Travel and Holidays

The unit opens with four photos of places people travel to see. Here is what each shows, and something you could say about it.

Picture	What it is	Something to say
A rhinoceros on a grassy path in a forest	a one-horned rhinoceros in Chitwan National Park, in the Tarai	Chitwan was Nepal’s first national park (1973) and is a World Heritage Site; visitors go on jungle walks and jeep safaris to see rhinos, deer, birds and, if they are lucky, a tiger.
A city of skyscrapers lit up at night, one tower far taller than the rest	the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, United Arab Emirates	At 828 meters, it has been the tallest building in the world since 2010. Many Nepalis work in the Gulf, so Dubai is a place many families talk about.
A white temple beside a square pond with brick steps	the Maya Devi Temple in Lumbini, Rupandehi	It marks the place where Siddhartha Gautama, who became the Buddha, was born. Pilgrims come from all over Asia; Lumbini is a World Heritage Site.
A white marble building with a dome and four tall towers, behind a long pool	the Taj Mahal in Agra, India	The Mughal emperor Shah Jahan built it in the 1600s as a tomb for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. It is one of the most visited buildings in the world.

Before you read

What kind of text it is

The text is a brochure from a travel company: a short leaflet (or a web page) that advertises a package holiday, a trip where the company arranges everything (transport, rooms, meals, guides) for one price. It has three parts:

1. an introduction that says what the trip is and why you should go;
2. the main highlights, the best things you will see and do;
3. an itinerary, the plan of the trip day by day: where you go, what you do and where you sleep.

A brochure wants to sell the trip, so it is full of strong, positive words: wonderful, magnificent, astonished, enchanting, stunning, spectacular, incredible. When you read one, enjoy the pictures it paints, but remember that these are the company’s opinions, not facts.

The brochure, part by part

1. What the trip offers

The Poon Hill Yoga Trek is a chance to see the beauty of the Annapurna range and the “hidden treasures” of Nepali culture. It joins two things: trekking (long walks on mountain trails, sleeping in villages on the way) and yoga. The program promises to help you make yoga part of your daily life, while you look at snowy peaks and glaciers. Its main benefit, the company says, is that it encourages a deep personal transformation: a real change in the way you live and feel. The trail passes many tourist hotspots (places that are busy with visitors) and icy waterfalls.

2. Yoga and walking together

The trek includes Hatha yoga (the kind built on body postures and breathing) and meditation. Walking and yoga together, the brochure says, are good for both the body and the mind: the walking is exercise, and the yoga makes the mind stronger, calmer and more aware, all in beautiful natural surroundings.

3. Who can come

The program is open to all experience levels: you don’t need to have trekked or done yoga before. It is for anyone who wants to strengthen “body, mind and soul”, and it is also a chance to see how Nepali people live and to learn their “secrets to happiness”.

4. The main highlights

Visitors will be astonished by lovely landscapes. They will look at stunning views of the Himalaya, enjoy (savor) delicious Nepali meals, meet different Nepali cultures, and see the varied flora and fauna (plants and animals), rivers that flow all year (perennial rivers) and suspension bridges. And the sunrise and sunset over the high mountains, says the brochure, will make everyone want to change themselves through yoga and meditation.

5. The itinerary, day by day

Day	Where	Yoga	Night
1	Arrive in Kathmandu: met at the airport, taken to the center, the program explained	none	Kathmandu
2	Drive to Pokhara, about 4–5 hours, past rivers, forests and terraced fields	none	Pokhara
3	Drive to Nayapul, then walk to Tikhedhunga, through several small settlements	one hour, before breakfast	Tikhedhunga
4	Cross a stream on a suspension bridge, climb to Ulleri, a Magar village, then through fields and forests of rhododendron and oak; lunch at Nangethanti, then on to Banthanti	morning and evening	Banthanti
5	Walk up to Ghorepani, seeing the villages, the land and the mountains; some entertainment in the evening	morning and evening	Ghorepani
6	An hour’s climb before dawn to Poon Hill for the sunrise; back to Ghorepani for breakfast; along ridges and through pine and rhododendron forest, over Deurali, down to Tadapani	evening	a tourist lodge in Tadapani
7	About four hours’ walk to Ghandruk, a Gurung village; lunch; drive back to Pokhara by way of Nayapul	morning	Pokhara
8	Leave after breakfast for the next destination	none	—

