Episode 10

Adam and Rob

Both: Hello!

Rob: I’m Rob.

Adam: And I’m Adam.

Rob: Welcome to Episode 10 of the podcast. In a moment we’re going to hear from Carolina again. There’s a new friend for her and Emily today.

Adam: But first, as usual, we’re going to take a look at some of your messages and comments. Tess and Ravi talked about tea and the British habit of drinking tea – a lot of tea – a hundred and sixty-five million cups of tea every day!

Rob: We asked what the most popular drink was in your country. And for lots of you it’s tea too. All over the world – Indonesia, Libya, China, Iran, Azerbaijan – you’re all drinking lots of tea.

Adam: And so many different kinds of tea. We heard about black tea and red tea in Tunisia, green tea in Japan, mint tea in Egypt, lotus tea and iced tea in Vietnam – and how about this from Shuvanjan in Nepal. He says:

Most people in Nepal are used to drinking milk tea, which is made by mixing milk, sugar, fermented tea leaf granules and spices. The spices mostly include ginger, black pepper and cardamom. However, people living in the Himalaya region mostly take salty tea - tea made with milk and butter.

Rob: Tea with milk and butter? I’m not sure that I like the sound of that.

Adam: Well, I've tried tea in a Nepali restaurant and it was milky and sweet, not salty.

Rob: So, the English aren’t the only tea drinkers – you drink it everywhere. But you’re also drinking lots of coffee. In Italy, of course, but also in Latin America: Mexico, Brazil and this is Franklin from Colombia:

I am Franklin and I am from Colombia, the country of coffee. A lot of people around the world know that the best coffee is produced in Colombia, and it is recognized for its flavor and fragrance. Many cities around the world have shops selling coffee from Colombia.

Adam: The best coffee in the world? Maybe some of our Brazilian listeners disagree!

Rob: We also heard about mate in Argentina – thanks Wences – lassi in India and Karla Lara, the singer in our podcast band, told us about champurrado and ponche in Mexico. Woul from South Sudan told us that milk is the most popular drink there.

Adam: Thanks everyone for all your comments – we love reading them and we hope you read each other’s comments too. Remember that you can send comments to us at www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish – look for Elementary Podcasts.

Rob: Also, keep an eye on our Facebook page. Tess and Ravi are answering your questions there and also arranging times that they will be online to answer questions you have for them.

Adam: Right, time to catch up with Carolina. You remember that Carolina is a student from Venezuela who is studying in Newcastle in the north-east of England. Last time we heard from her, she’d got a job in a shop at the university and Jamie, her boyfriend, had started a band. Let’s hear how she’s enjoying the job.

Carolina

Emily: Hello!

Carolina: Hello, Emily.

Emily: Well, this is strange! Look at you in your uniform.

Carolina: I know. It's horrible, isn't it?

Emily: So how are you getting on? Are you enjoying it?

Carolina: It's OK.

Emily: Just OK?

Carolina: Well, you know, it can get really, really busy, and if I'm here on my own… Yesterday was awful.

Emily: Are you here alone all the time?

Carolina: No. There's a woman called Alice – she's here sometimes. But she isn't very friendly. She doesn't like me for some reason. And Mr Spencer, the boss, comes in sometimes, but I don't like it when he's here – it makes me nervous.

Emily: So you prefer it when you're here alone?

Carolina: Well, I told you, I get nervous. I don't like it when it gets busy.

Emily: It isn't busy now. I'm almost the only customer in the shop.

Carolina: Then it's really boring. There's no one to talk to and nothing to do. And Mr Spencer says I'm not allowed to read.

Emily: Gosh, Carolina. You are difficult to please. You don't like being with Alice or Mr Spencer, you don't like being alone, you don't like it when it's busy and you don't like it when it's quiet. What do you want? Do you really hate this job?

Carolina: No, no, I don't hate it. I'm just not enjoying it very much.

Emily: Cheer up. It'll get better. You just need a bit more experience.

Carolina: Yes, I know.

Emily: Why don't we go to the cinema tomorrow? You don't work on Sunday, do you?

