Online shopping

Internet is everytime offering more and more facilities. Shopping is one of the activities that is becomind more popular to do online, but is it really an adavantadge or it has more cons than pros?

First of all, shopping on the Internet can be a good option in terms of convenience because you don't need to leave your house and this can be useful for people who don't have much time or for those ones who can't go and buy in the shops for any reason. Also, it broads your possibilities because it allows you tu buy things that are not sold close to where you live. 

Also, on the Internet you can sometimes find the products cheaper than they are in a regular shop, so you can save some money. However, you may have to pay the shipping costs (in some cases it can still end up being cheaper).

On the other hand, however, shopping online can be a bit risky. First of all, you can't be sure if the web page in which you are shopping can be trustable. It can be a good online shop and you can get your products perfectly in the way you wanted, but there's also the possibility of paying and then never getting your purchase . Secondly, shopping online doesn't allow you to really see what you are buying. On the Internet there will be a photo, but it can be retouched or it can be a photo of a different product. And also, even if the photo is real, you can only see the product through a photo, you cannot see it and judge it in real life. This means that when you get the product it might not be what you were expecting as it can't turn out to be a different thing.

In conclusion, I do agree in the convenience of online shopping offers, as well as all the different possibilities and advantadges, but it is also important to keep in mind all the disadvantadges it has and its consequences. From my point of view, it's okay to buy some things on the Internet, but not everything. In this way, you continue buying things that are not necessary to be bought online in regular shops. On the Internet you can buy, for example, things that maybe are only sold in different countries, or things that can be trustable, for example books, that you can be sure it will be the same quality as if you buy it in a shop. But in other cases, I think it's better to buy them on a regular shop, so you can exactly see and be aware of what you are buying. 

Review of Gap Year

A few months ago, we watched the first episode of the britih series called Gap year. Gap Year is a comedy-drama series that follows the adventure of a group of backpackers taking a trip through Asia. The first episode of this short episode talks about Dylan and Sean, Dylan's highschool friend who didn't go to the University, taking a gap year. their journey begins in China. Sean thinks that they are on vacation to escape from their quotidanes lifes but this isn't the reason. They were there because of Dylan's ex-girlfriend: he wanted to get back with her. Once they arrive to Beijing, they meet Ashley, Greg and May at a public bathrroms. In there, Dylan leaves his money there, in the bathroom, so these 3 new characrters pick up all the money and spend a big part. A few hours later, all five get together unexpexctdly and Greg returns the money to Dylan. Since that moment, they join together and assist to a festival at the Great Wall of China. During the festval, Seans gets split from the grup because of a fight and he is kipnapped.

Users Reviews

• The characters are great, felt so relatable and the story is different each episode, hope there is a season two. It kept me laughing through all 8 episodes , Instead of getting stale like a lot of different television series I feel as though it improved as the series progressed and after watching I always felt happier the amazing locations and stories along with it paired together to make an amazing new series.



• Based on this first episode, Gap Year’s emphasis is probably more on the drama than the comedy. The show is very much plot driven, and the viewer wants to find out what happens next as the action unfolds. Based clearly learned a thing or two from writing on The Wrong Mans. And the first episode ends one a great cliffhanger – even if it is immediately ruined by E4 showing scenes from the second episode indicating the outcome. 

Overall, there’s an appealing ironic undertone, and a knowingness to the fact the characters often aren’t fully immersed in the world they came looking for. After going to great pains to watch a sunrise over the Great Wall Of China, comes the question: ‘How much longer are we going to spend looking at it?

• In Gap Year, absolutely everyone appears lost as this bunch of westerners try to stay safe and remain sane in the deeply unfamiliar environs of modern China. Friendships are strained, loves are challenged, parties need to be attended, and selves await to be discovered.

My own opinion

When we watched the first chapter, I enjoyed it because it kept my attention. Although, I don't know if what we saw is possible. Of course it is, but is not as easy as is shown in the series. The fact of going on a Gap Year without having anything planed is a bit dangerous as you don't have any place to stay in. You have to "survive" with your money and it is not unlimited. And, in case you lose the money, how are you going to continue your adventure? Of course you can ask for some help but then you won't be independent, you will be "dependent of". In addition, what would happen if you get lost? How are you going to get back? So, there are lots of questions that would have a negative view of a Gap Year. So let's say that as the Gap Year of the main characters it's okay because is a series and so provide entertainment. But, as a real situation, I would doubt if everything will be okay.

My Gap Year

You can find here the information I've taken from.

The Blue Whale: a game or a challenge?

