PLACES AND CULTURES AROUND THE WORLD ENGLISH IV GROUP IV
The samurai way I am Latin-American, I’m proud of my origins, my family and my country; I have never tried to found a different way to live and to enjoy the life I’ve always thought that I’m part of a great culture and my people is the most peaceful and cheerful than others around the world. One day my boss told me a story about the Japanese people, how they try every day to maximize the performance in their jobs; of course, that was important for him because the wanted to improve, I had thought that, but suddenly I decided to find out why they had chosen that way.
Reading some books, articles and TV programs, finally I found out the answer, the samurai way, listen carefully each information and phrases, I understood the reason of why the search for the perfection in everything they do, according to the information in http://www.way-of-the-samurai.com/; “The life of the Samurai wasn't just one of physical combat. As you'll learn in the history section, they were more than just warriors. They were poets, artists, painters, tea masters and flower arrangers. Their martial skills were balanced by their love and cultivation of the arts”.
Of course, all I knew was wrong; I’ve always believed that the role of the samurai was related with the war. They try to reflect their knowledge of perfection, discipline and techniques to daily life. But why?, I didn’t understand the reasons immediately, but the answer was really easy to find out; my origins, my culture and how I live my life, there were the reasons, I had never tried to refine everything that I did, I just did it; one day I decided to use these methods in improve my life, and the next days I saw the results, was really awesome, I improve myself more as any other moment in my life, I was really happy.
I want to share this because one moment in our lives we must to understand the importance of doing everything with a little of samurai way.
We all have heard about this wonderful place and most of us relates it to Dream Works Animation’s movie; its official name is Republic of Madagascar and it is an island country located in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Southeast Africa. The diversity of ecosystems in this Island makes it unique, sadly the increasing population is threatening the biodiversity of this exotic destination. The official languages are Malagasy and French, most of its habitants adheres to traditional beliefs and Christianity. Their cultural identity regarding religion mainly emphasizes on a creator god and veneration of the ancestors, solidarity, destiny, karma, and ‘’hasina’’, a sacred life force that traditional communities believe imbues and thereby legitimates authority figures within the community or family. (Taken from Madagascar’s Consulate offcial web page) One of the island's foremost artistic traditions is its oratory, as expressed in the forms of poetry, public discourse and proverbs. Wood carving is a highly developed art form and similar handcraft activities as well. Moraingy, a type of hand-to-hand combat, is one of the most popular sports in the island. The national dish is called Ramazava and is made from beef (zebu) and mixed greens sauteed with ginger tomato and onion. Malagasy food is not very spicy and it is highly recommended. Vegetables in Madagascar are stunning. They are mainly all organically grown. Apples look ugly but taste great, oranges taste like they have never tasted before and the bananas are a meal in themselves. Its cosine is highly influenced by france, indeed, you can travel around Madagascar for 3 weeks and have a different crepe for dessert each day. There is only one beer widely available in Madagascar and that is Three Horses Beer which is brewed in Antsirabe. (Taken from Roots of the Sky’s Travelers Blog)
Ranomafana National Park
Nosy Be Island
Tsingy de Bemaraha
Vinicio Flores - Places Around the World - English IV
Panama Canal, a very well known structure in Central America.
History Many years ago, in 1513, Vasco Nuñez de Balboa an explorer from Spain crossed all Panama and saw the Pacific Coast and since then, the idea of creating a path between both seas so they could travel faster than going all the way around South America.
