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Tell us stories from your country

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Goldilocks and the three bears is a very well-known British fairy tale and we hope you enjoyed hearing our version in Session 1.

Now we'd like to hear from you. So tell us a fairy tale or story from your country. If you can, try to use the words too, very and enough correctly!

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Here are some of the stories you sent us. We enjoyed reading them!

Roberta, Sicily, Italy

Long ago a creature, half a man and half a fish called "Colapesce", lived in the sea's straight between Sicily and Calabria (southern Italy).
One day a King coming from a far cold country, may be Sweden or Norway, arrived to the island.
Everyone knew Colapesce's absolutely fabolous natural gift, that is to say the ability to dive into the sea for hours staying alive. 
The great King noticed it and asked Colapesce to give him a proof. In change he could have the King's daughter as bride. Colapesce fell in love with her at the first sight. The king's daughter was an absolutely wonderful girl with bright gold hairs and blue eyes.
The King threw a ring in the bottom of the sea asking Colapesce to get it and bring it back, for three times.
The first time Colapesce do it easly. The second time, although the sea was very depth,  it wasn't too difficult for him. The third time, again, it was not too difficult, at all. It was always anough easy for him to find the ring. But this time Colapesce noticed a very bed thing. One pillar holding up the island was demaged, the entire Sicily could sink in the bottom of the sea. Colapesce for the sake of his fellows and his country decided to give up his love to hold up the Sicily.
It is said he is still living in the bottom of the sea.

Ana Maria, Roumania

Dracula: between legend and truth

Dracula as he is perceived now, represent the interference's result between the real historical actions about Vlad Tepes - Dracula reigning , the records of the chronicles of the time, with the intention to make the great reigning in a bad light and the association with character fiction novel by Bram Stoker.

The truth about the reigning of roumanian country, Vlad Tepes (1456-1462; 1476) is known that was a regnant too much authoritative, who promoted the honor and the diligence among his obedients while the theft, the laziness and the slyness were punished with harshness through impaling. This method of human punishment can have sense only beside other methods of this times: to go to the stake, the hanging.

Vlad Tepes considered that only a authoritative way of to reign is able to assure the order in the country and to defend from the external dangers, therefor he applied the impaling method when he discovered that one of his obedient broke the laws. He put the cruel character for his country.

The conection between the roumanian regnant from 1456-1462 and the character of Bram Stoker's novel is suggested even by the autor, who says:"that was really Dracula regnant who has acquired the name of opposing the Turks over the great river even from the border with Turkey". The characters from Bram Stoker's novel represents the result of imagination's autor, but the actions of Dracula Count relying on the popular beliefs about the existence of evil forces: vampires or "strigoi".

Bran Castle is known by tourists as Dracula's Castle. It represents one of the most valuable monuments of medieval arhitecture. Vlad Tepes was closed in this castle by Matei Corvin, the Hungary's king.

We should make the difference between historical reality and a story about Dracula the main character of Bram Stoker's novel, in which action relying on the popular beliefs about vampires or strigoi ( in Roumania, "strigoi" is equivalent of vampire and is thought to be people dead who leaves their graves and haunts the souls of alive people ) and also the legends about Vlad Tepes.

So, Vlad Tepes wasn't a vampire, he also was a conte who loved his country, who applied strictly punishments like impalement against the people who broke the law. From this way of punishment he receveid the name "Tepes", that refers to a pale or spike. In roumanian language spike is teapa, from where the name Tepes.

Naoko, Japan

'Urashima Taro'

Once upon a time there was a young fisherman named 'Taro Urashima'. One day, he was walking on the beach when he saw children who were bullying a turtle. He felt sorry for the turtle and saved it.

A few days later, when he were fishing in the sea, that turtle addressed him. "I appreciate you saving my life the other day. I'd like to take you the Dragon Palace in return for it. Now, ride on my back please."

The turtle with Taro Urashima on its back swam deeply to the bottom of the sea, and a while later they got a gorgeous palace.

And then Taro Urashima was escorted into the special room by a princess. There, beautiful fishes performed amazing dancing, and served absolutely delicious dishes one after another. He was treated very nicely. It was like he was in paradise!

After a couple of years, he became homesick. So he told the princess.

"I appreciate I've had a lovely time, princess. But I must be going now. I want to go home."

