Today we're talking about an idiom that you can use when you have to make a difficult or unpleasant decision. I hope you find it useful!

DAILY Business English VOCABULARY builder

This idiom sounds dangerous!

Hi there! In this episode I'll share my opinion about friends, good friends, and best friends. This podcast will be delivered in English. Let's see if we have the same opinion :)

Storyteller's Mind

1 - Friends, Good Friends, and Best Friends

Everyone has something to say about transport systems, and if this topic appears in your IELTS Speaking test, you’ll want to be ready with clear ideas, natural expressions, and impressive vocabulary. Listen closely, and don’t forget to take the quiz at the end—it will help you practise some of the idioms featured in today’s episode.

IELTS SPEAKING WITH LIZ UK

EP 2: TRANSPORT SYSTEMS

Listening texts about the family
نُصُوصُ اِسْتِمَاعٍ عَنِ الأُسْرَةِ

Listening for beginners

الأسرة -5- The family

Ссылка на текст👇 Link to the text
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ro9QJ0yTg9uPp7VqT1TGJHjc5Hg-MEXsty0Tuep225U/edit

Лёгкий иврит

Colors mini podcast in Hebrew | Цвета мини подкаст на иврите

ESTE CUENTO NOS HABLA DE UN LEÑADOR QUE ERA MUY HONRADO Y NO QUISO MENTIR. Y
POR SER ASÍ RECIBIÓ UN PREMIO.

Antes de comenzar la lectura

1. ¿Te molesta que tus amigos mientan?

2. ¿Tienes amigos que nunca mienten?

3. Adivina qué premio recibió el leñador por no ser mentiroso.

Presta atención a la lectura de tu profesor.

Había una vez un pobre leñador que regresaba a su casa después de una
jornada de duro trabajo. Al cruzar un puentecillo sobre el río, se le cayó el
hacha al agua. Entonces empezó a quejarse tristemente:

—¿Como me ganaré el sustento ahora que no tengo hacha?
Al instante ioh, maravilla! una bella ninfa aparecía sobre las
aguas y dijo al leñador:

—Espera, buen hombre, traeré tu hacha.

Se hundió en la corriente y poco después aparecía con un hacha
de oro entre las manos. El leñador dijo que aquella no era la
suya.

Por segunda vez se sumergió la ninfa, para aparecer después
con otra hacha de plata.

—Tampoco es la mía —dijo el triste leñador.

Por tercera vez la ninfa busco bajo el agua. Al
aparecer llevaba un hacha de hierro.

—¡Oh, gracias, gracias! ¡Esa es la mía!

—Pero, por decir la verdad, yo te regalo las otras
dos. Has preferido ser pobre y no mentir y te
mereces un premio.

Spanish Reading Comprehesion

The honest woodcutter

I’ll introduce Japanese culture in easy Japanese.
Today’s Theme is “お盆（ぼん）《Bon festival》”.
This episode is JLPT-N3 level.

I created a quiz on this episode.
After listening, please take the quiz!

Please use this audio for listening and shadowing practices.

☆Words☆
お盆（ぼん）：Bon festival
Obon is one of the Buddhist events. In Buddhism, it is believed that the spirits of family ancestors come back to this world during the Obon period between July and August, and a series of events take place to commemorate them.
Obon is regarded as one of the most important family occasions of the year in Japan.
Although Obon is not an official holiday, many offices are temporarily closed for business during this period. 

盆踊（ぼんおど）り：Bon Festival dance
Bon Odori is a traditional Japanese dance that is generally performed at events or festivals during Obon holidays.
Participants wear yukata, a casual traditional Kimono-style garment, and dance to traditional music while circling around a stage to honor the spirits of ancestors.

移動（いどう）する：move

仏教（ぶっきょう）：Buddhism

先祖（せんぞ）：ancestor

もてなす：treat / welcome

仏壇（ぶつだん）：Buddhist altar

迎（むか）え火（び）：welcoming fire
“迎え火” is a sacred fire that is often burned on August 13th in front of each household to guide the spirits of their ancestors back home.

提灯（ちょうちん）：chochin lantern

送（おく）り火（び）：seeing off fire
"送り火"is lit on the last day of Obon, which is generally August 16th to send the ancestors back to their world.

五山送り火（ござんのおくりび）：
The Send-off Bonfires of Five Mountains (Gozan no Okuribi) refers to the annual bonfires lit at various 5 locations including Nyoigatake (Mt. Nyoi known as Mt. Daimonji) on August 16 in Kyoto City.

阿波踊（あわおど）り：
“阿波踊り” is the largest and the most famous bon festival dance in Japan, attracting more than 1 million visitors from August 12 to 15 every year. 

☆Script for this episode
The scripts (URL) are listed in the overview section of the channel.

☆Quiz for this episode


Simple Japanese Listening with Meg（めぐ）Smile

#43 Japanese culture / お盆《Bon festival》 // N3 Level /Japanese listening

Today's piece of vocabulary is to "get by". If you can get by with what you have, you can manage to live or do things in a satisfactory way. Not to have great success or do things particularly well, but simply to reach a level that you consider to be OK.

This is going OK, not well, but OK.

In this podcast, I will be sharing some things I learned about preparing for retirement.
I hope that you will find value in this podcast.