As soon as Colombia won the independence from Spain, people from Europe and American had interest in building the canal in earnest Panama, as it was still a province of Colombia. Then, in 1829 Simón Bolivar worked with a British engineering named John Lloyd to study the possibility of creating this idea. After many years of problems and discussions, Roosevelt presented a debate on February 23rd, 1904 to the Senate how accepted it. Minutes later, Washington bought $40 million in assets of the New Panama Canal Company, when Panamanians received the money they started working as soon as possible to start the canal. The canal took a decade to complete. It was a technological marvel, composed of a series of six locks that linked various waterways. Under the supervision of the engineers John F. Stevens (1905–1907) and Lieutenant Colonel George W. Goethels (1907–1914), the Canal Commission completed the construction with substantial assistance from workers imported from the Caribbean islands and southern United States, in numbers exceeding 44,000 in 1913. Employing
heavy machinery—and benefiting from new techniques to reduce yellow fever and other tropical diseases in an effort led by Dr. William Crawford Gorgas— the laborers created a new society within the newly independent Panama. The canal opened for commerce on 15 August 1914. The United States now had major new support for its economic and military growth as the water route from New York City to San Francisco shrank from 13,165 miles to 5,300 (Encyclopedia.com, 2003). Present Nowadays, the 77km long Panama Canal saves over 8,000 miles to ships that need to travel around South America. The traffic increases year over year but, some super tanks and battleships cannot fit in it, forcing them to take the largest way. The biggest ships are called “Panamax”, which built the maximum capacity of this Canal. The travel trough this canal takes about fifteen hours, since the ships need to pass for three sets of locks and besides that they need to wait a lot of time, almost the half of it, because of the huge traffic and the weather, the last one plays a big card making the difference between a nice and quick trip than an eternal one. All ships pass from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, northwest to southeast. These three locks ships need to cross are called Gatun, Pedro Miguel and Miraflores, they raise ships up to 85 feet from the sea. Lots of local and international offer many tours through this canal and even the lucky ones may pay for a cruise and enjoy the experience of a normal ship or take a look into the artificial lake. Climate As Laura Crawford-Adiletta said, “Though the endemic outbreaks of yellow fever and malaria were eliminated in the early 1900s, mosquitoes are still an annoyance. Repellent is a good idea, especially around dusk” (Crawford-Adiletta, 2014). Panama is known as a tropical country with 80° F so is very common to see people wearing T-Shirts and shorts around the city in a normal day. Sun block it very important to use since the sun is extremely intense, especially in dry season from December to April.
Monuments There is a big mural of 1,000 square feet covering the canal with beautiful colors and draws; it was painted by a New York artist, William B. It took a year to paint it and then was taken to Panama in 1915; it has a restoration in 1993 which bring interest to this great monument. One of the most popular is the erected monument built on March 1954 in honor of engineer George Goethals. This monument is currently standing by in front of this canal so everyone can be able to admire it. Operations Laura Crawford emphasizes the importance of this canal and what it means to this country: “Today, the canal is owned by Panama— President Carter signed a 1977 treaty that gave the canal back to Panama in 2000—and employs approximately 9,000 workers. The canal operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and allows vehicles from all nations to use its transit services regardless of politics” (CrawfordAdiletta, 2014). This canal is the most important structure in Panama, bringing thousands of dollars every day to it, even though some Central America countries have tried to build a path like this one, no one has been able to do it due to the cost it will be for the government. Costa Rica would be an excellent choice to have one where San Juan River is, however, is not as easy as United States of America made many years ago.
Reference: Crawford-Adiletta, L. (2014). USA TODAY. Taken from: http://traveltips.usatoday.com/information-panama-canal-12167.html Encyclopedia.com. (2003). Taken from: Dictionary of American History: http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Panama_Canal.aspx
Alejandra Solera
Panama Cana
E - MAGAZINE
MACHU PICCHU BY LISSETHE VARGAS JUNE 2014
HISTORY One of the New seven Wonders of the World
Most Archaeologists believe that it was built as an estate for the Inca emperor Pachacauti (1438-1972). According
Peru´s most popular tour-
to Wikipedia the Incas built the state around 1450, on the 15th century but it was abandoned a century later at the
ist attraction and one of
time of the Spanish conquest (Wikipedia,2014 ). The site
the world´s most famous archeological wonders,
was not known to the Spanish during the conquest and there has not been records found of conquistadors hav-
Machu Picchu was
ing visited the remote area.
named in 2007 as one of the new Seven Wonders of the World( history channel,2014).
