SKILLS BOOST

B1 LISTENING 1– 6 AUDIOSCRIPTS

Hi! Welcome to this week’s Guide for Globetrotters. I’m Tim Fowler and this week we’ll be taking in the
sights of beautiful Krakow, one of the oldest cities in Poland.
Well, it’s a beautiful spring day here in Krakow and the sun is shining brightly – but I’ve got my umbrella
with me and I’m not letting go! If you’ve ever been to Krakow on Easter Monday you’ll know why….
Phew, missed! Getting wet is an Easter tradition here. In the past, young people used to throw water at
each other on Easter Monday – if you got wet you would have good luck in your marriage! This tradition
continues until today, and all over the city you can see people throwing water and people getting very
wet. That’s why I came prepared with my umbrella…
On a beautiful day like this there’s no better place to be in Krakow than where I am right now. The
Planty are beautiful tree lined gardens which circle the city. This is the best place in the city to people
watch, and from the Planty you can get to the old town where you’ll come across small galleries, explore
book shops and visit churches. And the best place for a wonderful view of the city? Well, that’s a well-
kept secret - the roof top café of Krakow’s music academy. Mm, amazing!
If you’re in Krakow for any time at all, the Museum of Contemporary Art is an absolute must -see. It’s a
fascinating place. Have you seen Steven Spielberg’s famous movie Schindler’s List? Well, you might be
interested to know that this museum was built on the site of Oskar Schindler’s factory. There’s some
amazing art works here – with exhibitions which change all the time so you’ll always see something new.
Then there are film rooms, video boxes – something for everyone…
All this walking around has got me feeling pretty hungry! So it’s lucky for me that I’m here in Krakow,
also known as cake city! There is an amazing choice of cafés and cake shops in Krakow - I’m at one now,
tucking into some absolutely delicious apple cake! Mmmmmm. This really is just melt in the mouth
stuff…
I’ve just put my umbrella back in the hotel. I was feeling a little bit silly carrying it around on such a
sunny day and I don’t think I’ll be needing it any more…haven’t seen anyone throwing water for a while
now. Well, I’m now strolling along the cobbled streets of Ulica Kanonicza: a gorgeous lane of fourteenth
century townhouses. You can feel the history oozing out of this place - over there was, for a long time, a
popular meeting place for many of the most famous Polish writers and… Aagh!
Where was my umbrella when I needed it?