Countries and Towns

The unit opens with two city pictures to compare.

Picture	What it shows	Something to say
A wide river with a tall clock tower and a long Gothic building beside it, a red double-decker bus on the bridge	London: the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben on the River Thames	London looks grand and busy, and older than many cities.
A tall iron tower above a river, with gardens below and the city stretching away	Paris: the Eiffel Tower by the River Seine	Paris looks more open and green in this picture, and its tower is its symbol.

Before you read

What kind of text it is

It is a travel blog post written as a comparison: it takes one point at a time (location, size, culture, food, cost, things to do, transport, tourists, people, weather) and says how each city does on it. The writer speaks to the reader directly (If the whole kissing thing is not okay with you…, Trust me) and doesn’t choose a winner: the last line says it depends on what you want. Notice the words that do the comparing: while, on the other hand, although, nonetheless, compared to, -er than, more … than.

The blog, part by part

1. Two capitals on two rivers

London is the capital of the United Kingdom and its largest city. It stands on the River Thames in South East England, and its history goes back to Roman times. Paris is the capital of France, in the north-central part of the country, on the River Seine. It is called a world center of culture, fashion, art and gastronomy (the art of good food).

2. Size and crowding

London is one of the biggest city areas in Europe: about 1,572 square kilometers. Paris itself covers only about 105 square kilometers, roughly a fifteenth of that. But Paris is one of the most densely populated cities in Europe: about 20,700 people in every square kilometer.

3. Hello, the French way and the English way

The writer warns that the cultural gap (the difference in customs) can be a shock. In England, people greet with a handshake, and, the writer says, the British expect everyone to speak English. The French accept a handshake, but the usual friendly greeting is a kiss on the cheek (la bise); if that makes you uncomfortable, touch cheeks and kiss the air. The French are protective of their language, so try a few words of French: Parisians like it when visitors try, even if their French is rusty (weak from lack of practice). Urbanites (city people) in Paris like to meet friends at a café over an espresso (a small, strong coffee).

4. Food

France is famous for its food, and Paris’s restaurants have won more Michelin stars (the awards of a famous restaurant guide) than London’s. But don’t write off (dismiss) London’s food: people from all over the world live there, so its food is vibrant (full of life) and new, a wide array (range) from cheap curries to fish and chips. Paris is famous for its bread and pastries, above all the baguette, a long, thin loaf.

5. Cost

Both cities are expensive, but the writer finds London more expensive overall. Groceries may cost a little less in London, but buses, trains and bills for electricity and water are cheaper in Paris. So for a trip on a small budget, Paris is pocket-friendly (cheaper).

6. Things to do

London wins on entertainment, with, by the article’s count, 380 public libraries to Paris’s 69, and 240 museums to Paris’s 153. Football fans also prefer London: it has six big clubs in England’s top league, while Paris has one big club, Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).

7. Getting around

London’s transport network is very large. It has six international airports (London City, Gatwick, Heathrow, Luton, Stansted and Southend); Paris has three (Beauvais, Orly and Charles de Gaulle). Paris has more metro stations, spread more evenly, but London has more taxis (about 22,500 to Paris’s 17,000) and twice as many bus and train lines. Paris is busy building a new tramway (a tram line on rails in the street).

8. Tourists

In a 2018 report by Mastercard, London had the second-highest number of foreign visitors in the world, after Bangkok; Paris came third. Visitors also spend more in London.

9. How long, where, and who you meet

Because Paris is cheaper, your money lasts longer there. The writer suggests three or four days to see Paris quickly, and four or five days to wander London’s streets. In Paris, see the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, and, just outside the city, the Palace of Versailles and Disneyland Paris; in London, the London Eye, the Warner Bros. Studio (where the Harry Potter films were made) and Big Ben. People in both cities are welcoming, but it is easier to get acquainted with (get to know) a local in Paris: Londoners tend to stay in impenetrable cliques (closed groups that strangers can’t get into). In both, watch out for pickpockets and chuggers, people who stop you in the street to ask for money for a charity.

10. Weather, and the verdict

London’s weather is mild, so you can go any time, but autumn is best: pleasant temperatures and many British events and festivals. The best time for Paris is June to August, with long, sunny days. Which city is better? Each has its own charm: it depends on what you are looking for, and on what you value.

B. Choose the correct alternatives

C. True or false?

D. Answer the questions

E. Which city would you visit?

Intonation is the rise and fall of the voice as we speak. It carries meaning: the same words can be a statement or a question, friendly or rude, depending on the tune.

Tune	When	Example
Falling ↘	statements, commands, thanks, wishes; wh- questions (what, where, why, who, how)	I am a mechanic. ↘ Where does your brother live? ↘
Rising ↗	yes/no questions; checking or showing surprise	Is it Shrijana who topped the list? ↗
Fall-rise ↘↗	polite, unfinished, or not quite sure	Well, I could come… ↘↗

To compare is to say how two things are alike; to contrast is to say how they differ. In the model conversation, Roshan and Sujita look at a traditional house and a modern house. Roshan says both are beautiful, but the first is smaller than the other; Sujita agrees that the first is not as big as the second, however it looks more artistic.

To show a difference	To show a likeness
X is bigger / more … than Y.	Both X and Y are …
X is not as … as Y.	X is as … as Y.
X is …, while / whereas Y is …	Like X, Y is …
X is …; however, / on the other hand, Y is …	X and Y are alike / similar in …

B. Compare in pairs

Adjective or adverb?

An adjective describes a noun (a person or thing): a poor family, the quiet children. It also comes after verbs like be, seem, look, feel, become: Suraj is calm.
An adverb describes a verb (how something is done): She performed poorly. He spoke loudly. Most adverbs are adjective + -ly.

