You may think this question is a bit straight forward, obvious or is not my business. Well, it is not my business but it is yours, maybe you want to know what I think about it…

I have been living in England over three years and I have met extraordinary people who have achieved all their goals and had the most amazing time ever. At the same time, I have met others who are like a snail, either inside the shell or dragging around to reach a single point.

I have a theory about the reasons one person should come to London, I call it SWEAT:

S = Study hard and get certificates, diplomas and as many qualifications as possible.

W=Work a lot and save as much as you can

E = Enjoy as many places as possible, such as night clubs, theatres, pubs, festivals and

A = Amuse others with your experiences

T= Travel everywhere and enrich your cultural level around Europe

Well, in my point of view one person should achieve at least one of these points to have a meaningful experience in England; otherwise it is a waste of time. The country offers you opportunities to do any of them, no doubt about it. Now, it is just down to you to get focused and achieve your goals. I know it is not easy and that is why I call it SWEAT because you will have to work hard to get it done.

Good luck!

David Vieira/Brazil

It is, as Jane Austen might have it, a truth universally acknowledged that a man must have a hobby and one of mine is the collection and use of interesting phrases. One of my favourite expressions in the English language as I hear it spoken in dear old London town is, ‘Swings and Roundabouts,’ and although some of my colleagues disagree with me about the meaning, from what I’ve heard it seems to be used by people to indicate that sometimes good things happen and sometimes bad things happen; often in quick succession. However, I must admit that I’m not sure which is supposed to be the good thing: I mean swings are fun for kids and roundabouts certainly ease traffic congestion in urban areas… If anyone has any answers, please let me know.

Anyway, as you may or may not be aware, last week I merrily blogged about my parents’ visit and how great it was and how happy it made me. Unfortunately, I learned the following day, that my journalist friend Olaf, who had been trying to contact me, was in London with none other than U2! And I could have met them! But I didn’t! Ouch, ouch and thirty seven times ouch! When I learned this I was, to say the least, disappointed.

They say that you should never meet your heroes because you’ll only be disappointed. They may be right, but I’d rather find that out for myself, thanks very much.There are only three people in this world I dream of meeting (and I don’t mean that metaphorically- I have literally had about a dozen dreams in which I’ve met one of them). They are Paul McCartney, David Bowie and Bono – and although to you, dear reader, that might make me sound like some cow-eyed teenage girl at her first disco, well frankly, I DO NOT CARE! The fact that one of these dreams could have come true and didn’t was, and is, hard to take. So let’s call that the swing.

The roundabout came a few days later, when, and I have to be really careful here in case, by some bizarre twist of fate, U2’s lawyers are reading this, an anonymous person emailed me five tracks from their new album, No Line on the Horizon. The tracks arrived in my inbox last Saturday morning and were loaded into my trusty iPod before I walked out into the unseasonal sunshine. My word, they are good!

If you hate U2, stop reading now, because to a large extent, The Ballymun Beatles are the Marmite of modern music; you either love them or hate them. I’m an unashamed fan and they’ve been such a part of my life for the last twenty years that they could release a record solely consisting of them breaking wind into a bucket and I’d probably buy it.The title track has a great hook and lots of intriguing, Brian Eno-flavoured keyboard drones going on in the background. ‘Magnificent,’ is aptly-titled, while,’ Moment of Surrender,’ and,’ White as Snow,’ are great ballads: the former a seven-minute epic and the latter sounding so much like an old-fashioned western that I can’t stop imagining parts of it being sung by the late Johnny Cash . My favourite track at the moment is Fez – Being Born which sounds like a cross between the brooding atmospherics of Zooropa and the sublime Berlin triptych of albums Bowie recorded with Eno in the late 70s.

The album proper comes out on 2nd of March and you might just see this cow-eyed boy in the midnight queue outside HMV. A man has to have a hobby after all……

Mike

Dreams are always impossible and unpredictable. You know that what you dream, either when you’re sleeping or awake, is very much unlikely to happen. Then why do we keep dreaming? My imagination sometimes runs wild; I picture several types of scenarios. I imagine I’m thinner and richer. I picture that guy proposing, a life in which I wouldn’t have to work to get money, or one in which I’m a professional dancer/actress.

No, that’s not all I do the entire day, that’s not what my life revolves around, I’m not a shallow person, I’m only human. That’s what makes us so special, so different from other animals. We can dream, we can imagine a whole different world, write it down on a piece of paper and make a movie, a song, a play or even a drawing. That’s where art comes from: a simple dream. Beautiful things come from a simple dream. Silly and childish? Yes, but also beautiful and brilliant.

And I ask myself why we hear  a girl , when giving  advice say,  “Argh, he’s a dreamer, you have no future with him, just dump him right now”. Of course when it comes to making a big decision, like, who you’re going to marry, or what career path to take, people usually choose the safest path, the most likely to assure money by the end of the month.

