I want to use this platform to speak more openly and have honest convections about battles that we young people continue to face in our 20's. I love motivating people to want better for themselves.

Sit & Sip with Herriet

This is a reading from the Aozora Bunko "Nezumi no yomeiri (Mouse's marriage)" with some expressions changed to easy Japanese for learners of Japanese.
The reading is followed by explanations of the story and vocabulary. Please use it to study Japanese listening comprehension.

.｡.:*･ﾟ＋.｡.:*･ﾟ＋.｡.:*･ﾟ＋.｡.:*･ﾟ＋.｡.

青空文庫「ねずみの嫁入り」より、日本語学習者向けに一部の表現をやさしい日本語に変えて、朗読しています。
朗読の後にストーリーや語彙の解説があります。日本語のリスニングの勉強にお役立てください。

OYASUMI にほんご

#3　Mouse's marriage（Nezumi no yomeiri）

"I am not afraid of the storms, for I am learning how to sail a ship"
Little Women is a delightful movie that follows the life of four sisters and their neighbor in New England during the civil war.

Word Wizardry

Little Women

秧秧老师的中文课堂-HSK专项练习

HSK4级听力题4

Meaning of the words in the Topic to understand it well.

يَوْمٌ في حَيَاةِ سَلْمَى

كَلِماتُ المَوْضوع

The best stories that come out of a trip usually come from an unexpected surprise or adventure. In this episode of The Real English Conversations Podcast, you will hear about Amy and Curtis' latest road trip that leads to a great way of connecting with the local people in a small village. 

Learn English On Italki with the host of this Podcast:
Book a lesson with Curtis - https://www.italki.com/teacher/4672521/english

Real English Conversations Podcast

Unexpected Adventures of Real English Conversations | English Listening Podcast

Odyssea and Circes enter the Underworld.

https://saracasalino-books.weebly.com/blog/the-adventures-of-odyssea-ch-3-hadessa

Learn English with Stories

The Adventures of Odyssea: Ch 3.1 - Hadessa

De acuerdo con Marco Polo, el origen de las piñatas se encuentra en las celebraciones de año nuevo en China y en su forma original representaban animales. De ahí, la tradición viajó a Italia y, por último, llegó a México, en donde los frailes la utilizaron como herramienta de evangelización.

Existen indicios de que en Mesoamérica había tradiciones similares. Los mayas acostumbraban romper recipientes de barro rellenos de cacao y los mexicas llenaban cazuelas de barro con tesoros y alhajas, las decoraban con plumas y listones y las rompían durante las festividades en honor al dios Huitzilopochtli.

La forma actual de las piñatas surgió en el siglo XVI en Acolman de Nezahualcóyotl, Estado de México, cuando los frailes comenzaron a celebrar las “misas de aguinaldo” o “posadas” durante los días previos a la Navidad. En ellas se usaba la piñata como alegoría para evangelizar a los pobladores de la región.

Actualmente, las piñatas se elaboran a partir de una olla de barro o cartón moldeado cubierto de papel colorido y se rellenan con dulces, fruta, cacahuates y juguetes. Después se rompen con un palo.

Los siete picos representan los pecados capitales: soberbia, avaricia, lujuria, ira, gula, envidia y pereza.
Sus brillantes colores simbolizan la tentación.
Láminas de oropel o latón: hacen referencia a los engaños del mundo.
Venda en los ojos: nos recuerda que la fe es ciega.
Palo con el que se rompe la piñata: es la fuerza y la virtud que destruyen los engaños y pecados.
Dulces, fruta, cacahuates y juguetes: son las riquezas del reino de los cielos que se otorgan como premio a la fe y la perseverancia.
De esta forma la tradición de la piñata nos recuerda que la fe ciega y la voluntad vencen al pecado y nos hacen merecedores de las recompensas divinas.

De acuerdo con la tradición, se debe vendar los ojos de las personas antes de que pasen a golpear la piñata. También tienen que girar treinta y tres veces sobre su propio eje con la finalidad de que pierdan la orientación

Spanish México

EL ORIGEN DE LA PIÑATA.

Covered with pins and adornments, Vivianne Robinson is hard to miss in the streets of Paris.

The Olympics superfan has attended seven Summer Games over 40 years. But this trip to Paris came at a cost of $10,000.

Robinson, 66 and from Los Angeles, maxed out her credit cards and worked two jobs to afford the trip and the 38 event tickets she bought. And she has to work two more years to make up the money she spent.

"It was hard to save up and it's a big budget, but it's a thousand times worth it," she says.

Robinson's fascination with the Olympics started when her mother worked as a translator for athletes during the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles. Her mother would come home after work with pins from athletes that she gave to her daughter.

Her hobby of collecting pins led her to Atlanta 1996, where she made rice necklaces for athletes in exchange for their pins.

"I got all the pins and I got to meet all the athletes. And in those days, it wasn't high security like now," she said. "Now you can't even get near the athletes' village."

From there: Sydney 2000, Athens 2004, London 2012 and Rio 2016. She got a visa for Beijing 2008, but couldn't afford the trip. It was similar for Tokyo: she bought tickets, but got refunded as COVID-19 soared and the Games were held without spectators.

Robinson's outfits started simply but have become more complex over time. She spent a year working on her Paris outfit, which has hundreds of adornments. People often stop her in the street, asking for a photo.

As soon as these Olympics end, she will start working on the next Summer Games — which will be in her hometown in Los Angeles.

"I'm going to do it forever," she said. "I'm going to save all my money and just concentrate on Olympics."