Text Interpretation.

Businessman's bar bill hits £105,000.

A businessman's night out with friends started quietly, with a £25 bottle of champagne.

Later on, they polished off 80 bottles of champagne between them. The bill for champagne came to a staggering £80,000. One bottle of vodka also cost £1,400. With other drinks as well, the final tally came to £105,805.

The celebration took place at the Marylebone, central London, a nightclub launched by Prince William and Prince Harry´s friend, Jacobi.

Fraser Donaldson, a spokesman for the club, said: “I have been in the nightclub business for 20 years, and this bill is an all-time record.”

The spending spree began when the businessman, who is believed to be based in Dubai, arrived on Saturday night with 18 friends. He started by ordering a £25 bottle of Pinot Grigio, but before long he told staff: “I want the drinks to be flowing all night long.”

Along with some cheaper drinks, the revellers consumed 36 bottles of Cristal, £30,000, six magnums of Dom Perignon, £4,200, 12 bottles of Dom Perignon Rose, £4,200, 15 bottles of Dom Perignon 1999, £3,600, three magnums of Dom Perignon 1995, £2,700, and four bottles of Cristal Rose, £2,400.

The revellers eventually left at 5 a.m. but not before a nightcap of vodka, 8 bottles of it.

​

Vocabulary.

To polish off = to drink or to eat quickly  

Staggering = estonteante / incredible

Pounds = £s

As well= too / also

Tally = total 

Launch = lançar/ to present a new product or service to the market

Spokesman = porta voz ( also, spokeswoman or spokesperson )

All-time record =a record

Spending spree = spending a lot of money

Before long = a short time afterwards

Staff = employees      

Along with =together with

Revelers = baladeros / people at the party     

Blow = to spend money unwisely...to spend too much  

Booze = alcohol, beer etc.

Boozy =  a little bit drunk

*  To happen = to happen by chance

    To take place = to plan what happens (events, parties, Olympic Games)

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Questions.

1,603: What was the final tally at the end of the night?

1,604: What time did they leave the club?

1,605: How many friends did the businessman invite?

1,610: Did they meet any beautiful or exotic women?

1,615: How much did they spend on Dom Perignon Rose?

1,620: Did they drink a lot of wine?

1,625: On what day did the spending spree take place?

1,630: What is the difference between 'happen' and 'take place'? Give an example of each.

1,635: What did they have for a nightcap?

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Discussion.

1,640: What was your most expensive night out?

1,645: How much did you spend on drinks for your wedding?

1,650: How much do you typically spend when you go out for a drink?

1,655: If you were stinking rich, would you blow this kind of money on booze?

1,660: Where’s your favourite bar or restaurant? Why is it your favourite?

1,665: Have you ever got drunk on the beach?

1,670: Have you ever been to a pub in England or a bar in the U.S.A?

1,675: Which are the best bars in your city? Why? Describe them.

1,680: Which are the best restaurants in your city? Why? Describe them.

Expressions and questions when drinking.

1,685: What’s yours? = o que você quer beber?

1,690: What’re you having? = o que você quer beber?

1,695: What’s your poison? = o que você quer beber?

1,700: Wanna refill? = quer mais uma?

1,705: My round. = eu vou pagar essa rodada.

1,710: My shout. = eu vou pagar essa rodada.

1,715: It’s your round. = sua vez de pagar uma rodada.

1,720: One last round? = saideira?

Interview Your Neighbour.

Read the questions to your partner, teacher or friend, one by one. Note down the answers.

1,725: On the whole, which of these two things would you say you usually prefer doing?

1. watching television

2. listening to the radio

1,730: If you had the choice, which would you prefer to do the next time you go on holiday?

1. go abroad

2. stay in your own country

1,735: Imagine that some friends are coming to dinner this evening, and that time and money are really no problem. Which would you prefer to do?

1. go to a restaurant

2. buy what you need and prepare a good meal at home

1,740: If you go to a party where there will be some people your own age whom you don’t know, which of these two things are you more likely to do?

1. dress casually (jeans, pullover, etc)

2. dress more formally (shirt and tie for men, more formal dresses for women) 

1,745: What would you probably prefer to do if you had the choice?

1. retire on a good pension before the age of 55

2. go on working for as long as possible

​

1,750: Which of these things is your favourite way of having a good time at the end of the week?

1. going to the cinema

2. dancing or going to a disco

3. staying at home and watching TV

4. seeing friends or having parties

5. none of the above.

1,755: Which of these goals do you regard as the most important for your future?

1. improving your education

2. getting a promotion

3. buying a car or motorbike

4. improving your relations with friends or family

5. none of these things

1,760: What’s more important for your family’s future?

1. Health

2. Education

3. Money

1,765: Which is more important to you?

1. Social Media

2. Books

3. Music

4. Sports

5. Something else?

1,770: Where would you like to live in the future?

1. In your own city.

2. In another city.

3. In another country.

​

​

GRAMMAR 

Adjectives:

​

Comparative exercises:

​

Which is correct?

​

a: The sky is more clear.

b: The sky is clearer.

​

c: My friend is more tall than me. 

d: My friend is taller than me.

​

e: Belo Horizonte is further from São Paulo than Campinas is. 

f: Belo Horizonte is more far from São Paulo than Campinas is. 

​

g: The bank is nearer to my house than the post office is.

h: The bank is more near to my house than the post office is.

​

i: São Paulo is more big than Rio de Janeiro.

j: São Paulo is bigger than Rio de Janeiro.

​

k: Fish and rice are more good for lunch than fried chicken and chips.

l:  Fish and rice are better for lunch than fried chicken and chips.