A few things worth knowing about the places:

• Day 2. The road from Kathmandu to Pokhara, the Prithvi Highway, runs beside the Trishuli River for much of the way to Mugling; after that it follows other river valleys into Pokhara.
• Days 3 and 4. Nayapul means “new bridge”. The climb from Tikhedhunga to Ulleri is famous for its thousands of stone steps.
• Day 5. Ghorepani means “horse water”: traders’ mule and horse caravans used to stop here to drink.
• Day 6. Tadapani means “far water”: the village’s water had to be brought from a long way off. The forest on this ridge is one of the best places to see laliguras, the rhododendron, Nepal’s national flower, in bloom in spring.
• Day 7. Ghandruk is a large village of the Gurung people, famous for the many men who have served as Gurkha soldiers in the British and Indian armies. It has close views of Annapurna South and Machhapuchhre (“fish tail”). The brochure calls it “the most interesting ethnic village in Nepal”: that is the kind of claim an advertisement makes, an opinion to sell the trip, not a fact anyone could measure.

Words from the brochure

Words linked here open in English Vocabulary, where you can see an example and practice them in the word game. The meanings below are the ones the words have in this text.

Word	Meaning here
magnificent	extremely beautiful and impressive
glacier	a slow river of ice on a mountain
hotspot	a place where a lot is happening; a tourist hotspot is busy with visitors
astonished	very surprised and amazed
enchanting	charming; delightful, as if by magic
flora and fauna	the plants (flora) and animals (fauna) of a place
perennial	lasting all through the year; a perennial river never dries up
integrate	to make something a part of something else (“integrate yoga into your daily life”)
ample	plenty; more than enough
transformation	a complete change
savor	to enjoy food (or a moment) slowly, to get the most out of it (British spelling savour)
panoramic	showing a very wide view, all around
spectacular	very impressive to look at
itinerary	a plan of a journey: the places, the days, the times
suspension bridge	a bridge that hangs from strong cables, like the steel bridges across Nepal’s rivers
accommodate	to give someone a place to stay (“we will be accommodated in a tourist lodge”)

A. Match the words with their meanings

B. Choose the correct answers

C. Answer the questions

D. Your own trip

The twelve words below are long, and saying them well depends on one thing: putting the stress (the strong beat) on the right syllable. Here they are as dictionaries write them, with the stressed syllable in capitals. (ˈ marks the main stress in phonemic script, and ˌ a lighter one.)

Word	Syllables, stress in capitals	British	American
wonderful	WON-der-ful	/ˈwʌndəfl/	/ˈwʌndərfl/
destination	des-ti-NA-tion	/ˌdestɪˈneɪʃn/	/ˌdestɪˈneɪʃn/
opportunity	op-por-TU-ni-ty	/ˌɒpəˈtjuːnəti/	/ˌɑːpərˈtuːnəti/
unimaginable	un-i-MAG-i-na-ble	/ˌʌnɪˈmædʒɪnəbl/	/ˌʌnɪˈmædʒɪnəbl/
likelihood	LIKE-li-hood	/ˈlaɪklihʊd/	/ˈlaɪklihʊd/
inspirational	in-spi-RA-tion-al	/ˌɪnspəˈreɪʃənl/	/ˌɪnspəˈreɪʃənl/
responsibility	re-spon-si-BIL-i-ty	/rɪˌspɒnsəˈbɪləti/	/rɪˌspɑːnsəˈbɪləti/
astonishing	a-STON-ish-ing	/əˈstɒnɪʃɪŋ/	/əˈstɑːnɪʃɪŋ/
magnificently	mag-NIF-i-cent-ly	/mæɡˈnɪfɪsntli/	/mæɡˈnɪfɪsntli/
autobiography	au-to-bi-OG-ra-phy	/ˌɔːtəbaɪˈɒɡrəfi/	/ˌɔːtəbaɪˈɑːɡrəfi/
insignificant	in-sig-NIF-i-cant	/ˌɪnsɪɡˈnɪfɪkənt/	/ˌɪnsɪɡˈnɪfɪkənt/
biodiversity	bi-o-di-VER-si-ty	/ˌbaɪəʊdaɪˈvɜːsəti/	/ˌbaɪoʊdaɪˈvɜːrsəti/

When you talk about your plans (what you have arranged) and your intentions (what you mean to do), English gives you several ways to say it:

To say	Use	Example
what you have decided to do	I intend to + base form	I intend to go.
what you have planned	I’m planning to + base form	I’m planning to visit Rara.
what you have arranged, with a time	I’m + -ing (present continuous)	I’m leaving on Friday.
what you decide now, or a promise	I’ll + base form	I’ll ask my father tonight.
an idea you are still considering	I’m thinking of + -ing	I’m thinking of going on a trip.
what you expect to happen	(most) likely + will	My parents will most likely let me go.

