Travelling At the airport

Buy a ticket, go by plane

To the Netherlands or Spain.

Planes are taking off the ground

With a very loud sound.

They arrive and fly away

In a very busy way.

Airplanes with landing lights

Finish their endless flights.

There’s a runway long and wide

And the lights which are so bright.

When you are on holiday and intend to go to the seaside or travel abroad as a tourist, you should first of all decide what means of travelling to choose. You can travel by train, by ship, by car and by plane.

Travelling by plane is more comfortable, more convenient and much quicker than any other method. But not everybody likes it. Some people say they do not see very much of the country they go to. Trains are good enough for them. Some holiday-makers like travelling by sea. Of course, one can watch the sun rise and set, which is an unforgettable sight. For people who get seasick, a sea voyage is out the question. If you go by car, you may spend part of your holiday moving from place to place. You can stop wherever you like.

Whatever means of travelling you choose, it is advisable to book tickets in advance. You can book tickets yourself or do that through telephone.

Booking airplane tickets

Michael Kemp wants to book a round trip ticket from London to Las Vegas. So he calls a travel agent in “Jupiter Travel” agency:

Travel agent: Hallo, “Jupiter Travel”, Tom speaking. What can I do for you?

Michael: Hallo, there. I’d like to book a round trip ticket from London to Las Vegas.

Travel agent: And how do you plan your travelling?

Michael: I’d like to get to Las Vegas on the 8^th of March.

Travel agent: And return on?

Michael: I’d like to leave the following Sunday, the 14^th of March.

Travel agent: All right. Will that be first class, business or economy?

Michael: Economy.

Travel agent: Let’s see. There is “US Airways” flight leaving London Heathrow at 10:30 AM on March the 8^th. Connecting in Los Angeles and arriving in Las Vegas at 5:05 PM.

Michael: You don’t have anything that gets in a little earlier, do you?

Travel agent: Actually, most of the flights are like that, unless you want to connect in New York or maybe Denver, but then you are going to have a long layover.

Michael: No, no, the flight to Los Angeles sounds fine.

Travel agent: All right.

Michael: How about the return?

Travel agent: Let’s see. Departing Las Vegas at 11:30 AM and arriving the next day to London Heathrow at 8:30 in the morning. How’s that?

Michael: That’ll be fine.

Travel agent: O’K.

Michael: How much will it all come to?

Travel agent: Seven hundred and twenty five pounds per person including tax.

Michael: All right, sounds good. And how long can you hold it for me?

Travel agent: You need to make payment within 24 hours to guarantee this fare.

Michael: I see. That’s O’K. I’ll just pay for it now.

Travel agent: O’K. Any seating preferences?

Michael: Can you book an aisle, please?

Travel agent: Yes, that should be no problem. O’K. Now I just need your name and passport number, please.

Michael: O’K. Michael Kemp.

Travel agent: O’K, Mr. Kemp. Everything is confirmed. I’ll e-mail you your itinerary, and these are e-tickets, save and just pick them up when you get to the airport.

Michael: Great.

Travel agent: If you have any questions, please, call me at any time.

Michael: Thanks, Tom.

Travel agent: You are welcome. And thank you for using “Jupiter Travel”.

I. Read the dialogue in parts, find new words for you and make up 5 own sentences with them.

II. Fill in the blanks using words: appointment, flight schedules, checking-out, difference, travel arrangements, scheduled, collecting, options, land:

• Good morning, how can I help you? What can I do for you?

• Good afternoon, sir. Would it be possible to make some _____ on behalf of my boss?

• Certainly, madam. Please have a seat.

• Well, on Monday the 21^st of March my boss Mr. Taylor needs to be in Paris. At 11 a.m. he has an ______ with a customer. I know it takes about three quarters of an hour to get to the customer’s office.

• I see. So, Mr. Taylor should ______ in Paris at around 10 AM. At the latest. ________ at the airport, _________ luggage, not to mention traffic.

• Yes, you’re quite right.

• Would it be possible to catch an early morning flight at Heathrow?

• Let me see. I have the Heathrow _______ here in front of me. Early morning? I’m afraid the first _______ flight from London is only at 8 AM.

• That late? Is there no earlier flight to Paris?

• Unfortunately not, madam.

• I guess the only solution is to fly to Paris on Sunday evening then?

• Yes that’s right. But look at it this way, catching the early morning flight on Monday would have meant getting up as early as 4 AM anyway. There’s the one-hour ________ with continental time, the trip from Birmingham, check-in time etc.

• I suppose you’re right. Let’s take a look at the _______ for Sunday evening.

III. Translate into English:

1. Я бы хотел сдать багаж на рейс в Париж. – Конечно, сэр.

2. К сожалению, это будет невозможно, потому что у меня стыковочный рейс через Мадрид.

3. Я боюсь, что мы не сможем сделать это, потому что у меня пересадка в Гонконге.

4. Регистрация для международных рейсов находится в 4 терминале.

5. Да, нет проблем. Мы, конечно, можем.

6. Я пропустил свой стыковочный рейс в Лондоне.

7. После регистрации, пожалуйста, идите к паспортному контролю.

8. Мы пересаживаемся в Брюсселе и затем летим в Антверпен.

4. Translate the Russian parts of the following dialogue into English and be ready to present it in pairs by heart:

• What was your holiday like?

• Ужасно.

• Where did you go?

• К морю.

• The weather was bad, wasn’t it?

• Да, иногда действительно была плохая. Почти не было солнца и слишком много дождей.

• Where did you stay?

• В гостинице.

• Where did you have your meals?

• В ресторане гостиницы. Это было ужасно. Еда была отвратительная. И официант был настроен очень недружелюбно. Он ни разу нам не улыбнулся.

• Did you like going swimming?

• Да, очень. На пляже всегда было очень много народу.

• Did you go on any excursions?

• Нет, мы не ездили ни на какие экскурсии.

• What did you do in the evening?

• Иногда ходили на дискотеку, иногда гуляли по берегу или оставались в гостинице.

• You won’t go there again, will you?

• Никогда, это самый плохой отпуск, который у меня когда-либо был.

5. Read the following dialogue and make up a dialogue (or a polylogue) on the topic.