English in Madrid

Image created with Chat GPT Have a look through these Christmas tweets. You can reply in X/Twitter or write a comment in the blog. Some of the links will take you to Lyrics Training - it's free! Click on Go to lyricstraining.com , press here to start the game and finally click on Maybe Later . #oldtweets Read about the Christmas switch-on in an English town 👇🏼and go through the #Quizlet : https://t.co/L4OMzYPHF0 #talkabout What do you think about the Christmas displays around Madrid? https://t.co/tgU7WiT1CU — English in Madrid (@madteacher72) December 1, 2025 BBC News - Abstract Christmas tree sparks protests in Brussels http://t.co/0Ew9yLUy Are you happy with the Xmas decorations where you live? — English in Madrid (@madteacher72) December 1, 2012 Here you'll find a Quizlet with an A-Z list of Christmas-related vocabulary: https://t.co/tKtOBPgW72 Here is an A to Z list (2 parts) of all things Christmassy. https://t.co/hNGfhka5gU — English in Madrid (@madteacher72) Dec...

  Source: You Tube (The Royal Family Channel) I am standing here in this exquisite Chapel of St George at Windsor Castle, so clo se to where my beloved mother, the late Queen, is laid to rest with my dear father. I am reminded   of the deeply touching letters, cards and messages which so many of you have sent my wife and myself and I cannot thank you enough for the love and sympathy you have shown our whole family. Christmas is a particularly poig nant time for all of us who have lost loved ones. We feel their absence at every familiar turn of the season and remember them in each cherished tradition. In the much -loved carol O Little Town Of Bethlehem we sing of how “in thy dark streets shineth the everlasting light”. My mother’s bel ief in the power of that light was an essential part of her faith in God, but also her faith in people and it is one which I share with my whole heart. It is a belief in the extraordinary ability of each person to touch, with goodnes...

    Source: dylan nolte on Unsplash   Spain’s El Gordo lottery dishes out Christmas joy with €2.5bn pot Unemployed mother of two is among winners as world’s biggest lottery hands out prizes of up to €325,000 A Gambian man who crossed from the Mediterranean by boat and an unemployed mother of two were among those rejoicing after the world’s biggest lottery sprayed money across Spain. On Thursday, the country celebrated the Christmas lottery known as El Gordo, or the Fat One, which dished out €2.5bn (£2.2bn) in prize money. The most sought-after ticket – worth €325,000 after taxes – was sold in cities across the country, setting off raucous celebrations that spanned from the north-western city of A Coruña to Almería in the south. As the numbers were called out in Madrid’s Teatro Real theatre, the audience erupted into wild cheers as they realised a member of the audience was among the lucky ones holding a winning ticket. Perla Gavidia, originally from P...

Source: Wikipedia ( Thirunavukkarasye-Raveendran ) The Christmas lottery launderers   Winning tickets are sought out by crooks looking to avoid pay ing tax on their ill-gotten gains   In the hours after the winning numbers in Spain’s massive El Gordo Christmas lottery are drawn every December 22, discreetly dressed men and women carrying suitcases stashed with bank notes fan out across the country headed for bars, lottery outlets, and banks before the fortunate owners of the prized tickets cash them in . Acting on behalf of   wealthy clients, their mission is to buy their winning tickets: they pay cash, ask no questions, and offer a generous bonus on top. It’s a very simple way to help reduce their clients’ tax bill. “Everybody knows that the Christmas lottery has always been used to launder money,” says veteran tax inspector José María Peláez Marcos, adding that it is almost impossible for the authorities to detect this kind of fraud. “Lottery ticke...

Source:  dylan nolte on Unsplash The ultimate guide to 'El Gordo' - Spain's fat Christmas lottery   If you're puzzled by all the long queues   on streets around Spain in the lead-up to Christmas, then wonder no more. Welcome to Spain's unique 'El Gordo' (the Fat one) lottery, the richest in the world . Every year at Christmas, Spaniards go lottery mad , queuing for hours to buy tickets for the famous Christmas lottery and this year it is bigger than ever. The number of tickets on sale has risen by 5 million to 165 million meaning the 2016 prize money will total €2.31 billion ($2.46 billion), with the top individual prize, known as El Gordo (the Fat One), being €4 million. With the odds of winning at least something put at one in six, no wonder the Christmas lottery has a whole nation gripped . According to the 2015 stats, some 73.1 percent of the 34 million Spanish residents aged between 18 and 75 play the Spanish Christmas lottery. ...

Source: You Tube (Allegro)   Key Words: Polish Christmas advert Polish Christmas advert about grandfather who learns English touches hearts around the world   Forget the John Lewis Christmas advert — this year's tear-jerker comes from Poland. Two and a half million people from around the globe have watched this year's advertisement from Allegro, an online auction   website. It features   a grandfather, who orders an "English for beginners" set from the website. He then sets about becom ing fluent, sticking Post-It notes around the house with English words on. The elderly gentleman even practices loudly on the bus, bemusing those around him. He seems particularly keen to learn how to introduce himself, and say "I love you" and "you are perfect". For those wondering   why he is putting so much effort into learning English, the reasoning soon becomes clear. His son appeared to have moved to England, and married an Engli...