​

Make the comparative:

​

small / smaller

red

blue

short

fat

thin

cheap

good

slim

long

​

​

Long adjectives, three syllables or more:

​

Expansive / more expansive 

Incredible

Beautiful

Wonderful

Independent

Respectful

Intelligent

Original

Developed

Boisterous

Feminine 

​

​

e.g. the correct is "more expansive, more incredible, more beautiful, more wonderful, more independent, more respectful, etc." 

​

​

Text Interpretation.

“Totally Undisciplined.”

​

     He was one of the greatest scientists and thinkers in history. However, he was not considered very bright when he was a child. When he was nine, his father told his mother that he was very worried about him because he was ‘a bit dim’. His teachers complained that he had no sense of discipline and that he had a bad effect on the other pupils.

     When he was fifteen, he was thrown out of school, but a few years later he was allowed to study mathematics and physics at a special technical university in Zurich. However, even at university, he was hardly ‘a model student’. He rarely attended lectures and was often in trouble with the professors and lecturers because he constantly argued with them. One of them told him ‘You’re clever, extremely clever. But you have one real fault; you never let anyone tell you anything!’

     When he graduated from university, he couldn’t get a job, partly because none of his professors would recommend him for one. Finally, he found one in the Swiss Patent Office in Berne. One of his duties was writing descriptions of new inventions. This helped him to learn how to write clearly and simply. He later said that the only thing that made many problems in science seem difficult was the language they were described in.

     He became very famous for his Theory of Relativity, which concerns time and gravity and how things change when they travel at very high speeds.

     However, all his life he lived very simply and was totally uninterested in money, power, or fame. He could never understand why so many people admired him and wanted to meet him. He knew that most of them had never read anything he had written and that they didn’t understand his ideas. “Are they crazy or am I?” he asked.

​

Interpretation Questions.

1,775: Who is this man?

1,780: How old was he when he was expelled from school?

1,785: Why was he always in trouble with the teachers in Zurich?

1,790: Did he enjoy the fame he achieved?

1,795: What helped him to write clearly and simply?

1,800: Did he get job recommendations from his professors?

1,805: Did he graduate from university?

1,812: Did he prefer a simple life?

1,815: Did his father consider him bright?

1,817: What kind of university did he attend?

​

Text Interpretation.

“Too long.”

     At an international conference in Dublin in October 2019 on population trends, experts discussed new techniques of biological engineering that will soon increase average life expectancy to 150 years. However, they warned that this will add to the problems that have already been caused by the tendency to live longer.

     Only a few years ago, in Britain and other parts of the world, people were regarded as ‘old’ when they reached the age of sixty or seventy, and people rarely lived beyond eighty.

a: How old is 'old' these days?

b: How old is 'middle-aged' these days? 

​

    Nowadays, however, with more and more people living to 90 or more, it is becoming increasingly difficult to pay for the state pensions and care that they need.

​

c: Do you think that you will live until 90 years of age?

d: Do people live a long time in your family? 

     What is more, many older people are now demanding the right to go on working until they are seventy, or even older, rather than being forced to retire at sixty or sixty-five.

​

e: Do you think that it will be possible for you to retire in the future? 

     All this means that many younger people find their chances of promotion are blocked because older colleagues above them are holding on to their jobs. If older colleagues don't retire, how will younger employees get promoted? 

​

The average life expectancy of men and women in England and Wales:

Roman Era: 25-35         

The Middle Ages: 41-45        

End of the 19th Century: 45-56           

1920s: 64     

1940s: 71      

1960s: 74      

1980s: 79     

1990s: 85      

2050 forecast: 95

​

Do these numbers surprise you? 

​

​

GRAMMAR 

Adjectives.

Superlatives.

Which is correct?

o: São Paulo is the big city in Brazil.

p: São Paulo is the biggest city in Brazil.

q: Hawaii is the beautifulest North American island. 

r: Hawaii is the most beautiful North American island.

s: Mount Everest is the more high mountain.

t: Mount Everest is the highest mountain.

Make these adjectives into superlatives:

​

Good / the best

Tall

Short

Green

Red

Far

Near

Low

Grey

Blue

Cheap

New

Old

Long adjectives with three syllables or more:

Beautiful / The most beautiful

Wonderful

Incredible

Independent

Respectful

Amazing

Expensive

Original

Outstanding

Fascinating

Fantastic

​

Response to pressure. Are you....?

1,820: 

Flexible

Inflexible

1,821:

Approachable    

Unapproachable 

1,822: 

Energetic                   

Lethargic

1,823: 

A rock                       

Fall to pieces

1,824: 

Enjoy a challenge     

Fearful

1,825: 

Level-headed            

Moody

1,826:

Competitive              

Uncompetitive

1,827: 

Committed               

Uncommitted

1,828:

Friendly                     

Unfriendly

1,829: 

Assertive                   

Passive

1,830:

Confident                  

Insecure

1,831:

Patient                       

Impatient

1,832:

Disciplined                 

Undisciplined

1,833:

Optimistic                 

Pessimistic

1,834:

Open to change          

Closed to change

1,835:

Motivated                   

Unmotivated

1,836:

Problem-solver           

Slow to solve problems or not interested

1,837:

Individualistic                          

Good team-player

1,838: 

Don’t like risks                        

Risk-taker

1,839: 

Fit                                            

Unfit

1,840: 

Positive body language          

Negative body language

1,841:

Easy-going                             

Stressed at work

1,842: 

Open to suggestions and constructive criticism               

Defensive

1,843: 

Pro-active                               

Freeze under pressure

1,844: 

Good sense of humour           

Little sense of humour