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Hello, I'm Hristo from Bulgaria, and the question is when do people give gifts in your country?In my country there are many occasions to give gifts, such as weddings, birthdays, one really interesting occasion is the "Name Day". The "Name Day" is the day of your saint, the saint that you carry the name of. And on that day, besides bringing gifts, you can go to visit the person who has a "Name Day", uninvited. So, if you happen to have a "Name Day", you can expect many of your friends showing up.

Hi, I'm Aray from Kazakhstan. So today's question is what is the last gift you received?Actually I hardly remember what the gift was 'cause I'm not that kind of person that having great fun from receiving gifts. So, I mostly like presenting a gift to somebody. That makes me more happy.What about you, do you like getting gifts?

Hi, I'm Aray from Kazakhstan. So the question is what's your favorite holiday?Actually, in Kazakhstan we have many holidays, but the most favorite holiday for me is Nauryz. Nauryz is translated as "New Year" so basically we celebrate it, New Year, two times, in winter and in spring. So, Nauryz is held in March, everybody has a great fun, especially children like this holiday.

Hello, this is Ivan from Indonesia, speaking for. So, what is my favorite holiday?I should say it's the Ramadan holiday. So, the Ramadan holiday usually happens in the latter two weeks in the month of Ramadan. So, if you don't know about Ramadan it's actually a holy month in Islam, where you do fasting from day starts to day end, from sunrise to sunset, and not only the latter two weeks, usually after the month is over we have the holiday for another two weeks, you know to give us some time to visit our relatives and celebrate the end of the holy month together.

Hello, this is Three and the question of today is Santa Claus popular in your country?Santa Claus was not popular when I was a kid however, recently, influenced from the Western culture Christmas is celebrated by everyone despite their religion and Santa Claus has become more and more popular with kids. Some rich families even pay Santa Claus to come to their houses and give their kids presents.However, I think that Vietnamese Santa Claus is much smaller and thinner compared with those from Western countries.

Hello, my name is Mike from Canada and this is for. The question is did you believe in Santa as a kid?Yes, I did believe in Santa as a kid and although I had my suspicions, I wanted to believe in Santa because without Santa Christmas doesn't seem special. But one unfortunate Christmas, about a week before Christmas day, I was in the pantry looking for cereal and I stumbled upon a number of pre-wrapped presents labeled from Santa. This basically shattered all my dreams and from then on it's been a downward spiral.

Hello, I'm Hristo from Bulgaria, and the question is tourism big in your country?Tourism is a pretty big business in my country. Bulgaria is in Eastern Europe and many Western Europeans come for their vacations, either on the seaside or in the mountains. Many people in Bulgaria have their income out of tourists. Bulgaria has many, many tourist spots and it's very cheaper, it's cheaper relatively to, compared to Western Europe, so many people visit Bulgaria.

Hi, I'm Aray, I'm from Kazakhstan. So the question is what is the best way to learn language?So I myself know three languages. My native language is Kazakh, and I also know Russian and English. So, I think the best way to learn language is just to get to that environment and I think it helps much. Like nowadays, I am in Japan, and I'm trying hard to learn Japanese, and the environment is helping me much. Everybody's speaking in Japanese so that helps me to learn better and improve my language.

Hello, this is Ivan from Indonesia, and I'm speaking for.So, work or study abroad. It's kinda difficult question for me, but I should say that at least for these three or two years, forward I prefer to study abroad because you know, studying is a great chance to allow us getting network and do any kinds of thing in a more flexible way other than working where you have more constraint, so yeah, I think that's the plan that I have for these next two or three years.

Hello, this is Fred from Canada, and my question is do you eat lots of veggies?Question 834. I love veggies, I am...I'm... I could be vegetarian, I'm not a vegetarian 'cause I love meat, but I could be, because I love veggies just that much. Why? Because I find them tasty, and I know that they're good for me, and so that's why I like them very much. I love veggies.

