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Epal ProjectBy: Stephen and Kieyran

Introduction of our Epals

Stephens Epal- Domagoj Malouda DumeniAge- 15 years oldLocation- Croatia

Kieryans Epal- Ivo SilvaAge- 16 years oldLocation- Portugal

Both of our epals favorite sport is soccer.

Geography of CroatiaCroatia consists of flat plains along the Hungarian Border and low mountains and highlands near the coastline. Croatia has hot summers and cold winters.Croatia is in Southeast Europe.

Geography of PortugalPortugal is very mountainous in the north and has rolling plains in the south of Portugal.In the North of Portugal it is cool and rainy, but in the south it is warmer and drier.Portugal is in Southwest Europe.

Geography Compared to the U.S.The U.S. has mountainous regions that consist of the Rocky Mountains and the Appalachian Mountains just like Portugal and CroatiaThe climate of the U.S. is very similar to Portugal and Croatia with hot summers and cold winters. The U.S. has the Great Plains which is similar to the Rolling Plains in Portugal.

Government in CroatiaThe president of Croatia is Ivo Josipovi.Croatian government is a democratic parliamentary republic.Croatia has a three-levels of judicial system, consisting of the Supreme Court, County courts, and Municipal courts.

Government in PortugalThe president of Portugal is Anbal Cavaco Silva.The Portugal government is a democratic republic.This government has divided powers in an executive branch, a legislative branch, and a judicial branch.Also, this government has a Parliament that consists of 230 elected deputy officials that serve for a four-year term.

Government Compared to the U.S.The government in the U.S. is a Representative Democracy that consists of an executive branch, a legislative branch, and a judicial branch that has power divided among them. This government is very similar to Portugal and Croatia due to their Democratic government. The U.S. government has a president (Barack Obama) like the governments of Croatia and Portugal who makes key decisions for their country.

Schooling in CroatiaIn Croatia Domagoj attends a vocational school or trade school. A vocational school is a secondary school that teaches skilled trades.Domagoj is studying to be a commercial tourist hotelier.Domagoj is in ninth grade and he take subjects such as Biology, English , Math, French, Croatian , Tourism , Organization, History, Informatics, and Ethics.

Schooling in PortugalIn Portugal Ivo attends a secondary school.Ivo takes subjects such as Visual arts, Geometry, Philosophy, English, and Portuguese.

Schooling Compared to the U.S.The U.S. has schooling K-12th grade and can be broken into Elementary school, Middle School, and High School. These branches of education are different to schooling in Portugal and Croatia in which they have Primary school and Secondary school.As a 10th grade student at Kellam many kids take subjects such as Math, Science, Social Studies, Physical Education/Health, a foreign language, and English. Many of the subjects are the same in Croatia and Portugal, but instead of our English its their native language and their foreign language could be English.

Family in CroatiaWhen meeting a person it is normal to kiss each other on both cheeks.Most families in Croatia live in a single-family home or apartments.Weekends are spent as a family such as strolling through the town or having a special lunch together.An average Croatian family has one or two children, but three kids are consider large.

Family in PortugalIvo has one brother and sister. His brothers name is Cristo and he is 9 years old.His sisters name is Diana who is 5 years old.They practice witchcraft in their home.

Family Compared to the U.S.Stephens family consists of his mom, dad, and sister.Kieyrans family consists of his mom, dad, and brother.Our families are similar in sizeOur families live in single-family homes which is similar to our epals because they also live in single-family homes.

Customs and Traditions in CroatiaTraditional Mediterranean cuisine.Traditional folk songs, folk dances, and village customs are part of the historical Croatia.Traditional Croatian clothes such as neck ties were invented in Croatia and traditional shoes.

Customs and Traditions in Croatia contTraditional headscarf worn by Croatian that is embroidered with flowers and woven with twisted fabric.Traditional Croatian dresses were worn with headscarves and embroidered skirts.Fishing is a tradition because Croatia is close in proximity and is a traditional occupation.

