My Best Summer Vacation

Plaza Mayor, Madrid

Summer is a season for adventure, fun, love, and so much more. The summer of 2011 is an unforgettable one for me. I traveled to Spain in a program that my school offered. This was the first time I was traveling to Europe. I was very anxious because I was going to live with a family that I did not know for an entire month! When I was packing my luggage, I tried to make sure that I packed everything I needed. I ended up bringing two suitcases with me. 

Eiffel Tower, Paris

We took a plane for about seven hours. I watched two movies, I read half of one of my favorite books, took pictures with my friend, and slept, hoping to make this ride shorter. It sure was a long ride! The first night, we stayed in a hotel in the capital of Spain, Madrid. We watched a flamenco show and we ate dinner in a traditional restaurant. The next day, we walked throughout the city and visited some museums. On the third day, we left to Leon, the city where we stayed for the remaining of the time. In Leon, our host families flamenco us in front of one of the buildings of the University. We took classes during the morning and in the afternoon we went on excursions. We visited caves, museums, cathedrals, and many other places.  One weekend, my friends and I decided to go to Paris. We took a plane. Paris was really nice. I loved all the buildings, the Eiffel Tower, eating crepes on the streets, and visiting the Louvre Museum. I also bought many souvenirs to bring home to my family.  These are memories that I will cherish forever. 

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Vocabualry:

To be anxious:(verb) when someone is very concerned about something
Luggage: (noun) suitcases or other bags in which to pack personal belongings for traveling.Entire (adjective) : with no part left out; whole.To end up (Phrasal verb): to reach a particular place or achieve a situation after other activities.
Flamenco (noun): A Traditional dance from SpainExcursions (noun): a short journey or trip, especially one engaged in as a leisure activity.To cherish (verb): To keep (a hope or ambition) in one's mind.Souvenirs (noun): a thing that is kept as a reminder of a person, place, or event.

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Grammar note: The simple past tense

• Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an action started and finished at a specific time in the past. Sometimes, the speaker may not actually mention the specific time, but they do have one specific time in mind.

• The past tense of regular verbs is made by adding -d or -ed to the base form of the verb, while those of irregular verbs are formed in various different ways (such as see→saw, go→went, be→was/were).

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Now let's practice!  

Complete the following sentences with correct form of the verb in the past:

1) In the summer of 2001, I (go) ________________________ to Spain. 

2) I (travel) _________________________ with my friends from school. 

3) My school (offer)______________________ a trip in the summer. 

4) I (be) ________________________ very anxious. 

5) I (pack) ______________________ all my clothes for the tip.

6) We (take) ____________________ a plane for seven hours. 

7) We (visit)____________________ many places in Spain and Paris. 

8) I (read)______________________ a book on the plane. 

9) I (watch) ___________________ a movie on the plane. 

10) We (take) _________________ classes in the morning. 

Follow this link for more fun practice! 

http://www.myenglishpages.com/site_php_files/grammar-exercise-simple-past.php#.VQbXbo7F_Zc

About The Writer

Surfing the internet, sometimes I come across blogs, and I wonder, who are the people behind the screen? Therefore, I decided to write a little introduction about myself in my blog. My name is Angelica Rodriguez. I was born and raised in the Dominican Republic. I am a Spanish teacher in New York City. Currently, I am pursuing my master's degree in ESL education (K-12). Learning English has been an ongoing journey for the past ten years. I can describe myself with three words: I am a go-getter. Being a first year teacher, and also a first time mom, I have come to the conclusion that it is my nature to love, to live, to learn, to grow, to help others, to teach, to explore, to be fascinated with the unknown, to seek compassion for justice,to see the greatness in everyone, to find beauty in anything,and last, to be intense and passionate with life itself.

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Vocabulary: 
To love: an intense feeling of deep affection
To live: make one's home in a particular place or with a particular person
To learn:gain or acquire knowledge of or skill in (something) by study, experience, or being taught.
To grow: undergo natural development by increasing in size and changing physically; progress to maturity.
To help: to make it easier for (someone) to do something by offering one's services or resources.
To teach: show or explain to (someone) how to do something.
To explore: travel in or through (an unfamiliar country or area) in order to learn about or familiarize oneself with it.
To see: perceive with the eyes; discern visually.
To find: discover or perceive by chance or unexpectedly.
To be: to exist.
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Grammar Point:

Infinitive verbs

Do you know the difference between an infinitive verb and a base verb? Or, do you know when and how do you use infinitive verbs? These questions, and their answers are the key to understanding the uses of an infinitive verb.
Basically, an infinitive verb is a verb with the word "to" in front of it. For example: to have, to do, to be, etc. 

There are several ways to use infinitive verbs. You can use them:

1. as the subject of a sentence- To forgive is great. 

2. like an adjective or adverb that express purpose- My instructions are to remove the tape. 

3. following a direct object- I have to give this to you.

4. following other verbs-Ex:(afford) I can't afford to buy this

Important Note: Because an infinitive verb is a verb at its simplest form, you cannot add s, es, ed, or -ing to the end. Ever!

Let's review!

1. An infinitive is ___________________________________.

2. I can use infinitive verbs: _________________________________, ___________________________________, ____________________________, ____________________________________________.

3. Some examples of verbs that are in the infinitive form are: 

______________________________          ____________________________

______________________________          ____________________________

______________________________          ____________________________

______________________________          ___________________________ 

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