Describe an interesting journey that you have made in detail.

a. Where did you go? When? Why? Who with?

b. Describe each step of the journey in detail.

c. What did you see? What interesting experiences did you have?

Travel Dictionary Quiz.

1. Who are the travelling public?

2. Do we say in your travels or on your travels?

3. What do you take if you travel light?

4. WhatРІР‚в„ўs a travelogue?

5. What does a travel agent do?

6. What do you mean if you say your car can really travel?

7. What do you mean if you say that a wine travels well?

8. What are you if you are well-travelled?

9. WhatРІР‚в„ўs the difference between traveling and travelling?

PART TWO

READING COMPREHENSION

Text 1. Camping

Camping is recreational activity in which participants take up temporary residence in the outdoors, usually using tents or specially designed or adapted vehicles for shelter. Camping was at one time only a rough, back-to-nature pastime for hardy open-air lovers, but it later became the standard holiday for vast numbers of ordinary families. Most camping is done in forest areas, on mountains, or near oceans, lakes, or streams.

Purposes

The purposes of camping are varied, although most people go camping to get away from everyday routeines and to place themselves in a healthy outdoor environment. From a campsite, campers can hike, fish, and hunt, find secluded places to swim, or study and photograph flora and fauna. At the campsite itself, campers enjoy such activities as pitching a tent, gathering wood and starting a campfire, cooking, and sleeping in fresh air.

History

The founder of modern recreational camping was Thomas Hiram Holding, who wrote the first Campers Handbook (1908). His urge to camp derived from his experiences as a boy when he crossed the prairies of the United States in 1853 in a wagon train covering 1,200 miles with a company of 300. In 1877 with a canoe, the earliest vehicle of the recreational camper, he camped on a cruise in the Highlands of Scotland, and made a similar cruise the next year. He wrote two books on the cruises. Later he used a bicycle as his camping vehicle and wrote Cycle and Camp (1898). Holding founded the first camping club in the world, the Association of Cycle Campers, in 1901.

Camping Areas

Selection of a camping area depends on the camperРІР‚в„ўs purposes. Some campers, wanting to be on their own in isolated areas, pack gear and food in a backpack or rucksack and either hike or canoe into forest or mountain areas. Others, preferring to live in a campsite with people nearby, drive to a public or privately owned site and set up a tent there. Camping with a recreational vehicle (RV) has also become popular. Such mobile homes range from large vans equipped with beds, showers, and kitchens to two-wheeled trailers towed by a car. These trailers, constructed of heavy-duty plastic or fiberglass tops and canvas sides, can be converted into tents by lifting the top, which is then held in place by poles. The bottom of the trailer forms the tent floor. Elderly campers or families with young children frequently choose mobile-home camping; younger people or families with older children often prefer paddling or hiking to secluded areas.

Finding a place to suit the camperРІР‚в„ўs needs is not difficult today. Guide books and magazines, tourist offices, and even road maps pinpoint many places of interest where camping is allowed and encouraged. People who want to get farther away from civilization may consult a topographical map of a specific area, which will show hiking trails, primitive shelters, elevations, watercourses, and wooded areas.

Camping Gear

Equipment for camping has progressed greatly since the 1950s campers hiked into the woods with canvas tents, wool-filled sleeping bags, and woven pack baskets. Today, experienced backpackers may carry such items as lightweight aluminium-frame packs, 1-kg nylon tents, down-filled sleeping bags, and tiny camp stoves. Proper clothing, lightweight but warm and worn in layers, is essential, regardless of where the person camps. In cold weather, a camper may wear a pair of hiking boots, woolen socks, underwear consisting of a thermal undershirt and long johns, woolen trousers (wool, even when wet, keeps the body warm), a cotton shirt, and a down-filled vest or jacket, as well as an anorak or parka, to protect against inclement weather. The camper may always discard layers of such clothing if too warm.

A wide range of equipment for shelter and sleep is available for modern camping. Tents made of nylon are generally preferred, as they will protect the camper from the most adverse conditions. Tent size and design depend on the number of people in the camping group and on the type of climate and terrain in the camping area. Sleeping bags must also be selected carefully. Bags filled with goose down or duck down will keep a person warm in cold temperatures, but bags made of synthetic materials are more resistant to wetness.