Customs and Traditions in PortugalMany holidays in Portugal are based on Easter, Good Friday, All Saints Day, New Years, St. Anthony, and St. Martins Day.Portuguese people have been craftsmen and craftswomen have molded, spun, woven, painted and embroidered unique items.The wove unique tapestries, carpets, and textiles.

Customs and Traditions in Portugal contGlass and crystal is one of Portugals traditions and it is their main export.Portuguese ceramics are extremely traditional which are artistically expressed by shaping clay in prehistory.Another Tradition is old filigree which was a form of working with gold and silver.

Customs and Traditions Compared to the U.s.Customs and Traditions in the U.S. is Independence Day on 4th of July when we celebrate the day we gained independence from the King of Great Britain.The U.S. has national colors which are red, white, and blue.The customs and traditions of the U.S. are different from Croatia and Portugal, but they generally have the same idea such as national colors and a national day.

Current Events in CroatiaCroatia's state oil group INA and Hungary's energy giant MOL discovered potential gas resources in a border region between the two countries. INA and MOL will focus on a development of the discovered field to enable putting it on stream and connecting to the gas infrastructure system. The project to jointly explore the Drava river basin, a border area between Croatia and Hungary, was launched in 2006 with INA and MOL being equal partners.

Current Events in Croatia contCroatia deports war crimes suspect to Bosnia. Franc Kos, 43, is suspected of taking part in the 1995 killing of Srebrenica Muslims as a member of the Bosnian Serb army. He was detained in Croatia in April. After capturing Srebrenica on July 11, 1995, Bosnian Serb forces summarily executed about 8,000 Muslim men and boys, in the worst atrocity in Europe since World War II.

Current Events in PortugalBullfighting season in Portugal has recently started this week and there have been many protestors appearing everywhere. Over 89% of Portugal's population are in favor of bullfighting.

Current Events in Portugal contPortugal is within a week of getting an international aid package, starting in the country.

Excerpts from Croatian EpalI go to Vocational School, direction commercial tourist hotelier .I would say that i intelligent to I have good grades. I am in a grade 1 that is like a grade 9 in USA and we have to take all objects Biology, English , Math, French, Croatian ,Tourism ,Organization, History, Informatics and I take ethics we have some other objects but they are much easier. - DomagojExcerpts from Croatian Epal contI do not play much computer games but i play PES11, and some games like that. I haven't been in many famous places in my country but we do have beautiful sea. - DomagojI do not go out such often now on school time, I just go play soccer somewhere whit my friend and stuff like that, I prefer summer because we can go to swimming-pool and some other cool stuff. I play soccer to I have practice every day except Sunday and I really love it. - Domagoj

Excerpts from Portuguese EpalI live in Vila Nova de Famalicao with my parents. My father is 42 years old and my mother is 41 and are without doubt the best parents in the world, I have a dog, a Rottweiler. live in a house very cozy. in my spare time I like to play football with my friends biking and rollerblading or else I'm with my girlfriend. when I'm home watching TV like watching family guy is fantastic and really funny, and I also like the Simpsons. my favorite bands are the Guns & Roses, Green Day, the ac / dc, the ram stein and system of down despite having separately. - Ivo

Excerpts from Portuguese Epal contChristmas here is filled with candy, gifts and joy. eat too many sweets such as French toast, mechidos, king cake, king cake of chocolate, pao de lo, between others .The New Year here is fantastic. I go with my friends to the streets of Porto and we celebrated with several people. - IvoWe drink a lot and we and so we celebrateddrank black vodka, champagne, and other things , but we drink a lot all night! - IvoHere we partied all night the Carnival , all the people dress up as someone they would like to be, just one day on year. Is very funny and I like a lot. - Ivo

ConclusionCroatia and Portugals lifestyle in my opinion are very similar compared to our life style like schooling is very similar to our education here in the U.S. For example, we have the exact same subjects, but some are just named differently. Their democratic government has some similarities to our U.S. government like divided power in branches such as executive, legislative, and judicial branch. Some of our customs and traditions are different though because of the mixed culture we have in the U.S. Another comparison is Croatia and Portugals family life are very similar to our life style such as having an average of 2 kids in the house hold. Croatia and Portugal have many similarities and differences with the United States, but they are all good countries.