(Reading Practice (Improve your pronunciation in English

listen and practice a few months ago i moved to this cute little house out in the country before i moved all i did was sit in cafes and read or surf the internet boring now i want to spend all my free time outside enjoying nature the only problem is i'm not in very good shape so i don't like doing any sports or anything that involves a lot of exercise i tried hiking once but i fell down a hill and hurt my leg don't get me wrong i love the outdoors but what i really want is something i can do quietly in nature listen and practice air pollution in our city was a huge problem and we really needed to lower it i guess that's why the government started putting special bicycle lanes on the streets downtown that way people can ride their bikes to work instead of using their stinky cars they also made a rule that says there must be at least two people in your car if you want to drive downtown during the week they also ordered these amazing new pollution-free buses they use electricity so they don't put anything bad into the air listen and practice the first time i got on an airplane i was terrified i just couldn't understand how a big heavy thing like a plane could stay up in the air after we were in the air for a while i spoke to the man next to me he was an airplane engineer and explained how airplanes stay in the air that really helped because i understand how planes work i was still a little nervous on the next few flights but now i really love flying listen and practice i bought this house last year and i love it my next-door neighbors are the only problem they have two young boys who like to play baseball in my yard last month they accidentally broke my window the boys apologized but their parents didn't even offer to pay for the damages can you believe that listen and practice i was always afraid of the water as a kid i would never go into the pool or swim at the beach i was sure i would drown then i took swimming lessons in high school once i learned how to swim i felt different now i love the water and especially the beach i feel totally safe because now i know how to take care of myself in the water listen and practice i like collecting things i collected baseball cards when i was a kid but i don't anymore these days baseball card collectors are only interested in money i wanted to collect things that are really beautiful so that's why i started collecting stamps some of the stamps i have are really really beautiful i think they're like paintings what i like best is looking at my collection it's like walking through a tiny museum full of wonderful paintings listen and practice i travel a lot for my job too much i think sometimes i'm away from home for three weeks or more it can be pretty lonely that's why i'm so happy about the hotel where i'm staying now first of all the restaurant serves light healthy food that gives me a lot of energy for my work then there's the staff they're very friendly to me my only complaint is with the room the bed is very hard they should buy a softer mattress and the rates are expensive but the company pays for it so i don't mind listen and practice our trip to the lake has been pretty disappointing so far it takes two days to drive there so of course we have to stay in a hotel for one night on the way my husband forgot to make a reservation though we found a hotel but the restaurant was only serving small snacks when i complained about it to the hotel manager he just laughed at me they should get a new manager the room is dirty and tiny it's really bad the kids have to share a bed and they're unhappy about that of course the rates are very cheap so that's good we'll have to be sure to make reservations from now on listen and practice my friends and i flew down here to the beach for spring break of course we're really excited about swimming and partying and meeting other college students our hotel is full of families and little kids though the restaurants are terrible really crowded with kids and noisy and they're really slow too the hotel should have one restaurant that's just for adults i think another problem is the service the staff is too busy running activities for the little kids so sometimes they don't bring us new towels or clean the room one good thing is the room it's really big and it has a great view of the beach the price is great too i guess most college students don't want to stay here so the room rates are low listen and practice my flight was delayed by a big snowstorm so i had to stay overnight in this hotel my only complaint is the restaurants there are three of them and they are all way too expensive for me because the airline isn't paying for my dinner they should have at least one cheap casual restaurant the staff is so friendly though whenever i call the front desk to ask for something they always remember my name and they work so quickly the room is huge with a giant bathroom that is bigger than my whole apartment it's got everything a refrigerator a microwave even a flat screen tv the rates are very expensive i am so glad that the airline is paying for the room listen and practice i was afraid of snakes when i was a kid i remember going to the zoo and seeing them there and i thought they were kind of cute but once when i was out hiking i nearly stepped on one and he tried to bite me it was really ugly and i'm sure it was poisonous since then i've been pretty terrified of them i could never touch one now listen