Hello, this is Three from Vietnam, and the question of today is do you eat a lot of veggies?When I was a kid, I use to have veggies. I didn't like eating eggplants, lettuce, or bean sprouts. However, since I move alone, I try different kinds of recipes and found that veggies are not that bad. Actually, veggies provide a lot of vitamins necessary for your body. Besides, I'm sure that eating a fresh bowl of salad always makes your body feel healthy and happy.

Hello, this is Fred from Canada and my question is what do you do to stay healthy?Oh, wow, well, I do many things to stay healthy. For example, I sleep a lot. I enjoy sleeping. Many hours it's good for you. I like to eat a lot, oh and also, I eat at proper times of the day, so three times a day, and always at the same time, and I think that is also very good for my health, and of course I do a lot of exercises as well, so that's what I do to stay healthy.

Hello everyone, this is Ivan from Indonesia, and I'm speaking for. So, do I like tennis?I can't really say that I like tennis, but it's just that my name, which is Ivan, is actually taken from a famous tennis player, which is he was famous during the time I was born, 1985, and my father was a really avid tennis fan. So he took the name, and put it into my name, and at times he kinda you know, invite me to play tennis and I play once in a while, but I'm not really doing it in a regular basis.

Hi, my name is Mike, from Canada, and this is for. The question is what did you do for fun in high school?Well, most people would say that they partied, and they hung out with friends, but aside from that, for me I tried to stay busy, that was what was fun for me. So, in terms of staying busy, sports was the best way to do it. So for my last two years in high school I played rugby, so I would have practice a couple times a week, and throughout my high school I was in a competitive tennis program. So I was probably playing tennis about five times a week, sometimes in the morning before school. So that kept me busy, and kept my life exciting, and that's what I did for fun in high school.

Hello, this is Fred from Canada, and my question is when do kids have parties in your country?Question #829. When do kids have parties in my country...?Well, if you're talking about kids, younger kids, well they have parties on their birthdays maybe, and it's usually the parents that organize at the house, and so all their friends come, and then maybe we eat something, and we play in the yard, and maybe we have cake at the end and everybody goes home. But, if you talk about older kids, like teenagers, well I think they party every weekend. So, that's a little bit different than younger kids. And what they would do, they would usually maybe go dancing or just hang out on weekends with their friends.

Hello, I'm Hristo from Bulgaria, and the question is are you afraid of insects?I'm not afraid of insects, and as a boy, like probably every little boy, I was often playing with them, putting them in jars, and watching them feed. So I'm not very afraid, but I had this one experience with huge beetle which came into my room and startled me by bumping into my forehead. So, that was a pretty scary experience.

Hello everyone, this is Ivan from Indonesia, and I'm speaking for. So, what pets do I like?It's a kind of difficult question, because I don't really have pets in my house, unless something that my mother do, which is she likes to, you know, have animals in the house. But personally, if I have the chance, have the time, and you know, I think I would try to adopt cats, because I think you know, they're kind of cute. You know, I like especially the bobcat, where you have this cat with fluffy cheeks, and yeah, I think cats are one pet that I would like to have.

Hello, this is Three from Vietnam, and the question of today is have you ever had a cat?I used to have a cat when I was a child, I used to play a lot with my cat, and even got scratches on my face. My parent got very angry about that. Some people think cats are cold, distant, and only come to you when you give them food. However, I find cats kinda cute, fluffy to touch.How about you? Do you prefer a cat or a dog?

Hello, this is Three from Vietnam, and the question of today is how much would you spend on a hotel?For me, from thirty to fifty dollar a day is reasonable. As a backpacker, I'd like to stay in a cheap hotel and prepare for my next adventure. Back to my country, Vietnam, you can find a well-equipped hotel in the center for only ten dollar a day. However, I'd like to stay in five-star hotel for one day. Maybe my dream will come true after I have graduated and earn some money.

Hello, this is Three from Vietnam, and the question of today is where do you shop for bargains?I could say the best place to shop for bargain is online shop, because a lot of money is saved from opening a real shop and hiring real employees. Online shops tend to provide the same product with cheaper price. You can even compare price of one product between different shops, watch the price changing, and buy it when it's with the lowest. Then you just stay at home, wait a few days for your stuff to come.

