Lingua Service Worldwide, Ltd.

FAST FORWARD Portuguese Language Courses

Learn Portuguese in Porto, Portugal

Porto is a city with an immense historical patrimony, yet is also well-linked to present and future times.  As a trading center at the mouth of the Rio Douro, Porto is the second largest city after Lisbon. The place has a number of distinctive atmospheres and this is very evident when comparing the various parts of the city.  The quarter around the riverside known as the Ribeira is full of narrow twisting streets with houses once painted or tiled in colorful facades, and full of the bustling energy of working people during the day and the liveliness of busy "tascas" and restaurants at night. 

The district around the Cathedral is full of busy streets and monuments to past achievements, and streets lined with houses built like layers of a cake then crowded together with a maze of small alleys in-between. The Cordoaria quarter is for the students with steep streets and interesting shops. The civic center of the city is in the Central e Baixa quarter with broad avenues lined with banks and outdoor cafes, or in the Baixa where the two-tiered covered daily market goes about its business.  Lastly, the Boavista area is the arterial route in and out of the city past blocks of apartments and hotels. As would be expected of such an important city it is full of fascinating buildings as well.

Wine: Porto is world renowned for the wine of its surrounding regions. For many visitors to Porto and students at our institute, this is the focus of their stay. Here you have innumerable opportunities to visit vineyards, tastings, producers, festivals, educational events, etc.

FAST FORWARD Portuguese Language School

Since 1991, the Fast Forward Portuguese language schools have been devoted to providing high quality and personalized instruction in Portuguese for foreigners. All of the teachers are professional and experienced native instructors, university graduates trained in Fast Forward's direct approach to language teaching.  The Portuguese language enjoys a lively and varied lexicon throughout the world today. Fast Forward is unique in its intimate approach to acquiring language through total cultural immersion. They believe it imperative to mix the institute's academic setting with that of each individual city where they are located. Fast Forward currently offers Portuguese language courses in Porto, Portugal,  as well as São Paulo and Maceió in Brazil . Each of these cities offers a unique experience in the modern life of the Portuguese language and the people who natively speak it. Language lessons at Fast Forward focus on communication; beyond grammar books and written exercises, the teachers include a variety  of oral and listening elements with up-to-date technology to stimulate a comprehensive concept of the Portuguese language. Students are encouraged to interact with their classmates, their professors and the entire staff at Fast Forward. Teachers also dedicate their creativity and time to the organization of various activities during the students' free time, and weekends. Enthusiastic and experienced host families also contribute greatly to students' lives and well-being.  They work hard to create an intimate atmosphere both during and after class time that welcomes, inspires, challenges and responds to each individual student. Since their Brazilian beginnings, they have taught many students and executives from all over the world.

Fast Forward offers group and private general Portuguese language instruction, from absolute beginner to advanced levels. Portuguese Language exam preparatory courses are also available. Cultural programs are optional and available throughout the year. Upon arrival, students take a Portuguese language placement test to determine their level, and also decide which cultural programs they would like to participate in.

Method

Method structured in six levels, flexible to each case, including Portuguese conversation, grammar, reading and writing skills, listening comprehension, audio visual aids and role playing.

Portuguese Language Courses -  Prices 2008:

(All programs: Please add USD 100.00 Lingua Service Worldwide Application fee. See Application Procedures.)

All prices include Portuguese lessons as stated below, text book, assessment test, final test, diploma, use of library, and cultural activities offered at the center (additional fees may apply for activities taking place off-site).

Standard Portuguese Course (Maximum of 6 students per class) --- 20 Portuguese lessons per week.  Prices:   1 week: USD 463.    2 wks: USD 862.    3wks: USD 1,261.     4 wks: USD 1,453.  

Intensive Portuguese Course  (Maximum of 6 students per class)--- 30 Portuguese lessons per week.   Prices:   1 week: USD 754.   2 wks: USD 1,443.   3 wks: USD 2,133.   4 wks: USD 2,478.

Starting dates for beginners 2008 (all other levels may start any Monday):

National Holidays 2008:  1 Jan., 5 Feb., 21 March, 25 April, 1 May, 22 May, 10 June, 24 June, 15 Aug., 5 Oct, 1 Nov., 1 Dec., 8 Dec., 25 Dec.

One-on-one Portuguese language lessons 2008:  USD 48 per hour plus a USD 64 materials fee.  Starts: ANY Monday.

Accommodations  2008:

Host Family --- Private room with breakfast. USD 192 per week -  Extra days USD 32 per day.

Airport Transfers:  Available upon request.  USD 72 each way.