and practice i have a great roommate she's neat and she makes me laugh a lot she's got a wonderful sense of humor she's really smart too she studies all the time i sometimes wish she'd take more time off to make friends because she hardly knows anyone she doesn't seem to feel comfortable when she's around people listen and practice bob and i get along pretty well he keeps the place really clean and neat the only thing is he loves to party he's always inviting friends over and they sit around and talk really loudly until it's very late it makes it really hard for me to study i've asked him not to do it when i'm studying but he still does i guess it doesn't bother him because he never studies listen and practice anne is difficult to live with because she has very strong opinions she always has to be right about things and she just sits around all day watching tv she never does anything active the worst thing is she loses her temper very quickly i think i need to find a new roommate listen and practice i like sharing a room with greg he's very quiet and always asks me if it's okay for him to listen to the radio or watch tv he likes to keep the room nice and clean just like i do he helps me a lot with homework too he's really smart and is always happy to check over my assignments listen and practice i met this really nice family when i was in korea last year i was in a restaurant and i was having trouble understanding the menu the wife came over and asked me what i wanted to eat and told me all about korean food then they asked me to join them at their table and they paid for my dinner they also invited me to their house we became friends and we keep in touch now by email they'll take me to a famous temple the next time i go back isn't that fabulous i can't wait to see that temple listen and practice once when i was in italy i took a bus trip from rome to florence the bus was very crowded and i had to stand most of the way i had a couple of small bags with me one was a backpack that had my wallet in it i kept it in front of me for the entire trip but when i got to florence i couldn't believe what had happened someone had cut a hole in my backpack put in their hand and removed my wallet then they took the money out and put the wallet back inside my backpack i never noticed a thing it really ruined my vacation because i couldn't pay to get into any museums so now i want to go back again next summer and see all the museums i missed listen and practice i was on vacation in australia last summer when i got a terrible case of the flu i had to stay in bed for four days i have a cousin in sydney who was really kind and spent a lot of time with me until i was better by then i only had three days of sightseeing left before i had to leave i saw the sydney opera house and that was about it the most awful thing is i didn't have the chance to go scuba diving i want to go back and scuba dive there they have the best coral reefs in the world listen and practice i have a really busy weekend ahead of me i have to work about 10 hours on saturday i'm really excited about saturday night though i'm going to my friend alex's party he always has great parties i don't have to go to work on sunday but i do have to spend all morning and afternoon writing a paper for my history class then on sunday night i'm going to the movies with some friends listen and practice i plan to study most of this weekend but on saturday evening i'm going over to my friend's house it's her birthday so she's having a few friends over for dinner i'm really looking forward to seeing her we haven't seen each other in two months i knew i wouldn't have time to go shopping on saturday so i bought her a birthday gift on friday i got her a sweater i hope she likes it listen and practice there are advantages and disadvantages to living out here in the suburbs it's not really the most convenient place to live it takes forever to get into town especially during rush hour and there aren't any good stores out here on the other hand it's nice and quiet on the weekends listen and practice i recently moved into an apartment building for the first time i've always lived in houses it takes a while to get used to having neighbors right next door i feel like they're always listening to me like they want to know everything i do it's annoying but the rent is much cheaper than my old place and i like that listen and practice my neighbors are fantastic they're really friendly and some of them have great parties too i'd like more space though there's hardly enough space for all my stuff i guess i should throw some of it out but i just can't listen and practice the apartment i rent is okay it's near a lot of stores so it's convenient for shopping the problem though is that the owner hasn't spent any money on the place in years the furniture is falling apart and the carpet in the living room is stained in places listen and practice i love my apartment i wish i could afford to stay here the location is perfect it has huge windows with a beautiful view and i love being able to step outside and walk to cafes and shops the only problem is the rent it's just too high now so i can't stay listen and practice i have a small design company we design menus calendars and things like that there are just three of us in the company last year was a very quiet year for us but it looks as if business is really improving this year listen and practice my place is huge it has room for all my stuff and there's a big