Idiomatics Expressions based on Animals

When we talk to others, sometimes we don’t wanna express our idea or opinion in a common and simply direct way. Some love to say it by inserting certain idiom on it. Below are some kinds of idioms that often used by people when they wanna express something indirectly or implicitly. These are English idioms based on animals or animal behavior that may related to express your ideas.

(it's) raining cats and dogs

You can say "it's raining cats and dogs" if it's raining very hard.

(like) water off a duck's back

You can say an insult or criticism is like water off a duck's back if it doesn't upset you.

a night owl

You're a night owl if you like to stay up and do things late at night.

a queer fish

If someone's a queer fish, they are a bit strange and can sometimes behave in an unusual way.

a whale of a time

If you have a whale of a time, you have a great time and really enjoy yourself.

a wolf in sheep's clothing

A wolf in sheep's clothing is someone who seems to be a good person but is really a bad person.

a zebra crossing

A zebra crossing is a pedestrian crossing that is marked on the road with painted black and white stripes.

can of worms Informal

If you say a situation or an issue is a can of worms, you think that getting involved in it could lead to problems.

chickens come home to roost

If chickens are coming home to roost, someone is suffering the unpleasant consequences of their bad actions in the past.

drink like a fish Informal

If someone drinks like a fish, they drink a lot of alcohol.

eyes like a hawk

If someone has eyes like a hawk, they have very good eyesight and they notice everything.

kill two birds with one stone

If you kill two birds with one stone, you achieve two things with the one action.

let the cat out of the bag

If you let the cat out of the bag, you let someone know a secret.

like a fish out of water

You feel like a fish out of water if you're surrounded by people who are different to you, and it makes you feel a little uncomfortable.

quiet as a mouse

If you're as quiet as a mouse, you're very quiet.

sick as a dog

If you're as sick as a dog, you're very sick.

take the bull by the horns

If you take the bull by the horns, you deal with a problem or a challenge in a direct and fearless way.

talk turkey

If you talk turkey, you discuss something seriously, usually to do with business or money.

the lion's share

You can say something is the lion's share if it's the biggest share or portion of something.

the rat race

The rat race is the highly competitive and stressful world of work and business.


taken from: http://www.englishclub.com

Dynamic Togetherness in The 34th Bali Arts Festival

The fabled island of Bali will this year again roll out the annual Bali Arts Festival to be held from 9 June to 7 July 2012, at Denpasar, capital of Bali. For one full month, the best of Bali’s dances, music, and artistic expressions will be on display as this tourist paradise showcases its best cultural presentations. There are daily performances of dance and music alongside countless related cultural and commercial activities during which literally the whole of Bali comes to the city to present its offerings of dance, music and beauty.

 

Trance dances, classical court dances, stars of Balinese cultural stage, odd village dances, food and offerings contests, and modern innovations on classical dances, flower arrangements, fashion shows, films, and more are on the month-long agenda. Cultural performances from other Indonesian provinces including Central Kalimantan, North Sumatra, East Java, Riau, Jakarta, Solo and many others will also be presented, bringing their own traditional as well as most contemporary choreographs.  

In Bali, for months now competitions have been held in villages to select their best cultural groups to vie for a slot in the Arts Festival to perform in front of large international crowds who have thronged to the island.

For its 34^th Bali Arts festival, organizers have chosen as theme of the Festival : “Paras-Paros”, Dynamic Togetherness. The event itself will be highlighted with fascinating features among which are dance dramas (Sendratari), Bali Modern theater, Gong Kebyar maestro, photography Workshops, culinary festivals, and musical performances. There will also be exciting competitions such as documentary movie competitions, handicraft competitions, literary writing, painting, photography competitions. Parades and processions will also be presented including the Parade of Flowers and coconut leaves arrangements, a culinary and fashion Parade, Nglawang Parade, Dramatari Arja Parade, Gong Kebyar Parade, Semara Pagulingan Parade, Joged Bumbung Parade, and many others.  

Each year, at the Bali Arts Festival  are featured classical dances of the island, such as the legong, gambuh, kecak, barong, baris, mask dances and the like, on which contemporary dance choreographs have been created and old village dances and activities revived. Over the years, the whole range of classical Balinese folk stories – such as the Ramayana, Mahabharata, Sutasoma, Panji - have thus been turned into "colossal Dance dramas” known as Sendratari.

