English in Madrid

What's the difference between a customer and a client ? A customer buys a good or service; something specific and tends to be a shorter "relationship" e.g. someone who buys something in a shop Source: Clay Banks on Unsplash A client is normally in business and looks to follow the advice and knowlege of a business leader. A protective, ongoing " relationship" is formed with a client. e.g. a lawyers has many clients. Source:  Amy Hirschi on Unsplash Have you  ever had to make a complaint as a customer? Have you ever had an awkward customer or a client who was difficult to please?

Source: Wikipedia (Basher Eyre)   Dying man wins bet he would live A Buckinghamshire man diagnosed with terminal cancer is to collect a second winning payout of £5,000 after bett ing he would stay alive. Jon Matthews, 59, from Milton Keynes, was diagnosed with mesothelioma, a cancer linked to asbestos, in 2006 and told he had months to live. He placed two bets , each with a £100 stake at odds of 50/1, that he would be alive in June 2008 and in June 2009. A third wager will earn him a further £10,000 if he lives until 1 June 2010. The widower will collect his second lot of £5,000 winnings on Monday. Mr Matthews said: "I think I'm the first person in the world to bet on my own life. "When I was diagnosed I was told mesothelioma was a death sentence . "I wasn't that fussed because everyone has to die some time. "But the interesting thing for me was how long it would take - would it take weeks or years?" Mr Matthews said he pl...

                                                                                                                                   Source:  Isaac Struna en Unsplash High costs fuel record loss at BA British Airways has announced the biggest loss since the company was privatised in 1987. BA reported a loss before tax of £401m for the year to 31 March, after seeing its results hit by a weak pound and higher fuel costs. The airline made a revised profit of £922m in the previous year. BA also offered staff the option of taking unpaid leave or working part-time. Chief executive Willie Walsh said he would work for no pay in July. Mr Walsh said: "I ce...

Source:   Markus Winkler  en  Pexels A review of a book or a film is a report that gives an opinion on it. I usually read the critics before deciding what film to see.  😡  I usually read the reviews before deciding what film to see.  😍  The person who reviews the film or book is the critic . Write a brief review of a film or a book that you would (or wouldn't) recommend see ing . Write a review of a restaurant or hotel which you have been to. Check out these other review-related posts: Trickadvisor?   Darkest Hour / "We shall never surrender"   Food Reviews   Hotel Reviews   Writing a Review - St Paul de Vence   Hotel Recommendations  

Source:  Rémi Boudousquié  on  Unsplash I was really impressed by her performance. Does this mean that the performance was good or bad? If you are impressed by something or someone, you admire it or them. It is a positive feeling . If you are impressed by someone, it is their ability to do something that impresses you. The Olympic Committee were impressed with the progress for the Games in London in 2012. His speech didn't impress me much. Your big house and expensive car don't impress me at all. The thing or person that impresses you is impressive . The restaurant had an impressive wine list . Wow! That was an impressive performance for such a young actor. There is an impressive view from the top of the building. Impresionante can also be translated as amazing or incredible or if exremely beautiful  - stunning . The actress looked impressive in her Versaci dress.  😡  The actress looked stunning in her Versaci dress....

Source: Wikipedia   Spain's Franco 'had one testicle'  A new book claims the Spanish dictator, General Francisco Franco, may have had more in common with Adolf Hitler than previously known - having one testicle. Much like the Nazi leader, Franco's loss stemmed from an * injury he sufferedd in battle, his doctor's granddaughter told the historian Jose Maria Zavala. Franco was * wounded in the lower abdomen at El Biutz, near Ceuta, in June 1916. Biographers have long speculated this affected the reproductive organs of the dictator, who ruled from 1939 to 1975. However, he did have a daughter, Carmen Franco y Polo, in 1926. Last year, documents came to light containing an account by a medic who treated Hitler during the Battle of the Somme in 1916. Dr Johan Jambor told his priest that Hitler had been injured in the abdomen and had lost a testicle. He said the first question Hitler had asked him was: "Will I be able to have children?" ...

Source: Attila Surányi on Unsplash The pain in Spain proves too much as expat Britons pack their bags Janine Richmond was busy packing boxes this week, ready to leave her home near Marbella for the last time. After six years living on the Costa del Sol, Mrs Richmond and her husband, Nicholas, * reluctantly took the decision to return to Britain with their two young daughters. “We just couldn’t make it work any more financially,” she said, as she prepared for an emotional farewell . “We would have loved to have stayed but things are too hard here for my husband and we cannot last any longer.” The Richmonds, like a growing number of British expats, are heading home as the sun sets on their Spanish dream. The low value of the pound, the end of Spain’s decade-long building bonanza and the global financial meltdown have conspired to make Britain a more attractive place to many expatriates, despite the deepening recession at home. The Spanish sunshine and way of ...