A. The conversation

In the picture, three young friends are talking about a trip this year. Here is what each says, in our words:

• The girl: She is thinking of going on a trip this year: she feels it is time. She thinks her parents will allow her to go.
• The older boy: He may not be able to convince his father, who doesn’t like boys staying away from home for several days. So instead, his family is going on a family trip.
• The younger boy: He intends to go, and his parents will most likely let him go. He is thinking of asking Lakpa’s father whether Lakpa can come with them too.

B. Your plans in five situations

C. Choosing between two plans

English has no single future tense. It has several forms, and the one you choose tells the listener what is already there now that points to the future: a timetable, an arrangement, a plan, a sign, an opinion, or nothing at all because you decide as you speak.

Form	Example	Use it for
will + base form	I’ll do it right now. I think it will rain.	a decision made at the moment of speaking, an offer or a promise; a prediction that is your opinion or knowledge
be going to + base form	I’m going to open an account. Look at the sky: it’s going to rain.	a plan or intention decided before you speak; a prediction from a sign you can see now
present continuous: am/is/are + -ing	I’m meeting Jane at 8 on Saturday.	an arrangement already fixed with other people (a time, a place, a booking)
present simple	The bus leaves at 7.	a timetable or schedule: buses, flights, classes, exams
future continuous: will be + -ing	Next week, we’ll be boating on Rara Lake.	an action in progress at a time in the future

A. Study the sentences

B. Choose the correct answers

How to write a good paragraph

A paragraph is a group of sentences about one main idea. A good one has three parts:

1. The topic sentence, usually first: it says what the paragraph is about. On the second day we are going to walk east along the ridge to Nagarkot.
2. Supporting sentences: details, examples or reasons that explain the topic sentence. Each one is about the same idea (unity), and they follow each other in a clear order, joined by words such as then, after that, so, because (coherence).
3. A closing sentence that ends the paragraph: a summary, a result, or a link to the next part. I intend to wake up before five the next morning to watch the sunrise.

In your final exam, a paragraph can be asked in Guided writing I (about 100 words from clues, 5 marks) or Free writing I (about 150 words giving your views or experience, 6 marks).

Before you read

The poet and the poem

Robert Frost (1874–1963) was an American poet who lived for many years on farms in New England, the north-eastern corner of the United States, where the winters are long and snowy. He wrote in plain, everyday words about country life (walls, woods, roads, snow), and won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry four times, more than any other poet.

Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening was published in 1923. Frost later said he wrote it in a few minutes one summer morning, after staying up all night working on another, longer poem. It is now one of the best-known poems in English.

The poem has four stanzas of four lines each, and every line has four beats: whose WOODS these ARE i THINK i KNOW. Read it aloud and you will hear the steady rhythm, like a horse walking.

The poem, part by part

Stanza 1: whose woods?

A traveler has stopped beside some woods (an area of trees, smaller than a forest). He thinks he knows who owns them, but the owner’s house is in the village, so the owner won’t see him stopping there to watch his woods filling up with snow. He is alone, and nobody is watching him.

Stanza 2: the horse thinks it strange

His little horse must think it queer (strange) to stop where there is no farmhouse near: horses know that a stop usually means a farm, food and a warm stable. Here there is nothing but the woods on one side and a frozen lake on the other, on the darkest evening of the year.

Stanza 3: the only sounds

The horse gives his harness bells a shake, as if asking whether there is some mistake. (A harness is the set of leather straps and metal pieces that joins a horse to the cart or sleigh it pulls; bells were hung on it so that people could hear a sleigh coming.) Apart from the bells, the only sound is the sweep of a gentle wind and the soft (downy, like a bird’s fine feathers) snowflakes falling.