Hi, my name is Mike, from Canada, and this is for. The question is are you a beach bum?Immediately I would have to answer no, I'm not a beach bum, but I do love the beach. Summer is my favorite season of the year, because it has nice enough weather to go to the beach. Go to the beach, bring a cooler full of drinks, some music, some food, and you're set for the day. One story I have about the beach unfortunately is, I like to drive my car onto the beach, to get the best view possible. And one night with my friends, drove the car next to the water, got stuck, ended up having to call the tow truck. That tow truck came onto the beach, got stuck itself, had to be pulled out and I had to wait 'til 6 o'clock in the morning until the one tow truck in the city that had a long enough line could pull me out. That was one unfortunate beach experience, but aside from that I can say I do love the beach.

Hello everyone, this is Ivan from Indonesia, and I'm speaking for. So, is my country multicultural?I should say yes, because we have 200-something of tribes, and also 200-something of language. And, even though we are really diverse, we don't really, you know, spend that much time to, you know, get along and to know a lot more of each other, because we are, you know, an island nation, so I think it's you know, would be very interesting, if you know, I can do something where I can have people from around Indonesia to, you know, go to one place and you know, study and learn and communicate each other.

Hello, this is Three from Vietnam, and the question of today is do you prefer the city or the country?Being born and grow up in the city, I say I prefer the city. This is where you can find almost everything. However, as I go to the university, and now living in the countryside, I found life here is not that bad as I imagined. The living expense here is low, the air is fresh, and life in countryside seems to be less busy than in the city. How about you? Do you prefer city or country?

Hello this is Todd for. I'm from the United States, and today the question is can you remember a bad day?Well, I've had many bad days. I can't remember a bad day, but I definitely remember a bad night. Years ago in high school, I went to a baseball game with my friends, and I was driving. At first we were late to the baseball game. We were stuck in traffic, and then it started to rain. When we got to the baseball game, they postponed the game because of rain, so then we sat in our seats for about an hour in the rain, and then they cancelled the game, so we didn't even have a game to watch, and then on the way home, cause it was raining and the roads were wet, my car slid on the highway, and I got in a car accident, completely ruined my car, and I had to have my car towed home, and then I had to take a bus home. I got home really late, and the bus station was about four miles from my house where I lived, and I had to walk home, so it was a pretty terrible night. That would probably be my worst night.

Hello, I'm Hristo from Bulgaria, and the question is what is your favorite music band?One of my favorite music bands is Nirvana. They play a type of alternative rock music, and I find their music to be filled with energy, which always brings me to good mood. I often like to sing their songs in karaoke. Unfortunately, the lead singer of the band committed suicide around 10 years ago.

Hi, I'm Aray, I'm from Kazakhstan. So the question is how often do you listen to live music?So actually, I'm a kind of busy person, and sometimes I have no time to go outside and listen live music. But I think listening live music is very, very nice. Like, you can enjoy the live music, and as a notion, I just can listen the MP3 player which is always with me.

Hello everyone, this is Ivan from Indonesia, speaking for,  So, do I want to be a rock star?I should say that I want to give it a try, because lately I watch a lot of live concert videos from Youtube. For example, Limp Bizkit, Korn, and sometimes I watch, like Metallica, and you know I think it's kinda interesting to know how it feels to be having a life like them. You know, going from concert to concert, going from one country to another. I think it would be a great experience, so yeah I would like to give it a shot if I have the chance.

Who is your favorite artist?My favorite artist is Erykah Badu. She is an African-American singer. She sings soul. She's a soul singer, and I like her because I think she is really deep and sensitive and her lyrics always touch me, and, yeah, I really love her philosophy and the way she sees the world so, yeah.

Hi, my name is Mike, from Canada, and this is for. My question today is what are some popular musicians from your country?Well, from Canada, there are very limited amount of popular musicians, because it is very hard to become big in Canada. Unless you have rights to sell your music in the United States, it has a very tough system where musicians struggle to become famous. But there are a few famous musicians that came out of Canada. To name a few, Shania Twain, Celine Dion, and I'm sure most people have heard of Avril Lavigne. These are some of America's people that America just wishes they were American because they're so famous and so popular, and I can definitely say that I'm proud that these amazing singers come from my country.

