Travel writer

Tim Greenwood lives in Oakland, USA. He has written about Cambodia, Thailand and India. At the
moment he is writing a book about Nepal.

Tim, how did you start travelling?

We never travelled as a family, but when I was a teenager I saw movies like Lawrence of Arabia and they
made me want to travel. I left college at the age of 21 and went to Europe alone. That trip didn’t go well
– I was too young and didn’t know how to look after myself.

How did you start writing?

I’ve loved writing since I was ten – I’ve never wanted any other career. At 21, I wrote for my weekly
college paper and then started writing travel articles. At first, none of the travel magazines I sent them to
wanted to buy them, but that slowly changed. It took two or three years, I guess.

What do you find difficult about writing?

It is easy to spend all my time travelling and then not have time to open up my laptop and work! Also, it’s
hard to earn enough money. I’ll never stop writing, but one day I may have to do a few hours a week
teaching just to pay the bills.

What’s the best thing about being a travel writer?

I get letters from young people who’ve read my books and articles and enjoy my work. I just love that!

1 As a teenager, Tim

A went on trips with his parents.

B became interested in seeing the world.

C spent too much time watching TV.

2 What does Tim say about his trip to Europe?

A He didn’t have time to see everything.

B It was more fun than college.

C It was not a great success.

3 When Tim was 21, he couldn’t

A travel as much as he wanted to.

B decide what to write about.

C sell many of his articles.

4 In the future, Tim thinks he might

A do some extra work.

C change his job.

5 What does Tim like about being a travel writer?

A hearing from his fans

B giving advice to people

C meeting other young writers

How I spend my free time

Jay Portman describes his unusual hobby, hill running, and tells us why he enjoys it.

Hill running is the sport of running up and down hills and mountains, through open countryside. It’s not
popular among my friends, but I love it. My dad took me and my brothers out running when we were
little, and then when I was about fifteen, I joined a hill running club, called the York Merlins.

There are some excellent runners in the club. When we do our practice runs, I’m always a long way
behind them. But that doesn’t bother me. They’re all really nice and often give me advice. What I love is
being outdoors and finding all these beautiful places I never knew were there.

We race against other clubs at the weekends. In these races, runners are told where to finish, but not
how to get there. You need a good map and compass so you don’t get lost. Everyone starts together at
the beginning, but later in the race you often find yourself running alone.

Anyone can enter these races – you just get there in the morning, pay your £5, and run. There are no T-
shirts or medals for the winners. The most you get is a piece of cake! Often there are international hill
running champions taking part, but they are just as friendly as everyone else.

That doesn’t mean it’s an easy sport. Last weekend I did a race in heavy rain and high winds, and I was
asking myself what I was doing out there. But I got to the end, and that was an amazing feeling.

1 Jay’s first experience of hill running was with

A a club.

B some friends.

C his family.

2 How does Jay feel about the good runners in his club?

A He’d like to be as fast as them one day.

B He doesn’t mind that they are better than him.

C He thinks they should help slower runners improve.

3 What does Jay say is important in the races he enters?

A listening to the instructions

C being able to find your way

4 What do we learn about the races from the fourth paragraph?

A They don’t have big prizes.

B They are only for local runners.

C They are free for some people to enter.

5 What does Jay say about the last race he did?

A The bad weather made it dangerous.

B He was very happy when he finished it.

C It wasn’t as difficult as some races he has done.

My city

Pop singer Charlotte Bond talks about living in London.

I live in the centre of London. I love it because there’s always something happening and there are people
around whatever time it is. Famous people like it too – they often come here for the restaurants and
shops.

I’ve lived here all my life. When I was little, I had singing lessons at a place near where I live now. I was
afraid of the teacher at first, and some of the songs we did together were quite hard to learn. But she
was good at what she did and I learned a lot of things that have helped me in my career.

When friends visit me now, I enjoy taking them sightseeing. You can get a bus around the city, but we
prefer to walk. I’ve got a little car and I love driving, but there’s so much traffic here, and it’s hard to find
parking spaces.

One building I love is the Natural History Museum. They sometimes hold parties there, and last
December my band and I played at one. I’ll never forget it. When I go to exhibitions at the museum with
my friends, I tell them all about that night and how amazing it was.

Soon I’ll be leaving London to go on tour with my band. We’re playing in lots of new cities and I can’t
wait to explore them. We’ve sold lots of tickets, which is great. I’ll be away from my family for six
months, but they’re coming to see me sing, so it’s fine.

1 What does Charlotte love about the centre of London?

A It is always busy.

B Famous people often visit.

C The shops are very good.

2 How does Charlotte feel about the singing lessons she had?
 A She’s surprised she can remember them.

B She’s sorry she didn’t try harder.

C She’s glad she did them.

3 What does Charlotte think is the best way to see the city?

A by car

B on foot

C by bus

4 Why does Charlotte love the Natural History Museum?

A She had a special experience there.

B She thinks the building is beautiful.

C She enjoys visiting the exhibitions.

5 What does Charlotte say about going on tour with her band?

A She hopes lots of people will buy tickets for her shows.

B She feels excited about seeing new places.

C She’s worried she’ll miss her family.