Review of FREE Apps for Portuguese Learning - Android

It's been some time I wanted to write about some of the Apps I have been testing before I start using them during my classes with my students.  Nowadays  it is impossible not to make use of this technology when we are learning a new skill and I confess that I find them so much fun! 

No need for books and bulky laptops: just turn your mobile or tablet on and voilà, there you go! You can study and revise what you already know during train journeys, inside the airplane on your way to sunny Faro, at the airport while you are waiting for your flight, in your Hotel room, at home, in the garden etc. 

Below, find the review of some of the FREE Apps available at Android Market.  Note that I am not reviewing dictionaries, phrase book apps or translation apps. I am interested in Portuguese language practice and learning, that is, applications that will help you LEARN and practise new words, grammar, reading and - why not - listening.  

It is important to observe though that there are many other apps out there; these are the ones that I found interesting and have installed on my device.  You can also find paid apps and in another occasion I will write a review on the paid apps I have as well.  If you don't have access to Android Market but Apple Store, bookmark this blog (or leave your e-mail at "Follow by e-mail" field, on the right side of this page)  as I am also preparing some reviews on those found in there (although you can find many of the ones below in Apple Store as well). 

If you definitely don't know what an "App" is, don't worry,  I recommend the following article by Anita Campbell and after reading it, I am sure you will understand why 'App" was voted 2010 word of the year by the American Dialect Society.  

So, let's start our review.  The Apps are NOT in order of preference.  

Learn Portuguese with Busuu 

You have 4 different courses selections: 2 beginner levels and 2 Intermediate levels.  In the free version of the App, you will find some of the Units unlocked, such as Personal Pronouns, To be verbs, Present Perfect, Past Simple; but the App is not only about grammar, you will also find vocabulary practice, dialogues, reading comprehension  exercises etc.  The voice used for reading the words is female (and Brazilian) and very clear to understand. In the tablet the pictures look way too small, but I am sure they look okay in android mobiles. 

Speak Portuguese Free (Holfeld) or Talk Portuguese (Free) bhuio.com

When I first examined this App, I categorized it as a "phrase book style" App since the screen shows a set of English words that once you hit them, a female voice speaks its equivalent in Brazilian Portuguese.  It sounds a bit like the female voice used in the App above.  The free version has 3 categories: Basics, Numbers and Travel.   The "basics" shows words and expressions such as: "What is it?", "How are you" etc.  There are only 14 words/phrases in the "Basics" category available in the free version.  Honestly, this App may be useful for the occasional learner, that is, someone who is not having classes in a regular basis, as I believe the student would soon get bored as it offers no interaction, no pictures, and more important, no levels of competence to be achieved.  All in all, good to practise numbers and some "ready made" sentences.

Portuguese Verb Trainer (Robert Muth)

This is the "trainer" App to complement the "Portuguese verbs (Robert Muth)".  I still could not get the text-to-speech engine to work in the App which diminishes my whole experience with the App.  The idea is the following: you are presented with verbs in Portuguese, then you think of their translation in English  (or conjugation in Portuguese) depending on what you are training and tap the screen.  The screen will show the answer and you have to grade yourself by choosing from 0 to 5 (0 or 1 being chosen if you are unfamiliar with the verb).   Great to practise the verbs and the conjugations through memorization.  The ""Portuguese verbs (Robert Muth)" version of the App (also free) brings just a list of verbs with a search function.  Again, the text-to-speech seems very tricky to get working.  

LangLearner Portuguese Lessons (Langlearner LLC)

A set of pictures are presented (only up to unit 7 in the free version) and you have both Brazilian Portuguese and American English being spoken for each word/phrase.   The speech will be repeated until you hit "stop", which is a good idea, you can repeat over and over without having to press "play".   The App crashed many times though, forcing its closure.  But I think it is a great tool to practise words with big pictures and clear speech provided.

Portuguese Class Demo (Ceardannan)

Love this one!  You can choose from simply 10 exercises to be done in each category (vocabulary, grammar, verb exercise) up to 100 exercises.  The reference material is 'okay" though. No fancy screens, just simple plain drills and exercises to be done.  Great practice!  Best if viewed in mobiles.  

Flashcards - Portuguese Set 1 (Street Smart Brazil)

The typical "flashcard" exercise:  the learner will be presented with words/expressions/phrases in English and  will be encouraged to think of its version in Portuguese language. The focus is on the use of verbs in sentences.  If you don't get tired of this type of exercise, try it.  They have a "Set 2" version which is, of course, a paid App.  Be careful not to hit the "back" button as the App shuts down.  

