Shadowing Practice: Smoking a Cigarette on the Beach in Brazil Right After Sunset - Learn English Speaking with Video

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How's it going, y'all? It's just past sunset,  right around 5:50 p.m. in the evening here in Brazil. And since it is right past sunset, I  figured, hey, why not walk onto the beach and smoke a little bit of a cigarette on the beach  here in Brazil right after sunset. As such, that is exactly what I'm going to be doing during  this video today. And overall, I'm looking forward to having this experience. I want to smoke a  cigarette. I want to enjoy a beautiful view.
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And I want to enjoy the final signs of sunlight  on my final day here in Brazil. That's right. It is my final day in Brazil. My flight leaves in I  would say around about 6 hours or so. My flight is at like 1:00 a.m. Going to be leaving the airport  probably around 10:00. I've only got a couple more hours here in Brazil. It's been an amazing trip.  I've loved my time here. Brazil really has treated me right. So, you know, I want to send off the  trip with a little bit of a cigarette. In specific today, I am going to be smoking a Paulistinha classic palheiro cigarette from Brazil.
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This is a cigarette that has a  corn husk wrapper and palheiros are a I would have to say historic Brazilian type  of tobacco product. So I don't think there's any better way to send off this trip with than with a  palheiro is what I'm trying to say. Got my words a little bit jumbled up. I'll acknowledge I've got  a little bit of a buzz going on right now. Drank a little bit of alcohol before starting this  video. But I do suppose without further ado, I should probably go ahead and actually get to  smoking one of my palheiro right here. And I do suppose I should probably go ahead and actually  get to enjoying the view around me and get to enjoying this cigarette I have now, shouldn't I?  So, let's go ahead and uh get this pack all opened up if I can. Let's go ahead and grab one of the  cigarettes inside all out. And hopefully it won't be too hard to light one of these because it's not  terribly windy out here. I've been on the beach a couple times and definitely sometimes it is quite  windy and sometimes it ain't. And thankfully today it really ain't all that windy, I got to admit.  Well, without further ado, let's go ahead and just lean down a bit, get out of what wind there is,  and let's go ahead and get my Paulistinha Classic palheiro all lit up, and let's go ahead and  get to smoking a cigarette on the beach here in Brazil right after sunset. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. You  know what I'm saying? You know what I'm saying?
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This is a bit more difficult than I thought, especially since there really  is not that much of a breeze.
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But there we go, y'all. There we go. I have my I have my cigarette all lit up. Let's go  ahead and walk towards the beach. And let's go ahead and officially get to smoking  my cigarette on the beach here in Brazil.
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Now, I've got to make sure I take hits of my  cigarette somewhat consistently as otherwise it's going to go out and I don't want  to have to go through the experience of lighting it again. So, I'm going to try to  make sure I take it somewhat consistently, somewhat routinely. You know what I'm saying?
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But overall, so far, is it getting me  a little bit of a buzz? I got to admit, it is. And I got to admit, the nature around  me is absolutely gorgeous. I have spent the last week and a half, almost two weeks  here on the island of Santa Katarina in the state of Florianopolis in Brazil. And  the nature is gorgeous. The ocean gorgeous.
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What's surrounding me right now gorgeous?  It's been an amazing time, I got to admit.
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I have thoroughly enjoyed myself and I'm very  glad to have made the trip here and to have seen what's going on. And here, here's  the beach. Here's the ocean. Let's go down onto it and let's take a little bit  of a walk. Just down a bit, I do think.
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And let's quickly before it gets too dark,  let's grab myself a little bit of a thumbnail.
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had to do it. You know what I'm saying? Had to do  it. What can I say? Now, my palheiro, it's smoking a bit faster than honestly I expected, but it is  hitting just as hard as I expected. It is hitting very hard. I am a little bit buzzed right now.  And I'm going to go ahead and adjust the plastic band on it that keeps everything smoking well  and staying together. I just did that. And uh man, I got to admit this is nice. Look at those  waves. I don't want to get cl too close to the ocean. Oh man, I'm buzzed. I don't want to get too  close to the ocean because uh I don't want to have wet shoes on the plane, but man, it's gorgeous  out here. It really is beautiful. Take a look at this view, y'all. Take a look at this view. This  is beautiful out here. It's absolutely gorgeous, man. smoking a cigarette on the beach  here in Brazil right after sunset. I got to admit this is a solid experience  to have and I'm very glad I'm having this experience today and I'm very glad I chose  a palheiro for this experience in specific.
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Now, my smoke, I will acknowledge it did just go  out. So, I'm going to go and try to get it re-lit.
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It's not really wanting to though.  So, let me put my camera down.
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Man, I got to admit this is super nice. It's a little bit chilly out here. There's a  little bit of wind, not much.
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This is really nice. This is just  so chill. Smoking a cigarette, hearing the sound of the ocean behind me.
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Man, oh man. I got to admit,  no complaints on my behalf.
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And the sand all of a sudden got very firm. I  don't know if I want to walk down any more than I have because I'm afraid if a big wave comes up,  it's going to come all the way up to here and I don't want to get my shoes wet. And I'm thinking  the waves are going pretty high up down there. So, I am going to uh turn around, I will  acknowledge, and I'm going to walk back the way I came. As mentioned, I want to make  sure I don't be getting no wet shoes today.
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Just going to adjust the band on my palheiro again if I can. Oh man, the wave  is coming right up. Oh man, I wasn't paying attention. It tried to  get me when I wasn't paying attention.
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Just had to adjust the band  on my palheiro, though.
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Oh man, this is nice. I'm just going to  kind of sit down, honestly. Or not sit down, but like squat down and just enjoy  what's going on in front of me. Oh man, I'm getting a little bit buzzed. I had a  drink or two before this video. I really enjoyed those drinks and I'm really  enjoying this. This is gorgeous.
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It's beautiful out here. Let's grab a photo.
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There we go. Had to do it.  I'm going to keep walking.
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Oh, I am so buzzed right now.  Holy crap. These palheiros, the strength of them is not  to be underestimated. Wow.
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And it's getting dark out here as well. It's  definitely after sunset, that's for sure.
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And I don't think I have too much of my palheiro left. Think I might stub it  out in just a minute or two.
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But I'm going to smoke it as much as I  can cuz I want to get as much nicotine as I can from it. Man, they're  just stopping for a second. Wow, it is beautiful out here. I love  having a good smoke with some good nature. And this is some good nature.  And this certainly is a good smoke.
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And it's now out. My PO has gone out. I don't  think I'm going to try to relight it. It is tempting to do so. It is tempting to try to  relight it, but I don't think I will do that.
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I think I'm going to head back to my Airbnb  and I think I'm going to have a great rest of my night. Have I accomplished the goal of this  video? Have I smoked a little bit of a cigarette on the beach here in Brazil right after sunset?  I would have to say I have I have accomplished the goal of this video. I've done what I've  wanted to do and I've had a good time while doing so and I hope you guys have enjoyed watching  this video. This is the final Brazil video. Man, I've had a great time here. It's been tons of  fun. Hope you guys have enjoyed all the Brazil videos. I've had an amazing time making all of  them and I hope you guys have enjoyed this video today. Make sure to go check out my new poetry  book, Poems to Read While Smoking Cigarettes, linked in the description and comments down below.  The poems within my new poetry book, they're not good poems, but they are good poems to read while  smoking cigarettes, and I highly recommend it.
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And of course, also make sure to like and  subscribe and make sure to have a great rest of y'all's day. Appreciate appreciate appreciate  all y'all watching today's video. Appreciate y'all watching all the Brazil videos. And uh  until the next one, y'all stay safe and peace and have a great one. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. You  know what I'm saying? You know what I'm saying?

