Japan vs.

Thailand
Todd and Natalie talk about living in Japan and Thailand.

Natalie: Hey, Todd. Let's talk about countries.

Todd: All right. Let's do it.

Natalie: You live in Japan right now.

Todd: Yes. That's right. I live in Japan. I teach English in Japan.

Natalie: Oh, cool. Tell me, what's expensive in Japan?

Todd: Well, Japan is a very, very expensive country. Transportation is very

expensive in Japan. Train tickets are expensive. Also, sometimes, taxis are
expensive. Even buses are expensive.

Natalie: Wait. You don't have a car in Japan?

Todd: Actually, I do have a car. That's funny because in Japan, cars are very
cheap. Cars are cheap but taxis are expensive. It's crazy.

Natalie: That's so weird. In the U.K., where I'm from, taxis are really cheap,
but to have your own car, it's so expensive.

Todd: Wow. That's strange.

Natalie: I'm really interested in Japan. Tell me, what's beautiful in Japan?

Todd: Oh, Japan has lots of beautiful things. The temples are very, very
beautiful. The nature and the scenery are beautiful as well. There are
beautiful forests, beautiful lakes, beautiful beaches, and even beautiful
buildings.

Natalie: Cool. What is difficult about living in Japan?

Todd: Well, Japanese is difficult. Reading Japanese is very difficult. Writing

Japanese is difficult because Kanji is difficult. Kanji is the Japanese character.

Natalie: How many characters are there in Kanji?

Todd: There are about 2,000 characters. It's difficult to learn all the
characters, all the Kanji. It's very hard.

Natalie: Wow. I bet that's really tough. Tell me, what's fun about living in
Japan?

Todd: Well, there's many things that are fun about Japan. The people are fun.
They're very nice. Teaching English in Japan is fun. The students are very
nice. Day-to-day life in Japan is fun and exciting. I live in Japan, but you live in
Thailand. What about Thailand? What is expensive in Thailand?
Natalie: Well, Thailand is a really cheap place to live, but some restaurants
are really expensive. For example, if you go to a American restaurant, that's
very expensive, but if you go to street food carts, they're really cheap.

Todd: Yeah. The street food is very delicious.

Natalie: It's amazing.

Todd: Speaking of food, what Thai foods are really delicious?

Natalie: My favorites are Pad Ka Prao. This is pork. It's spicy with rice and
chili. I also like Tom Yum Goong. This is like a soup, but it's very spicy. It
usually comes with shrimp and mushrooms, ginger. I usually get some rice.

Todd: Yeah. I love Tom Yum Goong. It's really, really good. What is difficult
about living in Thailand?

Natalie: I think that transport is a very difficult part of living in Thailand. If you
have a car, the roads are very busy. It takes a long time to get anywhere in
the city. I usually use the subway or the skytrain system, but these get really
busy in the morning. When I'm taking the train to work, there's usually so
many people on the train at the same time. Sometimes, it actually makes me
late for work.

Todd: Yeah. The trains in Japan are really busy too. What is fun about life in
Thailand?

Natalie: Good question. I really like the people here. Thai people are so
friendly. They're very fun. They always like to hang out.

Todd: Yeah. Thailand sounds like a nice place to live.

Natalie: Yeah. It's a great place to live, actually.

Adjectives and Adverbs of Intensity

Point 1: Use adjectives after a BE verb to describe things.

1. My dad is funny.
2. My sister is smart.
3. The movie was interesting.
4. The food is delicious.

Point 2: Use adjectives before nouns to describe things.

1. I have a big house.

2. He is a funny guy.
3. She is a good cook.
4. He is a lazy student.

Point 3:Use words like very, really, and so to add intensity.

1. The test is so hard.

2. She is very nice.
3. The lake is really beatiful.
4. The movie is really long!

Point 4: Use not before the adjective and after the BE verb for negative
statements.

1. He is not nice.
2. His house is not very big.
3. She is not free today.
4. They are not happy with their jobs.

Quiz
1) What is expensive in Japan?

a) cars
b) taxis
c) food

2) What is cheap in the UK?

a) food
b) taxis
c) food

3) What is difficult in Japan?

a) eating
b) meeting people
c) reading characters

4) She says the roads are _____ in Thailand.

a) busy
b) dangerous
c) fun

5) The trains in Japan and Thailand are _____ .

a) busy
b) cheap
c) on time