While major performances are held at the amphitheater which can hold up to 6,000 spectators in a temple-like stage, others are held at locations across the city and surrounding areas. Since most of the art and cultural activities in Bali are motivated by religious devotion, artists will attempt to create their best works.

Through its 34 years history, the Bali Arts Festival has been a media to rediscover and preserve the unique and celebrated arts and culture of Bali, at the same time increase its people’s welfare. Through this special annual event, it is hoped that the true authentic wisdom and philosophy of the people of Bali will not only be preserved but will also grow and spread to other parts of the world.

The History of the Bali Arts Festival

When tourism took off after 1965, the Balinese insisted that it followed cultural guidelines: if tourism was to be accepted, it was to be a cultural tourism, or "pariwisata budaya".

As the Balinese statement: "Tourism should be for Bali instead of Bali for tourism." In time, this idea becomes national policy, as part of a larger reaping of regional cultures for national purposes. The policy owes much to the former Director General of Culture (1968-1978) and Governor of Bali (1978-1988), Ida Bagus Mantra, an Indian-educed Balinese. It led, on the one side, to the creation of enclave resorts such as Nusa Dua to limit the direct impact of tourism, and on the other, to a long haul cultural policy aimed at nurturing and preserving the traditional agrarian culture while adapting it to the demands of modernity, and in particular of "cultural tourism".

At the village level, local music groups, dances and other cultural events were inventoried, and then supported by a series of contests at the district and regency level. The ensuing competition energized the cultural life of villages, whose "young blood" was already being drained to the city by the process of economic change and urbanization.

Schools of dance and art were created, in particular the Kokar conservatory and the STSI School of Dance and Music. Beside research, these schools replaced the traditional master/disciple relationship by modern methods of teaching; standardized the dance movements, produced new types of Balinese dances for tourism and modern village entertainment. Most important, it enabled former students to return to the villages as teachers, where they diffused, beside the creed of cultural resilience and renewal, new dances and standardized versions of old ones.

Many of the performances are held at the amphitheater which can hold up to 6,000 spectators, in a temple-like stage. Each year, the Bali Arts Festival, beside the fed classical dances of the island, such as the legong, gambuh, kecak, barong, baris, mask dances and the like, is based on the theme around which new "dance choreography" is produced and old village dances and activities revived. Over the years, the whole range of classical Balinese stories - Ramayana, Mahabharata, Sutasoma, Panji - have thus been turned into "colossal" Sendratari Ballets.

The main challenge to the Arts Festival is obviously economic in nature. As village life is increasingly feeling the strains of monetary considerations, dancers, musicians and others cannot be expected to continue participating simply for the sake and the pleasure of it. As costs soar, new sources of financing have to be found. The obvious answer is the private sector and in particular the tourism industry. The greater task then is to convince the hotels, travel agencies and tourist guides to be more participatory in the Arts Festival rather than to their own sponsored events.

Considering the pride the Balinese have in their culture, and the adaptability and dynamism they have always demonstrated, this little hurdle can be overcome. Trust the Balinese. They will eventually succeed to transform their tradition into a modern, Balinese culture of their own.

Well guys, the Bali Arts Festival is a full month of daily performances, handicraft exhibitions and other related cultural and commercial activities during which literally the whole of Bali comes to the city to present its offerings of dance, music and beauty. It is a month long revelry that perhaps no other place in the world can put up on such a low budget as the Balinese. Not only their traditional culture is alive and well, but they have a tremendous pride also in it.

It begins in the villages, where the sekaa or cultural groups are selected and organized at the regency level, vie with each other to perform the Arts Festival and thus display in front of a large audience the uniqueness of their village of birth and resting place of their ancestors.

The Bali Arts Festival is the Denpasar cultural event of the year; perhaps it would not be too farfetched to suggest that it is the cultural event of Indonesia. The festival is thus a unique opportunity to see local village culture both "live" and at first hand. Tourists are warmly welcomed.

'a' or 'the'??? (•͡˘˛˘ •͡)

In English, knowing when to use ‘a’ or ‘the’ can be difficult. Fortunately, there are rules to help you, but you need to know what type of noun you are using on.

Grammar Rule 1

When you have a single countable English noun, you must always have an article before it. We cannot say “please pass me pen”, we must say “please pass me the pen” or “please pass me a pen” or “please pass me your pen”.

Nouns in English can also be uncountable. Uncountable nouns can be concepts, such as ‘life’, ‘happiness’ and so on, or materials and substances, such as ‘coffee’ or ‘wood’.

