“To be inspired is great, to inspire is incredible.

” (Được truyền cảm hứng là một điều tốt, và có thể truyền cảm hứng là một điều tuyệt vời.)

TEST 5
Part 1
Neighbourhood
- Describe the neighbourhood where you live.
I live in an area of the outskirts of HCMC. It's quite a complicated neighbourhood,
which consists of different types of people coming from different classes of society though
it's a mostly working class area. Although there are some problems in my neighbourhood I
think it's a pretty good place to live.
- What do you like about living there?
I love living in this neighbourhood because of its convenient location. Everything I
need is right on my doorstep, from shopping malls to bookstores, food shops to cafes to
anything else you can think of. All of those places that I have mentioned are in walking
distance which will take me merely 15 to 20 minutes to get to.
- What do you dislike about your neighbourhood?
The worst thing about my neighbourhood is that my neighbours aren't really
sociable. I guess they are too busy with their work or families. Honestly I don't
communicate much with them which is a bit sad as I would like there to be more of a
community feel to the place I'm living.
- What kind of neighbourhood would you like to live in?
It would be somewhere with nice and talkative people, where a lack of communication is
out of the question?. I'd love to live somewhere where the local community organises local
events like group dinners or family activities. It really makes a big difference to have
friendly neighbours.

Walking
- Do you like walking? Why or why not?
Despite the fact that I'm not really an athletic person, I love walking for all of the
benefits that it brings to my physical and mental health.

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TRẦN ANH VĂN (Mr. English Tran) – A silent and special person in Vietnam, who enjoys seeking out new experiences and never stops learning.
 “To be inspired is great, to inspire is incredible.” (Được truyền cảm hứng là một điều tốt, và có thể truyền cảm hứng là một điều tuyệt vời.)

- Are there any places you can walk near your house?
Fortunately, just right in front of my house, there is a small park that is suitable for
walking. Many people go there in the early morning or even in the late evening to exercise.
I try to go there every day and walk around, it helps to clear my head' and it's a nice gentle
form of exercise. As a result, I don't need to pay a lot of money for gym membership.. Do
people in your country like walking? Why or why not? It's very difficult to tell whether the
majority of people in my country like walking or not. It's more of a personal preference.
However, I do notice that there is an increasing number of old people who like to take an
early walk in the morning in the park opposite my house. Maybe they want to improve their
health conditions and walking is the best exercise which is suitable for all ages. What other
kinds of exercise do you enjoy?
I'm addicted to music, especially music that has strong rhythm. Therefore, I enjoy any
kind of exercise that includes music in it, such as dancing, Zumba or aerobics. It's more
interesting to work out in that way and it doesn't bore me out. Normal exercises like running
can be really tiring and I tend to lose my motivation over time working out in the normal
ways.

Part 2
Describe a friend who is important to you
You should say:
- The name of your friend
- When and where you met your friend
- What kinds of things you and your friend like to do together and explain why that
friend is important to you
I must admit that I'm quite an outgoing girl who has a big circle of friends. However,
the people who I actually call my best friends are very limited and Ruby is one of those who
has earned herself this title. We've known each other since high school, tenth grade to be
exact. At the beginning, she was the shy girl who didn't talk much, the total opposite of my
character. But we started hanging out more and more and were inseparable' by the end of
PAGE \* MERGEFORMAT 5
TRẦN ANH VĂN (Mr. English Tran) – A silent and special person in Vietnam, who enjoys seeking out new experiences and never stops learning.
 “To be inspired is great, to inspire is incredible.” (Được truyền cảm hứng là một điều tốt, và có thể truyền cảm hứng là một điều tuyệt vời.)

school. People say friends complete each other and I've found that statement to be
incredibly true. Even though we have distinct personalities, we share a lot of similar
interests such as Korean dramas, Japanese food, and photography! Whether it's indoors or
outdoors, we can spend the whole day together and have a lot of fun. Ruby is an important
friend that I just can't live without. It may sound like an exaggeration' but it's not. She has
always been there to listen to my problems without judgingor criticizing me and I also know
I can confide in her and trust her. In addition to that, she has helped me so much through
many difficulties that I have had in life and I hope she would say the same thing about me. I
hope when we're 80 we're still spending time together and having fun. Friends like Ruby are
hard to find!

Part 3
Friendship
- Generally, are friendships important to people?
Definitely. Everybody needs somebody sometime. People say that friends are the
family you choose and for lots of people their friends know them as well or even better than
their families do. Friends are people to confide inб and share your doubts or fears with but
they're also the ones to have fun and build memories with. I think not having any friends
would be a real struggle and a really lonely experience.
- How can friends help each other?
I think there are countless ways friends help each other. It could be something simple
like just hanging out or helping them with coursework or with chores they have to do or it
could be something more serious like listening to their problems and helping them find a
solution or just being there for them and showing that you care. I think the best friends are
the ones who are good listeners and who give good advice. A good friendship doesn't need
to be based on something physical or material but it needs to be more about an emotional
connection to keep the friendship alive.
- Do people spend more time with friends or with relatives?

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TRẦN ANH VĂN (Mr. English Tran) – A silent and special person in Vietnam, who enjoys seeking out new experiences and never stops learning.
 “To be inspired is great, to inspire is incredible.” (Được truyền cảm hứng là một điều tốt, và có thể truyền cảm hứng là một điều tuyệt vời.)

Well, I am a university student so I spend more time with my friends at university.

Sometimes this is because of coursework where we need to do group assignments and
projects but we also spend time to hang out together. I think it's pretty typical of university
students to want to spend more time with their friends than with their families. You share
mostly similar interests and are learning how to be independent from your family. I think as
people get older, and especially when they get married, they stop seeing their friends as
much and focus more on their family. I'm sure in a few years that's a trend I'll start to see
among my own friends, but for now I definitely spend more time with my peers7.
- How do our friendships change as we grow older?
It is really hard to tell because things can change in many different ways. We might
be too busy for each other or someone moves away. As people get older their lives can get
more complicated and it can be difficult to find the time to see old friends. I think older
people do fewer activities with their friends and are more likely to just go for good coffee
and have a chat. I think being there emotionally for your friends is the most important thing.
Not just in friendships but in relationships generally, you don't have to communicate all the
time but you know that you are there for one another if you need it. I think that's good
enough somehow.

USEFUL VOCABULARY
1. outskirts (noun): vùng ngoại ô
2. out of the question: không khả thi; không cần bận tâm đến
3. clear my head: thư giãn đầu óc
4. inseparable (adjective): không thể tách rời
5. exaggeration (noun): sự phóng đại
6. confide in (phrasal verb): tin tưởng, tín nhiệm
7. peer (noun): bạn đồng trang lứa; cùng cảnh ngộ; đồng nghiệp

PAGE \* MERGEFORMAT 5
TRẦN ANH VĂN (Mr. English Tran) – A silent and special person in Vietnam, who enjoys seeking out new experiences and never stops learning.
 “To be inspired is great, to inspire is incredible.” (Được truyền cảm hứng là một điều tốt, và có thể truyền cảm hứng là một điều tuyệt vời.)

“Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration.”

- Thomas Edison -
(Thiên tài là một phần trăm nguồn cảm hứng và
chín mươi chín phần trăm là khổ luyện.)

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TRẦN ANH VĂN (Mr. English Tran) – A silent and special person in Vietnam, who enjoys seeking out new experiences and never stops learning.