CITIES OF THE WORLD

THE FOLLOWING EXTRACTS FROM GUIDE BOOKS DESCRIBE FIVE OF THE WORLD’S MOST
FAMOUS CITIES. READ THE DESCRIPTIONS AND DECIDE WHICH CITY IS BEING
DESCRIBED IN EACH TEXT.
1 There is little point in portraying it as something it is not. Its beauty is not as awe-inspiring as other
cities. It is not even particularly old, and much of what may have constituted its historical legacy has over the
centuries been all too quickly sacrificed to make way for the new. It is a largely modern city, a product of the
19th and 20th centuries, and the expanses of its outer dormitory suburbs and peripheral high-rise apartment
jungles are an oppressive introduction for anyone driving into the city for the first time.
It may lack the historical richness and sophistication of other European capitals, but it oozes a fife
and character that, given the opportunity to work its magic (it doesn’t take long), cannot leave you
indifferent. Leaving aside the great art museums, the splendour of the main square and the Royal Palace, and
the elegance of the city park, the essence of this city is in the life pulsing through its streets. In no other
European capital will you find the city centre so thronged so late into the night as here, especially if you go
out at weekends. Everyone seems to stay out late, as though some unwritten law forbade sleeping before
dawn. In this sense it is a city more to be lived than seen.

2 3
The city is like a history lesson come to life. As you This is a cosmopolitan mixture of the Third and First
walk among the long stone palaces or across the worlds, of chauffeurs and beggars, of the
Charles Bridge, with the Vlatava flowing below and establishment, the avowedly working class and the
pointed towers all around, you’ll feel as if history avant-garde. Unlike comparable European cities,
had stopped back in the 18th century. Goethe called much of it looks unplanned and grubby, but that is
it the prettiest gem in the stone crown of the world. part of its appeal. Visiting the city is like being let loose
A millennium earlier in 965 the Arab – Jewish on a giant-sized Monopoly board clogged with traffic.
merchant Ibrahim Ibn Jacob described it as a town Even though you probably won’t know where the hell
of “stone and lime”. For these reasons the city is on you are, at least the names will look reassuringly
the UNESCO World Heritage List. familiar. The city is so enormous, visitors will need to
Today it is a city of over a million inhabitants, the make maximum use of the underground train system:
seat of government and leading centre of much of unfortunately, this dislocates the city’s geography and
the country’s intellectual and cultural life. Unlike makes it hard to get your bearings.
other capitals in this region, which were major
battlefields during WW2, it escaped almost
unscathed and after the war, lack of modernisation
prevented haphazard modern development. Since 4
1989, however, the city centre has been swamped The sheer level of energy is the most striking aspect of this
by capitalism as street vendors, cafés and restaurants capital city. It’s true the larger picture can be somewhat
take over pavements, streets and parks as they did depressing – shoebox housing estates and office blocks
prior to 1948. traversed by overhead expressways crowded with traffic.
How you feel about the city’s current tourist glut But this is the country’s success story in action. The average
may depend on where you’re coming from. If you’re suburb hasn’t fallen prey to supermarket culture though:
arriving from Western Europe it may all seem quite streets are lined with tiny specialist shops and bustling
normal, but if you’ve been elsewhere in Eastern restaurants, most of which stay open late into the night.
Europe for a while, you’ll be in for a bit of a shock. Close to the soaring office blocks exist pockets of another
As you’re being jostled by the hawkers and hordes of time – an old wooden house, a kimono shop, a small inn, an
tourists, you may begin to feel that it has become a old lady in a traditional dress sweeping the pavement
tacky tourist trap, but try to overcome that feeling outside her home with a straw broom. More than anything
and enjoy this great European art centre for all it’s else, this is a place where the urgent rhythms of consumer
worth. culture collide with the quieter moments that linger from
older traditions. It’s living city and you’ll never run-out of
things to explore.
5
They don’t come any bigger than this – king of the hill, top of the heap. No other city is arrogant enough to dub itself
Capital of the World and no other city could carry it off. It is a densely packed mass of humanity – seven million
people in 309 square miles (800 square km.) – and all this living on top of another makes the inhabitants a special
kind of person. Although it’s hard to put a finger on what makes it buzz, it’s the city’s hyperactive rush that really
draws people here.
In a city that is so much a part of the global subconscious, it’s pretty hard to pick a few highlights, wherever
you go you’ll feel like you’ve been there before.
Bookshops, food, theatre, shopping, people: it doesn’t really matter what you do or where you go because the
city itself is an in-your – face, exhilarating experience.

