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 got back from your last vacation, were you happy about how much money you spent on transportation, or did busses, trains, and planes cost more than you wanted? It’s expensive to get around when you’re traveling. One way people spend less money on the road is by thumbing a ride.
It’s important to be cautious when asking strangers to take you somewhere. As a passenger, you don’t have a lot of control, so you have to judge carefully before you get in a car. However, the driver likely isn’t a psychopath, and you might meet some really interesting people by hitchhiking.
Why did Lily hitchhike? And what does Marni think about it? Find out in today’s English lesson about travel.
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.
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Marni: Lily, you just got back from Europe.
Lily: Yeah.
Marni: How did you get around? It seems like you covered a lot of ground. Did you take trains, busses, fly?
Lily: It was a little bit of everything. It just depended on where we were. I actually hitchhiked for the first time while I was there.
Marni: No!
Lily: Yeah. It was not as scary as I thought it was going to be. But I was kind of embodying the backpacker stereotype. I had the big backpack on, and I was there with my friends, and we all had our thumbs out.
Marni: So, you were just thumbing a ride through Europe?
Lily: Yeah.
Marni: Oh, Lily, you have to be so cautious! It’s so scary. You didn’t know these people, right?
Lily: Marni, it wasn’t that bad actually. Most people I have found are good at heart, and as long as you take care of yourself and you make sure that you don’t put yourself in a bad situation, and you judge the situation, you can’t really go wrong, I don’t think.
Marni: Really? Because it seems like you can’t really judge the situation. You don’t know what the driver is thinking. You’re just the passenger. They could look really normal, and yet, they’re just a psychopath!
Grammar Point
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Quizzes
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Discussion
Lily recently returned from Europe, and she tells Marni that she hitchhiked there for the first time. Marni sounds really surprised and a little bit upset.
Lily says she enjoyed the adventure of asking strangers for a ride, and she doesn’t think it’s a scary thing to do. Marni, on the other hand, is worried about the possibility of getting into a car with a psychopath.
She doesn’t think it’s possible to judge the situation when you don’t know the people. It’s clear Marni won’t be hitchhiking as a way to get around.
Have you ever hitchhiked? Do you think it’s a scary or safe way to travel?
Comments
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