Laura Abecasis

Laura Abecasis

Interested in different Cultures and Languages.

Location Ireland

Activity

  • I usually buy white rice, i dont really see the difference in jasmine or basmati.

  • I usually store raw chicken in the freezer and cooked chicken in the fridge, and eat it the next day.

  • It was very good, I have enjoyed the mix of flavours, the fresh veg, had that at lunch and was not hungry at night. My partner said it was very good also.

  • I did exactly as per recipee - except I did not have chili powder so I used paprika.

  • I have never actually wondered how food makes me feel. I am going to start thinking about this now, and try to find out. I just avoid the foods I have an allergy to.

  • In France you would give them a kiss on the cheek like everyone else. But respect should always be there.

  • Bonjour in my mother tongue, Hola in my second language.

    I live in Ireland and learning Irish, and here it is "Dia duit" (May God be with you), my partner is Welsh and I also learn Welsh: "Shwmae" (South Wales word), and other languages I am learning:
    - Hindi - Namaste (hello & good bye) - kya hal hai? or aap kaise hain? (how are you?)
    - Kannada -...

  • If I started learning Korean I would definitely go for the Hangeul script as well. From my experience with languages, it is well worth it, it is a great value when traveling in the country, and it helps so much with the pronunciation!

  • I would love to travel to Korea! First thing I can think of is the script which I find interesting and beautiful (and last time I said that, a few months later I had started classes to learn to speak and write/read the language: Kannada - and fell in love with the language!)

  • I feel I don't know enough about this country, so I am entering the course with an open mind and an open heart!

  • Yes I do summaries on flashcards

  • I mostly waste my time on Facebook, watching stand up comedy show when I want to relax. I work full time, and I study several languages in parallel, try to take my breaks with a wise activities like Duolingo, Drops, Kannada Barutte (language apps), listening to podcasts in languages I am learning... to minimize the wasted time, but the brain sometimes need to...

  • I found it a little hard because I panicked with the time limit.
    I thought I needed more than subject, pros and cons, I would not have panicked if I knew that was enough
    Yes I need to practice more

  • There was no bold word, or underlined words, like in the previous example so it was harder to screen I think

  • - yes I am already using the previewing technique - it helps me plan my study
    - this video was very clear to show that without context, it is hard to remember a "story" - If we had had the context, we might have used
    some visualization technique to remember parts of the "story" as this is a common activity among all of us
    - preview can be useful to...

  • I think, for some people who might be a little too addicted to their phone, it might be necessary to temporary close some social media accounts, if putting the phone is not enough during the studies.
    In my studies of languages, I would like to plan more about the time I want to spend on my practice, and keep planning the subject of my study for the day as I...

  • Definitely, if I was a full time student, I would need to put away my phone, out of my side.
    By the way wishing all the success to those students!

  • I usually have a clear idea on what I plan to work on. In my case, I am not a full time student, but study various languages. I never decide ahead what time I want to spend on the study, as it is often at my work lunch break, or after work, having some other duties as well. I need to improve this part.
    I would say the phone is not the only distraction, even...

  • I think part of the preparation should be making sure we had a good 8 hour-sleep the night before and have healthy food to optimize the learning conditions too.

  • The preview part - deciding what will be the subject studies, making sure the studying material is all packed, get ready for what needs to be done on a daily basis, predefine deadlines.
    I think it is important to divide the subject into smaller parts so we are clear on what needs to be completed and in what amount of time. I would use the SMART objectives...

  • Hi All, I am looking forward to this course as I am learning a few languages and would like to study more efficiently, hoping to find a good few tips here :)

  • Hi All, I am looking forward to this course, having worked in the slums in India and having met some people in those kinds of situations. Seeing it on TV and actually meeting concerned people is totally different, and I have been questionning myself about it since then.

  • The eyes and the brain can see different things and work differently

  • The light of the computer hurting my eyes, the smell and taste of my cup of tea, the warmth of it too.

  • I have always heard it is a modified vision of the reality.
    I remember someone once said "I love colours but when I have an episode, it is like everything is black or white, no colour anymore, I love smells but when I am battling depression, I cannot smell anything anymore".

