10. Travelling

People like to travel. Travelling is necessary to us all. It keeps us from growing stale and old; it stimulates our imagination, it gives us that movement and change which are necessary to our well-being. Some people travel in search of beauty, others to satisfy their curiosity, and many people consider travelling to be a very good form of rest. Every trip always involves thinking about so many things. We have to choose the most convenient means of transport, get information about the place we are going to. We are to make sure our trip is interesting and pleasant. There are different means of travel. For example, we can travel by air, by rail, by sea, by road or on foot. Of course, travelling by air is the fastest and the most convenient way but it is the most expensive, too. Nothing can match airplanes for speed and comfort. There is none of the dust and dirt of a railway or car journey, none of the trouble of changing train to steamer and then to another train. There is no need to trouble about your suitcase. Being on board the plane you can read newspapers to kill the time. You are also served some drinks and food. Besides, flying is a thrilling thing. But it has some disadvantages. Your flight can be delayed because of the cloudy or foggy weather. It’s not always easy to get to the airport and buy tickets. Flying is too expensive and a plane is not a very safe means of transport. You can take too great risk not only to fall down and to get airsick. There is another inconvenience you have to be prepared for when travelling long distance by plane. It’s a difference between the time you are accustomed to and the new time. It will also take you some time to get used to the new climate and surroundings. And it’s not very interesting, because you can’t see anything but clouds while travelling.

For instance, travelling by train is slower than by plane but it has it advantages. You can see more interesting places of the country you are travelling through. Modern trains have very comfortable seats. With a train you have speed, comfort and pleasure combined. From the comfortable corner seat of a railway carriage you have a splendid view of the whole countryside. If you are hungry, you can have a meal in the dining-car; and if the journey is a long one you can have a wonderful bed in a sleeper. Besides, trains can afford great comfort especially for elderly people. And there is nothing more interesting than a big railway station. There is the movement, the excitement, the gaiety of people going away or waiting to meet friends. There are the shouts of the porters as they pull luggage along the platforms to the waiting trains, the crowd at the booking-office getting tickets, the hungry and thirsty ones hurrying to the refreshment rooms before the train starts. Nothing can really match trains for comfort and excitement. Travelling by sea is popular mostly for pleasure trips. On board large ships and small river boats people can visit foreign countries and different places of interest within their own country. Some people love to feel the deck of the boat under their feet, to see the rise and fall of the waves, to feel the fresh sea wind blowing in their faces and hear the cry of the sea-gulls. And it’s great excitement for people to come into the harbour and see round them all the ships, steamers, cargo-ships, sailing ships and rowing boats. But some people don’t like travelling by sea because they are always sea-sick, especially when the sea is a little bit rough. Many people prefer travelling by car. It is wonderful, when you can stop wherever you wish and spend at any place as much time as you like. Nowadays travelling on foot has become very widespread. You can leave the dull broad highway and go along little winding lanes where cars can’t go. You take mountain paths through the heather, wander by the side of quiet lakes and through the shade of woods. You see the real country, the wild flowers, the young birds in their nests, the deer in the forest and feel the quietness and calm of nature. You can not only admire the nature but gain experience and knowledge during your walking hours. This form of travelling attracts a great number of young people and helps them to become strong and healthy both in mind and in character. But it depends on the weather, of course. And besides, you are saving your railway fare travelling on foot. No one can deny that walking is the cheapest method of travelling. In fact, no matter which way of holiday-making or travelling you choose, it’ll give you great pleasure. Adventure is necessary for us all. But as they say “East or West home is best”, there is for the traveller the great joy of returning home. When his curiosity for new scenes is satisfied he turns his thoughts towards home where all the things are most familiar and he loves them. So the traveller, besides the delight of his trip, has the warmest feeling of coming home. And indeed, he comes back home full of gaily impressions after his trip and with a strong desire to go on a voyage again.

11. Living in a city

Some people enjoy living in the country but others prefer big city life.

Big cities, towns, villages – there are different places where to live on the Earth. Busy, noisy life in the city and quiet life in the village is two different ways of life, which can be chosen by people.

Living in a big city has many advantages.

Houses in the city are generally provided with modern conveniences such as electricity, running water, telephones and all sorts of labour-saving devices. There are a lot of multi-storey buildings.

There are plenty of means of communication: buses, taxi-cabs, metro, etc

Big cities offer a wide range of entertainment: playgrounds and sports fields, public gardens, museums, movie-theaters, concerts…

There are many places in the city where you can get a bite or a drink: restaurants, coffee-houses, tea-rooms, bars and refreshment rooms, etc

A big city has everything you want. There are a lot of trade centres which you can visit to buy the essential things for life such as: clothes, furniture and food which have high standards and good for health.

Owing to sport palaces, swimming pools, tennis courts, people in the big city have plenty of sporting facilities.

Schools, gymnasiums, universities provide various educational facilities. A man can get the best education in a big city. In our time, the man, who lives in the big city, has many possibilities to realize himself in different spheres of life. In the city he can acquire good opportunities for making a successful career. People in the big city have more chances to find a job.

In a city you don’t have a problem with communication and with the system of public transport, which is well developed.

There are a lot of hospitals and chemist’s shops in cities. That’s why there is no problem with some drugs or necessary medicine.

And the last, if you live in a city you can go with the time, know all novelty of fashion, all politics news, all discoveries in science.

All cities have their own important disadvantages. Their rhythm of life is so quick, their life is so busy, that every day, particularly in the rush hour, the streets get so packed with traffic that the travel is very slow, or even comes to a standstill. A great number of cars and other traffic make traffic jams in the central streets; it is a problem to find parking meters. But in my opinion the main problem in the big cities is a terrible ecological situation, gas, noises pollution. Also in the overcrowded streets accidents often happen and in big cities there is a high criminal rate. The criminal situation in big cities usually leaves much to be desired. The big city looks like a human zoo, where people are far from nature; they live in the similar houses in little flats, which look like cages.

The way of life in the small towns and villages is opposite to the life in a big city. There are not so many cultural, leisure, educational and sporting facilities. The rhythm of life is slow and life is quiet. In villages and small towns all houses are different. There are gardens in front of them. People are close to each other. They communicate very often.

The ecology in small towns is better. In the country, we can live in the midst of nature. The air is fresh and cool, which is good for a healthy living. A country life is full of charms. The rippling rivers, the grazing cows and the chirping birds give us great pleasures in life. Country life is cheaper than town life. I think it is healthier and more peaceful to live in the countryside than in a city.

The way of life influences people. People in a big city can have a sense of superiority over people who live in the suburbs and villages.

It is hard to decide where to live, because both ways of life have some advantages and disadvantages.