I’d like to introduce you to the schwa — English’s most common and mysterious vowel sound! In this episode of the British Vowel Sound Masterclass, we explore what the schwa is, how it appears in unstressed syllables, and why it’s essential for smooth, natural speech. Hear how it can appear as A, E, I, O, or U, with examples at the beginning, middle, and end of words. Perfect for non-native speakers aiming to improve pronunciation, fluency, and confidence.

British Pronunciation Tips 

British Vowel Sound Masterclass: Lesson 4 - The Schwa Sound: The Hidden Vowel of English

こんにちは。漫画（マンガ）「パリピ孔明（英語タイトル＝Ya Boy Kongming!）」がアニメになり、日本だけでなく海外（かいがい＝日本以外の国）でも話題になっています。

この作品のタイトルを解説（かいせつ）しましょう。まず「パリピ」とは「パーティ・ピープル（party people）」を省略（しょうりゃく）した言葉で、「パーティーが大好きな人」を意味します。

パリピは日本の若い女性、「ギャル」が使う言葉＝「ギャル語」として2015年頃に流行、今では若い人を中心に広く使われる言葉になりました。

そして孔明とは諸葛亮孔明（Zhuge Liang）、2～3世紀（2～3 centuries）頃の三国時代（さんごくじだい）の中国（China）で活躍（かつやく）した軍師（ぐんし）、歴史上有名な英雄（えいゆう）です。

現代（げんだい）の日本の渋谷に生まれ変わった孔明が、駆け出し＝まだ実績（じっせき）の無い新人（しんじん）＝の若い女性シンガーソングライターを助けようと、「パリピ」な人たちの中で奮闘（ふんとう）する話が「パリピ孔明」です。

英語から生まれた「ギャル語」＝パリピと、中国の歴史上の偉人（いじん）＝孔明が一緒になったタイトイル「パリピ孔明」、面白いですね。

中国の偉人を日本がアニメや漫画にして、中国の人は怒っていないでしょうか？日本は昔から中国の様々（さまざま）な歴史の出来事や物語を楽しみ、それを元に日本で新たな芝居（しばい）や小説（しょうせつ）を創作（そうさく）してきました。

中国の人は自分たちの物語を、日本人が新たな作品にして楽しんできた歴史を知っており、それを面白いと感じる人が多数います。「パリピ孔明」も、中国の多くのアニメファンは好意的（こういてき）に受け取っています。

他の国や文化の物語を、別の国で映像化（えいぞうか）・商品化（しょうひんか）する行為（こうい）を、「文化の盗用（Cultural appropriation）」とする考え方もありますね。

しかし中国と日本の文化交流（こうりゅう）には長い歴史があり、互いに尊重（そんちょう）して楽しんできました。おかげで「パリピ孔明」のような作品が日本で生まれ、中国でも楽しまれています。

サブカルチャーを通して、国と国との歴史を知るのは楽しいですね。このような話題（わだい）でお話しませんか？では、さようなら。

Ken先生の映画・歴史・カルチャートーク

【第2回】マンガ「パリピ孔明」がアニメになりました。

[ — Audio description, listen and read along for greater understanding. — ]

— Oi! Você gosta de cozinhar?

— Sim, gosto! Faço algumas receitas simples em casa. E você?

— Eu também! Gosto de fazer macarrão e saladas. Qual é o seu prato favorito de cozinhar?

— Adoro fazer omeletes. São fáceis e rápidos de fazer. Você tem alguma receita fácil que gostaria de compartilhar?

— Claro! Um dos meus favoritos é fazer sanduíches. Coloco queijo, presunto e tomate entre duas fatias de pão. É rápido e delicioso.

— Parece ótimo. Vou tentar fazer isso. Cozinhar é tão divertido, não é?

— Sim, é! É uma maneira maravilhosa de experimentar sabores diferentes. Se precisar de dicas, é só me chamar.

— Obrigado! Vou fazer isso. Até mais e bom apetite!

— Até mais! Bom apetite para você também!


PORTUREAD - Listen to small texts and conversations samples in portuguese!