  • And so authentic :)

  • I first came when I was 14 for a linguistic stay in Galway, staying with a host family in Rennmore. I fell in love with the country so the year after my parents sent me for an immersion stay with a host family in Gorey - they had 8 children, all red haired and freckled, I was in paradise! They had a farm and were a 4 min walk from the beach. After that stay, I...

  • I have been to Skellig Islands on July 14th 2012 and have great memories of my visit there. I was in Kerry again for Easter, and found there are much more people now after the Star Wars movie, which I find very sad. Not that people come and see it, but the reason why they come and see it. It should be visited because it is a UNESCO heritage.

  • Glencolmcille - the Valley of ColmCille :)

  • Is mise Laura agus is as Fhranc mé.

  • Dia dhaoibh, Laura is ainm dom. I am French with a Spanish father, but my heart (mo chroi?) is Irish since I am 14 (now 35). Ireland is the biggest love of my life, and I feel it is important that Gaeilge is spoken widely, because it is a beautiful and romantic language and it is how people have transmitted the storytelling traditions from generations to...

  • I have started Learning Irish because I wanted to understand place names which are often wonderful in Ireland. So since I was living abroad still, I was coming to Donegal - Glencolmcille - for the October bank Holiday weekend to learn Irish. Then I had a volunteer teacher in Switzerland and now I live again in Ireland and have started classes again every week...

  • @Conny Borgelioen: I have assumed Malhe and the elderly woman do not speak the same language...

  • @Muguwa Joseph:
    That is why I said "once I had the reason for her behaviour" = as stated previously I wanted to check with my coworkers first. Thanks

  • Valerie is amazing, she got into her chinese experience so deeply! And I feel she has tears in her eyes talking about it. Thanks to her openness. From the first day she has decided to learn Chinese and stuck to it. And from my experience I can say locals are more interested in you when you speak their language, as if your intentions were different from other...

  • I would definitely ask my colleagues what this means, so I can act accordingly. I feel Mahle is not very curious she just assume it is an agression which I agree seems like one but may not necessarily be one. The situation needs to be digged into.

  • Taste the world, love that expression, feel exactly the same!

  • Thanks for sharing I love friendship stories like this one :)

  • 1. I feel grateful because if everybody was like me, the world would be so boring!
    2. I feel excited because I am sure I will learn something from that person :)
    3. I have always worked in places where there were plenty of different nationalities. Oh and even at school, I was in an International School, and there were more than 70 nationalities (statistics...

  • I think I am in the final stage. I am actually looking forward to meeting people from different culture, and ask loads of questions, about what I've heard, is it true or an urban myth, etc. I also keep learning about India for example by joining Indian Associations so I can celebrate festival with them, learn about states I haven't visited - last time I have...

  • It's a very compact sum up of what has been said before. I feel it is the attitude more than the content. If you are open you will ask questions to that person, try to understand how things are done in his culture rather than judging his or her way to do things and stand where you are.

  • I would be ready to go and meet that woman once I had the reason for her behavior. Just try and fix things and have an exchange with her. She is elderly and the common thing with my own culture is that elderly people may not like change. Maybe when she was my age, there were not so many foreigners in her country and now she sees more and more, and that may...

  • Your nature might be to assume something but let yourself pause and ask yourself the essential questions: why should it be that way? Is there something I ignore and would help me understand this person better? Why should people react like me? Why do I react like that? Is it due to the way I was raised?

  • Good start, refresh and looking forward to the rest!

  • As long as you keep yourself open to anything new that you can learn from others, the better.

  • I feel the video could be made for children, for them to understand how intercultural learning is important for them for their future life. I this video we learn about perception of other people based on our own culture and theirs. A same statement could be understood differently based on this. We all need to explore in order to understand others better, and...

  • I feel he explains where the miscommunications come from, conception people may have of other people. If you try to deal with others based on your culture only, that will lead to issues. Nowadays with the Globalisation, we are required to interact with people from different horizons and in order to make it happen and avoid any misunderstanding, we should not...

  • Laura Abecasis made a comment

    My first feeling would be misunderstanding as the previous days the contact had been friendly, and all of a sudden changes. I would probably be afraid to go and ask that woman about it, so I would probably explain the situation to one of my colleagues at work and see what explanation they can give me. Then I would maybe plan to talk to the woman having all the...

  • I am based in Ireland, but I am French and I work in Accounts Payable. I am hoping to learn how to avoid cultural mistakes while travelling abroad and try no to offend the locals!