In the citadel lived no more than 300 people of high social rank only. It is considered as the most amazing urban creation of the Inca Empire and one of the most important heritage sites in the world. In 1981, Machu Picchu was declared as a Peruvian Historical Sanctuary and a UNESCO world Heritage site in 1983. According to the Biography consulted; Machu Picchu means “Old peak” in Quechua, a native South American Language. It is located 7.970 feet (2430 meters approximately) above sea levels in the Andes Mountains (history channel, 2014)
Advices for visitors It is recommend booking in advance tickets for Machu Picchu because they have limited amount of visitor per day that they allow at the site especially.
A BRIEF OVERVIEW
The tourist high season in both Cusco and Machu Picchu runs from May to September .This is the dry season, with the clearest skies and the lowest daily rainfall averages.
ers and teachers, and the most important religious areas are located at the
The village is separated into three areas: agricultural, urban and religious. The structures are arranged so that the function of the buildings matches the environment. The agricultural terracing and aqueducts take advantage of the natural slopes; the lower areas contain buildings occupied by farmtop of the hill, overlooking the lush Urubamba Valley thousands of feet below.
Most of the roughly 150 buildings in Machu Picchu were built of granite ENTRANCEFEES
so their ruins look like part of the mountains. The Inca made regular
As of February 2013, Machu Picchu entrance fees for foreign visitors, are as follows:
blocks of granite fit so tightly together that there are areas where a knife cannot fit between the stones. Many buildings had trapezoidal doors and thatched roofs. They used
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Machu Picchu (standard ticket): S/.128 (approx. US$50)
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Machu Picchu and Site Museum: S/.150 (approx. US$58.50)
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Machu Picchu and Huayna Picchu: S/.152 (approx. US$59)
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Machu Picchu and Machu Picchu
irrigation to grow corn and potatoes. Machu Picchu has a great archeological value and a variety of ecosystems, the sanctuary of Machu Picchu contains about 10% of the fauna and 22% of the flora of Peru. There has been found hundreds of species of birds, reptiles, amphibians, diurnal and nocturnal butterflies, also there are more than 300 species of orchids of the total of 1,625 species in the country and still scientists estimated that there are 200 additional species that have not been found. The site is made up of precincts, plazas, temples, rooms for storing food, stone canals and stairways and platforms, distributed on the topography of the mountain in a unique worked in urban design. The terraces promote the agriculture and served as part of an extensive system of water distribution and limited retained water erosion on steep slopes. MACHU PICCHU’S “DISCOVERY” BY HIRAM BINGHAM In the summer of 1911 the American archaeologist Hiram Bingham from Yale university, arrived in Peru with a small team of explorers hoping to find a place called Vilcabamba, the last Inca stronghold to fall to the Spanish. Traveling on foot and by mule, Bingham and his team made their way from Cuzco into the Urubamba Valley, where a local farmer told them of some ruins located at the top of a nearby mountain (history channel , 2014). He believed he had found Vilcabamba, also known as lost city of the Inca, where the last of the independent Inca rules a large battle against Spanish conquistadors. Bingman argued and justified his conclusions for almost 50 years, on a best—selling book called “The lost city of the Incas” his explanations were widely accepted, however what he had found was not "The lost city" but a lost city. He also excavated artifacts from Machu Picchu and took them to Yale University for further investigations, igniting a custody dispute that lasted nearly 100 years. It was not until the Peruvian government filed a lawsuit and lobbied President of the united States Barack Obama for the return of the items that Yale agreed to complete their repatriation.
Mountain: S/.142 (approx. US$55) Source: www.machupicchu.gob.pe
Machu Picchu’s most famous structures include the Temple of the Sun and the Intihuatana stone.
Intihuatana stone Temple of the Sun
It is said that only a few people had access to this place, since that the ceremonies for the ordinary people were made on the public square, only the priest and the Inca could enter to the Temple of the Sun. This is a semi-circular construction built over a strong rock, adapted to the natural environment. On the temple of the Sun there’s a tower with a trapezoidal window, built over a rock of pure granite, in this place the persons who were in charge of the cult of the INTI (The principal god, the Sun) they keep several mummies to be worshiped, these mummies places are called the royal tombs, given that the mummies were an important part of the cult to the Sun (The Machu Picchu gateway 2013)
Biography consulted: It is a sculpted granite rock that is believed to have functioned as a solar clock or calendar (history Chanel, 2014 ) Used in ceremonies, it is considered to have special powers . The Intihuatana was the main sacral element of the Incas. This rock resembles a sundial and was placed in the central part of most Inca cities. The Intihuatana Stone's name is translated into English as "The Hitching Post of the Sun", because the Incas believed that the stone can hold the sun in its place along its annual path in the sky.
