Unit 63

Warm up:
To find myself / do some research
To work ON digital project
I’m renting/to pay rent v’s I’m renting it out
In the consulting sector
Give a loan / borrow / lean
I have roof over my head

Can you name 6 famous cities?

Lyon
Porto
Florence
Rome
Amsterdam
Paris

If you had to move to one of these cities, which city would you pick?
1. Florence
a. Pros: the architecture is so beautiful so when you wake up you feel like you are not in a big city.
b. Cons: the distance between family, friends, and networking
2. Amsterdam
a. Pros: to transportation and canals, large parks and the cultural aspect
b. Cons: the red sector nightlife, too many bars and drunks (n)
3. Porto
a. Pros: beautiful city, kind hearted folks, cultural parts
b. Cons: too much construction for the whole of the city, we don’t often use ‘much’ in positive
phrases or questions. There is a lot of noise (NOT there is much noise) But you can say too much
noise.
4. Rome
a. Pros: a big city that’s very spread out, can’t go ON foot, rent a scooter, If we’d rented …. It would
cost…to visit the Vatican Museum
b. Cons: extremely dirty, cigarettes butts ('to stub out’ => put out), there are no bins but rubbish bags
piled up in the streets, poverty is obvious, the Vatican has a borderline
5. Paris
a. Pros: beautiful, cultural activities
b. Cons: the city lifestyle is too fast, it’s unavoidable, you can create a imaginary barrier around you
with wearing headphones

What are some good features that are important for a city to have (amenities)?
Amenities:
- restaurants
- good natural setting parks
- good public transportation
- cycling/bike paths
- cultural life / events
- good universities / schools
- associations
- libraries. For example, Porto has the most beautiful library in the world, yet there is a long queue.

Graph description:
You were very good in describing graphs, here’s some extra vocabulary (also see attachments)

TRENDS and CHANGES:

-to slump
-to climb
-to reach peak
-to recover
-have/shows a sudden fall
-to a low/lower
-to rise
-to soar
-to all-time high
-to stabilize
-two-month slide
-to have wild fluctuations/fluctuate
-to destabilise
-to rebound
-have a steady decline
-to boom
-to plummet
-go higher/lower

Grammar: weakening superlatives

This is the best book I’ve ever read.

- This is one of the best books I’ve ever read.

(one of the / among the / some of the)

I’ve had better dinners in this city, but not many.

- This is one of the best dinners I’ve had in this city.
These apartments are more expensive than most others
- These apartments are among the most expensive ones in the city
- These apartments are some of the most expensive in the city
This city is on the list of the top 5 cleanest cities
- This city is among the top 5 cleanest cities in the world
- This job is among the best I’ve ever had.
It’s hard to find a shop in the city with cheaper clothes
- This place is one of the cheapest clothes shops in the city
- These clothes are some of the cheapest in the city
- This shop has some of the cheapest clothes in this city.
I’ve had better dinners in this city, but not many.