The Vacation from Hell

Jane and I were sad, and our boss said we should go on a vacation to a beautiful coast if
we didn’t mind the cost. Then we came across a picture on Facebook of an old friend sitting
on a boat he’d bought in the Philippines. We couldn’t get over how gorgeous it was. We
immediately phoned the travel agent, who we were quite fond of, and told him to set us up a
flight using our joint savings fund. Our plane was to take off the next week, and that is when
our plans started falling apart. Our plane got delayed due to bad weather and we ended up
sleeping in a tiny bed in a bad part of town in a crummy hotel. The next day, on the way back
to the airport, wouldn’t you guess, our taxi ran out of gas.

Thirty hours later we finally arrived at our hot hut on the beach and settled in. We took
a nap and woke up to some strange man in a robe who we thought was going to rob us, but he
just wanted to rub our backs. I don’t know how he got into our room. For dinner, the
restaurant only served ox head, which they cut off with an axe right in front of our eyes. It was
terrifying. We ran into our old friend while watching ducks by the docks after dinner. He got
drunk and started screaming at us but we couldn’t make out what he was saying. The next
morning our wallet and purse were stolen. We decided we’d had enough. We couldn’t put up
with any more trouble. We went home the next day and never looked back.
1. to come across (sth or sb) - l

2. to get over - i

3. to set (sb or sth) up -c

4. to take off - f

5. to fall apart - g

6. to end up - k

7. to run out of (sth) - h

8. to settle in - d

9. to cut (sth) off - a

10. to run into (sb) - b

11. to make out - e

12. to put up with (sth or sb) – j

A. to separate part of something from the rest by cutting it with a knife or something sharp

B. to meet sb by chance

C. to arrange and plan

D. to get comfortable in a new place

E. to understand

F. to begin to fly

G. to break into pieces; to go wrong

H. to have no more of something

I. to finally be in particular place or situation without intending to

J. to accept an unpleasant situation or person without complaining

K. to stop feeling unhappy about something (ALSO used informally to express that you are really surprised or
impressed by something)

L. to meet or find sb or sth by chance

 Phrasal Verb Questions

1. Is there anybody at work that you just have to put up with even though you secretly don’t
like them?

One cannot like everyone in their lives and when you are working in a crowded environment I
consider it pretty difficult so, yes I can say I manage to put up with a few people that normally I
won’t be friends with.

2. When you get to a new hotel, do you like to settle in first, or just throw your bags down and
go out and see the sights immediately?

It depends. If I am arriving early in the morning that means that I have traveled without
sleeping so I usually take a maximum one hour nap and after that begin my vacation
Otherwise I just change my clothes and go outside to enjoy.

3. Can you make out what the signs say when you’re in Chinatown?

If it’s not an image, I definitely can’t make out what the signs in Chinatown say. Though I wish I
could and maybe someday in this life I will start learning Chinese and then proudly say I can
make out what the Chinese signs say.

4. Has anyone ever cut you off when you are driving? Have you ever cut someone else off?
I am sure that this happened to everyone at least once in a lifetime. And sure, I am not going to lie I have cut someone
else off also a few times because the traffic in my hometown is very jammed and everyone is always in a hurry.