1.
Rediscovered Machu Picchu., Intihuatana (Intiwatana), recovered on June 16th , 2014, from http:// www.rediscovermachupicchu.com/intihuatana.htm
2.
The history Channel, Machu Picchu , recovered on June 16th , 2014, from http://www.history.com/topics/machu-picchu
3.
Machu Picchu Gobierno de Peru, recovered on June 18th , 2014 www.machupicchu.gob.pe
4.
Wikipedia , Machu Picchu, recovered on June 16th, 2014 from , http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Machu_Picchu
Ukraine´s crisis, everything you need to know
Recently I heard a story about Ukraine that I have never heard before, even in other countries, everything I knew about it, that it was a country between east of Europe and west of Russia and this country receive their independence approximately 25 years ago and before that, this region was originally part of URSS (Republics of the Soviet Union), at that time, URSS had a lot of influence in Asia and practically the east of Europe because this country was looking for the way to join all these countries in one nation and one flag, the soviet union, and Ukraine was part of that, this crisis was well known as the cold war, that situations turned to Europe and Asia in the center of the crisis.
But, there was the other side of the coin; of course this side was a country, or better known as the representation of capitalism, USA (United States of America), this country wanted to control the situation in the world, for these reason, USA sent a lot of agents around the world, the idea was to
collect all the information regarding to URSS and how it’s influence had divided the world in two parts, USA considered all this as a threat for its sovereignly, so practically, the strategy was to gain control over all the countries that the URSS was not able to get. USA used the economic influence, political treaties and even the force, but in some situations USA did not have another option, that’s why you probably heard stories about wars in 60’s and 70’s and how USA confronted the expansionism of URSS, one of them was the Vietnam’s war, the incursion in Cuba and the influence of the CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) in the Middle East.
Origin of the crisis When the story of Ukraine began? Well…, I didn’t know exactly, that’s why I read some articles, documents and video documentaries, but you probably you are wondering, why did I do that? Probably because something caught my attention, when I heard in the about a recent conflict internally in Ukraine that had turned this situation in a new crisis, something is happening in this country that even here in America is a breaking news, all of these began when Vicktor Yanukovich, the last president of Ukraine, wanted a solution for the coming economic crisis, in one side there was the EU agreement, that reflected the good relationship with the Europe, most of the members of the parliament agreed with
this solution, people of the west of the country considered this as an opportunity to become a part of the EU probably because most of them have a European origin.
But people of east Ukraine have Russian origins; people of this region sympathize with the government of Vladimir Putin, even the president of Ukraine, this people considered this as a chance to ignore the agreement with Europe and tries to recognize the opportunity to return to Russia. According to the article “As it happened: Crimea crisis” (BBC London website http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe26652058), “Crimea is a unique blend of different peoples' cultures and traditions. This makes it similar to Russia as a whole, where not a single ethnic group has been lost over the centuries. Russians and Ukrainians, Crimean Tatars and people of other ethnic groups have lived side by side in Crimea, retaining their own identity, traditions, languages and faith”; is normal that the people of Ukraine probe the government.
East of Ukraine knows this, and turns its attention to Russia, before this, the country was divided, a lot of protests have been used to manifest the idealism to control the situation in both sides, but there was only one result, anarchy, some people have been injured by the force of the police, even worse, they kill
some protestants, practically the president decided turn down the agreement with Europe, this act, turned the situation out of control and the country lost the opportunity to found out the way to solve this issue by peaceful means.
