Academic English

“Tour of Kyoto, Japan”

Level:	Topic:	Speakers:	Length:
inermediate	travel and tourism	man	01:57

Pre-Listening Exercise

Imagine you are going on a bus tour of a famous city like Kyoto, Japan. What general places do you think you would visit? What things would the tour guide point out about a famous landmark (for example, the date of its construction)?

Idioms

“take in” = attend a movie, concert, or play
“Why don’t we take in a traditional Japanese play while we’re in the city?“

“for a song” = very cheaply
“We were able to buy these Japanese dolls for a song.”

Listening Exercise

A. Listen to the recording and answer the questions.

What time is the bus leaving?

9:00

9:50

9:15

First of all, we'll be leaving at 9:15 outside the main train station exit. That's in thirty minutes. Be sure to board the bus by 9:00 sharp.

The Golden Pavilion was build in _____.

1339

1397

1379

Our first stop will be at the Golden Pavilion, a temple constructed in 1397.

The Ryoanji Temple is famous for its _____.

rock garden

trees

stone walls

This temple is famous for its beautiful rock garden.

There are many _______ to visit in Gion.

parks

restaurants

traditional shops

After that, we'll head downtown and stop in Gion. Many people asked me about different traditional shopping areas, and this is a place we don't want to miss.

Visitors have ______ minutes to tour the castle.

Finally, we'll visit Nijojo Castle, which was the residence of the first Tokugawa Shogun. You'll have about an hour to tour the castle, and we'll meet at the bus at 4:00.

Post-Listening Exercise

Are there any sightseeing tours available in your home city? If so, where would they take a visitor to your city? Pretend you are the tour guide hosting exchange students in your city. What details about the city would you share with your guests? What would be the best way to see your city: on foot, by bicycle, by bus, or by taxi?

See Listening Script

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