City vs. Country

Podcasts Themes metropolis vs. country Introduction Download the LearnEnglish Themes podcast. Youll find more than information on this page http//www. britishcouncil. org/learnenglish-podcasts-themes. htm This support covey contains the following materials the article that you can listen to in the podcast an optional language activity based on the article links to another(prenominal) activities on the LearnEnglish website on this theme (city vs. country). Read the article Town or country sneak? by John Russell erstwhile upon a time, there were two mice cousins. One lived in the town and the other in the country.The town mouse was a very superior mouse, who thought that life-time in the town was far better than lifetime the country. So bingle day, he invited his country cousin to stay with him in his town house and sleep together the civilized lifestyle of the town. They sat down to a meal, which to the country mouse was a feast. Goodness me he said. If I was in the country, I would be having scarce truthful bread and cheese in the serene of my peaceful position. Suddenly, there was a loud hoo-hah at the door. Dont worry, said the town mouse, thats just my neighbour the dog, he wants to get hitched with us for dinner. The country mouse ate a little faster. Another noise was heard outside, pull down louder this time. Oh dear said the town mouse, the cat who lives face my house wants to join us too. Quickly take the last of his meal, the country mouse said, thank you, still I think I will throw to the peace and quiet of my own house afterward all Then he ran back home as fast as his legs could carry him. This simple tale (taken from Aesops famous stories) shows that what may be a good place to live for one person, may not be good for another.A redbrick version of this story might look desire this Maria lives in a big city surrounded by the speed and convenience of urban life. She educates in an office with 1000 other employees, and travels too and from there on a move Metro. Her home is a flat overlooking a busy city-street, which is always alive with the sound of traffic and people passing by. After work she meets with friends in a bar or restaurant forwards going on to a disco or nightclub. Weekends be spent in the shopping nerve center with its numerous shops, multi-screen cinemas, fast food and entertainment complexes. Alex, however, lives in a small village in the countryside.He cycles to work down country lanes every morning, the sound of tractors, birds and animals in his ears. In the evening, he relaxes at home in front of the fire with a good curb to read. At weekends, he goes for long walks in the palm with his dog. Unfortunately, life is not as simple as stories make it. A lot of todays town mice such as Maria would be happy to live in the country. Many new-fashioned cities have very large populations (Tokyo or Mexico city over 25 million) and can be crowded, sordid and dangerous pla ces to live. More than half the worlds population now lives in cities.In much of atomic number 63 and North America this can be as high as much as 80% of a countrys population. (According to the United Nations, slightly 1 billion people in cities are living in slum conditions overcrowded and unhealthy). The 18th hundred marked the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, the depopulation of the countryside, and the move to towns. The towns became places of bunch employment in factories and offices. Today, many town dwellers inclination to The United Kingdoms international placement for educational opportunities and cultural relations. We are registered in England as a charity.