Hello, this is Fred from Canada, and my question is would you like to take dance lessons? Question #812.Actually, I love dancing, and taking dancing lessons is also something that I enjoy, but I also enjoy teaching dancing. So what I do on my free time is if people are interested, I like to teach Latin dancing such as salsa, merengue, and things like that. So, I really love it and maybe one day you can come and we can dance together.

Hello, I'm Hristo from Bulgaria, and the question is do you like dancing?I enjoy dancing very much, unfortunately, I'm not very good at it. I always wanted to take some professional lessons but never had the time. Nevertheless, I always dance when I go out in the clubs, and I often even dance by myself, at home.

Hi, I'm Aray from Kazakhstan. So the question is does your country has a traditional dance?Of course, every country has its own traditional dance, and in Kazakhstan, we have also traditional dance. Like the most popular dance for me I think is kamazhay. So kamazhay is mostly danced by girls, and it's very, very beautiful, and it's not so complicated, it's not so difficult, everybody can just try and learn it.

Hi, my name is Mike, from Canada, and this is for. My question is what is the most dangerous animal in your country?Well I'm from Canada, and I can definitely say the most dangerous animal in Canada are the beavers. Now you wouldn't expect beavers to be dangerous. They gnaw away at trees, they make dams, they swim very well underwater. But these vicious animals with these two long teeth coming out the front of their mouth, if you get too close, well those teeth might result in the loss of an arm, or you know, damage to your face. So as much as Canada is a great place, if you do go to Canada I do warn against these extremely dangerous animals. Please do be careful.

Hello, I'm Hristo from Bulgaria, and the question is what are some wild animals in your area?In Bulgaria, there used to be many wild animals, but due to often hunting, over-hunting, now most of them are really rarey seen. I personally like going to the mountains, and I have seen a bear, and I've seen a deer, but usually it's really rarely that you can see any wild animals in Bulgaria, unfortunately.

Hi, I'm Aray, I'm from Kazakhstan. So the following question is have you ever camped in the wilderness?Yeah, I've got one more experience, like mmm, when I was a teenager, I with my friends we went in the nature, and we spent the whole day, so we got a great fun. We did fishing, we played different games, it was really nice.

Hello, this is Fred from Canada, and my question #806, what is a nice city you've visited?Well, um, I think for me, recently one of the nicest cities was Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates. It was a very nice city because they have the most luxurious hotel in the world called Burj Al Arab, it was very nice and it's a man-made island, and the hotel is on the island. So that makes it very interesting. So for me the nicest city is Dubai in the U.A.E.

Hello, I'm Hristo from Bulgaria, and the question is what is your favorite city in Europe?I have traveled around Europe, and I have been to Paris and London, but one of my favorite cities is Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark. The city has beautiful architecture and is very clean. Also, the people are very polite and interesting. Everybody speaks English. I just had a really good time in Copenhagen.

Hello, this is Fred from Canada, and my question number 804, would you rather live in a modern or historical city?Well, since I'm from Canada, and in Canada, we have the oldest city in North America which is Quebec City, and it is a historic city because we have a big castle that was turned into a hotel, the streets are really small and you just feel like there's so much life and there's so much history and things to be learned, and the beautiful architecture also makes it a great place to live, so most definitely a historical city is where I would rather live.

Hi, I'm Aray, I'm from Kazakhstan. So the following question is do you spend a lot of money on jeans?Maybe so, 'cause I'm the kind of person that likes shopping very much. I can spend a whole day just walking along the shopping mall, and just looking for some stuff which is sometimes not necessary for me. So, I like wearing jeans very much 'cause they are so comfortable, you can wear them whenever you want, so maybe I spend about two hundred or two hundred fifty dollars per month. So what about you? How much you spend for jeans?