Portuguese Flashcards Free (RFX LABS)

One more flashcard style App, you choose category (family, weather, greetings, colours, clothes, measurements and at home) and you will see on the screen the word in English.  By tapping the screen, you will be given its translation in Portuguese and if you have text-to-speech installed in your phone/tablet, you can also listen to the pronunciation of the words in Portuguese.  Note that this App is for beginners, the range of the words are not great but it is a good practice for those who are learning the language, during their first months of lessons.  

Portuguese word of the day (Declan Software)

The App simply presents the user with one word a day, its pronunciation and its meaning.  Quite straight forward.  There are no buttons to hit, no links , no menu, absolutely nothing: you open the App, there is the word, its meaning and how you say it.   The speech is done in a female voice, in European Portuguese. 

Brazilian word of the day (Declan Software)

The Brazilian Portuguese version for the same App, you open it and learn one word each day.  

Well, I hope this article helped you decide which App to give a try, the important thing is to practise Portuguese language a little bit everyday, be it through one of these lovely and useful Apps, or  using your books or any other tool you find interesting.   Learning Portuguese is fun! 

Have a good study time! Enjoy! 

Sobreiro - the Tree of Portugal

Sobreiro (Cork Tree) is a tree of great beauty, often growing into large dimensions and longevity, The tree is of great landscape and environmental value:  "No tree gives so much demanding so little".  In a country of great nature wealth and forest diversity, although other native species have an important role in the Portuguese forest, there is a broad national consensus that it is the cork oak tree, the Sobreiro, the tree that could best represent  the symbolism of a "National Tree of Portugal".   Be it due to its wide geographic distribution and its economic importance and also for its social role, environmental importance, history and culture.  Its historical importance is reflected in the old legislation made for its protection. The Sobreiro tree and the cork have a very strong presence in the Portuguese imaginary, expressed in literature and art, painting, architecture, tiling, handicrafts, and more recently also in fashion and design. From the diversity of goods and services generated by the tree, the production of cork - raw material of unique and extraordinary technological properties, is of great important industrial value  for the country, and in which the Portuguese are world leaders in production, processing and export.

This year we are celebrating in forests worldwide, I invite everyone - technicians and forest goods producers, environmentalist, people involved in the cork industry and citizens - to join the petition and thus raise awareness of this wonderful tree: 

Sobreiro, the "National Tree of Portugal".

Original text (in Portuguese) here.  Writen by Rui Barreiro, State Secretary for Rural Development and Forest. 

To join and sign the petition, click here.

To become a fan of the Project in Facebook, click here. 

Visit this blog, writen by Mr Santos,  to see a Sobreiro tree in the Isle of Wight! 

And the British taste Portugal. And they like it!

"The British public begun to realize that Portugal is not just sun, sea and good weather but also a Country that holds other attractive aspects like food, nature, cultural tourism and a number of other attractions and services that the British tourists are recently getting to know better," said Cecilia Meireles, Portugal Tourism State Secretary.  

Traditionally, British tourists enjoy areas of the Algarve region and Madeira island but the tourism campaign of other regions begin to deliver results.
"Although there is a very substantial tourism growth  in these regions, the truth is that there are other regions, such as the Alentejo and the center of Portugal that are beginning to feel the effect of our campaign, as they are receiving more British tourists nowadays.

Below, the video for 2011 tourism promotion, with the campaign: "The Beauty of Simplicity"  It is quite obvious that the Portuguese are decided to showcase their country as a cultural and adventure spot just as well as having fantastic beaches and good weather.

                                       





After a fall of 2.3 percent in overnight stays between 2009 and 2010, the number of British travellers rose 18.5 percent from 2010 to 2011, more than double of the national average (8.1 percent).
The Portuguese Tourism Office launched last year the campaign  "Prove Portugal," (Taste  Portugal) as a way to enrich and differentiate Portugal attractions from the other 'Beach and Sun" destinations in Europe.  This is definitely an appeal for the food, the wine and an attempt of putting Portugal on the map as the country that has the best fish in the world.
Watch below the promotional video of the campaign:

But the tourist must observe that there are other attractions and new tourism segments, such as the nature and new trends such as bird watching, besides the strong cultural appeal.  Watch the video below about birdwatching in southern Portugal.

Original article adapted and modified by C. Jacobs. 

Portuguese Film Festival in London

From November 10th to November 30th, the Ritzy, in Brixton will be hosting the Second Portuguese Film Festival in the UK. 