  • Laura Abecasis made a comment

    I have lived in France (where I grew up), in Spain, Ireland, India and Peru and know how important intercultural communication can be.

  • I am not suffering from dyslexia but I have used Rosetta Stone to learn Hindi, and found it great. I think it would be great for people with learning difficulties as it does not requires too much concentration, instructions are easy, it is made to be fun, you can have a conversation with a native speaker via skype.

  • Have you seen the film "Taare zameen par" Jyoti ji? ;-)

  • I liked the comparison with the race and hurdles. It is a helpful image that helps understanding what those students are going through.

  • Very detailed information - its great!

  • It's a good thing to understand the different categories within the term "dyslexia" - it clarifies this general idea thanks a lot.

  • I am not good at writing with my left hand in the first place. But I felt my head was full of instructions that I could not put in order in my head to start methoditically the exercice. So I took time to start to begin with and then of course didn't finish before the 3 minutes expired.

  • I recognize some things that affect my partner and cannot wait to know how I cam help :)

  • Hi all, I am Laura, French, I speak French, Spanish, English and I am learning Hindi and Irish. My boyfriend is Welsh and would like to learn French but has a slight dyslexia so I would like to know how to help in that sense.

  • When my tenant in Spain committed suicide, I have had my best friend calling me in the middle of the night to make sure I was OK and he said just one line which helped me (not too sure why though): "he killed himself, not you". I think he was the only person who understood how low I was actually feeling despite the fact that I had met my tenant only once in my...

  • Fantastic interview! I feel lucky that I have never suffered from Depression, but would like to do my best to help those who suffer from it :(

  • I would say isolating from social groups is a sign of depression also

  • I agree with what Paula Byrne said that we have loads of strange feeling when in grief. Also I would rather try to read something uplifting but I know sometimes concentration is gone ...

  • Yes I can identify with Anger and Acceptance - last year my tenant has committed suicide, and I was not close to him at all, but it affected me so much. The anger was directed to the police who were nearby and could not find him before 5 months (!). Then I have done a lot of research to try to understand how we can get to the point where death makes us feel...

  • Lovely poem Jonathan!

  • I honestly never asked myself that question. I think I try to choose my readings according to my mood of the day, I like history books, or biographies, true stories in general, inspiring if possible. But maybe if you are heartbroken and you read a love story, it might be difficult to handle when it brings back some memories of someone's own life. Can we really...

  • I haven't read poetry since School I suppose, but with all the people commenting on the poems it gets more interesting and I may have a look at it again :) Thank you for all the wonderful interviews, having poets from other continents was also very interesting! Can't wait for the next week's focus!

  • I cope with stress with sport, cardio stuff like Body Combat and Zumba, I feel the stress goes away with the sweat or something like that. Also I love hearing the Hindi language, it's a very flat language, so I can also watch a Hindi film and it will relax me a lot (I am learning Hindi so it is also an exercise for me to practice).
    And yes, I have started...

  • I love the interpretation she gives about the poem.

  • I think it works differently on different people but would say it would help me managing stress, even though I've been stressed in my life. I love Ireland so much that Yeats' poems would definitely send me back to this relaxing place, and make me feel better.

  • Sligo is not in County Galway, but County Sligo ("Sligeach" in Irish language, called Gaeilge).

  • Thanks Jane! Here is the English translation that I found for you:

    Everything goes and everything stays
    but our fate is to pass
    to pass making a path as we go,
    paths over the sea,

    I never pursued glory,
    or to leave on the memory
    of the men,this my song:
    I love the subtle worlds,
    weightless and gentle
    like soap bubbles.

    I like to see them paint...

  • Hi Jane, that is my father's favourite poem, so I chose to share that one with you (Caminante no hay camino / Walker there is no path from Antonio Machado):

    Todo pasa y todo queda,
    pero lo nuestro es pasar,
    pasar haciendo caminos,
    caminos sobre el mar.

    Nunca persequí la gloria,
    ni dejar en la memoria
    de los hombres mi canción;
    yo amo los mundos...

