Preparation
While you listen
Elementary Podcasts are suitable for learners with different levels of English. Here are some ways to make them easier (if you have a lower level of English) or more difficult (if you have a higher level of English). You can choose one or two of these suggestions - you don't have to do all of them!
Making it easier
- Read all the exercises before you listen to the podcast.
- Look up the words in the exercises that you don't know in a dictionary.
- Play the podcast as many times as you need.
- Play each part of the podcast separately.
- Read the transcript after you have listened to the podcast.
Making it harder
- Listen to the podcast before you read the exercises.
- Only play the podcast once before answering the questions.
- Play the whole podcast without a break.
- Don't read the transcript.
Now, listen to the podcast and do the exercises on the following tabs.
Task 1
Activity 1
Task 2
Activity 2
Task 3
Activity 3
Task 4
Activity 4
How do you say hello to your friends? Do you shake hands? Kiss? Hug? Bow? Perhaps you wai like people do in Thailand!
Write to us in the comments and we'll discuss your answers in the next show.
Transcript
Rob and Adam
Adam: Hello!
Rob: Hello and thank you for all your fantastic comments & recipes. Comments from almost 50 different countries from Algeria to Vietnam and from Colombia to Kazakhstan. Great to see so many responses. Keep them coming – you can write to us at http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org or via Facebook – look for ‘Elementary Podcasts’.
Adam: We got some great recipes – from Spain, Greece, Kazakhstan, Armenia – we could set up an international restaurant! Both Felix and Eduardo from Spain sent us recipes for Spanish omelette – I might try that. Elmira in Kazakhstan told us how to make a traditional fish dish called ‘koktal’ – using carp. Now, British people don’t usually eat much carp, but I might try this one.
Rob: For dessert Idoia taught us how to cook rice and milk and if we want a drink then ninamagalhaess in Brazil told us how to make ‘caipirinhas’, but they’re an alcoholic drink so not for everyone.
Adam: Skybase noticed that Ravi made a mistake. Ravi said that fish and chip shops in Britain serve 250,000 meals a year, but the real number is 250 million meals a year. Well spotted, Skybase!
Rob: Now, if you’ve listened before you’ll remember Carolina. She’s from Venezuela and she’s a student at Newcastle University in the North-East of England. She lives with her best friend Emily and she’s part of the environment society with her boyfriend Jamie. Last time we heard from her, she was going back to Venezuela for the summer. Let’s meet her again.
Carolina
Carolina: Hello? Is anyone here?
Emily: Carolina! Hi! Welcome back!
Carolina: Oh hello, Emily! Oh, it's so good to see you.
Emily: You too. How was your summer?
Carolina: Great. And yours?
Emily: Yeah, good.
Carolina: Let me take my suitcase to my room and you know, take my clothes…..
Emily: Unpack, you mean.
Carolina: That's the word …unpack. You know I think I've forgotten a lot of English in the summer. I've only spoken Spanish. No English at all.
Emily: Don't worry. You'll soon remember. But it's funny, you know – I think your accent is stronger, more Spanish, I mean Venezuelan.
Carolina: Oh, dear.
Emily: No, it's nice. I like your accent. You start unpacking and I'll make a cup of tea.
Carolina: English tea, aaah. Do you know, Emily, I think I've missed English tea? We drink more coffee at home in Venezuela. Just let me unpack my things and I'll see you in the kitchen….
Emily: Hello? Can I come in?
Carolina: Sure.
Emily: Here you are. A nice cup of English tea.
Carolina: Oh, thanks Emily. Mmm. Here, sit down on the bed. Let me move these T-shirts.
Emily: Wow, Carolina, look at all these clothes!
Carolina: I know. I bought quite a lot of things in Venezuela. My parents put some money in my bank account for this year and, I don't know, I went a bit crazy I think. I was so careful with money last year I…., oh I don't know. Anyway, look at these jeans. Cool, huh?
Emily: They're lovely. And I love that dress.
Carolina: Which one? This one?
Emily: Yeah. It's really sexy. You look great in red.
Carolina: Yes, I think I'll wear it the first time I go out with Jamie. He's coming back tomorrow.
Emily: Jamie. That's right. What happened between you two in the end? First of all he didn't phone to say goodbye before you left and you were like "Oooh he didn't phone, oooh it's all over". Then I got an email from you and everything was Jamie this and Jamie that and "Ooooh I'm so happy". What happened?
