HOMESTAY HOLIDAYS

NIKOS

Homestay holidays are becoming very popular, and people
everywhere are offering their homes as hotels. My home is in a village
in northwest Greece, but it is not for people who enjoy bech holidays.
The village í in the mountains and there are 45 other villages in the
area. If you are fit, you can walk from one village to the other. The
mountain views are fantastic, and you cross old bridges and go past
forests where bears live.

RAMI
Our home is near the centre of Sydney, Australia’s largest city. It is
perfect for a homestay holiday. Sydney is a friendly place, with lots
of café, restaurants and clubs, which are open until long after
midnight and where people cacn enjoy themselves. However, it is
noisy at night and there is a lot of traffic during the day. The best thing
about Sydney is the weather. It is good all yearl; it rains in the winter,
but it is too warm to snow.

MARCUS
Our house is by the sea in the southwest of England, a 15-minute
drive from the village of Porthcurno. It is a great place for a relaxing
homestay holiday. There are lots of beaches and rivers, and it is very
quiet. You can spend a lot of time reading and goinig for walks. There
is a special open-air theatre nearby, on the side of the cliffs. As you
watch a show, you can look out to sea. Our area is also great if you
enjoy surfing, kayaking and mountain biking.

Little girl saves mother

A little girl from Newton has become the most famous person in town. Frances Brown, who is starting school next year, called 999 when her mother, Lisa, fell down the stairs. The emergency services immediately sent an ambulance to her house.

‘She’s an amazing little girl!’ said a doctor. ‘She knew that she had to call 999 to speak to someone who could help. She gave her name and her address, and she described what the problem was. She said her mother had just got out of bed and had fallen down the stairs. She said that her mum was sleeping, but there was something wrong. She looked after her mum until help arrived.’

When the ambulance arrived at the Brown’s house, they found out that Lisa, aged 30, was expecting her second child. The doctors kept Lisa in the hospital for 24 hours to check that she was all right before allowing her to go home the next morning.

When Lisa found out what her daughter did she told friends and family. Then the local newspapers heard the story. Frances’s father, Liam, aged 32 and a teacher at the local school, said: ‘Frances’s quick thinking saved her mother’s life. Lisa is careful around the house, but accidents happen.’

Lisa is going to have a baby in two months, and she thinks this is why she fell down the stairs. ‘I’m so big now that I can’t see my feet!’ she said. ‘I can’t wait to give Frances a baby brother.’

Ella Fitzgerald

Ella Fitzgerald, the great American jazz singer, was born in Virginia in 1917. She 1__________ to New York when she was a young child.

When Ella was fifteen, her mother died, and she went lo live with her aunt. This was a hard time in her life and she got into 2__________ with the police. She 3__________ money from singing on the street and people started to notice her.

In 1934 she won first prize in a competition, and she 4__________ a well-known band. By 1938 she was famous and her songs were the best-selling recordings of the time.

Fitzgerald starred in films and appeared in many television shows. She also went on 5__________ around the world. She died in 1996. In the opinion of many people, she is the greatest ever jazz singer.

Otters

Not many people have seen an otter. These animals live 1 ____________ rivers and make their homes from small pieces of wood. They usually come 2 ____________ of their homes at night. Otters are very good in the water and can swim at more than 10 kilometers 3 ____________ hour. They have thick brown hair and this 4 ____________ them warm in the water. An otter can close 5____________ ears and nose. This means otters can stay under water 6____________ several minutes. Twenty years ago, there were 7 ____________ otters in Great Britain. The water in the rivers 8____________ so dirty that many fish and insects died and the otters couldn’t find 9 ____________ to eat. But today there is lots of food for them 10 ____________ the rivers are clean again.