"Five-star luxury in the south"

This article talks about Villa Retiro. It's a very special hotel because it's the only one with a spa and five stars in the south of Catalonia. The hotel is placed near teh Ebre river, in an old building designed by a famous architect. The rooms have got the most luxurious equipments and the spa is incredible, with waterfalls, hydro-massage, yacuzzi, etc. There is also a restaurant with a very old tree. The cheff has got a michelin star and the massagists know indian techniques. The personnel is very qualified and, very important, they love their job.

New words learnt:
personnel - treballadors
waterfalls - cascada

This article is from "Catalonia Today" (Thursday, April 10th , 2008) and it's written by Germà Capdevila.

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Acrostic

The story involves a princess, a fierce dragon and a brave horseman.
He was George, patron saint of England and Catalonia amongst others.
Every year we celebrate his deed on the 23rd of April.

Long time ago an enormous creature asked for offerings in a realm.
Eventually, the princess was going to be eaten by the dragon.
George came on a white horse, with a shield and a sword.
Evading the fire he slew the dragon and rescued the princess.
Nobody ever knew anything about him.
Drops of blood became rosebushes.
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"A library of beer"

The article “A library of beer” talks about a business in Barcelona. It’s a place where people can go and ask for a beer. There are lots of flavors and kinds of beer from all over the world, but always with excellence and quality. This place isn’t only reserved for tourists; anybody can go there. It’s an alternative to pubs. Smoking isn’t allowed and there isn’t wine.

I think it’s a different way to enjoy this old drink and maybe, if I go to Barcelona and I walk near the “Cerveteca” I’ll go there. But I think it seems to be a bit expensive.

The article is from “Catalonia Today” (Thursday, February 21st 2008) and it’s written by Joseph Wilson.
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"Arizona among 16 states reporting tainted melons"

This new comes from the Google news. It was published on the 23rd March (2008). There’s a salmonella outbreak in Arizona. About 40 people in 16 states have become sick because of tainted cantaloupes from Honduras. Now, the melons are being reported and the Food and Drug Administration is investigating this issue.


New vocabulary:
Among (entre)
Tainted (contaminat)
Cantaloupe (tipus de meló)
Spokeswoman (portaveu)
Grocer (botiguer)
Purchased (comprat)
Salmonella outbreak (brot de salmonel•la)
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"Lansing area can expect snowy Easter"

This new from the Google News (March 23, 2008) comes from the Lansing State Journal.
The weather forecast says that maybe, this Easter, there will be wind and snow or rain, especially in Lansing (Michigan), with temperatures between 15 and 35 degrees. Spring is here but winter doesn’t want to leave.

New vocabulary:
Forecaster (home del temps)
Expected (esperat)
Gust (ràfega)
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"Dollar rally against euro and yen"

This new from http:// news.bbc.co.uk on 20th March (2008) talks about the current situation that involves the dollar, the euro, the yen, etc. The dollar has had a soft recovery, but it’s still weak. Analysts speculate about what can happen next weeks but they aren’t very optimistic.

New vocabulary:
Sharp (punxa)
Drop (desnivell / caiguda)
To boost (empènyer / aixecar la moral/ impulsar)
Rate (índex / taxa)
To bounce (rebotar)
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"What the summit achieved on CO2"

This is a new from http:// www .bbc.co.uk appeared on 16^th of March (2008). It talks about the future in the EU and what can happen with the CO2 emissions after and before the Copenhagen summit (2009). We can see Mrs. Merkel’s opinion. We can also see that it’s a critical problem because a change benefits some people, but annoys other people too.

New vocabulary:
To achieve (aconseguir)
Greenhouse (hivernacle)
Tough (dur)
Leakage (fuita)
Fallback (alternativa)
To outrage (indignar)
Trader (comerciant)

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"McLaren rule out ‘Spygate’ appeal"

News from http:// news.bbc.co.uk/, 26th September 2007. Topic: motor sport (sports). The article talks about the spying row happened in the 2007 Formula One Championship. The FIA found some e-mails sent by Fernando Alonso and Pedro de la Rosa. Also, the team suspended the chief designer, who had documents of Ferrari in his house. At the end, McLaren were found guilty of espionage and deprived of the points got.

New vocabulary:
To focus on (centrar-se en)
Huge (enorme)
Ongoing (en curs)
Appeal (crida)
Rule out (descartar)
Row (escàndol)
Abating / to abate (apaivagar-se)
To be found (ser declarat)
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