This news is about a new challenge that makes the person who is playing commit suicide after 50 days. This challenge is known as the Blue Whale, and it is quite famous in Russia. It is believed to be an online social media group, in which there is an administrator that gives daily challenges to the members. In total, there are 50 (one each day) and they consist of watching extreme horror movies, getting up at unusual hours, self-harming… They gradually get more and more extreme, until the last challenge is to commit suicide.

The photo that Yulia posted moments ago before her dead 

One of the reasons teenagers follow this type of challenges is because of pressure. Sometimes, friends incite  them to take dangerous experiences, but kids have to know how and when to say “no”. Parents have an important role in teaching their kids than they can still be accepted even if they don’t do exactly what the other friends do.

There have been about 130 suicides of children between November 2015 and April 2016, which can be related to this challenge. It is not proved, but there exist multiple bonds between almost all these teenagers, for example, most of them were members of the same internet groups and lived in good and happy families. Among these suicides, it stands out the case of two teenagers, Yulia Konstantinova and Veronika Volkova, 15 and 16 respectively, who jumped from a roof of a 14-floor building. Yulia, before committing suicide, posted a picture of a blue whale in her Instagram.

My opinion

The first time I read this news, the first thing it came to my mind was: “Who can be so sick to create this challenge?”. Because, behind all these challenges there has to be a person creating them. Encouraging people to commit suicide, especially when they are going through a bad period in their lives is really mean. We should try to help depressed people to overcome it and be happy. 

I hope this stupid game won't last for many years more. I can understang those people who like taking risks in their lifes, such as those ones who go bungee jumping, but what I can't understand is how come the people who play this game come to the conclusion of ending their own lifes.

New words

• Sway: influenciar
• Chilling: esgarrifós
• Goad: incitar, provocar

Bookstore on Wheels Turns Heads in Baghdad

In Baghdad, a man named Ali al-Moussawi turned his van into a mobile bookshop and makes up to $4,000 a month as he sells books around the city. His bookshop has done well and with his success, he hired four people to help him.

Al-Moussawi said that it took him nine months to achieve his idea and he hopes that it will bring people’s attention to and promote reading. He said that he wants to develop his bookshop and ‘improve its current shape’.

As he moves his van, he changes the books that are on display. This is because the city is still divided and in Sunni areas, the books on Saddam Hussein are still popular.

My opinion

I've chosen this news because when I saw the title of this piece of news, it kept my atention and I wanted to know about it. So, related to this news, I've never heard about something like this before. I mean, I have seen people selling food in vans, but nothing to do with books. I think it's a very good idea to sell books in a van which goes around the city. It beneffits everybody: the owner of the books, Al-Moussawi, earns lots f money and it's also a good point for those who enjoy reading. Instead of walking to "the library", "the library" comes to you!

I don't know if someoe had already done this lucrative activity before the arabic man did, but I'm 100% sure that he has find a job in which he earns a lot of money and also enjoys his job.

In this case, I've learnt two new words: bookworm (a person who enjoys books) and Sunni (a religious group within Islam)

In this webpage, you can find this news.

Should be cars banned in the centres of the cities?

Nowadays, most people have their own car. In a survey that was carried out here in Spain, most of those who were asked said that they couldn’t live without a car. It would be too difficult for us them to go to anywhere because of the madding crowd.

It's true that cars are a must in people's life but at the same they are a major factor of pollution. What people haven't tho0ught about is that one car pollutes the air less than twenty cars. So, it is more convenient to use public transport instead of their own car, if you think about nature and the air you breathe every second.

Another problem are the frequent traffic jams that happen mostly because of careless drivers of the rush hours. No one would like to be in the centre of Barcelona at 8p.m.

People should use public transport more than their own car. First of all because it would be cheaper. Secondly, because it would reduce the pollution rate by approximately 80% and the city would be also less noisy. All these improvements would make our life much easier, because unpolluted air makes our bodies healthier and we can do as much physical effort as usual, but with less energy consumed.

Why people now is less healthier than twenty years ago?

Nowadays, young people are prone to be less healthier than they were twenty years ago and also to suffer a lot of illnesses. These problems are mainly caused by the busy way of life we lead.

Twenty years ago, young people were healthier since, although they did not look their health consciously, they did it by eating food without additives. This was because they lived more quietly, they spent a lot more time in touch with nature as well as, despite not doing sports, they did more physical activities by working than young people do nowadays.

In contrast, nowadays a lot of people give more importance to their appearance rather than to their health. Added to this, most of the time they eat fast food and also some of them are not fond of doing sports, so they lead a sedentary life. All of these problems make them be unfit and unhealthy.

To conclude, young people should be able to look after their health since there are lots of medical treatments for curing and preventing illnesses as well as there is more information available than years ago. However, the responsibilities, stress and the lack of time lead us to live aside the care of our health.