This year the festival is dedicated to the fertile relationship between Portuguese literature and the moving image; how Portuguese writers such as Saramago, Camilo de Castelo Branco and Eça de Queiroz have inspired filmmakers in and outside Portugal.

From a preview of the award-winning MYSTERIES OF LISBON to a programme of outstanding shorts that includes Gabriel Abrantes' FRATELLI (Abrantes' adaptation of William Shakespeare's prologue to the play Taming of the Shrew ) this festival showcases some great Portuguese literary adaptations for the big screen. Not to be missed!

Ritzy Programme:

Thursday 10 November, 6.30 Opening Film MYSTERIES OF LISBON (Mistérios de Lisboa)
Portugal/France 2010 Dir. Raúl Ruiz 266 min

Sunday 20 November, 6.30 MORNING UNDERSEA (Manhã Submersa)
Portugal 1980 Dir. Lauro António 131 min

 

Tuesday 22 November 6.30 THE CRIME OF FATHER AMARO (O Crime do Padre Amaro)
Mexico/Spain/Argentina/Fr ance 2002 Dir. Carlos Carrera 118 min

Thursday, 24 November, 6.30 DISQUIET (Filme do Desassosego)
Portugal 2010 Dir. João Botelho (running time tbc

Wednesday 30 November, 6.30 FRATELLI+ SHORTS

• Exotic Bird (Pássaro Exótico), US-Portugal 2011, Dir. Inês Portugal, EXP, 1'30''
• LoveCinema (CinemaAmor), Portugal 1999, Dir. Jacinto Lucas Pires, FIC, 16'35''
• Candid (Cândido), Portugal 2007, Dir. Zepe (José Pedro Cavalheiro), ANI, 11'20''
• Fratelli, Portugal 2011, Dir. Gabriel Abrantes, EXP, 17'
• Canticle of all Creatures (Cânticos Das Criaturas), Portugal 2006, Dir. Miguel Gomes, FIC, 24'
• Sailor Dogs (Cães Marinheiros), Portugal 2007, Joana Toste, ANI, 6'30''
• Before Tomorrow (Antes De Amanhã), Portugal 2007, Gonçalo Galvão Teles, FIC, 16

Website for more info: http://www.yelp.co.uk/events/london-portuguese-film-festival--cinema-and-literature

What is the longest word in Portuguese?

If you answered "anticonstitucionalissimamente" , I am sorry to say, but you are wrong! 

Despite having 29 letters and 13 syllables, the word has lost its edge. The new champion has
46 letters and 20 syllables and describes the condition of people suffering from a rare disease caused by inhalation of volcanic ash.

The "Guia dos Curiosos - Portuguese language" by Marcelo Duarte, published by Panda Books, has the answer to this and other curiosities.



Did you know that the word "perereca" (type of frog) comes from the indigenous Tupi language " pere reka" and means "hopping"?   


Did you know that besides Portuguese, the official language of Brazil, there are 192 living languages ​​in the country?   

Marietta Baderna

 And my favourite finding: Did you know  the word "baderna" became a synonym with "confusion, riot" because the ballerina dancer Marietta Baderna (see picture) used to lead her fans to the height of excitement?



Marcelo says that the idea for the book arose when going through his database: In letters, Emails or questions from readers during his talks, the most recurring theme was the origin of certain Portuguese expressions.

"We repeat these expressions over and over, without knowing how they appeared... And some stories are amazingly curious. ", says Marcelo

Marcelo researched from the history of the alphabet to the history of the media. How the words were "born", how they evolved, the influence of different communities on the languages ​​of other peoples, neologisms. There are curiosities of our major writers; the origin of the names of animals, flowers, Brazilian states, acronyms, truck bumpers sayings and proverbs, names of one hundred local artists, a chapter dedicated only to football expressions and words.

And for those who are curious to know what the longest word in Portuguese language is, here it goes: 


pneumoultramicroscopicossilicovulcanoconiótico



Original text published in Almanaque Brasil.  (Portuguese Language)

Faro, Portugal - What to do in there?

First time I visited Portugal I stayed in the Algarve and spent 10 days travelling their cities, villages and hamlets from Faro to Sagres.  I collected some good experiences and could enjoy wonderful food and learn a lot about the city's past and important role in the South of Portugal just by strolling on the streets, going inside the museums and churches. 


It is a shame so many tourists only go to Faro because of Faro International Airport, they don't know what they are missing! Below, some pictures I took during my trip. Hope to see you there soon! 