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 1) MATCH DEFINITIONS A-H TO THE ADJECTIVES 1- 8 ON THE RIGHT. THEN DECIDE
WHICH OF THE ADJECTIVES YOU WOULD USE TO DESCRIBE THE NOUN PHRASES
IN THE BOX BELOW.
a. Rather dirty 1. awe-inspiring
b. Full of people who are very busy or lively (especially a place) 2. haphazard
c. Not organised, not arranged according to a plan 3. tacky
d. Very tall or high in the sky (especially buildings or trees) 4. grubby
e. So loud, big or noticeable that you just can’t ignore it 5. clogged
f. Cheap and badly made or vulgar 6. bustling
g. Giving a feeling of respect and amazement 7. soaring
h. Blocked so that nothing can pass through (especially a place) 8. in – your – face

Plastic souvenirs tree tops arteries beauty advertising campaigns

Children’s hands approach to work market seaside postcards scenery
Tower blocks waterways action movies old trainers coastal resorts
Collection of people

2) Look at the verbs below. Without looking back at the extracts, match each one with
an appropriate phrase from the list on the right.
a. To make a finger on (something)
b. To work prey to (something)
c. To get on top of one another
d. To fall its magic
e. To live your bearings
f. To put way for the new

3) FIND THE ADJECTIVES IN THE TEXT. WHAT ARE THEY DESCRIBING?

4) Complete these sentences using the phrases in 2. Make any changes to the phrases that
are necessary.
a. No matter how stressed you feel, once you let the beauty of the beach and the warmth of the sun
_________________________________ on you, you will begin to wind down and relax.
b. The old town is built on the edge of a cliff overlooking the gorge, using up every bit of spare space.
Some houses are even built into the cliff face and people
_____________________________________ in a warren of narrow cobbled streets.
c. The medieval clock tower offers a landmark which is visible wherever you are in the town, making it
very easy _____________________________________.
d. It is difficult __________________________________ exactly what makes this grey, industrial town
such a popular tourist destination.
e. It’s very easy ______________________________ the charm of the market stall holders and people
often end up spending much more than they’d expected to.
f. Far too often historic town centres are carved up and charming old buildings torn down
_______________________________________________.

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 1) THE CITIES ARE: 1) MADRID 2)PRAGUE 3) LONDON 4) TOKYO 5) NEW YORK
2) MATCH DEFINITIONS A-H TO THE ADJECTIVES 1- 8 ON THE RIGHT. THEN DECIDE
WHICH OF THE ADJECTIVES YOU WOULD USE TO DESCRIBE THE NOUN PHRASES
IN THE BOX BELOW.
a. Full of people who are very busy or lively (especially a place) 2. haphazard
b. Rather dirty 1. awe-inspiring
c. Not organised, not arranged according to a plan 3. tacky
d. Very tall or high in the sky (especially buildings or trees) 4. grubby
e. So loud, big or noticeable that you just can’t ignore it 5. clogged
f. Cheap and badly made or vulgar 6. bustling
g. Giving a feeling of respect and amazement 7. soaring
h. Blocked so that nothing can pass through (especially a place) 8. in – your – face

Plastic souvenirs tree tops arteries beauty advertising campaigns

Children’s hands approach to work market seaside postcards scenery Tower blocks
waterways action movies old trainers coastal resorts Collection of people
Possible answers: Grubby: children’s hand; old trainers. Bustling: market, costal resorts; Haphazard: approach to
work, collection of people. Soaring: tree tops, tower blocks. In your face: advertising campaigns, action movies.
Tacky: plastic souvenirs, seaside postcards. Awe-inspiring: beauty, scenery. Clogged: arteries, waterways.

3) FIND THE ADJECTIVES IN THE TEXT. WHAT ARE THEY DESCRIBING?

GRUBBY: The city (nº 3 refered to London) BUSTLING: Restaurants (nº 4 Tokyo)
HAPHAZARD: modern development (nº 2 Prague) SORING office blocks (nº 4 Tokyo)
IN YOUR FACE: experience of the city (nº 5 NY) TACKY: tourist trap (nº 2 Prague) AWE-INSPIRING: the
beauty of the city (nº 1) CLOGGED: traffic (nº 3 London).

4) Look at the verbs below. Without looking back at the extracts, match each one with
an appropriate phrase from the list on the right.
a. To make a finger on (something) (F)
b. To work prey to (something) (D)
c. To get on top of one another (E)
d. To fall its magic (B)
e. To live your bearings (C)
f. To put way for the new (A)

5) Complete these sentences using the phrases in 2. Make any changes to the phrases that
are necessary.
a. No matter how stressed you feel, once you let the beauty of the beach and the warmth of the sun _WORK
THEIR MAGIC_ on you, you will begin to wind down and relax.
b. The old town is built on the edge of a cliff overlooking the gorge, using up every bit of spare space. Some
houses are even built into the cliff face and people __LIVE ON TOP OF ONE ANOTHER__ in a warren of
narrow cobbled streets.
c. The medieval clock tower offers a landmark which is visible wherever you are in the town, making it very
easy _TO GET YOUR BEARINGS__.
d. It is difficult __TO PUT YOUR FINGER ON__ exactly what makes this grey, industrial town such a popular
tourist destination.
e. It’s very easy __TO FALL PREY TO___ the charm of the market stall holders and people often end up
spending much more than they’d expected to.
f. Far too often historic town centres are carved up and charming old buildings torn down __TO MAKE WAY
FOR THE NEW___.

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