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ü Disobey (verb): fail to obey – không vâng lời He was punished for disobeying orders.
ü Vulnerability (noun): the quality of being weak and easily hurt physically or emotionally – sự dễ bị tổn thương; độ nhạy cảm
He was intensely aware of his own vulnerability.
ü Aggressive (adj): ready or likely to attack or confront – hung hăng He gets aggressive when he's drunk.
ü Blindfolded (adj): to cover someone’s eyes with a blindfold – bị bịt mắt She is challenged to solve the Rubik’s Cube blindfolded.
ü Frightening (adj): making someone afraid or anxious; terrifying – đáng sợ It is frightening to think what might happen if she left him.
ü Comfort zone (noun): a situation in which you feel comfortable and in which your ability and determination are not being tested – vùng thoải mái; giới hạn bản thân.
Sometimes you have to step out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself.
ü Praise (noun): the expression of approval or admiration for someone or something – lời khen ngợi
They deserve praise for all their hard work.
16. Describe a tall building you like or dislike.
You should say:
Where it is.
What is the appearance of it.
Explain why you like or dislike it.
ANSWER
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I’m going to describe a high-rise building in my neighborhood. It’s called Hoabinh Green City, located in Minhkhai Street, Hanoi.
Unlike other modern blocks, which are usually huge glass towers, the building is painted yellow, although it’s named Green City. The structure of Hoabinh is not dissimilar to that of most buildings in Hanoi nowadays, with the bottom half used as a shopping center and the top half occupied by apartments.
One feature that makes the building unique is that its trade center offers Vietnamese products only, with a view to promoting domestic products to Hanoi people and also to supporting national manufacturers. At the entrance of the building, if you look to the right, you can easily find a store named V+ bread, which serves traditonal bread, a very famous street food of Vietnam, to people who just do not have enough time to go inside, so they line up waiting to pay.
• (Like) In spite of its prime location, however, Hoabinh Green City offers a reasonable price for its apartments, which are affordable for many middle-income families. From the building, we can look out to the Red River, as well as Vinhtuy Bridge, and enjoy the breathtaking scenery. So, if you are planning to find a place with a beautiful and peaceful view, or simply want to buy something traditional, Hoabinh Green City may be a good choice.
• (Dislike) What I don’t like about Hoabinh Green City, however, is that its design is neither eye-catching nor original. In fact, I personally find that it resembles Times City, a modern building nearby. Moreover, the paint color doesn’t match its modern structures, which makes the building somehow old-fashioned. And, the quality, as well as diversity of products on sale do not meet the expectations of most customers. So, I guess it’s the reason why the building doesn’t attract as much attention from the public as expected.
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VOCABULARY
ü high-rise: very tall and having a lot of floors
Example: These high-rise apartment blocks were built 20 years ago.
ü blocks: tall buildings that contain flats or offices
Example: The university science blocks are the tallest buildings on the campus.
ü huge glass towers: high-level buildings with the exterior made of glass
Example: The design of the Lotte Department Store is just a huge glass tower, but it definitely stands out and has become a famous landmark in the city.
ü dissimilar: not the same
Example: The English and Vietnamese languages are completely dissimilar to each other.
ü feature: A prominent or distinctive part, quality, or characteristic
Example: Large glass facades have been a familiar feature of modern buildings for a long time.
ü Domestic products: goods that are manufactured within a country, by manufacturers of that country.
Example: Famous by Boo is a clothing brand that offers domestic products.
ü serve: to provide food, entertainment or service
Example: Boo Cafe serves coffee and meals to many customers who call in when they go to the store to buy clothes.
ü prime: excellent, the best available
Example: The store has a prime position at the entrance of the shopping centre.
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ü Offer a reasonable price: sell with a price that is not too high, and affordable.
Example: If a business aims to achieve sustainable development, it should manage to offer its customers a reasonable price.
ü middle-income families: families in which the members have salaries which are not very high, but also not too low
Example: He sells cars at affordable prices, mainly to middle-income families.
ü breathtaking scenery: very beautiful and spectacular landscape
Example: The beaches in Thailand are famous for their breathtaking scenery.
ü eye-catching : tending to attract attention, good-looking
Example: The signing of this contract was the result of many meetings to build an eye-catching tower against the skyline of Riyadh.
ü resemble: look like another person or thing
Example: So many modern buildings resemble each other.
ü match : look good together
Example: When choosing clothes, it is common belief that we should not mix pink items with yellow ones, as these two colours do not match.
ü meet expectations: be as good as expected
Example: We had heard so many good things about the new restaurant, but the food didn’t meet our expectations at all.
ü attract attention: make people notice something
Example: The advertisement was designed to attract the attention of young people interested in fashion.
