In this week's talking point the topic is time off. Before getting together with the members of your conversation group, go over the questions below so that you can work out vocabulary problems beforehand and ideas flow more easily when you meet up with your friends.
What are the main tourist attractions locally / regionally / nationally?
What are they like?
How many public holidays are there where you live?
Do you take them all?
What is your favourite public holiday?
What did you do on the last public holiday?
Do you often go out for the day if you have a day off?
What is the best place to go for a day out in your area?
What are the main factors to decide where to go for a good day out?
And for choosing a holiday?
How much holiday do you get per year?
Is that the same for all the workers?
Are you happy with what you get?
F: I’ve spent a lot of time living in different countries so there isn’t one place, I think of as home. I’ve lived in Scotland and Poland and China. I love going to new places and learning about new cultures. Today, I’m asking people about travel.
W1: I love travel. It’s one of my passions.
M1: I enjoy it a lot. I have travelled to India several times. I lived there, and I’ve lived here, and I’ve been to Istanbul once and I enjoyed that very much.
W2: I’ve done quite a bit of travelling with holidays and stuff. I think it’s good- good experience.
W3: You get to meet different people from different backgrounds, and that’s pretty important to get an understanding.
M2: It’s always nice to just get out and experience a different culture and different lifestyle.
W4: I get very excited about the thought of going to most countries, any country.
W5: I love to travel to different countries.
M3: Absolutely love travelling. I’ve been travelling for about two and a half years solid now.
W6: I’ve been to Turkey. I’ve been to Egypt. I’ve been to Malta.
M4: I work as an expedition leader and so I actually operate in different countries around the world, many places outside the United Kingdom.
F: What do you like about travelling?
M3: I think you mature a lot when you travel. You learn… oh, just completely different experiences to what you’re used to at home.
W6: I like the airport experience. I love that.
M5: I like the arrival more than the travelling.
W5: To see art especially. We love to see theatre in other countries.
M4: You see some of the most beautiful scenery around the world which you wouldn’t experience in other countries.
M2: I just really like getting out there and experiencing a different culture, getting far away from, you know, what we’re used to in Australia, and meeting new people.
W4: The anticipation of being in a new place, of seeing very different things, of hearing a different language, of eating different food. Everything that travel has to offer.
F: What don’t you like?
W6: I don’t like long flights.
W3: I suppose plane journeys are not always the most exciting of things.
W1: Flying. I don’t particularly like flying, but it’s a necessity when you live in Ireland, you know.
M2: I suppose the biggest problem I have with travelling is living out of a suitcase.
W4: In all honesty, I actually see the whole travel as an adventure in itself. So when I was backpacking, and we ran out of money, or we were in dangerous situations, I actually quite enjoyed that.
M4: You spend a lot of time outside the United Kingdom and the disadvantage of that is, that you tend to miss families and friends. I miss out on normal things in life, so … I’ve been outside the United Kingdom for two thirds of the year. I’d say that’s the main disadvantage.
W5: The hardest thing for me is that I’m handicapped. And so sometimes getting around, especially very old cities, is very difficult.
M5: My wife’s usually late getting to the airport. It wasn’t until I got married that I actually started missing flights.