Source: Wikipedia (Wasforgas )   Oprah show subtitles Susan Boyle American TV bosses subtitled Britain's Got Talent star Susan Boyle when she appeared on the Oprah Winfrey Show so viewers could understand her. A production crew from the daytime US talk show descended on Ms Boyle's home in Blackburn, West Lothian. They spent several hours being given a guided tour by the singing hopeful, and interviewed her neighbours. Ms Boyle later told chat show queen Oprah that the global fame she had achieved was "like a dream come true". The subtitles appeared on screen during a pre-recorded piece, but were dropped when Ms Boyle spoke live to Oprah. Ms Boyle's rendition of I Dreamed a Dream from Les Miserables on ITV1 show Britain's Got Talent turned her into a global phenomenon after being posted on YouTube. Vocal talents The special episode of Oprah also featured other acts from some of the 40 countries where the talent show is filmed. Speakin...

Source:  Guzmán Barquín  on  Unsplash TV man sacked in Spain booing row Spain's national television broadcaster has sacked its director of sports for censoring jeering during the national anthem before the national cup final. Julian Reyes chose to show reporters in Bilbao and Barcelona instead of the events at Valencia's Mestalla stadium, which King Juan Carlos was * attending . TVE later replayed the anthem at half-time, blaming "human error", but this time with the booing edited out . On Thursday, TVE said Mr Reyes had taken responsibility for the incident. The broadcaster's directors also said an investigation would be launched into why it had repeatedly blamed human error for not showing the anthem live . Supporters of both Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao were said to be responsible for the boos, jeers and whistles which greeted the anthem on Wednesday night. Barcelona eventually won the Copa del Rey 4-1. The clubs hail from Catalonia...

Source:  Carter Baran  on  Unsplash   Easyjet stops girl, six, taking teddy bear on flight A mother has c riticised Easyjet for stopping her six-year-old daughter taking her teddy bear on a flight because it was classed as "excess baggage". Alba Aprciado-Peris was told by a check-in worker that Bebe the bear was banned from joining her on the flight from Glasgow to Stansted. The bear, which was given to Alba as a present, was wrapped up in a carrier bag which the check-in attendant classed as an extra piece of luggage. The worker then told Alba's mother Amparo Peris-Bordes, 38, she would have to pay £9 to put the teddy in the hold. After a * h eated discussion Ms Peris-Bordes decided to post Bebe to their house in Willingham, Cambridgeshire. She said the incident had ruined a weekend break in Scotland earlier this month. "I was totally stunned when they said Alba couldn't have the bear in the cabin with her," said Ms Peris-Bordes, a p...

Source:  Karsten Winegeart en Unsplash   What's the difference between: I like getting up early and I like to get up early ? This is a difficult question especially as they are often interchangeable. I like getting up early is more common on its own whereas I like to get up early is more often used with some additional context - I like to get up early at weekends because I have many things to do. I like teaching refers to the general activity whereas I like to teach in the afternoons describes a particular preference. Does that clear up any doubts? Write some of your own examples with the two different forms.

Source:  Kajetan Sumila  on  Unsplash Proof is evidence that something is true. The police don't have any proof that he is guilty of the crime. You need proof of identity , your passport or driving licence, before they will let you in. The verb is prove and means to show something is true. I can't prove anything but I think she is lying. If you really love me, then prove it. I'm sure that I am right. Can you prove that I am wrong? Proof is an uncountable noun. You need a proof to show that he is guilty. 😡  You need proof/some proof.  😍  Where are the proofs?  😡  Where is the proof?  😍  Vamos a hacer la prueba : Let's try . Tienes que hacer una prueba de nivel : You have to do a level test . El médico me hizo más pruebas : The doctor did some more tests on me. El nuevo secretario está a prueba : The new secretary is on a trial period/on trial . El actor tuvo que hacer muchas pruebas ...

Lottery officials continue search for owner of £110m ticket • Madrid shop sold ticket for biggest single lottery prize • EuroMillions winner may be tourist, says seller Lottery officials across Europe were searching today for one of the continent's richest people, who may still be unaware that they possess a lottery ticket worth £110m. The EuroMillions jackpot is the world's biggest ever single lottery prize, but the Madrid lottery shop that sold the ticket has * so far  been unable to trace the buyer. If found, he or she would shoot into the club of the richest people in Europe. If the winner were British , it would mean join ing the Sunday Times rich list at No 492 — tied with the Bee Gees brothers Barry and Robin Gibb. A sign pinned to the window of the Black Cat lottery shop, just off Madrid's central Plaza de Cibeles, boasted today that this was the place where the €126m ticket had been sold. The shop's owner, Paloma Cateleiro, said ...

Source:  Matt Walsh en Unsplash Look at the following examples of DIRECT and INDIRECT questions. Excuse me! Where is the post office? DIRECT Excuse me! Do you know where the post office is? INDIRECT How old are you? DIRECT Can I ask you how old you are? INDIRECT An INDIRECT question is politer (first example) and softens a difficult question to ask (second example). In the INDIRECT form, there are really two questions. The INDIRECT question follows this form: First question + (question word/if) + Subject + verb ? Do you know what time the bank opens ? Can you remember where we went for our holidays last year? Can I ask you how much you earn? Can you tell me if there is a bus to Vigo? The DIRECT form of the above questions: What time does the bank open? Where did we go for our holidays last year? How much do you earn? Is there a bus to Vigo? Compare the two forms. Notice: The INDIRECT form does not use - do , does , or did. The verb in the INDIRECT question...