ü the public: the community/ the people as the whole
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Example: In a survey, members of the public were asked about their shopping habits.
QUESTIONS FOR PART 3
16.1. How do people in Vietnam feel about old buildings?
Vietnam’s culture is tradition oriented, which obviously means Vietnamese people have a respectful attitude toward architecture built to last for ages. This can be seen through not only many famous old structures that are still preserved today such as the Temple of Literature and Independence Palace, but also in interesting folktales about their construction.
16.2. Do old people and young people in Vietnam have the same attitudes towards old buildings?
In my opinion, there is certainly a difference between the perspective of elderly people and that of young people on old buildings due to the generation gap. Elders are more respectful of old architecture compared with youngsters. They enjoy the atmosphere created by old places where they recall the old times / their own history while the young generation finds it uninteresting.
16.3. Is it important to preserve old buildings?
Yes, I strongly support the idea of preserving old buildings. One reason for this is that the buildings represent both Vietnamese cultural and historical values, which could be viewed as precious artifacts worth retaining. The second reason is to create a sense of nostalgia which helps people meditate (away from their city lives).
16.4. What aspect of culture do old buildings reflect?
In terms of the cultural aspect of old buildings, they represent the religion and
lifestyle of the time. In Vietnam, the majority of the old buildings are associated with
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Buddhist architecture such as the pagoda, temple and shrine. Apart from religious design, old structures also reflect the lifestyle of Vietnamese people relating to the tradition of agricultural work. This can be commonly seen in the countryside where there are spacious old houses with private fields and gardens.
16.5. How do old buildings affect the appearance of a place? (Hint: Well designed and well maintained old buildings are visually attractive and add a touch of elegance to a location.)
There are two cases. If there are dilapidated buildings in the area, it will not only make for a gloomy sight but also is a waste of land. In contrast, well designed and well maintained old buildings are visually attractive and add a touch of elegance to a location, which results in it becoming a tourist attraction, for instance, The Imperial City in Hue.
16.6. What benefits can people get from old buildings?
There are several advantages brought by old buildings. Beside the peaceful
atmosphere they provide, old / traditional architecture plays an essential role as both cultural and historical artifacts for us to study about our ancestors. Therefore, when they attract a considerable number of visitors, local people can benefit from tourism.
16.7. Would you say buildings in the past were better than those of today, or those of today are better than those in the past?
In general, today’s construction techniques have developed hugely, which makes modern towers more solid than those built a long time ago. However, there are magnificently extraordinary ancient structures that not only get admiration from people today but also remain mysterious such as the Great Pyramid in Egypt.
16.8. Do you think it's worth the money to preserve old buildings?
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Although I appreciate the value of old buildings, I think that the government should allocate a sensible budget to preserve them in good condition. As the population is sharply increasing and the polar ice is melting, the problem of insufficient living land has become more serious than ever. Therefore, antiquated buildings which are less valuable should be demolished to facilitate urbanization.
16.9. How have buildings changed in the past few years?
During recent years, there has been a tendency to construct tower blocks and
skyscrapers as engineering techniques have considerably developed. Compared with finicky designs of old architecture, modern buildings are simpler and more uniform due to the construction materials changing from stone, wood and bamboo to concrete, steel and glass.
VOCABULARY
ü for ages (từ rất lâu) [collocation] for a very long time
example: We have so many things in common that it is like we have known each other for ages.
ü perspective (quan điểm) [noun] a particular way of considering something Example: You're approaching the problem from a completely different perspective.
ü artifact (hiện vật) [noun] an object made by a human being, typically an item of cultural or historical interest.
Example: The museum's collection includes artifacts dating back to prehistoric times.
ü meditate (tĩnh tâm, thiền định) [verb] to think calm thoughts in order to relax or as a religious activity
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Example: My aunt goes to the local pagoda to meditate for 20 minutes every day.
ü In terms of (về mặt) [collocation] used to describe which particular area of a subject you are discussing
Example: In terms of money, I was better off in my last job.
ü dilapidated (đổ nát) [adjective] old and in poor condition Example: The hotel we stayed in was really dilapidated
ü ancestor [noun] a person related to you who lived a long time ago
Example: Apparently his ancestors came over from France in the 11th century.
ü antiquated [adjective] old-fashioned or unsuitable for modern society
Example: It will take many years to modernize antiquated agricultural industries in Vietnam.
ü demolish [verb] to completely destroy a building, especially in order to use the land for other purposes.
Example: A number of houses in my neighborhood were demolished so that the supermarket could be built.
ü skyscraper [noun] a very tall modern building, usually in a city
Example: New York is one of the biggest cities in the world in which there are thousands of towers and skycrapers.
17. Describe a wild animal