Video lesson#25: Boarding order

 Have you ever board a flight?

Have you noticed that year after year the boarding order is getting more and more complicated?

Have you ever thought that you were one of the first passengers to enter a plane and then discovered that you were one of the last ones?

If your answer is "yes" to any of these questions I´m sure that you are going to enjoy this short video from the comedians Key & Peele

Have fun!

Vocabulary

Boarding: entering a plane or a ship.

First class passengers: person who flies with the most expensive and highest quality service on a plane.

Business class passengers: person who flies with better conditions that the ones you get when you buy a cheap flight ticket on economy class

Wheelchair: a chair on wheels used by people that are unable to walk.

Priest: man with religious duties in the Christian Church

Nun: a member of a female religious group that lives in a convent. 

Rabbi: religious leader and teacher in the Jewish religion

Imam: leader in the Islamic religion

Computer bag: a bag used to carry laptops or similar electronic devices.

Damn it!: expression of annoyment or disatisfaction

Cranky: easily annoyed or upset

 
 

Video lesson#24: Pilots (Monty Python)

 Monty Python are maybe the best comedians ever in the United Kingdom.

Their shows and movies during the 70´s and the 80´s are hilarious, specially one of the most famous comedie movies of all times, "Life Of Brian".

But today we are going to watch a short sketch related with travels and flights, called "The pilots". It´s from the John Cleese´s film How to irritate people originally broadcast on 14 November 1968 in UK.

As you will see it´s about a couple of bored pilots who decide to have some fun mocking the passengers with their silly jokes.

To help your understanding you can check the vocabulary list below the video.

Enjoy the sketch!

Vocabulary

"I spy with my little eye...": it is a rhyme used in a children´s guessig game to indicate what it is that is being looked at.

To be fed up with: an informal way to express that you are bored and annoyed with something that you have experienced for too long.

Captain: the person in charge of a ship or, in this case, of an aircraft

Let it/that sink in: expression that means to take time and process some information until you understand what it really means.

Hang on: to wait for a short time, similar to "hold on"

Washroom: a room with a toilet and a sink in a public space like a restaurant or a plane.

To fasten: to close or to become firmly attached.

Safety belt: a belt that fastens around you in a vehicle or aircrsft and holds you to your seat. Also called a seat belt.

Aisle: central corridor on a plane or a church

Like the clappers: expression that means extremely fast.

Life jacket: a jacket filled with air or light material designed to help you float if you fall into water. Also called life vest

Rack: a frame, often with bars and hooks, for holding things. On aircrafts is more used the word overhead compartment as the place above the seats to store the hand luggage.

Gobbledygook: language that sounds important and official but is difficult to understand.

To mill about/around: to move around with no obvious purpose.

Tourism vocabulary Roulette game

 Do you want to play a game to check how much Tourism vocabulary you know?

I have made a Roulette game where you have to guess more than twenty different words related with travels and tourism, each one starting with a different letter.

Are you ready?

Give it a shot!

Video lesson #23: Wherever I may roam (Metallica clip)

HI!

Today we are going to listen to a Metallica´s song from their most famous album, the so called black album released almost 20 years ago, in 1991.

Although this album includes hits like Enter Sandman, Sad but True or Nothing Else Matters, I have chosen another song called Wherever I May Roam for two reasons. 

On the one hand, it´s a song that talks about roaming, that is not exactly the same thing as travelling. When you travel you have a purpose, a goal, which might be relaxing on the beach, visiting a city or a touristic spot, gathering with friends and family, and so on. But when you roam you don´t have a specific purpose or goal, you travel without an idea of what you are going to do; therefore you are not a traveler or a tourist but a nomad, wanderer, rover or vagabond.

On the other hand I have always loved this song so it was about time to make an English lesson based on it.

At last, but not least, it also includes some common expressions that are quite useful in spoken English, like take my time or speak my mind. Both expressions are explained below so you can fully understand them.

As usual, follow these steps to take the lesson:

1- Download the lyrics sheet, and go to pages 1-2 where you will find the song´s lyrics with some missing words (gaps).

2- Click this video and listen to the song while you try to fill the gaps with the words that you hear. I recommend listening at least twice to the song.

3- Check your results going to page 3 where you will find the whole lyrics of the song.

4- Take a look at the vocabulary below to understand every word of the song.

5- Listen again to the song, without reading the lyrics and try to understand most of it.

 

WORKSHEET Wherever I May Roam Worksheet

 

VOCABULARY

Bride: a woman who is getting married or has just been married.

To strip: to remove, pull, or tear the covering or outer layer from something.

Pride: your feelings of your own worth and respect for yourself.

To confide: to tell something secret or personal to someone whom you trust not to tell anyone else.

Dust: very small pieces of sand, earth and other substances.

To crave: to desire something strongly.

Slave: a person who is legally owned by someone else and has no personal freedom.

Rover, wanderer, nomad or vagabond: a person who spends their time travelling from place to place.

To take your time: expression that means that you can spend as much time as you need in doing something.

To speak your mind: to say what you think about something very directly.

To roam: to travel without a clear idea of what you are going to do.

Throne: a special chair used by a ruler, like a king or a queen.

Tie: a connection or relationship between people, or between a person and a place, interest or activity.

To sever: to end a connection with someone or something.

Off the beaten path: away from people and not known.

To reign: to be the king or queen of a country.

To carve: to cut into the surface of stone, wood, etc. In the song they use the expression carved upon my stone that means that something can´t be changed (for example a plan or a way of life).

To wander: to walk around slowly in a relaxed way or without any clear purpose or direction.

Video lesson# 22: American slang with "Two and a half men"

 Hello!

On today´s lesson we are going to learn some words and expressions used in informal conversations in American English with the help of the American show “Two and a half men”, starring the famous actor Charlie Sheen.

So, take a look at this video and pay special attention to the vocabulary below and then play this little game to check what you have learnt.

Have fun!

 VOCABULARY

 

Beat: exhausted, very tired.

To chill out: relax.

To hang out: to go out with some friends.

To get busted: get caught doing something wrong.

To bust someone´s chops: to do something to criticize someone.

No biggie: slang expression to say “no problem”. Also used as an alternative to “you´re welcome”

To crash: to fall asleep.

Tight: good, cool.

Sleep tight: expression to wish someone a good sleep.

To wing it: to improvise or do something unprepared.

To swing by: to make a short visit to a person or a place.

To be knocked-up: to be pregnant.

To be/get wasted: to be/get drunk.

 

Now, check your knowledge with this game. 

Good luck!