Adjective	Adverb	Watch out
quick	quickly
happy	happily	y → i
gentle	gently	-le → -ly
good	well	irregular
fast	fast	same word (✗ fastly)
hard	hard	hardly means almost not
late	late	lately means recently
friendly, lovely	in a friendly way	already end in -ly: no adverb

Comparison

Kind of word	Comparative	Superlative
one syllable: small, cheap	smaller, cheaper	the smallest
short vowel + one consonant: big, hot	bigger, hotter	the biggest
ends in -y: busy, heavy	busier, heavier	the busiest
two or more syllables: expensive, beautiful	more expensive	the most expensive
adverbs in -ly: quickly, gracefully	more quickly	the most quickly
irregular: good/well, bad/badly, far	better, worse, farther/further	the best, the worst, the farthest

To say two things are equal: as + plain form + as: Wood is not as heavy as iron. To make a comparative stronger: much / far / a lot + comparative: much more complicated, much longer.

A. Adjective or adverb?

B. The right form

How to write a comparison

• Point by point (as the blog does): one point at a time, both cities in each paragraph: size, then weather, then cost…
• Block by block: one paragraph on the first city, one on the second, then a comparison. Point by point is clearer for a short answer.
• Use comparison words: bigger than, more crowded than, not as … as, and linking words: while, whereas, however, on the other hand, both, similarly, like.
• End with your own view, with a reason.

Before you read

The poet and the poem

This version is by Richard Scrafton Sharpe (died 1852), an English writer of rhymes for children. It was printed in his book Old Friends in a New Dress, which told Aesop’s fables in verse.

The poem has ten stanzas of four lines, rhyming in pairs (mouse/house, cheese/peas). Every stanza ends with bacon and peas, usually grey peas: a refrain that becomes funnier each time, as the adjective changes with the speaker’s feelings: charming grey peas, horrid grey peas, shocking grey peas, smoking grey peas. The rhythm is quick and bouncy, da-da-DUM, da-da-DUM, like a mouse scurrying.

The poem, stanza by stanza

Stanzas 1–2: the country mouse and her visitor

• In a snug (warm and cozy) little cot (cottage) lives a fat little mouse. She runs about the house unmolested (nobody disturbs her). She is content (happy) with plain food: cheese for breakfast, bacon for dinner, grey peas for supper.
• A friend from the town strays (wanders) to the cottage for a short visit, so she lays her table as gay (bright and cheerful) as you please, with her best bacon and peas.

Stanzas 3–4: the city mouse sneers

• The visitor frowns. Trying to be witty (clever and funny), he says that in the city they would all be shocked by food like this: they never eat horrid (awful) bacon and peas.
• He invites her to town for a treat: excellent food, as much as she likes. Leave this fat bacon and shocking grey peas.

Stanzas 5–6: off to town

• She can’t refuse, and he is in a hurry, so she leaves her fields and trees, reluctant (unwilling), and her bacon and peas.
• They slyly creep under the door of a grand parlour (sitting room), where a party was held the evening before, and seize the dainties (small delicious foods), far better than bacon or peas.

Stanza 7: the feast

There is custard (a sweet yellow sauce of milk, eggs and sugar), trifle (a cold pudding of sponge cake, fruit and custard), cheesecakes, sweets, jellies and twenty things more: everything art could invent to please the palate (sense of taste), except bacon and peas.

Stanzas 8–9: the interruption

• While they are regaling (feasting), in come the dog, the cat, and the maid with a broom! The two mice jump into a custard up to their knees, and the country mouse sighs for her bacon and peas.
• She cries, Get me safely away; I can venture (dare) no longer to stay in London. If you are often interrupted like this, give me my bacon and peas.

Stanza 10: the moral

Your life is splendid and gay, she says, but you always live in dread (fear) of being disturbed. I find true delight in contentment and ease, and I feast on my bacon and peas.

A. Match the words with their meanings

B. True or false?

C. Answer the questions

D. Town or country?

A. Before you listen

Dave is going to the province of Quebec in Canada, and his friend Bob asks him about it. CDC’s own recording is below: read the questions in B and C first, then listen, as many times as you need.

B and C. The textbook’s audio: answers

Connectives (linking words) join ideas. Each kind takes a different grammar after it, and that is what exams test.

Meaning	Word	What follows	Example
contrast	although / though / even though	a clause (subject + verb)	Although it was summer, the days were cold.
contrast	but	a clause, in the middle	I like popcorn, but I don’t like pizza.
contrast	however	a new sentence, then a comma	The stone hit him. However, he was not hurt.
contrast	despite / in spite of	a noun or -ing	Despite feeling unwell, she went to school.
reason	because / as / since	a clause	I took a taxi because it was raining.
reason	because of / due to	a noun	Flights were canceled because of the fog.

Complete the sentences

How to describe a place

1. Introduction: where it is, and what it is known for.
2. The scene: what you see, from far to near (mountains, forests, fields, houses).
3. The people and life: what they do; sounds and smells help.
4. The weather or the best time to visit.
5. Conclusion: why it is special, a recommendation.

Use vivid adjectives (terraced, misty, stone-paved, humble) and the present tense.

A clause is a group of words with a subject and a verb (a predicate).

1. An independent clause (a main clause) makes sense on its own, as a complete sentence: My dog loves bones. Two independent clauses can be joined by a coordinating conjunction: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so (remember them as FANBOYS): I will go home and change my clothes.

2. A dependent clause (a subordinate clause) can’t stand alone: it depends on a main clause for its full meaning. It begins with a subordinating conjunction such as because, as, since, though, although, if, unless, provided that, so that, when, while: He was not allowed into the class because he arrived too late.

SEE-style practice on this unit. Try each one as in the exam, then open the answer.