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TRAVEL – Adventures are the best way to learn
Travel
TRAVEL – Life is made for….
Join Language on Vacation on a grand adventure! Practice your English-speaking skills with the new friends you will make while you vacation in America!
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TRAVEL – You can’t buy happiness…
Buy a ticket to the United States of America and travel with Language on Vacation!
An English teacher is your tour guide! Learn English while on a guided tour of America!
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TRAVEL – “Staycation”
“STAYCATION”
A friend of mine recently took a “staycation.” “Staycations” are very similar to vacations. They sound similar and they both allow you take time off from your daily routines.
On vacations, you don’t have to go to work and you go somewhere away from home to enjoy your time off.
On “staycations,” you don’t have to go to work, but you stay home and enjoy your time off.
My friend stayed home for her staycation. She slept in until 9am every day. One day, she stayed in her pajamas all day long. Another day, she went to the local park to enjoy the sunshine. She spent another day tending her garden, and another day catching up on her housework. She said it was a very relaxing break.
I like vacations. I like to go somewhere new. Sometimes, I like to go to an old and favorite destination. I like to see new things and enjoy new experiences.
Do you prefer “Staycations” or Vacations?
Write your answers in the comments section below.
Come enjoy your time off with Language on Vacation! Book your favorite tour and go someplace new! See new things and enjoy new experiences!!!
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TRAVEL – Comfortable on a plane
COMFORTABLE
It is important to be comfortable when on an airplane. Sometimes you are on a plane for a long time and you need to remain comfortable throughout the flight.
What should you wear on a flight?
I have flown over oceans and continents. The longest time I have ever spent in an airplane was for 14 hours from Los Angeles, USA to Sydney, Australia. I wore yoga pants, a long t-shirt, and clogs.* I looked very casual but was comfortable and presentable.
Recently, I have often been travelling from Seattle, USA to Tokyo, Japan. I don’t wear yoga pants anymore but I wear pajama jeans instead. I love my pajama jeans. They look like regular jeans, but they aren’t tight around my waist and they stretch. They are very comfortable and practical for traveling.
What do you wear when you travel?
Write your answers in the comments section below.
*clogs = a shoe that often has a thick sole
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TRAVEL – Giggling
The Power of Giggling
There are approximately 6,500 languages spoken in the world today. Many people in the world speak English, but there are also many people who do not. What happens when you meet a person who does not speak the same language you do? I have often said that charades is the universal language. Charades is the use of hand gestures. Many people will use hand gestures to convey their message.
I found another universal language: giggling. Giggling is a form of laughter. It is a silly laugh. It is a light laugh. Giggling is fun. I can think of two moments in my life when I could not use my verbal language, but a mix of charades (hand gestures) and giggling provided conversation between myself and new friends.
Many years ago, I traveled to Egypt. As a souvenir, my friend and I wanted henna tattoos. A man in a restaurant recommended his sister in his hometown. He said that she designed beautiful henna tattoos. We visited her home and discovered that she didn’t speak one word of English. I only spoke 10 words of Arabic. However, we had a wonderful evening getting tattoos, drinking tea, and giggling. It was very fun!
Recently, I was at a bank in Japan. I had to send money internationally. The conversation should have been a very technical and professional. However, the bank teller spoke and wrote Japanese and although I know about 25 words in Japanese, I could not speak about banking transactions. We survived the transaction through a series of computer translations and giggling. We giggled about the errors of the computer translators. We giggled about our handwriting in each other’s language. We made many mistakes, giggled about our mistakes, corrected our mistakes and moved forward with our business transaction. It was a long process, but it was fun and we finished our transaction with smiles on our faces.
In both moments, it would have been easier if we had all spoken the same language. It would have been easier if they spoke English or if I spoke Arabic or Japanese, but charades and giggling made our “conversations” fun and productive.
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TRAVEL – Travel does the heart good.
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IDIOM – get the ball rolling
GET THE BALL ROLLING
(Idiom, slang) – to start a new process, to start an activity, or a series of events
Example:
Student A: We should travel to America!
Student B: We have been talking about going to America for 5 years, but we never do anything about it.
Student A: Well let’s get the ball rolling! You book the hotels and I’ll book the airfare and we’ll go to the American consulate to get our travel visas together!
Try to create your own examples in the comments section below!
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TRAVEL – Souvenirs
SOUVENIRS
Many people buy souvenirs when they travel. Sometimes they buy a souvenir for a friend back home or sometimes they buy one for themselves as a way to remember the fun times they had on vacation.
I’ve collected quite a few souvenirs over the years. I used to collect theme park souvenir cups. These were great souvenirs as they usually allowed free refills of soda while I was at the theme park.
Then I started to collect magnets from the various places I had visited. Sometimes I put them on my refrigerator and sometimes I displayed them at my work desk. They were functional as they would display important papers on my desk or at home, and they were also a quick reminder of the places I had visited.
Then I started to collect jewelry from my travels. This was a fantastic idea because I could wear the jewelry any day while I was back home and when people would comment on my necklace, or earring, or bracelet and asked where I got it, I could respond with: “Oh, I got it in New Zealand!” or “I found this when exploring London.”
One of the very best souvenirs I bought was a photo package from Kyoto. I went to the Gion District of Kyoto which is famous for its historic Geisha neighborhood. First, I got to dress up like a geisha with the makeup, hair, and kimono. Then a photographer and I went out into the streets of Kyoto and she took a series of pictures of me. It is such a fantastic memory of my transformation from average tourist to geisha tourist.
What souvenirs do you collect when you travel? Please tell me your answers in the comments section below.
Travelling the world!
Recently, a friend of mine posted an idea on Facebook. I would like to share his idea with you!
The picture is a little blurry, so here is a transcript of what the map says:
“ISOCHRONIC PASSAGE CHART
FOR TRAVELLERS.
showing the shortest number of days journey from London by the quickest through routes and using such further conveyances as are available without unreasonable cost. It is supposed that local preparations have been made and that other circumstances are favourable.
By Francis Galton.F.R.S.Explanation of colours. Green: within 10 days. Yellow: 10-20 days. Pink: 20-30 days. Blue: 30-40 days. Brown: more than 40 days journey.
Published for the Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society, 1881.”
I agree with Michael that lives in the 21st century have become much faster. We can now cross an entire ocean in hours rather than days. Traveling to the next city can now be an hour’s journey rather than an entire day. Does that make our travel experience better?
Michael wonders what it was like for a traveler 100 years ago. Perhaps travelling was a full time job. I think we are lucky that in the 21st century. We can travel as a hobby or as a vacation. One hundred years ago, travelling to America was a major event. You had to book passage on a ship and sometimes also work on the ship, travel for weeks to cross the ocean, and spend a extended period of time in America before returning home. In the 21st century, I have been known to travel to Paris for the weekend, or spend only 16 hours in Seoul. Perhaps I didn’t see or experience enough of the cities and culture as I should have, but I am glad I was able to visit when I did. I have tasted the most buttery croissants at the top of the Eiffel Tower. I have see the temples of Seoul illuminate the dark Korean sky.
I always encourage people to travel and to see and experience as much as they can. Life is too short to spend it all in your own hometown. There is so much to do and see and now that travelling is so easy in the 21st century, there’s no reason NOT to travel!
Language on Vacation 