The princess looked very sad and said,

"Oh... I'll miss you very much. Well, I'll give you a box as a gift. There is a 'time' in it. It's the time you've had spent here. You never grow any older as long as you keep this box without opening. But if you open it, it will go back in time, so NEVER OPEN IT."

She gave a beautiful box to him.

He rode on the turtle's back again and swam into the sea. And then he arrived at the home town beach very quickly.

But there seemed to be different from his hometown. He walked around but there was nobody whom he knew. He couldn't find his own house! His mother had disappeared!

He asked an old man "Excuse me. Don't you know of 'Urashima'?"

"Urashima.....? Oh, I heard that the one named Urashima has gone out to sea hundreds of years ago, and never to return."

"What? Hundreds of years ago?? Not a couple of years ago?! Too much time has gone by! Oh, maybe my mother and friends all passed away already..."

He got very depressed, and looked down at the box he was carrying.

"Well, the princess said it will go back in time when I open this box. That means, perhaps, if I open it I could go back in time that it was."

He opened up the box.

Just then, the clouds of white smoke puffed out from it, and he turned into an old man in no time.

Mahiar Vermeer

The lying shepherd

A long time ago there was a village where a shepherd lived. He used to go to the field with his sheep. One day he decided to have some fun. He started to cry out and ask for help because wolves were coming.

The people of the village came to help. He laughed and said: " That was funny ". People were very angry and returned to work. After a while he did it again and again. The people came and returned because they had too much work to do.

One day something changed. The wolves came and ate his sheep. He asked for help and nobody came to help him.

Too many times he made fun of them.

He had told too many lies.

Pauline, Brittany

In a little village in Brittany once lived a young musician. His face was very attractive and his heart very nice but the poor boy was hunchbacked, so he may not find either a good regular job or a fiancée. But the youth wanted him very often for the nightfeasts that we call"fest-noz".

One night he was on road in the moor returning at home, when he was stopped by a group of dwarfes, who we call "korrigans".They askedhim to play music, that he did very willingly: he played some heartfuland merry songs and he was too used to play all night long, to feel exhausted with two "festnoz" in the same night... On morning the korrigans were happy enough to offer him exceptional wages: they showedhim a hidden treasure, but he was not interested, so they threw away his hump! Suddenly in the village all the maids found he was too handsome to stay lonely and the farmers discovered he was strong enough to get a well paid job in the fields. Very quickly he became the happiest man inthe country! But a jealous neighbour asked him his secret. The youngmusician explained him selflessly that he had played for the korrigans festnoz.

The following night the neighbour urged to the moor with his bagpipe. He met the korrigans and began to play, but he was too clumsy to satisfy them, and too lazy to play a long time; when they asked him more dances he got angry and demanded very rudely to receive "that the hunchback didn't want". Naturally he meant the treasure, but the korrigans gave him ... the hump! So he remained hunchbacked, sour and all alone...The moral of this story is: a nice and generous heart is better than all the treasures in the world!

Laziz Ergashev, Uzbekistan 

"Greedy Girl"

There was one girl. She was very greedy. One day her mother bought a ball for her. And she got out with her ball. There were many girls and boys.

They were playing and when they saw greedy girl they started asking questions. "Oh, What a beautiful ball" asked one girl "What game will we play..."

"No games" interrupted greedy girl.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean... I want nobody to play with my ball!"

"So, why do you have got it out" asked children.

"If someone play with my ball, It becomes too old." said Greedy girl

"Nothing happen with one play. What're you saying?"

Greedy girl became angry and went her room and she was very tired. And when she tried to sleep she thought "What'd be if my sister comes and took my ball and play with it until I wake up. I must hide it" She thought a lot. Where can she hide that no one could find

First she hid under bed. But she hesitated... But it wasn't good place she thought... She tried many place. But she doubted.

In the end she find the best place to hide. It was rubbish bin. She put her ball at the bottom of rubbish bin. Only after then She calmed down.

And she fell sleep. She saw dream. A very bad dream. Her sister got ball and play with children. And in the corner was sitting Greedy girl SHE COULDN'T DO ANYTHING

Suddenly, She woke up. The first thing she wanted to do is make sure if her ball is still in rubbish bin. When she checked up, she saw that there was nothing in the rubbish bin.

"Where is rubbish?" Scavengers came and took it.