Carolina: Actually I'm going to the cinema with Jamie tomorrow, after his band practice.

Emily: Oh yeah – the band. Have they got a name yet?

Carolina: No, not yet. Let's all go to the cinema together – you come too. Jamie would like to see you.

Emily: OK, I'd like to. If you're sure you don't mind. What are you going to see?

Carolina: I don't know. Jamie said it's a great film. It's on at the shopping centre, so we'll meet there.

Emily: What time?

Carolina: About seven? Outside the cinema, next to the ticket office.

Emily: OK. I have to go. I'll probably be in bed when you get home.

Carolina: What time is it now?

Emily: Quarter past seven.

Carolina: Only five more hours to go.

Carolina: So then he asked me to give him some... Oh hello, Jamie.

Jamie: Hi. Hi, Emily.

Emily: Hi.

Jamie: Uh, this is Cameron. Cameron, this is Carolina and this is Emily.

Cameron: Hello.

Emily and Carolina: Hi, nice to meet you.

Jamie: Cameron's in the band. He's the lead singer.

Emily: Cool.

Cameron: Well, I do my best.

Carolina: And are you at the university, Cameron?

Cameron: No, I'm not. I work in First Page, the bookshop.

Emily: Wow, what a great job!

Cameron: Yeah, it's OK.

Jamie: Not for much longer, Cameron. We're gonna be rich and famous, remember?

Cameron: Yeah!

Carolina: Come on, let's go and get the tickets.

Adam and Rob

Rob: That’s an interesting laugh. Carolina doesn’t seem to be enjoying her job very much. I used to work in a shop when I was a student and it can be pretty boring. I’m lucky these days that I enjoy my job so much. I like meeting my students, I like teaching, I love languages…

Adam: I really like reading and answering people's comments on the LearnEnglish website.

Rob: What about you, listeners? Do you like your job or your studies or your school? You all told us about your first jobs, but now we’d like to hear what you like or what you don’t like about your job.

Adam: Is it interesting and exciting or is it boring and badly paid? Write and let us know. And don’t worry – we won’t tell your boss what you said!

Rob: Now, did you hear the conversation when Carolina and Emily met Cameron? Listen again:

Carolina: So then he asked me to give him some... Oh hello, Jamie.

Jamie: Hi. Hi, Emily.

Emily: Hi.

Jamie: Uh, this is Cameron. Cameron, this is Carolina and this is Emily.

Cameron: Hello.

Emily and Carolina: Hi, nice to meet you.

Jamie: Cameron's in the band. He's the lead singer.

Emily: Cool.

Cameron: Well, I do my best.

Carolina: And are you at the university, Cameron?

Cameron: No, I'm not. I work in First Page, the bookshop.

Emily: Wow, what a great job!

Cameron: Yeah, it's OK.

Adam: Lots to listen out for there. What do we say when we introduce people to each other?

Jamie: Uh, this is Cameron. Cameron, this is Carolina and this is Emily.

Cameron: Hello.

Rob: We say ‘This is...’ ‘This is Adam...’ – and what do we say when we meet people for the first time?

Jamie: Uh, this is Cameron. Cameron, this is Carolina and this is Emily.

Cameron: Hello.

Emily and Carolina: Hi, nice to meet you.

Adam: ‘Nice to meet you’ – we often say ‘nice to meet you’ when we meet someone for the first time.

Rob: And did you notice what Carolina and Emily did next? They asked questions.

Carolina: And are you at the university, Cameron?

Cameron: No, I'm not. I work in First Page, the bookshop.

Emily: Wow, what a great job!

Cameron: Yeah, it's OK.

Adam: These are questions to ‘break the ice’ – to start finding out more about the person you’ve just met. We’ve put some exercises to help you find out more about breaking the ice on our website. You’ll find them at www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish

Rob: Well, I think that’s all we’ve got time for this time. We’ll be back soon with Tess and Ravi again. They’ll be talking about something British that you might think is really quite horrible… what could it be?

Adam: And thanks again for all your comments – we love hearing from you.

Rob and Adam: Bye!