7a

Recording 7a

Speaker 1: I live in a quaint little village about 300 kilometers from the nearest big city.

Although it’s a long way, the drive from the city is well worth the effort because the surrounding countryside is very scenic.

I like living here because it’s so peaceful and the air is really fresh, so it’s much nicer than in the city. It’s a pretty sleepy village, but on Sundays there’s a huge market and people come from all the neighboring villages to buy and sell their local produce.

Speaker 2: The most popular part of my hometown is the beach. We have long stretches of white sand and the water is crystal clear. The sea can be very calm at times but the surf can also be spectacular.

Visitors who enjoy water sports are really well catered for as you can go snorkeling, scuba diving and deep-sea fishing. Soon we’re going to get our own airports but for now people can only get here by ferry.

Speaker 3: My city is famous for its skyscrapers, statues and fountains − but most of all for its shopping! You can buy anything you want here and we have over fifty large shopping malls.

We get a lot of overseas visitors, so our airport is one of the busiest in the world. It’s a very exciting and cosmopolitan place to live.

Most people don’t drive because there are always traffic jams, but the public transport is really well organised.

We have some great attractions nearby for visitors, as well as a huge sports stadium and fantastic theme parks.

I suppose the only downside is that the air can get a little polluted at times.

Speaker 4: My village is 200 meters above sea level and we overlook the villages and lakes down in the valley below. It’s very picturesque up here so we get a lot of visitors, especially artists who want to paint the landscape.

They also like our traditional houses. The air is very crisp up here as well, so a lot of people come up here to escape the heat in the city.

The roads are pretty treacherous because they’re very steep and winding, so most people arrived by train. The scenery on the way up here really is breathtaking.