Grammar Rule 2

Uncountable nouns do not use ‘a’ or ‘an’. This is because you can’t count them. For example, advice is an uncountable noun. You can’t say “he gave me an advice”, but you can say “he gave me some advice”, or “he gave me a piece of advice”.

Some nouns can be both countable and uncountable. For example, we say “coffee” meaning the product, but we say “a coffee” when asking for one cup of coffee.

Grammar Rule 3

You can use ‘the’ to make general thing specific. You can use ‘the’ with any type of noun – plural or singular, countable or uncountable.

·        “Please pass me a pen” – any pen.

“Please pass me the pen” – the one that we can both see

·        “Children grow up quickly” – children in general

“The children I know grow up quickly” – not all children, only the ones I know.

·        “Poetry can be beautiful” – poetry in general.

“The poetry of Hopkins in beautiful” – I’m only talking about the poetry Hopkins wrote.

**More Uses of Articles in English**

•      Rivers, mountains ranges, seas, oceans and geographic areas all use ‘the’.

For examples, “The Thames”, “The Alps”, “The Atlantic Ocean”, “The Middle East”.

•      Unique things have ‘the’.

For example, “the sun”, “the moon”.

•      Some institutional buildings don’t have an article if you visit them for the reason these buildings exist. But if you go to the building for another reason, you must use ‘the’.

For examples:

a.      “Her husband is in prison.” (He is a prisoner.)

“She goes to the prison to see him once a month.”

b.      “My son is in school.”

“I’m going to the school to see the head master.”

c.      “She’s in the hospital at the moment.” (She is ill.)

Her husband goes to the hospital to see her every afternoon.”

•      Musical instruments use ‘the’.

“She plays the piano.”

•      Sports don’t have an article

“He plays football.”

•      Illness don’t have an article.

“He’s got appendicitis.”

But we say “a cold” and “a headache”.

•      Jobs use ‘a’.

“I’m a teacher.”

•      Countries

We don’t use ‘a’ if the country is singular.

“He lives in England.” But if the country’s name has a “plural” meaning, we use ‘the’. “The peoples of Republic of China”, The Netherlands”, “The United States of America

•      Continents, towns and streets don’t have an article.

“Africa”, “New York”, “Churchil Street”.

•      Theatres, cinemas and hotels have ‘the’.

“The Odeon”, The Almeira”, “The Hilton”.

•      Abbreviations use ‘the’.

“the UN”, “the USA”, “the IMF”.

•       We use ‘the’ before classes of people.

“the rich”, “the poor”, “the British”.

**taken from: http://www.google.co.id

Bali Biggest Waterfall_ The Wonderful Gitgit Waterfall

Brief Description

Gitgit Waterfall is a beautiful tourist destination in north part of Bali. Gitgit waterfall is located in the plateau area with the height about 35 meters and it is surrounded by tropical tree and emits the constantly natural water debit during the year. Waterfall voice around the charming nature was amazing and it was the separate attraction which can be enjoyed by each visitor who comes to visit. There are some plantations protecting the rain forest around the waterfall and in this place we often met the wild monkey to get the water from this waterfall.

This is truly a scenic site, not to be missed if you visit Bali especially Singaraja regency. It just as the road begins to head down the mountain to Singaraja, it is easily accessible. It takes quite a long walk down many steps is definitely worth the trip! A side from the waterfall's majestic beauty, it beholds a visual revelation.

Destination in North Part of Bali 

Gitgit Waterfall is one of the famous tourist destinations in Bali which is located in Gitgit countryside, Sukasada sub district and about 10 Km from Singaraja Town or about 70 Km from Denpasar. It is set at height land about 300 meters above sea level. This 45-meter-high waterfall is indisputably the biggest waterfall in Bali and Gitgit waterfall not only offers you one waterfall but three, the second waterfall can be found along the way to the third waterfall. You have to take a scenic hike 2 km uphill from the main fall to reach the third waterfall.

The entrance to this waterfall is marked by a small sign on the side of the road. To reach the waterfall you have to walk a narrow dirt path, lined with Souvenir and drink stalls, but beyond these stalls, lush green surroundings are ready to soothe your eyes. Beside of Gitgit, there is another important spot point like the monument for hero struggle of Singaraja resident who dead on the battle against the Dutch colonialist. This monument is called Bhuwana Pangkung Bangka. This Monument is extant monument and idol of people struggle action against the Dutch colonization. This monument is located in Gitgit countryside and Sukasada sub district and about 17 Km from Singaraja Town .