Why is Boxing Day called Boxing Day? Boxing Day: a time for napping , playing with all the toys you got your hands on at Christmas, and stubbornly refusing to change out of your pyjamas unless there’s a major sale involved. But what  is  Boxing Day, other than a day when trains are crap and shops are packed ? And how did it get its name? So. The very, very basics: Boxing Day is the day after Christmas – December 26, celebrated in the UK. It’s a bank holiday , so banks are closed, shops open later, and public transport definitely isn’t reliable . There are also loads of   post-Christmas sales. Boxing Day’s history and origins are actually fairly contested, as no one is  certain  of how it got its name. Some theorise that the name Boxing Day comes from the post-Christmas tradition of churches leaving a box outside their doors to collect money for the less fortunate, while others believe it’s to do with ships, when those aboard would open a ...

Source: dylan nolte on Unsplash What are your mathematical chances of winn ing Spain’s Christmas lottery? Contrary to popular belief , there’s no point stand ing in line at La Manolita lottery seller For generations, Christmas in Spain has been inextricably linked to a lottery known as El Gordo (literally, The Fat One) because of its large prizes. For a few hours on the morning of December 22, millions of people throughout   the country tune in to the radio or television to hear students from San Ildefonso school – a former   orphanage  – sing out the winning numbers. Images of winners uncorking champagne bottles and tearfully embracing one another get aired for days afterwards . In terms of brand recognition , few companies can compete with the Spanish Christmas lottery, which has been held since the early 19th century. Besides pay ing out more than any of the other state lotteries organised throughout the year , the Gordo is picked a...

Source: Yatharth (Wikipedia) A–C She hung a shiny bauble on the Christmas tree. The church bells rang loudly on Christmas morning. We visit our cousins on Boxing Day . 26th December is Boxing Day: https://t.co/4o68oI7D7d — English in Madrid (@madteacher72) December 26, 2016 A candle glowed softly in the window. Santa, baby, forgot to mention one little thing, a ring I don't mean on the phone Santa, baby, so hurry down the chimney tonight Hurry down the chimney tonight Hurry, tonight                                                           Source: You Tube (Streetwalker) Key Words: Santa Baby Eartha We sent Christmas cards to our friends. The choir sang Christmas carols in the town square. #OnThisDay 1970: It’s Christmas Eve. On Tomorrow’s World, it’s time for Christmas carols and robots that appear to have sprun...

Source: videojug.com   In the above video (you can turn on the subtitles), you have some dos and donts for the office Christmas party. Check out www.videojug.com to listen to advice for all sorts of things. Have you had your Christmas party yet? Is it something you look forward to or something you dread ? What advice would you give on how to behave at the party?

Judy Garland sang this song in the musical "Meet Me in St. Louis". Source: You Tube (warenarchive) Key Words: Garland Louis Christmas Have yourself a merry little Christmas Let your heart be light From now on , our troubles will be out of sight Have yourself a merry little Christmas Make the Yuletide gay From now on, our troubles will be far away Here we are, as in olden days Happy golden days of yore Faithful friends who are dear to us Gather near to us Once more Through the years, we all will be together If the fates allow Hang a shining star upon the highest bough And have yourself a merry little Christmas now Listen to the Coldplay version and try to complete the lyrics. Why not Google to discover the lyrics to your favourite Xmas song?

Use the labels to find anything related to Christmas: In Blog 3 you will find stories about the Christmas cracker, the Gordo and an unusual Christmas song. In Blog 1 you can listen to John Lennon and Bing Crosby sing a seasonal song. Right here in Blog 2 you can find posts about lottery superstitions and read Charles Dicken's A Christmas Carol. Use the archives to find stories from Decembers past: In December 2007 you can read the story about how the Spanish tip generously . In December 2008 you can find a cure for hangovers . In December 2009 you are given a year's notice on the introduction of the smoking ban . Remember to at least write "I have read it" after reading very post!!!!

Here is a recipe for traditional Christmas pudding but you are too late if you want to make one for this Christmas. Make this pudding a couple of months before Christmas day. Feed  it with booze   regularly for the flavours to develop . Ingredients 225g/8oz golden caster sugar 225g/8oz vegetarian suet 340g/12oz sultanas 340g/12oz raisins 225g/8oz currants 110g/4oz candied peel , chopped 110g/4oz plain flour 110g/4oz fresh white breadcrumbs 55g/2oz flaked almonds 1 lemon, zest only 5 eggs, beaten 1 level tsp (teaspoon) ground cinnamon 1 level tsp mixed spice 5g/1 level tsp freshly grated nutmeg pinch of salt 150ml/5fl oz (ounce) brandy or rum Preparation method 1.Lightly grease 4x600ml/1 pint or 2x1.2 litre/2 pint pudding basins . 2.Mix together all the dry ingredients. 3. Stir in the eggs and brandy and mix well. 4.Spoon the mix into basins. Put a circle of baking parchment and foil over the top of each basin and tie secur...