In the other hand, the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin, decided to take the control of Crimea by force, this is a region in the south-east of Ukraine that originally was part of Russia, but all the Ukrainian people, received this as a declaration of war, currently this place and the north of Ukraine is has been disputed by both sides, there are some people that sympathized with Russia and then they used the only way to separate to Ukraine; a referendum, but this way only turns this situation worst.
Some specialists with the situations in Ukraine (politics, economist and sociologist) believe that these situations could be worst because in one side we have a country with nuclear weapons and the crisis become critical each day, I think people of Ukraine have the right to be independent of the Ukrainian government, but obviously they will not allow that situation. I had never imagined a crisis in this region that is currently happening, but I hope they will find a way to solve this conflict with a peaceful way.
Bibliography recourses: Crimea crisis: Russian President Putin's speech annotated, recuperated July 12, 2014 (http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-26652058) As it happened: Crimea crisis, recuperated July 12, 2014 (http://www.bbc.com/news/worldeurope26625476)
San José is a lovely city It’s hard to think the big amount of fun things you can do in San José, Costa Rica. At the beginning, you might think it is such a little city, but the details that it has makes it a lovely city, either to live or to spend some time traveling. San José was founded in 1738 and since then, it has been an scenario for most of Costa Rica’s historical events. Nowadays it is the center of the government, the most important economic companies and the most large city in the area.
Let’s start with the heart of the city, the “Plaza de la Cultura”, it was made by the 70’s and it is considered on the most beautiful architectonic buildings in a city around the world, because of the underground museum it has. Let’s say that its construction began because the city needed some free space of cars, so then people could walk in a peaceful environment just in the center of the city. By this construction, we are able to see the whole Teatro Nacional, which was covered by some horrible buildings before.
Many of the architectonic buildings the city have, have been influenced by european styles throughout the history, and maybe that’s why you can find so many styles in San José. Some of the most important buildings (not only for the institutions or commercial use they have now, but for the history they have) are the Botica Solera, Teatro Nacional as we mentioned, Teatro Melico Salazar, and Cine Variedades.
Wanna have fun in San José? Let’s see first of all, some important places for
people here and then some activities the city offers during the year. San José is well known in Costa Rica because is the center of the cultural and fun activities that took place every month. As for religious activities, the Metropolitan Cathedral, just a few block of the Teatro Nacional, is the center of the catholic people institution. It offers nice activities during the months of march and april, or whenever Easter takes place. Every 4 years the city hosts an international arts festival, popular called “FIA” and every year it has its local version. At every chapter, a country is chosen and a lot of great artists, singers, painters, dancers and actors are invited to come and show their most recent hits. This catches the attention of the entire country during around 3 weeks. Most of the activities take place in Sabana and its beautiful lake, it is organized by the local government and some other authorities related to culture. These kind of activities, including another ones like the festival “Enamórate de tu ciudad” (fall in love with your city) which reunites students from different areas, and makes them show their art in the famous parks, like Morazán, Parque España and Parque Francia. Also, there is an activity that takes place every month at night, it is called the Art City Tours, and is the opportunity for everyone to get to know the museums and cultural places at night, could be walking, by bus, or by bicycle.
If you want to know what’s the city taste in food, you definitely want to go to the central market in the central avenue. It offers all kind of traditional dishes from Costa Rica and the regional area. But if you want to meet some fancy places, most recently there is a restaurant chain that has been developing in
Barrio Escalante. They offer all kind of international dishes and regional ones as well. It is perfect for you to go to some theater and then have a nice dinner.
As for the night live, San Jos茅 is quite calm, but it has some nice places I recommend. For young people there is a bar in the ancient Steinvorth building. It has a wide variety of music sounds and shows through the week. The zone near Barri贸 Am贸n is developing some nice bars also, where local artists have been showing their talent. If you would like to join a more tropical sound or dancing, there a lot of small bars in the center area, where you can have fun. However, you have to be very careful if you stay too late by this area.
As you see, San Jos茅 has a lot of interesting to do. All of this art has made a safety city and people is no longer afraid to visit it, even though the infrastructure or the transportation might be difficult, I think a lot of campaigns made by people -citizens who love the city- have tried to build a better city which we can enjoy more and maintain as part of our culture.