Carolina: I'm sure I wasn't that bad Emily.
Emily: Well, nearly. Come on, what happened?
Carolina: Well, yes, I was a bit upset when I got the taxi to the station, but then he phoned. Just as I was getting out of the taxi. And he said he was really sorry, but he'd got confused with the days, and he thought I was leaving the next week, so that's why he didn't phone.
Emily: Hmm.
Carolina: ‘Hmm’ what?
Emily: Just ‘hmm’. You know I like Jamie, Carolina, but it's a strange thing to forget – the day your girlfriend goes off to Venezuela for the summer.
Carolina: Anyway, that's what happened. And we've been emailing and texting all holiday and he says he can't wait to see me when he gets back. And "Ooooh I'm so happy".
Emily: Well, I'm glad he phoned and I'm glad you're still together.
Carolina: And what about you? Any news on your love life?
Emily: Love life? What love life?
Carolina: Oh, Emily!
Emily: Seriously, I haven't had a love life since last year, when I went on that study trip to France. Jacques. I really liked him, but then he didn't… well, I didn't…. I don't know. And that was the last 'man in my life'.
Carolina: You got that Valentine's card.
Emily: Anonymous.
Carolina: So? It shows someone likes you.
Emily: It was from my mother. She feels sorry for me.
Carolina: And you like the man who delivers the pizzas. The one with the long hair.
Emily: Hmm. He says "Here's your pizza" and I say "Thank you very much". A beautiful relationship. We have so much in common!
Carolina: OK. That's enough. Listen, what about dinner? Is there any food in the house? Shall we go out? We could order a pizza. You can answer the door.
Emily: Yeah, I'll wear your new red dress! Ah, it's good to have you back Carolina.
Rob and Adam
Adam: Nice to hear Carolina again. Now, here’s an interesting thing. Carolina & Emily hadn’t seen each other for a while, a whole summer, and they hugged each other and kissed. I find this interesting because people think the British are quite cold and reserved, so I’m interested in what people do when they meet people or see old friends again. What do you do, Rob?
Rob: When I see old friends again I usually hug them. What do you do when you meet people or see old friends again? Do you hug? Do you kiss? Shake hands? Bow? Write to us and let us know. Now, do you remember Carolina forgot a word? Listen to this.
Carolina: Let me take my suitcase to my room and you know, take my clothes…..
Emily: Unpack, you mean.
Carolina: That's the word …unpack.
Adam: When you put your things into a bag, you pack your bag, so when you take things out you unpack. The un- prefix shows an opposite. You do something and then maybe later you undo it. You might see the word ‘undo’ on your computer.
Rob: We also use un- with adjectives. For example, happy – unhappy, usual – unusual. Look out for exercises about this on LearnEnglish. That’s all we’ve got time for today – remember to write to us at http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/ Or on Facebook – look for Elementary Podcasts.
Adam: And you can look for Carolina who will be starting her blog again on http://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/. Watch out to see what she writes there and you can write to her too. We’ll be back next time and Tess & Ravi will be here again. So, until then…
Both: Bye!
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Comments
Hello! In Argentina we usually hug and kiss our friends, but with somebody else we say hello and shake hands
I am from Colombia. In my country we normally greeting with a shake hands and hug to men friends, and women friends with a kiss and hugg
Hello! I'm form Venezuela too. We usually kiss and hug our friends and family, especially woman and man, or woman and woman. Men don't kiss each other but share a strong hug or handshake. Even if we have short time knowing each other, no matter where you are, Venezuelan people say hello as if we have a special relationship for a long time!
Greetings
The rice atollado is very easy.
The ingredients:
1 pount of rice, 1pount meat, 1pount of chicken and vegetables as kidney beans, vetches..
It puts to cook in an cooking pot the meat and the chicken, and in other one the vegetables, when the vegetables is it so in an average term of boiling done the pound of rice to cooking with salt And oil in proportion, and when drying off the rice and the meat and the chicken esten ready they sting to add it to the pot of the rice and the vegetables and half an hour later they will have a rich got bogged down rice
When I say hello to my friends, I usually kiss them in the cheek, this is the custom in my country. I am from Venezuela, like Carolina, and I am actually learning english. I love the podcast and the love history about Carolina
I just kiss and hug them.