Transatlantic crossing

wealthiest neighbourhood: richest residential area

on a first-name basis: sees them so often that they call each other by their first
names as friends would
are drawn together by: are connected by
flows: moves
boom: a period of expansion and prosperity
real estate: buying and selling land and buildings
trendy: fashionable
penthouse: an expensive top-floor apartment/flat (usually the best in the
building)

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London: 2, 4, 5, 8 [clues: quid, pounds, underground; day return, boot, taxi; bill,
chemist’s; petrol station, roundabout)
New York: 1, 3, 6, 7 (clues: rest room, elevators; shopping mall, drugstore,
parking lot; blocks, cab, subway, bucks; round trip, cart, phone booths,
quarters)

2 (38 )
2
a Could I have a window seat, please?
b Would you mind helping me with my bags, please?
c Do you know where there is a cashpoint?
d Would you mind changing this twenty-pound note?
e Could you drive a little slower, please? / Do you mind not driving so fast?
f Would you mind lending me your mobile?
g Is there somewhere where I could recharge my laptop?
h Could you give me three separate receipts, please?
i Could you tell me the time, please?
j Do you happen to know how far it is to the airport?
7 Handling calls

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Business phone calls can reduce productivity because of the time they take up.
Even a modest reduction in calls can increase productivity. Most business calls
are not important enough to justify executives stopping what they are doing to
answer them.
Las llamadas telefónicas comerciales pueden reducir la productividad debido al tiempo
que ocupan. Incluso una reducción modesta en las llamadas puede aumentar la
productividad. La mayoría de las llamadas comerciales no son lo suficientemente
importantes como para justificar que los ejecutivos dejen lo que están haciendo para
responderlas.
Devices such as the Blackberry can become so much a part of business
people’s lives that they think they are receiving calls even when they aren’t.
Overuse can also lead to medical problems.
Los dispositivos como el Blackberry pueden convertirse en una parte tan importante de la vida de las
personas de negocios que creen que están recibiendo llamadas, incluso cuando no lo hacen. El uso
excesivo también puede conducir a problemas médicos
Addiction to mobile phones can intrude into your personal life. People are
becoming incapable of ignoring ringing phones no matter what else they are
doing at the time.
La adicción a los teléfonos móviles puede entrometerse en su vida personal. La gente se está volviendo
incapaz de ignorar los teléfonos que suenan sin importar qué más estén haciendo en ese momento.
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a busy, ring
b disturbed, hold
c possible, answer
d expecting, pick up
e important, leave
f real, unplug
g out, divert

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1
Asking politely
a if possible
b if you can
c if you would
d if you’re not too busy
e if you’ve got time
f if you’ve got a minute
g if it’s not too much trouble