gisca (the real owner of the flat is the cat).

Every summer I like going somewhere a little bit far from Lleida, to explore new countries and, if it’s possible, to meet new people. Some years ago, I have visited Bratislava! :-) If I can, I try to travel on my own, without plan, an unplanned trip, with an open mind, and ready to discover unusual things about the countries. Maybe you can visit a non-touristic place in a city, and you discover a small and a beautiful performance on the street that capture your attention, and that’s the best souvenir you bring with you, when you get home.

I believe that every place you go can make you a better person and you can better understand and assess the world where you live. During my trips, I like taking pictures, but, not the typical picture that the classical
tourist would do, but different pictures to have a special souvenir of an special moment.

I also like theatre. Every September, Tàrrega, my family town, changes for 4 days, such a great show. There are a lot of free theatre performances at the street. You can see clowns, actors, musicians, etc. wich will bring you a good moment and a smile.

Finally, I would like to say that I’m becoming a little addict to Instagram, a place to share artistic or curious pictures and to discover interesting people: artists, photographers, people with a curious mind or a different point of view, etc. Besides, I like  taking pictures and visiting photography much more exhibitions, especially black and white photographs.

Iris Dolcet

Hello everyone!
My name is Iris Dolcet and I am 18 years old. I'm from Soses, a small town near Lleida. Nowadays, I spend more time in the city because I’m studying first course of Business at Universitat of Lleida.  
In my free time, I like to do sport like running, pilates and fitness and also playing the piano and the guitar. I’ve been playing the piano for twelve years and it continues being my passion.
I study English because one of my dreams is living abroad in an English-speaking country and I want to improve it and make my best. My expectations of the course are learn more about the use of phrasal verbs, idioms and the pronunciation
I am interested in travelling around the world because there are different cultures and some traditions that I would like to experience.

Something special about me is that I can sleep for hours, I like using a lot of colors when I write something and I'm fond of cats!


Joaquín Torres

 

Hi all! My name is Joaquin and I’m thirty-six years old. I live in Lleida with my wife and our two children although I was born in Tarragona. I miss the weather and the beach of my native city but I think that Lleida is a good place to live. 

I work in an English multinational dedicated to develop software for small and medium business and only few months ago I became Product Manager of a new global program collection. For this reason I began to have meetings with colleagues around the world and I now I have to report to a Canadian boss. For me this new situation is stressful!

In my free time I like to spend time with family and when I have a moment only for me I use to read and watch serial TV, specially thrillers like Prison Break and Arrow. I also swim two days a week in the morning before I take the child to school.

About my unusual or special things: I work in a high specialized area but I have studied two degrees not related with my job, History and Marketing.

Meritxell Aluja 

Hello!

My name is Meritxell, I'm 16.  

 My favourite thing to do is reading and I can’t understand why some people don’t like it. My favourite books are Paper towns by John Green, which I read in English, and the trilogy of the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I also love listening to music, I do it all the time and I try to listen a little bit of all  styles, including opera, because I think each kind of music is made for a different moment of the day. If I had a lot of money I would love to be travelling all the time, visiting different cultures, a different place every day, because in my opinion it's the best thing to learn about other cultures and about how is everything going in the world we live.

Xavi Pérez

Hello, my name is Xavi, I'm 35 years old and I'm from Palamós (Girona). I studied INEFC in Barcelona so I work in Sports: I am a personal trainer and a profesional football coach. My dream is to train abroad and I need to improve my English (and get official degrees). I start learning when I was seven, I worked in the sector of tourism until 2010, but then I stopped talking and now it's difficult for me to remember vocabulary, grammar... I hope this year will be good for me and my group and we will learn a lot.

I'm a cheerful, kind and caring person, but I'm also serious, methodic and responsible in everything I do, at work and outside work. I like sports, animals, cars, new technologies and the Asian culture, and I love football, of course!

Anna Chalons

I'm Anna, I'm 44 years old. I live in Lleida with my family. I'm a PE teacher and I work in Bellpuig. I like so much my job, I like improving every time with my pupils. Every day is diferent in class, and the experience that I live with the pupils helps me to be a sensibility person. The rest of the time I'm with my children, Laia and Joan, and I like being with them and with my husband and doing a lots of things and taking them to their sports activities.

I want to improve my english becouse I think that nowadays is a necessity.

Dolors Marí

I'm Dolors Mari and I'm 51 years old. I was born in Lleida, were I live with my family. I consider myself a very lucky person. I have a very lovely family. Me and my husband enjoy very much talking, playing and sharing our life with our three children. Also, I work as a teacher in a local kindergarden and although this job is physically very demanding, everyday it's a special opportunity to learn and live the joy of growing and discovering life.
I like being with people and travelling very much and this is the most important motivation for me to learn English.