I am very  proud to say that I am a dreamer, that I have no plan whatsoever, and that I have no idea what I’m going to do with my life. And when my dad calls me to say: “Mariana, you’re 23 years old!! You have to decide, you have to start living your  life!” I gladly respond back: “Exactly dad! I’m 23 years old, I’m only 23, and I am living my life, look! This is me living my life!”

For 23 years I was afraid to admit, I was afraid that people would say I was crazy (more than they already do). But, I’m not afraid anymore. And I will never let anyone let me down by saying I’m just a silly dreamer, that I’m just a girl. Yes, I am a dreamer, and I am, in fact, just a girl. And what is wrong with that? Who’s to say that being a grown up, full of plans and that exact amount of money by the end of the month is better?

I’m not saying that that is a bad way of living one’s life; I’m just saying that life is not for me. I want more, I want my dream on a piece of paper!

Mariana Shayeb, Black, Uxbridge Road

We have spent a lot of time and money to make the school look nice for you, so I have a suggestion to help you follow the “no food or drink” rule.

One of the great things about learning English at a school in London is that there are some great little coffee shops near the schools. A great example, if you study in Shepherd’s Bush is the Panini House.  You can get a coffee or soft drink for a great price, and if you want to have lunch or just a snack, they offer a great range of food to suit you. If you have ever been in my class, you will know that I like food, a lot, and I also know good food. All sandwiches or meals are served with a salad and a smile. The more you go to the Panini House, the friendlier everyone seems to get.

This is also a great opportunity to practise your English outside the classroom with the friendly staff. If you go with your fellow students, you could decide to only speak English with each other, even if you are from the same country.

Obviously, if you study in Holborn, there is no point in going to the Panini House during your break. When the weather gets a bit better, you could get a coffee from Pret or even McDonald’s, and sit in the small park around the corner from both centres in Holborn.

Stuart

This week at The English Studio we are working on our punctuality!   We are attempting to make sure that we are all in our classes on time doing an activity when the class starts and also after the breaks.

We are doing this by myself and the academic team patrolling the classrooms to make sure your teacher is in there on time and teaching you.

We are really passionate about this and believe that this is a basic requirement that your teacher respects you and is with you for the full lesson!

Please help me to make this happen – by e mailing me any suggestions or ways which would help.   mairead@the-englishstudio.com

Thanks a million!   Back Soon!   Mairead

One of my good friends in London decided to spend some time in Spain before she goes back to Brazil in March. She planned an amazing trip: to visit six cities in six weeks. All on her own. She bought the tickets, booked some hostels and packed. It’s been almost ten days since she left and our first phone call since then was a bit disappointing. I expected to hear about crazy parties, interesting new friends and loads of fun. Instead, she couldn’t help but crying, saying she misses London and her friends. She’s been feeling lonely.

You arrive home and there’s nobody there, no online mates, you browse the five TV channels and nothing is worthy of your time. And reading a book would just expose you even more to the fact that you’re lonely. I won’t put too much effort to remember the last time I found myself the same way. Pretty sure it happened at least once last week.

Distance makes even the hardest go weak. And to drive myself back to sanity I tend to think that London gives me the opportunity of choosing a brand new family. Not a substitute one, but a supporting one. The good friends you meet become your brothers and sisters here. And it gets bigger and bigger every day.

If you have enrolled in a full time course for 14 weeks or more, you can not miss the opportunity to ask for your Student Oyster card which is a 30% discount card for Transport.

You have two easy ways to apply for it but if you can take the online option you can get your card in less than three days!

How to apply?

You can either:

1. Take a picture with you plus a £5 postal order. Then you need to ask for the application form at the reception, fill it in and give it back to one of the reception staff.

Or

1. If you have a picture scanned and a credit or debit card, you can visit this web site: https://photocard.tfl.gov.uk/tfl/gotoApply.do?type=student&from=home follow the instructions and it is done!

Useful information:

If you have already applied and you have not received your card yet, you can send a text to 07624809356 with the reference number you have on your application form or the one they gave you when you applied online and they will reply to you about the status of your application.

If your Oyster is lost or stolen, you will need to re-apply to get a new one. Order a replacement by applying at tfl.gov.uk/photocard or by calling 08453319872.

See you next week for more advice!

Anamaria

Here is a sneak peak of a skype lesson with the lovely Silvia.

Show your friends and family and they could study with you without even boarding a plane. Cool eh?

Skype with Silvia

Have a great weekend!

Stuart

Put your reviews of teachers here! tell us what you think about them, why they are wonderful, and how they’ve changed your lives!

Rob

we’ve decided to stop killing the planet! From next term students who have a course longer than 4 weeks will have to buy a book, which means our teachers will stop feeding a tree through the copier every morning. Makes sense, doesn’t it?

Rob