Você gosta de cozinhar? — SMALL TALK IN PORTUGUESE (A1-A2 LEVEL)

qiū tiān dào le，lǎo shān yánɡ zài tián li shōu bái cài 。
秋天到了，老山羊在田里收白菜。
xiǎo bái tù hé xiǎo huī tù lái bānɡ mánɡ。
小白兔和小灰兔来帮忙。
lǎo shān yánɡ hěn ɡǎn jī tā men，shōu wán bái cài，
老山羊很感激他们，收完白菜，
tā sònɡ ɡěi xiǎo huī tù yì chē bái cài， 
他送给小灰兔一车白菜，
yě sònɡ ɡěi xiǎo bái tù yì chē bái cài。
也送给小白兔一车白菜。
xiǎo bái tù shuō：“xiè xiè nín，lǎo shān yánɡ，   
小白兔说：“谢谢您，老山羊，
wǒ bú yào bái cài，nín sònɡ ɡěi wǒ yì xiē cài zǐ bɑ！” 
我不要白菜，您送给我一些菜子吧！”
xiǎo bái tù huí dào jiā，zhònɡ hǎo le cài zǐ。
小白兔回到家，种好了菜子。
màn màn de，bái cài zhǎnɡ dà le。
慢慢地，白菜长大了。
xiǎo huī tù de bái cài chī wán le，
小灰兔的白菜吃完了，
kàn dào xiǎo bái tù jiā zhònɡ zhe hěn duō bái cài， 
看到小白兔家种着很多白菜，
tā xiàn mù jí le，yě qù lǎo shān yánɡ jiā yào le cài zǐ。 
他羡慕极了，也去老山羊家要了菜子。
dì èr nián，xiǎo huī tù yě yǒu zì jǐ de bái cài chī le。
第二年，小灰兔也有自己的白菜吃了。

CHINESE STORY中文故事

老山羊的礼物

Comentario sobre la segunda parte de la nueva adaptación cinematográfica de la novela de Alejandro Dumas.

El kinetoscopio

Episodio 8: Los tres mosqueteros - Parte II: Milady

Whenever 不 is before another fourth tone character, it becomes a second tone. 
Take for example, 不错 bùcuò, which means not bad. Since 错 is fourth tone, we read it as búcuò.

Learn Chinese with Sophie

 Second tone sandhi rule

Series: The Woman Behind the Words

Many women speak clearly in their own language —
but the moment English enters the room, something inside tightens.

Thoughts speed up.
The body contracts.
The voice becomes careful instead of alive.

This episode explores why this happens even to brilliant, experienced women —
and why the collapse is not about grammar, ability, or vocabulary.

It’s about the internal script that gets activated under pressure:
the fear of being judged,
the urge to sound “perfect,”
the pressure to perform instead of express.

You’ll hear why the voice loses presence in real moments,
what actually drives this reaction,
and how awareness alone begins to restore stability, clarity, and self-trust.

A gentle reflection inside the episode:

“Where do you abandon yourself the moment pressure rises —
and what would it feel like to stay with yourself instead?”

🌿 Mini-Exercise: “Reuniting the Two Voices”

Duration: 2 minutes — soft, no pressure

1. Close your eyes for one breath.
Notice how your body shifts when you think about speaking English.
Don’t fix. Just observe.

2. Ask yourself quietly:

“Who shows up when I speak English — the one who expresses, or the one who tries to survive?”

Let the answer arrive on its own.
Your nervous system will show you the truth faster than your mind.

3. Place one hand on your chest and whisper:

“Both versions of me are allowed to be here.”

This softens the internal split.

4. Now complete this sentence in your mind:

“When I speak English, the part of me that takes over is the part that wants to…”

(…be perfect, avoid judgment, stay safe, not bother anyone, sound smart — whatever is true for you.)

5. One final breath:
Let your shoulders drop 1%.
That 1% is where your real voice begins to return.

You can also explore this kind of work with me - book a private consultation with me on my profile. Hope to see you in a deep transformation soon!


“The Pro Behind the Words” - You don’t need new words. You need the REAL YOU who speaks them.

Episode 5 — “The Woman Who Stops Herself Mid-Sentence”

Novamente a falarmos sobre a rotina e desta vez de forma mais avançada

 Portuguese Audios for Intermediate B1 -Áudios em Português para Intermédios B1

A minha rotina

Konnichiwa! Welcome to Slow Japanese! In this episode, Akari will talk about home and furniture. What kind of furniture do you have?

Usage of Slow Japanese:
STEP 1. Listen to the episode without seeing scripts.
STEP 2. Go to mochifika.com/podcast/ and check "Key vocabularies of this episode", listen again to the episode while seeing the list.
STEP 3. Check the whole script, it'll fill the gap in your understanding.

Scripts and key vocabularies of this episode are here:
https://mochifika.com/podcast-script/slow-japanese-episode-6-home/