Stanza 4: miles to go

The woods are lovely, dark and deep, and part of the traveler wants to stay and look. But he has promises to keep, things he has said he will do, and miles to go before he sleeps. The last line says it again, and the second time it sounds heavier, as if he is reminding himself.

What it means. On the surface, the poem is a simple moment: a man, a horse, snow. But most readers take it as a picture of life as a journey:

• the traveler is any person on the road of life;
• the woods, lovely, dark and deep, are the pull of rest, beauty and quiet, the wish to stop and forget everything else for a while;
• the promises are our duties and responsibilities to other people;
• sleep is rest at the end of the day, and also, many readers feel, death, the end of life’s journey: there is a lot to do before then.

The horse, practical and impatient, is the voice that brings him back to his duties.

The poet’s devices:

• Rhyme: in each of the first three stanzas, lines 1, 2 and 4 rhyme (know, though, snow), and line 3 has a new sound (here), which becomes the rhyme of the next stanza (queer, near, year). So the stanzas are chained together, aaba bbcb ccdc, and the last stanza rhymes all through, dddd (deep, keep, sleep, sleep): the chain stops, as the traveler must stop dreaming and go on.
• Repetition: the last line is said twice, slowing the poem down at its end.
• Imagery of sight and sound: snow filling the woods, a frozen lake, bells, the soft wind.
• Personification: the horse is given human thoughts; it “must think it queer” and asks “if there is some mistake”.
• Symbolism: the woods, the promises, the journey and sleep stand for bigger things (above).

Words from the poem

Word	Meaning here
woods	an area of trees, smaller than a forest
queer	strange, odd (an old meaning; today the word is also used for other things, so say strange)
farmhouse	the main house on a farm, where the farmer lives
harness	the straps and metal pieces put on a horse so it can pull a cart or sleigh
sweep	a long, smooth movement, here of the wind
downy	soft, like the fine feathers (down) of a young bird
flake	a small, thin piece; a snowflake
lovely	very beautiful
promise	something you have said you will surely do

A. Find the words

B. Choose the correct answers

C. Complete the summary

D. A poem of your own

The textbook’s listening task is a phone call between a hotel receptionist and a customer who wants to book a room. CDC’s own recording is below: read the questions in B first, then listen, as many times as you need. The answers are hidden under the questions; after that, practice with a call of our own that your browser reads aloud.

A. Before you listen

B. The textbook’s audio: answers

C. Your turn

Grammar II mixes all the future forms. Before you start, look again at the table of future forms and ask of each sentence: what is there now? A timetable, an arrangement, a plan, a sign, only an opinion, or a decision being made?

A. Use the correct form of the verbs

How to write a personal letter

A personal letter (an informal letter) is written to a friend or a relative. In your final exam, a personal letter is a Free writing II task (about 200 words, 8 marks), marked on its content, organization, language and layout. Its parts:

1. Your address and the date, at the top right (or left; keep to one). A short address is fine.
2. Salutation: Dear Yangchen, (the first name, a comma).
3. Opening paragraph: a friendly start; thank them for their letter or ask how they are, then say why you are writing.
4. Body: one paragraph for each main point, here the plans: where, with whom, how you are going, where you will stay, for how long, and what you will see and do.
5. Closing paragraph: a promise, a question or an invitation, and greetings to the family.
6. Closing: With love, / Love, / Your friend, / Best wishes,, then your first name only.

A colon ( : ) is two dots, one above the other. It says “here comes what I mean”: what follows it explains, lists or completes what came before. Use it:

1. After a complete sentence, to introduce a list, an explanation or an example. The part before the colon must be a sentence that could stand on its own.
   Professor Pokhrel wrote two books on education: one on educational leadership and the other on educational planning.
   Pack three things for the trek: warm clothes, a water bottle and a torch.
   We turned back at Deurali: the snow had covered the trail.
2. In ratios and proportions. Mix salt and water in the ratio 1:8 (one part salt to eight parts water; say “one to eight”).
3. In references, between the place of publication and the publisher. London: Oxford University Press; Kathmandu: Curriculum Development Centre.

It has other everyday uses too: times (The bus leaves at 7:30, the American way; British English often writes 7.30), between a title and a subtitle (Nepal: A Guide for Trekkers), and in dialogues written like a play (Guest: I’d like a room, please.).

Practice on this unit in the style of the final exam (Grade 9’s exam follows the SEE’s chart). Try each one as in the exam, then open the answer.