Unit 7 Travel READING PLUS
1 READING c
a Look at the travel b
photos from two different
places. Where do you
think they are? Why?
BETTER READING: INFERRING
Sometimes you can get ideas from a text which are not
explicitly stated. Answer the questions below about
both blog post writers. Say yes, no or I don’t know and
give your reasons.
Do you think the writer … ?
1 planned the trip carefully
b Read the blog posts on page 45 quickly. Were you right Javiera Alexis
about the photos?
2 lives in the country they are describing
Javiera Alexis
c Read the blog posts again and find words and phrases
for the things in the photos. 3 travelled alone
Javiera Alexis
d Read the blog posts again more carefully and decide if 4 is a sociable person
the sentences are true or false. If they are false, Javiera Alexis
say why.
1 Javiera travelled to Quito in order to visit the Galapagos
Islands. e Find the words below in the blog posts. Use the context
False. She decided to go to the Galapagos while she was to guess the meaning. Underline words that help you.
in Quito, not before.
2 Most penguins live south of the equator. goggles ancient wildlife stopover
3 The sea lions weren’t interested in Javiera. delicious lakeside
4 Alexis was able to talk to other passengers because
goggles
he speaks Russian.
swimming with goggles so that I could see under the water
5 Building the track across the Amur River was difficult.
6 Alexis didn’t go all the way to the end of the railway.
f Would you like to go on one of these trips? Why /
why not? Can you think of another interesting travel
idea? Compare with a partner.
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Unit 7
Ancient tortoises, swimming lizards and cool sharks
Javiera M
The Galapagos Islands are a dream holiday for animal lovers like me, and so when my brother and I had
the chance to visit last July, we took it. We were in Quito, Ecuador, and the islands were just a short flight
away. I wasn’t disappointed – it was like being in a TV wildlife programme. The animals there aren’t afraid
of people, and they don’t mind if you stand right next to them. We saw the famous giant tortoises. Some
of them are ancient – over 150 years old! There are penguins too – this is the only place in the northern
hemisphere where they live. I loved the ugly marine iguanas. This is also the only place in the world with
lizards that can swim. But my favourite part of the trip was swimming with goggles so that I could see
under the water. The baby sea lions were so friendly – they actually come and play with you. One time while
I was in the water, I saw a group of sharks a few metres below me. I didn’t want them to see me, so I didn’t
move, but I was terrified. Fortunately, they weren’t interested in me!
Following the last tsar’s tracks Alexis V
I once took a trip across Russia on the Trans-Siberian railway, from Moscow to the Pacific Ocean. That’s
a very long train ride – 9,200 km, across eight time zones! It takes seven days non-stop, but it took me
longer because I had a stopover for a few days. I speak a little Russian, so I could talk to some of the other
passengers. I learned about the history of the railway. The work was started in 1891 by the last tsar and
finished 20 years later – the last piece to be finished was the bridge over the Amur River. That was a big
engineering challenge! When the Communists came to power, the tsar was transported as a prisoner on the
same railway he built! I broke the journey for a few days beside the deepest lake in the world, Lake Baikal. I
stayed in a lakeside village. There was a café, really just a room in one of the colourful wooden houses, and
some people were playing folk music there. I had my violin with me so I joined in. They invited me to a party
the next day. We played music, and we cooked and ate delicious fresh fish on the beach. It was the best part
of the whole trip!
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