Waterfall voice around the charming nature was amazing and it was the separate attraction which can be enjoyed by each visitor who comes to visit. There are some plantations protecting the rain forest around the waterfall and in this place we often met the wild monkey to get the water from this waterfall. It is situated on the hill bank. The facilities are available at Gitgit Waterfall is consisted of the parking area, restaurant and art shop. It is not far from the waterfall place, there is a place for taking a rest while enjoy the beauty panorama of rice terrace and Buleleng Beach. In order to visit the Gitgit waterfall, all visitors will follow the walkway down until the spot point. This road is one of the omissions in Dutch era where the local resident uses it to access other regions. On 1975, this waterfall is opened as tourist destinations in north part of Bali . Since it is appointed as a tourist destination in Bali, many tourists from domestic and foreign countries visits this waterfall and Bali Singaraja Lovina Tour is one of the famous tours in Bali visit this place until nowadays.

Temple in Gitgit Waterfall

Gitgit Rain Forest

Gitgit Ricefield

Gitgit River

Iguazu Falls_ one of the winners of the New Seven Wonders of Nature by the New Seven Wonders of the World Foundation

Iguazu Falls, in Iguazu River, are one of the world's largest waterfalls. They extend over 2,700 m (nearly 2 miles) in a semi-circular shape. Of the 275 falls that collectively make up Iguassu Falls, "Devil's Throat" is the tallest at 80 m in height. Iguazu Falls are on the border between the Brazilian state of Paraná and the Argentine province of Misiones, and are surrounded by two National Parks (BR/ARG). Both are subtropical rainforests that are host to hundreds of rare and endangered species of flora and fauna. 

Iguazu Falls is located where the Iguazu River tumbles over the edge of the Paraná Plateau, 23 kilometres upriver from the Iguazu's confluence with the Paraná River. Numerous islands along the 2.7-kilometre long edge divide the falls into numerous separate waterfalls and cataracts, varying between 60 metres (200 ft) and 82 metres (269 ft) high. The number of these smaller waterfalls fluctuates from 150 to 300, depending on the water level. About half of the river's flow falls into a long and narrow chasm called the Devil's Throat (Garganta del Diablo in Spanish or Garganta do Diabo in Portuguese). The Devil's Throat is U-shaped, 82-meter-high, 150-meter-wide, and 700-meter-long. Placenames have been given also to many other smaller falls, such as San Martin Falls, Bossetti Falls and many others.

About 900 meters of the 2.7-kilometer length does not have water flowing over it. The edge of the basalt cap recedes by 3 mm (0.1 in) per year. The water of the lower Iguazu collects in a canyon that drains in the Paraná River, a short distance downstream from the Itaipu Dam. The junction of the water flows marks the border between Brazil, Argentina, and Paraguay. There are points in the cities of Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil, Puerto Iguazú, Argentina, and Ciudad del Este, Paraguay, which have access to the Iguazu River where the borders of all three countries can be seen, a popular tourist attraction for visitors to the three cities.

Iguazú Falls from the Argentine side

 

Distribution of the fall between Argentina and Brazil

The Iguazu Falls are arranged in a way that seems a reverse J. The border between Brazil and Argentina runs through the Devil's Throat. On the right bank is the Brazilian territory, which has just over 20% of the jumps of these falls, and the left side jumps are Argentines, which make up almost 80% of the falls.

There are two international airports close to Iguazú Falls: the Argentine Cataratas del Iguazú International Airport (IGR) and the Brazilian Foz do Iguaçu International Airport (IGU). Argentina's airport is 25 kilometers from the city of Iguazu but closer to the Falls hotels than its Brazilian counterpart, there is bus and taxi service from and to the Airport-Falls. Brazil's airport is between Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil and the falls. LAN Airlines and Aerolíneas Argentinas have direct flights from Buenos Aires to Iguazu International Airport Krause and several Brazilian airlines as TAM Airlines, GOL, Azul, WebJet offer service from the main Brazilian cities to Foz do Iguaçu.

 

Panorama of the Fall

 Access

 The falls can be reached from the two main towns on either side of the falls: Puerto Iguazú in the Argentina and Foz do Iguaçu in Brazil, as well as from Ciudad del Este, Paraguay on the other side of the Paraná river from Foz do Iguaçu. The falls are shared by the Iguazú National Park (Argentina) and Iguaçu National Park (Brazil). The two parks were designated UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1984 and 1987, respectively.