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Speaking Goals for This Clip: Natural Fluency and Informal Narrative

This video is perfect for practicing conversational flow and informal storytelling—key milestones for everyday English fluency. The speaker’s relaxed, unscripted tone mirrors real-life communication, making it ideal for mastering how to share personal experiences, express emotions, and connect ideas smoothly. Whether you’re preparing for IELTS speaking practice or just want to sound more natural, this clip helps you learn to pause, self-correct, and use filler phrases (like "you know what I'm saying?") without breaking rhythm.

Phrase Bank: Reusable Expressions for Daily Talk

  • "figured, hey, why not..." – Suggesting a spontaneous idea
  • "send off the trip with" – Ending an experience memorably
  • "got my words a little bit jumbled up" – Admitting a minor mistake
  • "without further ado" – Transitioning to action
  • "I got to admit" – Sharing a genuine thought
  • "not to be underestimated" – Highlighting something surprising

Fix Your Weak Spots: Rhythm and Intonation in Casual Speech

The video’s laid-back pace is great for practicing shadow speech (repeating phrases aloud in real time) to improve pronunciation and rhythm. Notice how the speaker stresses words like "gorgeous" and "amazing" to emphasize emotion—this is key for sounding engaging. The occasional pauses and self-corrections ("I'll acknowledge I've got a little bit of a buzz") teach you to embrace natural imperfection, a skill often tested in IELTS speaking. Use the shadowing technique here: play a short clip, pause, and repeat, focusing on matching the speaker’s tone and pace. This is one of the best ways to learn English with YouTube—turning casual content into targeted practice. For extra support, pair this with a shadowing site to track your progress, but even repeating directly from the video will boost your confidence in informal settings.

Grammar in this video

The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:

StructureIn the video
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters nowIt's been · I've been · have spent
Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing formkeep walking · love having · enjoyed watching
Comparatives -er than / more … than — comparing two thingsmore difficult than · faster than
Present continuous am/is/are + -ing — something happening right now or around nowI'm looking · I'm trying · I'm saying

What is the Shadowing Technique?

Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →