Spices are an integral part of almost every cuisine in the world and are something that most of us now take for granted. Yet spices used to be an incredibly valuable commodity and were the preserve of only the very richest in some societies. Learn more about how they went from being the preserve of the very richest in society to something that we sprinkle on our dishes without worrying about the cost.

English Learning for Curious Minds

The Curious History of Spice

        今天我们要读书的部分是如何修炼自己的内在气质，包括但不限于经历、读书以及爱好。
岁月难静好，女人尤需要内心强大，只有这样，才能有内向外散发气质。

                                              【今日话题】
爱好是乐趣，是修炼，也是品味。
你平时有什么爱好呢，这种爱好对于你来说意味着什么呢？

欢迎发表你的想法！

每天陪你读书，每天打卡，不见不散！

Ruby's  Reading club of  Chinese

优雅是种力量(三）幸福的人，都在宠自己

En este episodio te explico de forma sencilla cómo se organiza el gobierno en México, qué papel tienen los partidos políticos y qué ideas representa el gobierno actual.

México Contemporáneo 

¿Cómo funciona el gobierno de México? 




21 modi di dire in italiano con la parola “occhio”

Occhio= Attenzione!
Esempio: Occhio! Ho una pentola bollente in mano.

2)non ci vedo più dalla fame= avere molta fame. 
Esempio: Sono le 3 del pomeriggio e non ho pranzato: non ci vedo più dalla fame!

3) Non vedo l’ora= non potere attendere che arrivi il momento. 
esempio:  Non vedo l’ora che arrivi il fine settimana!


4) Dare un’occhiata= guardare in modo superficiale. 
Esempio: Ho dato un’occhiata ai prezzi del ristorante e mi sembra caro.






5) guardare con la coda dell’occhio= guardare senza far capire a chi è presente che si sta guardando.
Esempio: Luca con la coda dell’occhio guarda cosa fa il collega


6) costare un occhio della testa= costare molto
Es: questo telefono costa un occhio della testa!




7) Lanciare un’occhiataccia= guardare male qualcuno. 
Es: Ho chiesto al capo un aumento e mi ha lanciato un’occhiataccia.



8) in un batter d’occhio= in un attimo, molto velocemente
Es: Ragazzi aspettatemi: arriverò in un batter d’occhio!

9) Gettare fumo negli occhi= ingannare.
Es: Mario ha gettato fumo negli occhi a Lucia e l’ha illusa. 

10) Occhio non vede, cuore non duole= quando non vediamo qualcosa o una situazione spiacevole non soffriamo.
Es: dai, non ci pensare: occhio non vede e cuore non duole. 

11) a occhio e croce= all’incirca. Più o meno.
Es: Che ore sono? A occhio e croce saranno le 12.

12) parlare a quattr’occhi= significa parlare in privato con un’altra persona
Es: Sarà meglio parlare a quattr’occhi di quel problema

13) Avere gli occhi foderati di prosciutto= non vedere qualcosa di evidente.
Es: Ma che hai gli occhi foderati di prosciutto? Non vedi che lei ti ama?

14) aprire gli occhi → ricredersi su qualcosa, cambiare idea considerando qualcosa che prima si ignorava
Es: Sarà bene che tu apra gli occhi e ti renda conto che così non va bene!



Italiano espresso

21 modi di dire in italiano con la parola "occhio"

了解自己的人就是朋友，所以汉语中“知己”的意思就是朋友。我们都希望跟诚实的人交朋友，跟这样的人在一起我们觉得快乐，觉得放心。我们一般还喜欢跟那些性格、爱好差不多的人交朋友，因为性格、爱好相同的人有很多的共同语言。当然，跟性格、爱好不同的人也可以成为好朋友，有人就喜欢跟自己不一样的人交朋友。
一般性格外向开朗、说话幽默、脾气好的人比较容易交到朋友，别人也愿意跟他们在一起，​​因为有他们的地方就有笑声​​；性格内向的人不太爱说话，但他们也可以成为最好的朋友，​​好朋友不一定是那些最能说话的人​​。

诚实【chéngshí】-honest
性格【xìnggé】-character; nature; disposition
爱好【àihào】-hobby
外向【wàixiàng】-extroversive
开朗【kāilǎng】-sanguine
幽默【yōumò】-humorous
脾气【píqi】-temperament
内向【nèixiàng】-introversive

Intermediate Chinese Listening

Friends 朋友

Niet- und nagelfest

(A)  „NIET- UND NAGELFEST“ ist ein deutscher Ausdruck, den man eigentlich nur noch hört, wenn es um Diebstahl geht. Und tatsächlich wird im deutschen Einzelhandel alles GEKLAUT, was nicht niet- und nagelfest ist, in anderen Worten: alles, was sich leicht transportieren lässt. 

(B)  Dabei sind die Täter nicht nur Kunden; auch Mitarbeiter nehmen mit was nicht angenagelt ist. Ladendiebe sind vorwiegend männlich, man findet mehr Ausländer als Einheimische unter ihnen und NICHT WENIGE stehen unter Drogen. 

(C)  Mitgenommen wird alles, was sich gut verkaufen lässt, zum Beispiel Elektronik-Geräte, Spirituosen, Markenkleidung oder teure Kosmetik-Artikel. 

(D)  Natürlich tun Einzelhändler alles, um sich zu schützen: Sie sichern ihre Waren elektronisch, sie setzen Ladendetektive ein, sie trainieren ihr Personal oder versuchen es mit Video-Überwachung. Der Erfolg ist ZWEIFELHAFT: Im vergangenen Jahr verloren die deutschen Einzelhändler Waren im Wert von mehr als 3,5 Milliarden Euro durch Ladendiebstahl.


LearnGermanToday

22_Niet- und nagelfest

Ancient Egyptians loved and respected cats, believing they brought good luck.

Some families even dressed their cats in jewelry, and mummified them after death. They would mourn the death of their cat by shaving off their eyebrows, and continue to mourn until their eyebrows grew back.

Inspired by this ancient love for cats, the Shanghai Museum in China held a special event called Meowseum Nights.

Held 10 times during last summer and fall, the event invited 200 cats and 2,000 people to explore the exhibition On Top of the Pyramid: The Civilization of Ancient Egypt.

Some of the artifacts shown in the exhibition came from a temple discovered years ago in Egypt. The temple was for Bastet, an Egyptian goddess who could change into a cat. This gave the Shanghai Museum another reason to use cats as the theme for their event.

Museum director Chu Xiaobo said that the event was created to bring cat lovers to the museum, as in Shanghai, where there are over a million pet cats, cat-friendly public spaces are rare.

"There are dog parks, dog brunches, but not that much for cat parents to do with their pets," Wen Liuli, a visitor to the exhibition, told The Art Newspaper.

The museum took measures to keep all visitors and artifacts safe. Cats had to stay in strollers or bags, but there were certain areas where people could take their cats out for photos, such as in front of a statue of Bastet. All the other artifacts were kept behind glass.

The museum also had vets, doctors, and even an ambulance on-site, and over 80 animal welfare workers attended each night to help and give advice.

While the museum doesn't plan to hold another Meowseum Night, Chu hopes it might inspire other museums to try similar ideas.

"Cat people now have a special affection for the Shanghai Museum," he said.




Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Cats Take a Tour of Ancient Egypt at Chinese Museum

朋友们你们好！今天的零食是一个故事，叫做 “小猫种鱼”。
听起来有点儿怪怪的，对吧？你们是不是很好奇呢？我们一起边吃边学吧！

编著：张丽萍

从前有一只小懒猫，他很喜欢吃鱼，但是他不喜欢和妈妈一起去钓鱼。
小猫对妈妈说：“钓鱼太累了，要是不用钓鱼也能有很多很多的鱼就好了”。

小猫经常去附近的农场玩儿。
春天的时候，小猫看见农民把花生种进地里。秋天的时候，农民收了很多花生。
春天的时候，小猫看见农民把玉米种进地里。秋天的时候，农民收了很多玉米。
春天的时候，小猫看见农民把土豆种进地里。秋天的时候，农民收了很多很多的土豆。

小猫想：要是秋天我也能收到好多好多的鱼就好了，我就不用去钓鱼了。
于是，小猫找了一些小鱼，小心地把小鱼种进地里。
小猫等啊等，一个月，两个月，三个月过去了，小猫想：秋天的时候，我一定会收到很多很多的鱼。

故事到这儿就结束了！你们觉得，秋天的时候，  小猫会有很多鱼吗？

词语：

种 [zhòng] to plant; to grow; to cultivate
怪怪 [guài guài] strange, odd
好奇 [hào qí] inquisitive; curious; inquisitiveness; curiosity
编著 [biān zhù] to compile; to write
从前 [cóng qián] previously; formerly; once upon a time
钓鱼 [diào yú] to fish (with line and hook); to dupe
农场 [nóng chǎng] farm
农民 [nóng mín] peasant; farmer
花生 [huā shēng] peanut; groundnut 
收 [shōu] to receive; to accept; to collect
玉米 [yù mǐ] corn; maize
土豆 [tǔ dòu] potato 
要是 [yào shi] (coll.) if
于是 [yú shì] thereupon; as a result
结束 [jié shù] termination; to finish; to end; to conclude; to close



解馋小零食

2022年12月28号 - 小猫种鱼 (Elementary)

In this episode of The Streetwise English Podcast I talk Chris Rock's Comedy Special and beef with Will Smith. My teacher profile: https://italki.com/teacher/1947582
Book a 1 on 1 class!!