English, baby!

City or Country?

Date: May 01 2009

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

When you think of life in a big city, do you picture crowds, traffic, noise, and pollution? Or do you imagine soaring skyscrapers, an exciting mix of cultures, and endless restaurants, nightclubs, museums, and shops to visit?

Cities usually offer plenty of entertainment and excitement. But country life has its attractions as well. In the country, everything moves a bit slower. You can relax, lead a simpler life, and feel closer to nature.

Jason is sick of the city and thinking about moving to the country. But Ella grew up in the country. Find out if she thinks moving there is a good idea.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Jason

Ella

Jason: I just moved in to a new apartment downtown to save on my commute time. But I’ve been feeling so claustrophobic that I almost just want to leave the city altogether, get out of the rat race, go out to the country.

Ella: I don’t know. I grew up kind of in the countryside, in Florida. There was one bus stop, we had a sheriff, you know, less than 5,000…Everyone basically knew each other, there was like one grocery store…

Jason: Did you like growing up like that?

Ella: It was a good childhood. But it took forever to get to the mall. I mean, the beach was only a couple miles away, so that’s all we did, was like play tag or go to the beach or go to school. But everything was pretty far away to get to.

Jason: It must have been easy to go camping and stuff. You don’t have to go far to get back to basics.

Ella: Yeah, exactly.

Jason: I mean, but do you think it was simpler? Did you feel calmer?

Ella: It was nice to know everyone. You felt safe. I feel like if you live in the city you always have to watch your back and you’re not sure who’s out to get you. You get this kind of paranoid like, “Someone’s gonna rob me, someone’s gonna try to kill me!” You didn’t have that in the country. What do you think?

Jason: That’s interesting. It seems to me like the country’s almost more dangerous. Like if you’re in the middle of nowhere there’s crazies out there…

Ella: Well we’ve got that one sheriff.

Grammar Point

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Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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Discussion

Jason doesn’t like how crowded and fast-paced the city is, and he thinks he might prefer to live in the country. Ella grew up in a very small town in the countryside where there was hardly anything to do and it took a long time to get anywhere. She doesn’t think living there as an adult would be very fun.

Some people don’t like cities because they think they have a lot of crime. But New York, one of the biggest and most crowded cities in the United States, actually has a much lower crime rate than many smaller cities.

Do you think city or country life is better? Why? Did you grow up in a city?

Comments

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Futuristic

Philippines

City is better than country side.

Futuristic

Philippines

Basically,I love to live in the city than country side and there are lots of things you would like to go to like malls but sometimes when I feel stress and lots of burdens I like to go to country side just to unwind and to release stress. Yeah I grew up in the city.

bartek

Poland

I grow up in a small country, but now I live in a city – just like Ella. I think life in a city is better now – here are many clubs, mall, lot of people and work. But chilhood is much better on a country :)

julia_s

Russian Federation

I live in a small town but I'd love to live in a city somewhere in a center :)

Small towns are fine when you want to have some rest and lots of people would never change their home town for something else.

But I really like to discover new places, speak foreign languages and be able to go out to different places, visit museums, different movie theatres, etc.. unfortunately, in a small town it is a bit boring and slow.I can't really say what would I choose. I would love to live a big city but to have an opportunity to come to my native town whenever I want.

That's how it is with me.

Henry99

Germany

i live in a very big city, in Bangkok / Thailand

dinhquyen87@yahoo.com

Viet Nam

hi, i like this topic

lyquangtiep

Viet Nam

city

L_a_d_a

Ukraine

i live in medium city and i like the life i had, it`s really difficult for me to live in a country where life is to slow for me, so I prefer city life

dinhquyen87@yahoo.com

Viet Nam

i like to live in countrysite because it's not noisy, pour, gental, lovely, and alot of things

lenganthinh

Viet Nam

its complicate [very hard] to say which one is better. in my opinion, if you are young and quite active [hyperactive], you may refer living in city or busy places. Once you get old, you may move back to country side to relax yourself and enjoy peaceful. For me, I refer living in country which close to a city [like the place im living [perth]], i can breath the smell of nature and also seeking for jobs and entertainment in neightbour city.

chenoui

United Kingdom

the life in the contry is better than city life

becouse life in contry is calm( natural life )

but life in city is verry hard

gfranco

Brazil

I was born in a big city in Brazil. I spend almost 2 hours to go to work and more 2 to come back home, I am sick of this commute, but I prefer to live in a big city because I can do many things to have fun, there are good jobs available and good hospitals. Some times, specially in the weekends, I go to a small city in the country with my family and friends to enjoy the nature and rest a little. I might live in the country when I get married and decide to have kids.

honey-boy

Saudi Arabia

i like living in the cities

there is a lot of fun

and it's more exciting

and i just love it

_enigma_

Germany

Thank you for the lesson.

_enigma_

Germany

There are many advantages and disadvantages to live in the city or country, but I prefer to live in the city on the other hand, I need to get rest in the country in my free time or vacations…We have to live in rate race but occasionally getting back to basics will help us to feel better; calmer and healthier (like a million dolars).

Werbőczy

Hungary

Hi !I live a city near of the capital. The possibilities are good, because the town is rich.I hope the local authority won't damage…When we arrived there ago 15 years, there was a fruit-garden and couple house. Then the …. came, and the town became city.

akacsan

United States

I grew up in a medium city, than I used to live 6 months in countryside. That was really different! Now I'm living in Amsterdam, I guess I prefer more cities like countryside.

SÉRGIO

Brazil

I love cities! however, getting back to basics is essencial for life!!

theangel710

Viet Nam

Hi all !!! I from Viet Nam .

Frist , I live in Tay Hoa district – one the beautiful country .

Now , I studying in a big city – Ho Chi Minh city .

I miss my country very much . The life in the country is very great !!!

Rufita

Kazakhstan

i always lived in a small town and live here now. But i want to lve in the big city, because that life in the city is so fast and there are so many interesting plases and people which with i want to meet and where i want to be. life in the country or small towns isslow,

i think that anybody who said that he don't like country early or late will want to leave big city's rutine and go to the countryside. to rest and refresh his mind and body on clean air of contry