It's one of fairy tale of Uzbek. If you want more I'll write.

Manuel Juan, Andalucia

In Cadiz (Andalusia, Spain) on the old quarter of the city beside the sea there is an ancient and abandoned house about which people say is haunted.

In the so called 'casa de los espejos' (house of the mirrors) lived a ship's captain whit his wife and his daughter. The daughter asked her father brought her a mirror each time he came back from a voyage.

The daughter went growing up and she became absolutely wonderful and at the same time very humble too,which is extremely rare someone could think. The father was proud enough of her, thinking there wasn't another person like her in the whole world.

The mother got too jealous in these circumstances,being ignored by her husband, and decided to eliminate her. While the captain was sailing she poisoned her daughter.

When the father came back and was given the bad news he became terribly sad, depressed and he gets very bad mood. One morning he went into his daughter's bedroom and he saw on the mirrors something awful: how his wife poisoned her own daughter.

He got the mother's confession and she was judged and executed.From then, nobody lives there and upstairs,in the first floor, it seems to be someone walking and looking throw the window.In spite of the entire house is full of dust and extremely dirty,the mirrors in the girl's room stay neat and clean.

Juan Carlos, Colombia

Bochica's leyend

Several years ago before of time of the Spanish conquest, at the center of Colombia lived one people known as the Chibchas. One time at the place where this people lived was affected by the rain. This rain was too strong that it flooded the savanna and destroyed all chibcha's crops and his houses too.

The Zipa who was the leader of Chibchas went to ask for help to Bochica.

"Bochica was a strange man, smart and very different to the other people who lived there because his skin was white and his hair was white too.

He teached this people to cultivate the different products when He arrived at this place."

After the Zipa talked with Bochica, Bochica went at the place where was the flooding and He took his stick and He started to hit the rocks. That hit was enough to break the rocks and stones what contained the water.

When the water started to flow, it created a beautiful waterfall and now this place is known how " El salto del Tequendama". this place is near where I live "Bogotá".

After that, nobody at that place was able to view him again because just disappeared him.

Marcela, Buenos Aires

Long time ago, there was a party in the sky among the clouds, where all the birds  were invited.

How could the toad get there if he didn’t have wings? But he was clever enough to find the solution.

He knew that the stork would take her guitar, so he hid inside it without her noticing.

He was very excited, he danced all night and he drank too much, so he felt very tired and he went to sleep inside the guitar.

The stork came back when the party ended but she didn´t realize that the toad slipped and fell in the space.

He hit against stones and since then toad´s skin has spots that remind him, his aventure.

Maria, Russia

"A green frog, or a green toad (it is not enough known)"

This story describes a green frog what fell into an jug of sour cream.

Firstly, it (she) actively became jumping up, but soon she felt a little bit tired, as she has been jumping up for many hours.

But she kept calm, and she ever so hard wallowed into the jug of sour cream. And lastly, it got too tired of continuing to jump. Even she thought her efforts to be unsuccessful in getting out of this jug. In spite of feeling tired, she decided to not give up, and to continue jumping up.

Suddenly, sour cream was changed significantly by the activity of green frog, her jumps, and it turned into butter. Amount of this butter was enough for the frog to escape the jug. This enabled green frog to save her life.

Zahid, Pakistan

This is a very exciting and motivating story of a king. It is said that Mahmoud Ghaznawi, who was once the ruler of India, before becoming the ruler he had attacked India  plenty of times and despite too many attempts he could not have succeeded.  Therefore, he was too much depressed.

Once he was sitting next to a pond of water with his comrades. He saw an ant that fell into the pond with a leaf from a tree on the bank. She was struggling to get on to the top of the leaf but after sometime a wave washed it away and she slipped into the water. She made many attempts but in vain. However, she did not give up. He kept watching amusingly and his comrades could not get what he was looking at. The struggle of that aunt continued and water waves kept doing their part in keeping her away from it. At last, with her unwavering struggle and efforts, the ant reached  the top of the leaf which safely took her to the bank of the pond.

Upon seeing her success, Mahmoud could not help exclaim with joy “Wow!!!” He was too excited and said to his comrades “We are not lesser than this small creature. She has given us a lesson of life” Then, he ordered to assemble all his forces and attacked with his full force which finally resulted in his triumph on his 17th attempt.

This has become a story of motivation which can be summarized in these words  “You fail only when you don’t attempt”.

Trinh, Vietnam

The following is a fairy tale of Vietnam about the last lesson of a father to his sons before passing away.

Bundle of chopsticks

Once upon a time, a farmer family had three sons. One day, when the father was nearly to die, he called his sons to stand around him and gave them a bundle of chopsticks. He asked the eldest son to break the bundle. The chopstick in individual was very thin and soft but the bundle of the chopsticks was too solid to break into pieces and the eldest son failed to break it. The middle son also did not manage to break the bundle. In turn of the youngest son, the father asked him to break the bundle by breaking the chopsticks one by one. The sheaf of chopsticks is very hard but the chopstick itself was soft enough to break and the son had not too many problems to break them one by one into pieces. “Be always united and do not be split by any ones or any reasons then you will be OK” said the father and he then passed away.

Antonio

House of America (Palace of Linares)
The palace was ordered in 1873 by Linares marquises to the municipal architect Carlos Colubí and inaugurated in 1900. By then, the building was already cursed.
The marquis José de Murga got married with a poor young woman, Raimunda de Osorio, with nobody to avoid it, because the only person opposite to the marriage, Mateo de Murga (José’s father), was died, he took with him a revelation that broke the couple: José and Raimund were brother half-brothers. For this moment, the story turned into a legend and according to it the result of this union born Raimundita, that was killed to the born.
Since that moment, the constructors and the guards told that they heard noises, steps and beyond-death voices saying: “I had a daughter”, “My daughter Raimunda… and I never heard her saying mommy” that were attributed to Raimunda de Osorio. By then, Raimundita’s voice answered it:”Mommy, I haven’t got mommy”. At last, the marquis replied: “Get out…No, here no!”
The workers have been there, told that in the second floor happens too many strange situations. Things disappeared and appeared later in another place, lights turn on and turn off.
There are people that affirm you can see shadows inside the palace at night, could be the security wards or maybe the Raimunda’s and her family’s spirits?

Lisa, Germany

The following fairy tale is very common in Germany.
It’s called Rumpeltilzchen (in English Rumpelstiltskin)

Once upon a time there was a very poor miller but he had a beautiful daughter. One day he said to the king: ”My daughter can spin straw to gold.” The king didn’t believe him and the miller should prove it to him. So, his daughter had to spin the straw to gold until the next day otherwise she had to die.
The girl was very despaired because she wasn’t able to spin straw to gold. Suddenly there was a little man and he asked her why she was crying. She told him what she had to do. The little man would help her but he wanted something from her. So the miller’s daughter gave him her collar and the little man made straw to gold.

When the king saw the gold he was very happy but he had not enough. So the daughter got new straw. She was very frustrated. But the little man helped her again and this time she gave him her ring. On the next morning the king was very delighted about all this gold but he still had not enough gold. The king said: ”If you made all this straw to gold, you’ll become my wife.” She was very despairing again but the little man helped her for a third time. But the miller’s daughter had no jewellery any more. So the little man wants her first child for his work. She said “yes” and on the next morning the whole straw was gold.
So the king married the miller’s daughter and a few months later she gave birth to her child. One day the little man came back and want to take the baby with him. The miller’s daughter, now the queen want to give him all jewelleries of the kingdom, but the little man wanted the baby. He said: “If you know my name until the next three days, I won’t take your baby with me.” The queen sent all her errand boys to find out the name. On the next days she told the little man all names she knew, but all those were wrong.
On the third day an errand boy told her that he had seen a little man singing:
“Today I’ll bake. Tomorrow I’ll brew. The day after tomorrow I’ll get the queen’s child. Oh, how well that nobody knows that I’m called Rumpelstiltskin.”

The queen was very happy. The little man asked her again what his name is. She asked him: “Is your name Tom?” “No”, answered the little man. “Is your name Heinz?” “No”, said the little man again. “Is your name Rumpelstiltskin?” “The devil told it to you”, the little man shouted and broke himself into two pieces.
The king, the queen and their child lived happily for the rest of their life.

Carlos Vinícius, Brazil

The "saci-perere" history

The "saci-perere" is a legend from Brazilian folklore and came from the indigenous tribes.

The saci is a black kid, have only one leg, uses a red cap and he's always with
a pipe in the mouth.

The legend says that the "saci-perere" lives hidden in the forests, to
frighten the forests destroyers. His "principal goal" is frighten these
mens, in order that these mens never returns and stop destroying
the environment.

But, the little kid is also very mischievous and playful. He going to the houses,
frightens people, hides objects and does a great mess.

The saci's red cap gives to him magic powers. He's disappears from a place,
does disappear objects, holds people… When someone takes the saci's cap,
the black kid stays under of control to this person. But, he is too smart and
soon he takes the cap again.

The history from "saci-perere" is maybe the most popular infantil history
in the country. Actually, when a thing disappears, in many regions is common
to say: "the saci took it".

Yana Popova, Ukraine

Ivasyk-Telesyk

Ukrainian folk fairy tail

Once upon a time, there live a man and his wife. They didn’t have children and were very old. So they were quite upset their possible future without children. One day the woman say her husband: “Go to the forest and find a piece of wood. We’ll make a cradle, I’ll put this log there and rock it to sleep. Maybe It’ll make me calm”. The man made that his wife tell him.

The man and his wife put the branch into a cradle and woman rocked it, song a lullaby and went to sleep.

When couple woke up, they found in the cradle a little baby-boy. They were very happy. It was absolutely fantastic to have children in their age. The woman give the boy a nice name - Ivasyk-Telesyk.

The boy grew very quickly and was quite handsome. Soon he said to man: “Father, make me a little gold boat and a little silver paddle and I’ll began to fish for you”.

The old man made the boat and the paddle and Ivasyk went fishing. His mother said him: “I’ll bring the food for you. When you’ll hear my voice, please come back to the bank. But if you’ll hear another voice, else keep away from there”.

And Ivasyk-Telesyk started fishing. His mother brought him food and climbed him: “Ivasyk-Telesyk come back to me, and take a food and drink.” Telesyk came back to the bank where his mother stand and after eating again went fishing.

One day the serpent heard and saw Ivasyk and his mother and decided to eat the boy. She hide in the coast and began to call Telesyk as his mother. But her voice was too graff. Ivasyk understood that it was not his mother’s voice, and he started rowing from the serpent.

Lately the serpent again tried to call Ivasyk-Telesyk, but he again didn’t believe her and kept away.

The serpent decided to go to the blacksmith and asked him to make her vose very thin as Ivasyk’s mother. And the blacksmith did it.

The serpent came back to the river bank and started calling Ivasyk-Telesyk. Ivasyk heard the thin voice of his mother and turned the boat to the coast.

When he reached the bank, the serpent grubbed the boy and brought to her house. She ordered her daughter Olenka to kindle oven and cook Ivasyk-Telesyk. And the serpent went to invite guests.

Olenka got the oven hot enough and said to Ivasyk: “Get to this shove”. But Ivasyk told to her: ”I didn’t know how. Show me how to do it”. Olenka sat to the shove and Telesyk very quickly shoved the shovel with Olenka into the own and hardly closed the oven door.

Then Telesyk climbed to the highest tree near the serpent’s house and hide there.

The serpent arrived with guests and thought that her daughter went somewhere when she didn’t saw Olenka. She opened the oven door and take out what was inside. The guest ate that meal and after dinner went to yard and began rolling in the grass. They said: “We have very good meal. Ivasyk-Telesyk tested not too bad”. Telesyk heard it and called: “Not Ivasyk-Telesyk, Olenka tested not too bad”.

The serpent and her guests heard it but they didn’t know where it came from. They continued rolling on the grass and shouting: “We have very good meal. Ivasyk-Telesyk tested not too bad”. Ivasyk-Telesyk said again that it was Olenka’s meat. The serpent and her guests long looked around and at last saw Ivasyk in the tree. They tried to gnaw the tree, but it was too strong and they just broke their teeth. Then all they went to blacksmith and asked him to make them new very strong teeth. He did it and they continued to gnaw the tree. And tree began to sway.

At this moment under the tree flow geeses. And Telesyk asked them to pick him up from the tree. Two first groups refused him. But in the third group one not too strong and very tired goose picked the boy from the tree. But he flow too lowly and slowly, and serpent almost caught up them, but goose still could to break away and deliver Ivasyk to his parents.

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It's time for News Report! We have another housing-related story. This time it's about there being too much housing and too many people! What problems does this cause for the local area? Listen and find out!