Hello everyone, my name is Ivan, I'm from Indonesia, speaking for. So, do I like to wear jeans?Hmmm, yes, especially for these past two or one and a half years. Um, actually I start to like wearing jeans because I was being influenced by a senior of mine, where you know, he's kinda hmmm... don't really like to see me wearing khakis and slacks every day because maybe I look like a nerd, or something like that. So he kinda, you know, forced me to, you know, wear jeans. And actually, he gave me one, jeans from his collection to me, and I start to wear it, and yeah I kind of like it, so I start to wear it daily basis from that point on, yeah.

Howard: Hi, Todd.Todd: Hey, how's it going, Howard? So I heard that you're really into motorcycles.Howard: Ah, yes, I love motorcyles. I've been riding motorcycles since I was 15 years old.Todd: Oh, really. Wow! So, what's the allure of motorcycles?Howard: Freedom. I like the fresh air. I like being out on my own. And I just like the feeling of riding on a bike. It's like a bicycle without having to pedal and you go a lot faster.Todd: Yeah, that's for sure. Do you have any good motorcylcle stories?Howard: About 10,000 of them.Todd: Well, have you ever like taken a special trip on a motorcycle?Howard: I've been all over the East coast of the United States, from Pennsylvania to Florida on a motorcycle.Todd: Oh, wow.Howard: Yeah, I've travelled many times and many different kinds of roads, and taken all kinds of camping trips on bikes.Todd: Wow, sounds great. So do you usually travel alone or in a group?Howard: Almost always I go alone. Some guys like to travel together but I found I enjoyed it by myself most of all.Todd: Oh really. Oh, wow. Don't you get kind of lonely?Howard: Never, there's always a new adventure on every trip.Todd: Have you ever made any special friends out on the road?Howard: Sure, bikers are like a special kind of fraternity. Every biker knows each other, and we're all very close even though we're not close.

Todd: OK, Keith, if you won 1,000,000 dollars? No, wait, 10,000,000 dollars.Keith: 10,000,000.Todd: If you won 10,000,000, what would you do?Keith: Well, first thing I'd do, I'd probably buy a nice house for me and my wife.Todd: OK, where would this house be?Keith: Oh, I don't know. We'll have to talk about that with the wife but probably somewhere near Tokyo.Todd: OK. Would yo buy a house in the city or the country?Keith: Well, a little further out of the middle of Tokyo.Todd: So, it'd be in Japan.?Keith:Yeah, in Japan, but some place not too crowded.Todd: OK, would you have animals at this house?Keith: Not if I could help it.Todd: Really. No dog?Keith: Well, maybe a dog, but an outside dog.Todd: You got to have a dog, man.

Todd: OK, Nicoleta I am going to ask you questions about your kitchen.Nicoleta: Mm-hm.Todd: OK, first of all, what do you do in your kitchen?Nicoleta: Cooking mostly.Todd: Yeah, OK. At your home, back in Germany, who cooks at your house?Nicoleta: Well, I'm living alone so I do normally.Todd: OK, do you cook every night or do you usually buy take-out or?Nicoleta: No, at the weekends, yeah, mostly at the weekends.Todd: OK. Actually what's a German dish that people cook like ...Nicoleta: Typical?Todd: YeahNicoleta: Sauerkraut.Todd: Really?Nicoleta:No, Yeah, everyone asks me about sausages here by the way. But I don't know a typical meal. Maybe really sausages. I mean, originally but yes.Todd: OK. What's in your kitchen?Nicoleta: Dishes and food, fridge. No microwave.Todd: No microwaveNicoleta: No microwave.Todd: That's good. You're healthy. What's something you can cook very well?Nicoleta: That I can cook very well? Soups.Todd: OK. Like what kind of soup?Nicoleta: Zucchini, cucumber.Todd: How do you make it?Nicoleta: It's very easy, just I don't know the English word, so don't ask!