kitchen too of course it's really old so it needs a coat of paint and some new appliances the refrigerator and dishwasher are really ancient and i think the stove is about a hundred years old listen and practice i have two children a girl and a boy my husband comes from a big family and would love to have more children but i think two is enough listen and practice i really enjoy living here so far everything has been fine the downtown area is really pretty and i love all the cafes and restaurants there the other thing i like is that the town's small so it's easy to get to know people listen and practice day of the dead i arrive in guatemala on the day of the dead november 1st i'm curious about this holiday so i go to the cemetery to see what's happening what i find is quite interesting the atmosphere is like a party there are people everywhere families are sitting around the graves of their dead ancestors they clean the graves and add fresh flowers i walk through the cemetery and admire the beauty of all the colorful flowers there's also color in the sky because many kids are flying kites some families are having a picnic next to the graves they eat drink and chat together people laugh and smile in the united states cemeteries are always somber we certainly never have festivals or parties next to graves we don't laugh or play music or fly kites in cemeteries either i find that i prefer the guatemalan approach i like the way they remember and celebrate those who have passed away i like that they acknowledge death instead of denying it the way americans do i like that there is life as well as death in their cemeteries guatemalans call it the day of the dead but it is also a day to appreciate life listen and practice i don't really have a lot going on this weekend i was so busy last weekend that i didn't want to make any big plans for this weekend i played soccer and went hiking last saturday then went for a long bike ride on sunday this weekend i'm just gonna stay home and read a book i'm excited about being home by myself and relaxing all weekend listen and practice i've been having a great time since i arrived everyone's been very helpful and i've made some wonderful new friends i still have a few more days here so i'm thinking of renting a car and driving up to the mountains listen and practice this is gonna be a great weekend i can't wait for sunday afternoon my soccer team is playing in the finals i hope we win on saturday i'm going to the beach with my friends and on saturday night we're going to have dinner at my favorite restaurant listen and practice my friends and i are taking a road trip to los angeles this weekend we're planning on leaving on friday after class we'll get to la around seven in the evening just in time for dinner on saturday we'll probably hang out at the beach during the day we're going to have a fire and sing songs all night it's going to be fantastic listen and practice i greet people differently depending on the situation in formal situations i usually shake hands and when i meet someone for the first time i almost always shake hands it's important to shake hands firmly when i greet casual friends i just say hi for close friends i usually give them a hug it's a little different for men though where i live it's not very common for male friends to hug each other they do other things like the fist bunk that's when two people touch fists sandra us listen and practice in formal situations or when i meet someone for the first time i shake hands it's important to shake hands firmly and look the other person in the eye when you greet them i always hug my friends hugging is perfectly acceptable it's okay for men to hug other men for men to hug women and for women to hug other women kamal turkey listen and practice in a formal situation or when i meet someone for the first time i always shake hands when i greet a male friend i give him a hug and a pat on the back when i greet a close female friend i give her a small hug and a kiss on the cheek my female friends greet each other in this way too octavio venezuela listen and practice when i meet a friend i greet them with a i put my hands together in front of my chest and bow slightly and say sawadi which means hello in formal situations some people still use this traditional thai greeting but these days more and more business people shake hands times are changing noi thailand listen and practice carlos buys a new car it's a very expensive car it's a huge blue fast car while driving down the street carlo sees a girl on a bicycle she has long blonde hair and is beautiful he yells to her what's up she ignores him he yells how's it going she keeps going and ignores him he yells hey why won't you talk to me i want to go to dinner with you i'll take you to an expensive restaurant the girl turns gets off the bike and looks at him she says i don't want to go to dinner but if you give me your car i will give you a surprise carlo says okay he jumps out of the car he gives her the keys and says here are the keys the beautiful blonde takes the keys and then kisses carlos on the cheek then she jumps into the car and drives away carlos stands on the sidewalk now he has no car and no girl he says that's it just a kiss on the cheek he gets on her bike and rides home

Channel: English Language Academy

Views: 164,201

Rating: 4.9164357 out of 5

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Id: g7PdeBosnXE

Length: 26min 51sec (1611 seconds)

Published: Mon May 24 2021