Activities:

All the activities are conducted in Portuguese and in English by a guide or by a teacher. Students may need to pay for boat trips, cinema and theatre tickets and dinners.

Sample of activities offered:

Ribeira:  The riverside Ribeira district is the most alluring part of Porto, a window onto the past with shadowed lanes, grimy cobbled passages and boats at the quayside (now mostly for show, advertising or tourist jaunts).

Jardins do Palácio de Cristal:  These modest, leafy park, named after a long gone 19th century crystal palace, is home to a sport pavilion, gardens and a pond, roving peacocks and a reasonable self service restaurant. But pride of place goes to the new, high tech Bilioteca Municipal Almeida Garrett.

Solar do Vinho do Porto: The finest place in Porto to drink Port wine is the Solar do Vinho do Porto, a posh bar with a river view terrace beside the Palácio de Cristal’s garden. Waiters will help you choose from hundreds of varieties.

Museu Romântico:  Beside the Palácio de Cristal’s garden is the Quinta da Macieirinha, where the abdicated King of Sardinia, Carlos Alberto, spent his final days in 1843.

Sé Catedral:  This fortress of a Cathedral dominate central Porto from its highest hill. It was founded in the 12th century but rebuild a century later and extensively altered in the 18th century. Only a Romanesque rose window and the 14th century Gothic cloister remain from earlier encarnations. Much of the rest, inside and out, bears the baroque stamp of Nicolau Nasoni. Best of all is the upper story of the cloister (rich via a Nasoni – designed stairway), decorated with 18th century azulejos (hand painted tiles) and affording some fine views.

River Cruises:  Several outfits offer cruises in barcos rabelos, the colourful boats once used to transport port wine from the vineyards. Board at Porto´s Cais da Ribeira or Cais da Estiva, or Vila Nova de Gaia’s Cais de Gaia or Cais amarelo, cruises last one hour or more should you wish to see Porto Bridges’ or go to Peso da Régua, in the North of Portugal.

São João:  The most popular area in Porto. Everything is open - windows and doors of cafes, bars, houses and restaurants; tables, chairs and benches line every available space, as squares, cobbled alleys and the riverfront become one giant open-air cafe. The whole night long sees a mixture of people and ages out on the streets. This is the one party that no one in Porto wants to miss.

Estádio do Dragão:  The old Antas stadium - official name Estádio das Antas - was already one of the greatest stadiums in Portugal, but a new stadium has arisen in its place for 2004 European Championship tournament - the Dragao Stadium. The Euro 2004 Dragao stadium is a special stadium with an impressive design. The stadium has a total capacity of 52,000 seats.

Francesinha Festival:  In the beginning of June we have in porto the Francesinha Festival. This festival, with more than 50.000 visitors, is located in Foz do Douro and is the best place to taste one of the Porto’s famous Francesinha.

Fado:  There are many restaurants and houses where you can listen to Fado while having dinner or tasting some Port Wine.

Torre eIgreja dos Clérigos:  One of the best places to get your bearings and your photos of the city is Torre dos Clérigos, 76m-high baroque tower. The Italian architect Nicolau Nasoni designed the 225 step tower and the joining oval-shaped Igreja dos Clérigos in the mid 18th century.

O Palácio da Bolsa:  The neoclassical Bolsa is a splendidly pompous monument to Porto’s past-and-present money merchants. It took 68 years to build (1842-1910) and is now the headquarters of the city’s Commercial Association.

Museu Soares dos Reis:  Porto’s other important art museum occupies the staid neoclassical Palácio das Carrancas. Durig the peninsular war Marshall Soult, the French commander made his headquarters here but was evicted so suddenly by the future Duke of Wellington that he left an unfinished banquet behind. Transformed into a museum of fine and decorative art in 1940, its best works are from the 19th century.

Lello Bookshop:  An Art Deco confection is stacked to the rafters with new, second hand and antique books, in lavish quarters more suite to a gentlemen’s club.

Tiles: Porto has some dramatic tile work. Largest and most intricate is Silvestre Silvestris panel illustrating the legend of the founding of the Carmelite order, covering an outer wall of the Igreja do Carmo. Another church covered in blue tiles-in a traditional style but dating from the early 20th century and undertaken by Eduardo Leite- is the Capela das Almas.  In the entrance hall of São Bento train station several huge works by Jorge Colaço (1930) depict scenes ranging from daily life to historic battles.

IMPORTANT NOTE: All prices subject to change due to fluctuating currency rates.

What former students have said about this school:

"The program was superb. I was lucky to have an excellent teacher and family for the homestay."
-Edward Friedman, University Professor

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