Todd: OK, hello, could you say your name please?Diana: Yes, my name is Diana Heyne.Todd: Diana, where are you from?Diana: I live in Chicago.Todd: Great, Chicago! How long have you lived in Chicago?Diana: Actually, only for a year. I'm mostly a mid-western girl. I've lived all over the mid-west.Todd: OK, like what places in the mid-west?Diana: I was born in Iowa, and I lived in Indiana after that, and then I moved to Illinois, and then I grew up mostly in Michigan, but now I live in Chicago and I love it.Todd: OK, so Chicago is your favorite place?Diana: Yes.Todd: OK, why do you like Chicago?Diana: It's busy. Everyone in Chicago is always busy and they're doing their own thing, and it's just fun to be in such an exciting atmosphere.Todd: OK. Does Chicago have a lot of good food, a lot of good restaurants?Diana: Yes. If you like to eat Chicago is a good place to go. My favorite place is the Taco Burrito Palace.Todd: Taco Burrito Palace. Wow. Sounds good.

Todd: OK, hello, Hisa!Hisa: Hi, Todd.Todd: How are you doing?Hisa: Fine thanks, and you?Todd: I'm doing pretty good. Hisa, you were telling me that you have a concern about Japan.Hisa: Yes.Todd: And what is your concern?Hisa: It's vending machines.Todd: Vending machinesHisa: Yes.Todd: OK. Can you talk a little about that?Hisa: Yes, as you already noticed, how many vending machines do you come across a day if you are on the street?Todd: Many, many.Hisa: I really do not think we need that many and then each one is really consuming energy, so that is my big concern.Todd: OK, so what would you like to see happen in Japan with the vending machines?Hisa: Sorry, what? where?Todd: Like, what would you like to happen with the vending machines?Hisa: Yes.Todd: Would you like more laws or..?Hisa: Number 1, it really aggravates the scenery. Yes, and then if each one of us take drink with us, we really don't need that many, each corner, or even one corner you really see so many kinds. And then that is, we can really evacuate so many and then we will have a safer, more space on the road, because even without vending machines, imagine how narrow our roads in Japan, even the walking path so narrow, it's dangerous.Todd: And you were saying that you can actually can see vending machines in very strange places in Japan, like very, very far places in the countryside?Hisa: Yes.Todd: Wow.Hisa: So, just one example is on the summit of Mt. Fuji. Yes, it's a shame.Todd: All the way on the top of Mt. Fuji?Hisa: Yes. So those mountain climbers are talking that don't make our mountains like Mt. Fuji. In other words, they are not to put another vending machine on the top of other mountains, because why we need it.Todd: Yeah, that's crazy.Hisa: It's ridiculous.

Todd: Alex, when you were little, what did you like to do?Alex: When I was small and I was in junior high school we used to like playing soccer with my friends. Actually in Kenya, what's different from other countries, we used to make our own soccer ball to play. So, it's very easy.Todd: Wow. How do you make the soccer ball?Alex: We used to collect like plastic papers and bind them with string, around them to make something round. So it was like, you didn't have to spend any money.Todd: Wow, that's ingenious. That's great. So were you a good soccer player?Alex: Not really. I used to like playing soccer but I was not very good, actually to tell the truthTodd: Yeah, me too. I wasn't a very good athlete. I mean I like sports but I was never any good. Um, so do you play soccer in Japan?Alex: Sometimes, until last year when I was in school I still played soccer. Right now, actually I'm not playing anymore because I'm like busy.Todd: Yeah.Alex: Yeah. You can't play soccer without a big group of people and everyone is busy right now so I'm not playing anymore.Todd: Yeah, that's a bummer. Like I always want to play sports but it's hard asyou get older. When's the last time you played soccer?Alex: About one year ago. I think November of 199?,...2003, November.Todd: OK. Actually in Kenya do you call it soccer or football?Alex: In Kenya you call it football.Todd: Football. I'm sorry.Alex: Actually, I've been in Japan for some time so I'm used to calling it soccer. In Kenya you call it football.