The first proposal for a Brazilian national park aimed at providing a pristine environment to "future generations", just as "it had been created by God" and endowed with "all possible preservation, from the beautiful to the sublime, from the picturesque to the awesome" and "an unmatched flora" located in the "magnificent Iguaçú waterfalls". These were the words used by Andre Rebouças, an engineer, in his book "Provinces of Paraná, Railways to Mato Grosso and Bolivia", which started up the campaign aimed at preserving the Iguaçu Falls in 1876, when Yellowstone National Park, the first national park on the planet, was four years old.

The Argentinian side has wider views of the falls. On the Brazilian side there is a walkway along the canyon with an extension to the lower base of the Devil's Throat and helicopter rides offering aerial views of the falls are available. Argentina has prohibited such helicopter tours because of the environmental impact on the flora and fauna of the falls. From Foz do Iguaçu airport the park can be reached by taxi or bus to entrance of the park. There is an entrance fee to the park on both sides. Free frequent buses are provided to various points within the park. The town of Foz do Iguaçu is about 20 kilometres away and the airport is in between the park and the town.

The Argentine access across the forest is by a Rainforest Ecological Train very similar to the one in Disney's Animal Kingdom. The train brings visitors to the entrance of Devil's Throat as well as the upper and lower trails. The Paseo Garganta del Diablo is a one-kilometer-long trail that brings the visitor directly over the falls of the Devil's Throat, the highest and deepest of the falls. Other walkways allow access to the elongated stretch of falls across the forest on the Argentine side and to the boats that connect to San Martin Island. Also on the Argentinian side there is inflatable boats service that takes visitors right under the falls.

The Brazilian transportation system aims at allowing the increase in the number of visitors while reducing the environmental impact through the increase in the average number of passengers per vehicle inside the Park. The new transportation system boasts new 72 passenger panoramic view double deck buses. The upper deck is open, which enables visitors a broad view of the flora and fauna during the trip to the falls. The buses' combustion systems are in compliance with the CONAMA (phase IV) and EURO (phase II) emissions and noise requirements. The reduction in the number of vehicles, of noise levels and of speed is enabling tourists to observe increasing numbers of wild animals along the route. Each bus has an exclusive paint scheme, representing some of the most common wild animals found in the Iguaçú National Park, including the spotted jaguars, butterflies, raccoons, prego monkeys, coral snakes, toucans, parrots and yellow breasted caimans.

Walkways allow close views of the falls from both Argentina and Brazil.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comparisons to Other Famous Falls

Upon seeing Iguazu, the United States' First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt reportedly exclaimed "Poor Niagara!" Iguazu is also often compared with Southern Africa's Victoria Falls which separates Zambia and Zimbabwe. Iguazu is wider, but because it is split into about 275 discrete falls and large islands, Victoria is the largest curtain of water in the world, at over 1,600 m (5,249 ft) wide and over 100 m (328 ft) in height (in low flow Victoria is split into five by islands; in high flow it can be uninterrupted). The only wider falls are extremely large rapid-like falls such as the Boyoma Falls.

With the flooding of the Guaíra Falls in 1982, Iguazu currently has the second greatest average annual flow of any waterfall in the world, after Niagara, with an average rate of 1,746 m³/s (61,660 cu ft). Its maximum recorded flow was 12,800 m³/s (452,000 cu ft/s). By comparison, the average flow of Niagara Falls is 2,400 m³/s (85,000 cu ft), with a maximum recorded flow of 8,300 m³/s (293,000 cu ft/s). The average flow at Victoria Falls is 1,088 m³/s (38,420 cu ft/s), with a maximum recorded flow of 7,100 m³/s (250,000 cu ft/s).

Mist rises between 30 metres (98 ft) and 150 m (492 ft) from Iguazu's Devil's Throat, and over 300 m (984 ft) above Victoria. However, Iguazu affords better views and walkways and its shape allows for spectacular vistas. At one point a person can stand and be surrounded by 260 degrees of waterfalls. The Devil's Throat in Argentina has water pouring into it from three sides. Likewise, because Iguazu is split into many relatively small falls, one can view a portion at a time. Victoria does not allow this, as it is essentially one waterfall that falls into a canyon and is too immense to appreciate at once (except from the air).

 
On November 11 of 2011, Iguazu Falls was announced as one of the seven winners of the New Seven Wonders of Nature by the New Seven Wonders of the World Foundation.

Iguazu Falls

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Falls and Brazilian tourist complex

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Iguazu Falls, one of the Seven Wonders of Nature