Gear for cooking varies according to the site the camper chooses. A long hike to a remote area generally calls for a small, lightweight gas stove, but a stay in a developed campsite, where portability is not as important, enables the camper to use a larger two-burner stove. Many campers also cook over fires, although gas- or propane-fuelled stoves are more reliable in poor weather. Most campers require aluminium pots and pans, a spatula, and plastic utensils, plates, and cups for preparing and eating meals.

Other related equipment includes a water bottle or canteen, a sharp knife, a grill, and a cooler. People staying in a developed campsite or in an RV, where it is convenient to have a cooler for the storage of perishable foods, may have a variety of foodstuffs on hand. Essential camping equipment also includes an axe, camp lantern, torch, map and compass, first-aid kit, rope, and matches.

Safety and Conservation

Wherever a camper stays, safety and conservation should be foremost concerns. The rule at any campsite, whether primitive (without any modern conveniences or facilities) or modern (with facilities such as bathrooms, electrical hook-ups for RVs, and perhaps a small grocery shop), is to leave the area clean and undefiled. Thoughtful campers respect the privacy of others and keep noise to a minimum. All fires should be extinguished before the camper leaves for the day; all sharp implements should be stored in a safe place, and food should be kept in a vehicle to prevent attracting wild animals.

Exercises and Tasks

Vocabulary

Р’В· Find English equivalents for the following words and phrases:

активный отдых; закаленный; уединенное место; точно указывать; укрытие; суровая погода; неблагоприятные условия; скоропортящиеся продукты; аптечка; портативность; сверхпрочный; фляга; ручей; местность; разжечь/потушить костер; нетронутый; снаряжение; термическое белье; современное оборудование/удобства; безопасность; охрана окружающей среды; средство передвижения.

Р’В· Paraphrase using vocabulary from the text:

a place for camping; to get away from everyday routine; mobile homes for camping; special routes for hikers; to take off unnecessary clothes; hard to get wet; equipment for camping; to require; a campsite with recreation facilities and conveniences; a campsite without any conveniences; clean and undamaged place; to make the fire; to put the fire off; to fix a tent; hiker.

Discussion

1) Who is considered to be the founder of modern recreational camping?

2) Where is most of modern camping done?

3) What are the purposes of camping?

4) In what way do oneРІР‚в„ўs purposes influence his/her choice of a campsite? Is it difficult to find a suitable place?

5) What is an RV? What makes it popular? Who prefers this way of camping?

6) How has camping gear progressed since 1900s?

7) Describe proper clothing for camping and hiking.

8) What equipment is used for shelter?

9) What cooking utensils are used at a campsite? How does the choice of gear depend on the route and type of the campsite?

10)What are the main principles of safety and nature conservation at any campsite?

11)Describe advantages and disadvantages of staying at a developed / primitive campsite.

12)What is your idea of a ‘True Hike’ and a ‘True Hiker’?

13)Listed below are the basic items the first-aid kit should contain. Match the items with their uses.

Are there any other items that you would include in your first-aid kit?

14) Make up a manual for inexperienced hikers going on a 10-day hike to some secluded area. Consider the following items: proper clothes, equipment for shelter and cooking gear, rules of behavior, principles of safety and nature conservation.

Text 2. Camp in comfort

Try out the kit that can make your tent a home from home

Eurohike 225TS tent

The Eurohike 225 TS is MilletsРІР‚в„ўs best-selling two-person tent and you wonРІР‚в„ўt get a better one for under £50. Easy to put up (even for complete novices), light to carry and surprisingly hardy too. On a two-week test in the desert, it withstood sandstorms, gusting winds, torrential rains and hamsters trying to chew through the ropes. The entrance incorporates a built-in mosquito net. £49.99 from Millets.