Palestinian Exodus It has been pass several years ago since the Jewish people received the opportunity to become part of history, the world was witness of how these people had been waiting for many years without a land,: They suffered slavery and the punishment of god; but today they have a land, they understood that the punishment is over, well…,(IT) is not easy to say, but they think that, probably this is the information you learned in the school or you’ve heard, but is better that you receive all the information and after that you can create your point of view. When the World War 2 had finished in 1945, people saw how Jewish people almost had been exterminated by Nazi’s hand through all kind of methods, all cruel and anti-human methods that you have never imagined, but are not worth mentioning in this article. In fact, all this information is regarding on how a people were the center of attraction and how they received the Promised Land or how I see it, a gift to recover their independence, Israel had re-born. I don’t think it is bad idea, but… What happen when the land that they received originally belonged by tradition to different groups of people? One of these people was Palestinian. Yes, you probably have heard this name lately in the news, they have been living in this region for many years around holy land and they are still living there, but with the Jurisdiction of Israel. Since the state of Israel was created, this land has grown faster and practically they push the Palestinian people in to one region called Gaza Strip. The last decision. What happens when a thief enters in your house and he wants to steal your belongings? If I had to answer this question, probably I’d say: “I will defend my house, my family and my things and probably I’d use deadly force to accomplish that”, well…, I’m pretty sure that most of us would use give this answer, for me this is happening right now, since approximately 23-24 years, Palestinian people have
witnessed how a group named Hamas had been formed, they are a kind of paramilitary group, but Israel saw this as a threat to his sovereignty, but the Palestinians saw this as the opportunity to defend their land. Israel uses deadly force to contain the influence of Hamas in the region, but this means that they probably shot and destroy buildings as monuments, streets, government building but even schools, hospitals and the worst case, refugees. Why?, because Israel says that Hamas uses this kind of building to hide arms and soldiers. Today, the Israel army, is considered as the most advanced in the world, they say that they uses his their weapons and strategies to confront the army of Hamas, but when you hear the news, you cannot understand why most of casualties are related whit (with) innocent people, according to www.vox.com/ 2014/7/30/5937119/palestinian-civilian-casualtiesgaza-israel, “The Israel-Gaza conflict, since it began, has killed 1,170 people. Of those, a shocking 815 are thought to be Palestinian civilians, and 232 of those children. That means that about 7 out of 10 total deaths are innocent Palestinian civilians, and 2 out of 10 innocent Palestinian children.” For me, Palestine is playing the role that Jewish played many years ago, but…, When they will receive the same opportunity as Israel?, I don’t know, but I hope as soon as possible, what do you think?
Madagascar’s attractions are mainly national parks, and nature attractions such as Avenue of the Baobabs, this is a group of trees lining the dirt road between Morondava and Belon’i Tsiribihina in western Madagascar. Also the Royal Hill of Ambohimanga, historical village that was once home to Madagascar royalty. The small island of Nosy Be is one of Madagascar’s premier tourist spots attracting thousands of tourists from across the globe year round because of its clear turquoise water and excellent seafood restaurants serving seafood diner on the sand. (Taken from Roots of the Sky’s Travelers Blog). Regarding Politics, Madagascar gained independence from France in 1960, The installation of Rajoelina's transitional regime has, since March 2009, caused many bilateral donors and intergovernmental organizations to freeze aid and suspend regular diplomatic relations with Madagascar, causing economic development to stagnate and reversing many of the gains achieved under the previous administration. The consequent tension between the highland and coastal populations has periodically flared up into isolated events of violence. (Taken from BBC Newas Africa)
There are no direct flights to Madagascar from America, so in order to get there you must first travel to Paris and after that you can fly to Ivato Airport – Madagascar’s International Airport. We can conclude that Madagascar is a beautiful place to visit due to its landscaping and relaxing spaces and also an incredible gastronomic destination. (Taken from Travelocity’s Trip Planner Web Page)
Royal Hill of Ambohimanga
Avenue of the Baodabs Vinicio Flores - Places Around the World - English IV