  • I know my father used to read a lot of poetry but in Spanish, so I have had a look at his collections, but haven't read much myself, maybe only WB Yeats when I visited his hometown (Sligo, Ireland). I don't have much time to read so when I read I prefer a novel or a historic book. I will try to read a few more poems now after that MOOC :)

  • I prefer seeing landscapes photos while listening to a poem, it makes me feel I am contemplating nature at the same time!

  • The way Dr Curtis speaks is already so calming :) Very interesting discussion, I seem he's quite honest about his profession and what doctors prescribe to their patients.

  • I am very interested in receiving updates from their research, its so great they offer!

  • I realized reading at lunch time at work help calming me down -

  • It seems very interesting, can't wait to start!

  • "Can I give him my eyes" book by Richard Moore. He clearly says that if he had not been shot by a British soldier as a child and as a result become blind, he would not have as many opportunities in life than he actually did.

  • Very interesting week, done all in one day, so my head is full now :)

  • Thank you for the support :)

  • Hi Judy, I wonder too if the fact that specialists said DJ had the IQ of a child, can we doubt that he has capability of consent or not. Is a child capable of consent? But I do agree with your first point, that would have totally been a professional way to behave. It is such a twisted story, I don't really know how I am feeling after reading this long long...

  • I never thought disabled people were not having sex but sex is quite taboo everywhere, even though its everywhere at the same time and maybe not in the right form. Thank you for bringing it up and so openly!

  • Very well explained. Clear. Simple. Intelligible. Great!

  • Very enriching experiences, I am so happy for Mel that she met wonderful people like that in her life through support!

  • Laura Abecasis made a comment

    Care for me is to keep an eye on the person and check with that person whether he or she needs help or not. Support for me is the next step, is giving that person the means to do what they want to do by giving them assistance.
    I think Family relatives are people we trust and it might be easier to ask them when we need help than anybody else. They know us and...

  • - short term:
    *moving back to Dublin
    * finding an affordable place to leave in the area I like (close to work and down town)
    * being able to travel some weekends abroad (I love traveling) and having a long holiday at least once a year.
    * have some money to keep learning the Irish language and attend week long courses
    *have some money to keep learning...

  • In 5 years I think I will be back to Ireland because that is where I want to be and where I belong even though it is not my home country. If I had been asked the question 5 years ago, I would have said I was where I am now so quite accurate. I am always afraid to plan my life incorrectly and this has prevented me from doing the things I wanted (Ireland) and...

  • I would probably try to spend less in food and household good and plan a bit larger for health and emergencies. Also I think their mortgage is high given what the total they earn together. Also I wonder why there is 0 with insurances, but maybe its covered by their job and they have some sort of plan included in their salary package. I would probably invest on...

  • Seems complex, will have to concentrate a lot :)

  • I admire Nicola for setting her goals everyday and achieving them (meaning their are manageable) and she seems happy, she said she had loads of family and friends always ready to help whenever possible so it must help as well to build self confidence in doing things.

  • Figures are not surprising even though they are high enough. I wonder if some people start working part time because of their caring role, in which case their revenue would be decreased. But in a way, in our individualist society, I feel it's heartwarming to see those figures. People still care for each other. Also it is true that in terms of "stress", I have...

  • case study 1 I think Sonia and Sam are a carer to each other.
    case study 2 I think James is the carer of his mother and Petra is the carer of Michael

  • looking forward to it and hopefully there will be some tips how we can help and fulfill the needs of a person living with a long term condition

  • I had never thought about many of the different options presented here in week 2 and its a wonderful discovery. I think it should also be available for people not living with a health condition, as for example it is a struggle to get an appointment to renew a prescription for the pill. I think about this example because my specialist has retired without...

  • I've read that she was food shopping, maybe she could use the internet option and order her food directly on the internet so that she is delivered at home, that would save her a few movements. I think some associations exists where Volunteers can walk your dog, so she could probably use that from time to time depending on her daily conditions, however I...

  • I think it is reassuring to have access to professionals at all times.

  • I've just come to realize how efficient it can be. I have never seen anyone using this eHealth thing so it had not crossed my mind. Brilliant!

  • I loved following Nicola's story, thank you Nicola for sharing it with us!

  • I am a little late starting the course, I am sorry. My name is Laura and I am from France, my heart is half Irish half Indian :) I have decided to take this course because you never know who around you can suffer from a long term condition, and when it is the case, I would like to be prepared as much as I can to help that person.