Todd: OK, Hisa, why don't we talk about food?Hisa: Good.Todd: OK, first of all, actually, can you cook?Hisa: Yes, I can.Todd: Yeah. What can you cook?Hisa: I can cook most of the Japanese dishes. And I also like baking.Todd: Oh, really. OK. Since you're Japanese can you tell us what things you cook in Japanese cuisine?Hisa: OK. I use a lot of vegetables in my cuisine, in cookery, and then I prepare lots of Japanese type of salad, which is sometimes we call it suno-mono.Todd: Suna-mono. OKHisa: Yes, with vinegar which is especially good for spring? And the summertime, and then also pickles, is one type of thing and then I use vegetables, even cooked kind of salad I use, that is, we call it O-shi-Tashi, green leaves, throughout the year, I use a different kind of green vegetables for salad.Todd: Can you talk about one kind of salad that you can make? (Yes) And how do you make it?Hisa: OK. For example, this is spring, I tell you one kind of salad, Udo.Todd: Udo.Hisa: That is a white stick, kind of vegetable. Just you peel them very thick because outside is quite bitter, so inside you slice up and then put them in the water with vinegar because that is how you can keep this white color. It lasts long, yes, and then, usually, I put some wakame, sea vegetables, and then two ingredients I use, and then add some ginger, which I love very much. Chop up some ginger, and then those three things I mix with vinegar, a little bit soy sauce and then salt, and then just sometimes you can even marinate if you like.Todd: Wow, sounds good.Hisa: Very light.Todd: And I can buy these ingredients at the Japanese supermarket?Hisa: Yes, greengrocer's, and it is only for springtime. Udo! Sounds like Udon. Just you remove "n"Todd: Udo. Good luck.Hisa: Alright, I'll try and make it.

Todd: Hello, Daniela, how are you tonight?Daniella: Hi, Todd. I'm fine, thanks.Todd: Now, you were showing me a picture of a horse.Daniella: Yes.Todd: And you were saying that female horses and male horses are different.Daniella: They behave different to me, so maybe it's just my imagination, or not but female horses, mares, are kind of cold and aggressive towards me cause I'm a female and I kind of compete over the male coaches' affection, that was my conclusion because male horses are so nice to me.Todd: So you saying the horse can tell if it's a man or woman rider.Daniella: Exactly, my horse can do that. She's more affectionate towards men.Todd: Really!Daniella: Yeah, and she's a female.Todd: So if I want to go horse riding for the first time and I'm on my own.Daniella: You don't have to worry because the coach will make sure the horse will behave and it will fear the coach, at least, and it won't do anything wrong to you, but if you want to make friends with the horse you'll probably have to work out more with a male horse.Todd: Really.Daniella: Yeah, for me it's very difficult to become friendly with a female horse. Maybe it's just my impression. Maybe it's not true but that's my conclusion so far.Todd: Well, that's good to know. Thanks.

Todd: OK, Shane, you're from Ireland.Shane: I am, indeed, yeah.Todd: Where are you from in Ireland?Shane: I'm from a small town about 30 miles away from Dublin called Anfield, where there is plenty of cows and farmers and those type of things, so it's a good place. Lots of green fields. No mountians. Very small town you know.I'd say there is about maybe 2,000 people living there, but I actually live outside the town so I live, a sort of bungalow house and it's sort of far away from the town so, that where I'm living, or that's where I was living, I was living in Dublin though, the capital but I originally from about, a sort of rural town you might say.Todd: OK. What is the best thing about your town?Shane: It's a very close-knit community, so if you go into a bar or a pub everyone seems to know each other. You know so whether, you have young people who interact with people who are 50 or 60 years of age, and there's people playing football and all that stuff, there is lots of interaction between people, so everyone seems to know each other.

Todd: OK, Diana we are going to talk about your hobby.Dianna: OK.Todd: What is your hobby?Dianna: I have lots of different hobbies but right now I'm learning to play the guitar.Todd: Great. How long have you been playing or practicing?Dianna: I got my guitar two years ago but I've probably spent a total of two weeks practicing.Todd: Did you bring your guitar to Japan?Dianna: I didn't. Actually, my brother wants to learn to play also so he's taking good care of my guitar while I'm here, but when I get back I'll jump right back into practice.Todd: OK, great. Well, who's a better player?Dianna: I am for sure, but I told him that if he gets better than me while I'm away that he has to teach me everything he knows.Todd: Oh, that's only fair. OK. Can you play any songs?Dianna: Yes, I can play "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee" and just the last part of the "Star-Spangled Banner". Not the beginning, the beginning's way too hard.