Blacks Micro 4000 sleeping bag

Boasting an impressive warmth/weight ratio (1.24 kilos, yet warm to -9C) this two/three seasons sleeping bag feels flimsy but is surprisingly snug. Roomy, so you wonРІР‚в„ўt feel like an Egyptian mummy once youРІР‚в„ўre zipped in, yet the compression sack allows you to squish it into the smallest of spaces when not in use. £89.99 from Blacks

Hi-heat portable gas cooker

This is about as compact and bijou as camping cookers get. It comes in a heavy-duty moulded case, has an automatic flame ignition and a burner control from simmer to 2 kW, in case you happen to be performing a complicated sauce reduction al fresco. The necessary butane gas cartridges are not included, so remember to pack some. £30 including delivery.

Rosker Lexan wine glass

Just because youРІР‚в„ўre camping, thereРІР‚в„ўs no excuse to start swigging wine from a mug. The glass is tough enough for outdoor living, but adds a touch of elegance to the proceedings.

Roxer Lexan cutlery set

For people who donРІР‚в„ўt like their camping cutlery made of sheet metal and tied together with a ring at the top, this set is made of a durable plastic thatРІР‚в„ўs apparently tougher than steel, one third of the weight and doesnРІР‚в„ўt look bad at all. £2.95 from Snow+Rock.

Leatherman Flair

Leatherman has long been the favourite all-purpose tool of campers and its Flair gadget improves on previous models with the addition of a corkscrew. As well as this feature for hedonists, thereРІР‚в„ўs a spreader knife and a fork, scissors, four screwdrivers, a partially serrated knife and all manner of other bits and pieces that will come into their own when you find yourself in the wild. £69.95.

Tefal camping cook set

This set has everything but the kitchen sink. It includes 18cm and 22cm frying pans, 16cm and 20cm saucepans, a 22cm stewpot, a universal pan lid and a clip-on handle. ItРІР‚в„ўs all made of lightweight aluminium with a non-stick coating and comes in a protective travel bag.

Swinging fire basket

If you hanker after a real campfire, but performing the balancing act with twigs necessary for building one on the ground is beyond you, try this swinging fire basket. Meant for patios, it will lend a warm glow to your camping. £40, including delivery.

Tasks

1. Which of these kits do you think may be really useful on a hike? Why?

2. Which of the kits would / wouldnРІР‚в„ўt you include in your camping gear? Why?

3. Make up an advertisement of any camping gear you think to be useful and necessary on a hike. Use the descriptions above as a model.

Text 3. Tin-Can Tourists

“They drive tin cans and they eat outa tin cans and they leave a trail of tin cans behind ‘em. They’re tin-can tourists”. So joked Floridians in the early decades of this century when they spotted the new breed of middle-class travelers who came south each winter to find a temporary place in the sun.

The first generation of motorized campers were a far cry from today’s recreational vehicles. Some were just ordinary sedans, loaded down with tents, stoves, blankets, and as much house-keeping paraphernalia as could be strapped to the roof and running boards. Others were one-of-a-kind campers, home-built or customized on an automobile chassis. And campsites in those early years were equally casual – a sandy beach, a schoolyard, a clearing by the side of the road.

As for the “tin-can tourist” epithet, most motor campers wore it with pride. In 1920 a few stalwarts even organized a TCT club, complete with a chief executive (the Royal Can Opener), a secret password (nit nac), and two social get-togethers a year. Within 10 years some 100,000 motorized free spirits had joined. Honor-bound to help fellow TCT’s in trouble, they signified membership by driving with an empty soup can hanging from the radiator cap.

The rigors of travel in these homemade “RV’s” left many tourists wishing for greater comfort. The answer came in the late 1920’s when Detroit businessman Arthur Sherman introduced a humble sortof two-wheeled camp trailer that could be hitched to the family car. While a few elegantly appointed “land yachts” were already in use by the rich, Sherman’s compact six-by nine-foot box on wheels - complete with bunk beds and cooking facilities - could be mass-produced at a price that ordinary people could afford.

Known as the Sherman Covered Wagon, the prototype was introduced at the 1930 Detroit Auto Show, and its inventor came home with a fistful of orders. But scarcely had Sherman launched his new business when the bottom fell out of the American economy, taking any enthusiasm for house trailers with it. Suddenly, the notion of being “on the road”, of living at casual campsites, no longer seemed a happy adventure. Too many unemployed Americans were already doing just that out of painful necessity.