One of the many Shopping Streets in Faro

Café Aliança is the oldest café in town and of huge cultural traditions. It occupies the ground floor of the building built by Jose Pedro da Silva constituting on the whole an interesting testimony to the revivalist architecture.  In addition to the main entrance and another at the rear, it also features a side entrance that allows access through the kiosk.
Café Aliança, which recently celebrated one hundred years, is amongst the three oldest cafés in the country, along with A Brasileira in Lisbon, and the Majestic in Porto.

Known for its social gatherings, the café was a meeting point for distinguished people such as Fernando Pessoa, Marguerite Yourcenar and Simone de Beauvoir.

Capela dos Ossos

"The Capela dos Ossos, or Chapel of Bones, is one of the most eccentric and unusual attractions in Faro. This chapel was built in the nineteenth century and is lined with human skulls. Over 1200 human skulls, in fact. This makes it one of the most morbid attractions in the area, but also the one that is the most interesting. Aside from this grim attraction, the chapel is also known for its beautiful Gothic and Renaissance architectural style which should be of interest to anyone who is a fan of nineteenth century architecture or history." (source: click here)

Indeed this Chapel of Bones is something really weird!  Check this other photo I took 

Arco da Vila, one of the 3 medieval Portal Entrances of the city 

In the Historic Centre of Faro is very compact -  you can visit basically all the important spots in one day and besides that, you can also go on a boat tour of the beautiful Ria Formosa.

"Since the mid-eighties, the Ria Formosa has been a nature reserve, where sea water birds find protected breeding places and many fish species of the Northern Atlantic as well as other marine organisms reproduce." (via Algarve Portal)

You also have the Faro Archeological Museum, Maritime Museum, The City Cathedral etc.

Don't forget to enjoy some hot chestnuts sold on the streets of Faro! 

  

And if you speak Portuguese or study the language, Faro is an excellent place to try what you know.  Unlike Albufeira, Lagos and other popular tourist spots in the Algarve, there you walk on the streets feeling the very almost intact Southern Portuguese spirit - the shops have their signs written in Portuguese (bless!) and everyone in the bars, cafés and "pastelarias" speaks Portuguese.   :)     

Next time you visit the Algarve, don't miss out Faro!  And if you live near Southend on Sea, you can fly to Faro from Southend Airport from April 2012 !  Woo-hoo ! 

And the 'Oscar of Twitter' goes to: Renê, a slum boy from Rio

Considered by "New York Times" as the "Oscars" of Twitter, the Shorty Awards believes that the Brazilians are amongst the best users of the microblog Twitter. 


This year, there were many Brazilians taking the "awards" home,  Marina Silva (Green Party), former senator for the State of Acre, won the "politics category"; Rene Santos Silva, who reported the conflicts between drug traffickers and police in the Complexo do Alemão slum, won the "Innovation category", and the twitter account  "Lei Seca" written by the advertising executive Edu Trevisan, telling what happens in the city of Rio de Janeiro, was the winner in the  "news category".


But the best moment was when it was announced that Rene Silva Santos, the 17 year-old Carioca (from Rio de Janeiro) had won the Twitter Shorty Awards on the "Innovation category" for his tweets reporting in real time, via Twitter,  the police occupation in one of the most dangerous slums in Rio, the "Complexo do Alemão" slum, in November 2010. 


Renê was one of the winners of the "Twitter Shorty Awards", he was in São Paulo in October to participate at the event "Infinite Think Google", where he was a guest speaker, when he was told that he had won the award.

Today Renê is the "editor-in-chief" of Voz da Comunidade, the twitter account where he narrates the daily activities of the people from Complexo do Alemão Slum, and he has been raising funds to start publishing a hard-copy of the community newspaper and has disclosed during Google Event that they are releasing 5 thousand copies (colour) next April, which will consolidate Rene's role in the information and news reporting  stage within the community.   For the future, Renê wishes to go to College and do a degree in journalism.  

Renê Santos Silva: "I published the news before the traditional media did"

To follow Rene on twitter, click here.
To watch the awards ceremony, visit the official page at http://shortyawards.com/

If you wish to learn more about the Police operations in taking over slums from drug traffickers, watch this space as we are going to publish a special article and interview about this theme.

The video below shows scenes of the Police Operation on the day Renê Silva started sending his tweets.

This week, Rocinha Slum and the Police Occupation were in the news worldwide. If you wish to learn more this slum, visit the dedicated pages:

Wikipedia entry with details of how Rocinha started: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocinha
The Official page of the Community: http://www.rocinha.org/