Listening Exercises A2 – Travel

A:   So how was your trip to San Francisco, Cindy?

B:   Oh, pretty good, mostly.

A:   Mostly?

B:   Yeah, it started off okay. I did all the usual things. You know, I took a ride on the cable car. That was fun.

A:   I know, I love the cable cars.

B:   Then I looked around Chinatown. The food there is terrific.

A:   Yeah.

B:   Anyway. On my second day I decided to rent a car. I wanted to get out of the city and look around.

A:   Were you on your own?

B:   Uh-huh. So first I drove across the Golden Gate Bridge and stopped to take some photos. Then I decided to drive out to Napa Valley.

A:   Napa Valley?

B:   Yeah. That’s where they grow grapes to make wine. It’s really beautiful. All green – great vineyards. Unfortunately, while I was driving I had a slight accident.

A:   Oh, no. Were you hurt?

B:   No, But it was awful. I had to leave the car and take a taxi all the way back to the hotel. It cost me an arm and a leg!

A:   On, no. What a vacation!

1.

Hi, Mom. This is Jill. Just calling to say hello. I’m having a wonderful time. Last week I met this gorgeous Italian guy. He’s really nice. Umm, he doesn’t have a jot yet, but I’m sure he’s going to be very successful and guess what? He wants to marry me. He gave me a beautiful ring – I think it belonged to a relative – anyway, what do you think? I’ll call back later. Bye.

2.

Hi, Mom. Hi, Dad. This is Sean. I’m having a terrific time but I’m not relaxing much. The weather is great so I’m always busy doing something. Things are really expensive in Hawaii – the hotel, the clothes, the food, everything – and I’m completely out of money. So can you send me some money as soon as possible? Thanks. Love you. Bye.

3.

Mom. This is John. Listen. I’m going to be back a day late. Traffic to the airport this morning was terrible. By the time I arrived, my plane had left. I also lost my wallet in the rush. It has all my credit cards in it. And the airline won’t help me. I’m not sure what to do. I’ll call you later. Bye.

4.

Oh, Bob. This is Rachel. Sorry I missed your call last night. I went out for dinner and today I’ve got a terrible stomachache. It must be something I ate. Anyway, I’m going to see the doctor. Don’t worry – I’m sure I’ll be fine. Talk to you soon.

5.

Hi, Dad. This is Mary calling from Paris. Sorry I missed you. Listen. Something terrible happened. I went on a bus tour this morning, and dropped my glasses somewhere. I can’t find them, and I can’t see anything without them. Can you call me back as soon as you get this message?

6.

Hi, Mom. This is Margaret calling. Listen. I won’t be home tomorrow night. They changed my flight and there’s no flight tomorrow. So, uh, I’ll be home on Friday. Don’t worry about me! I’m excited because I can do a few more things here in Hong Kong. See you soon.

1.

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 e-mail. 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!

2.

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 really see the museums I missed.

3.

Last summer I flew from London to Casablanca in Morocco to do some research on the traditional music there. Unfortunately, my bags didn’t arrive with the flight. I thought they would probably arrive on the next flight, but they didn’t. I had nothing to wear except the clothes I was wearing. Luckily the airline gave me some money to buy some extra clothes and things. The bags didn’t turn up till four days later. I was really glad to get my bags back because I had a lot of important stuff inside them. But I had to wait around until they turned up, so I didn’t get a chance to listen to any of the traditional music. That’s why I want to get back there again sometime.

4

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 and it was a week before I was feeling well enough to go out. 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. It has the best coral reefs in the world.

5   4   2   1   3

Transcript

A:   How was your trip to Miami?

B:   Well, it could have been better.

A:   Really? What happened?

B:   Well, first, I missed my flight. I had to wait five hours for the next flight. I was so angry.

A:   But you made it to Miami safely?

B:   Yes, I made it to Miami, but my bags didn’t arrive. I got them back four days later.

A:   That’s too bad. Did you spend any time at the beach?

B:   Yes, I went to the beach on Monday, and I lay in the sun all day. And then, I got sick. Sunstroke! I was in bed for three days.

A:   Oh, no! Was the rest of your vacation any better?

B:   Not really. After I felt better, I went sightseeing in South Beach, but, I lost my wallet that day. I’m sure it was stolen.

A:   Oh, Frank. What else happened?

B:   You’re not going to believe this, but on my way back to the airport, my taxi was in an accident.

A:   Were you okay?

B:   Yes, I was fine. And I didn’t miss my flight back home. I was so lucky!

1 False   2 False   3 True   4 True   5 True

Transcript

Well, last year I took my family on a trip to New York City for the first time. We were a little nervous, because we thought that the city would be really dangerous, but it was actually quite safe. We went all over the city and never felt scared. We got to see New York’s skyscrapers, museums, and stores, and eat ethnic food in several great restaurants. The people were so nice and helpful everywhere we went. We were really glad we decided to go, because we ended up having a great time. But, yes, everything in New York City is very expensive.