IELTS Speaking Test - Sample 8

✔ (Rated ★★★)

Part 1 - Introduction

- Good morning. My name’s John. Could you tell me your full name, please?
- Good morning. My name is Thuan Tran but you can call me Tina.
- Can I see your identification, please?
- Sue, there you go.

Q. How did you reach the examination center?
A. After I left my home I hired a taxi and it dropped me in front of the exam venue. So it was easier for me to reach here.

Q. What are the most common types of transportation run on the roads of your town?
A. Well, private cars and public buses are the most two common types of vehicles in my town. Taxis and trams are also available. To reach a far destination within the city one can also take a metro rail.

Q. Which types of transportation do you often use to move?
A. I mostly use public buses to move from one place to another within the city. If I need to visit outside the city, I take the train and that’s the most convenient way of traveling for long distance traveling in our city. Sometimes I hire a taxi, which is bit expensive, to reach important places where I need to maintain strict time schedule like I did today.

Q. Do you think that new transportation system should be introduced in your city? Why?
A. I don’t think new transportation system would be required in my city right now. However, the existing transportation system like public bus and tram should be renovated. The number of such public transportations should also be increased for the convenience of the commuters.

---

Part 2 - Cue Card

- Thank you. Now, I’m going to give you a topic and I’d like you to talk about it for one to two minutes. Before you talk, you will have one minute to think about what you’re going to say. You can make some notes if you wish. Here's some paper, and a pencil to take notes. And here’s your topic. I’d like you to describe a historical place that you know about.

You should say:

• what the place is
  
• where it is located
  
• what is the historical significance of the place
  

Sample Answer:
In June 1802 Nguyễn Ánh took control of Vietnam and proclaimed himself Emperor Gia Long. His rule was recognized by China in 1804. Gia Long consulted with geomancers to decide which was the best place for a new palace and citadel to be built. After the geomancers had decided on a suitable site in Huế, building began in 1804. Thousands of workers were ordered to produce a wall and moat, 10 kilometers long. Initially, the walls were earthen, but later these earthen walls were replaced by stone walls, 2 meters thick.

The citadel was oriented to face the Huong River to the east. This was different from the Forbidden City in Beijing, which faces south. The Emperor's palace is on the east side of the citadel, nearest the river. The second set of walls and a second moat was constructed around the Emperor's palace. Many more palaces and gates and courtyards and gardens were subsequently added. The reigns of the last Vietnamese Emperors lasted until the mid-1900s. At the time, the Purple Forbidden City had many buildings and hundreds of rooms. It suffered from termite and cyclone damage but was still very impressive. Many bullet holes left over from the Vietnam War can be observed on the stone walls.

In the early morning hours of January 31, 1968, as part of the Tet Offensive a Division-sized force of North Vietnamese Army and Viet Cong soldiers launched a coordinated attack on Huế seizing most of the city. During the initial phases of the Battle of Hue, due to Huế's religious and cultural status, US troops were ordered not to bomb or shell the city, for fear of destroying the historic structures; but as casualties mounted in house-to-house fighting these restrictions were progressively lifted and the fighting caused substantial damage to the Imperial City. Out of 160 buildings only, 10 major sites remain because of the battle, such as the Thái Hòa and Cần Thanh temples, Thế Miếu, and Hiển Lâm Các. The city was made a UNESCO site in 1993. The buildings that still remain are being restored and preserved. The latest and so far the largest restoration project is planned to conclude in 2015

---

Part 3 - Detailed Discussion

Q. Which city in the world you would like to visit? Why?
A. Hollywood is famous for making films there. I like to watch movies and I spend a great amount of my free time watching new and also old films, especially the Hollywood films. While watching the films I like, I always want to know how the director managed to make such wonderful and awesome films, what technologies he or she used, and how the actors performed dangerous stunts. Hollywood seems to be the best place to satisfy my interests in making films. Many famous American actors and actresses have houses in Hollywood. Therefore if I visit this place I will probably have an opportunity to meet them take autographs and even have a talk with them asking them questions. Thus, visiting Los Angeles I will have numerous opportunities of meeting famous figures in the cinema industry.

Q. What will you suggest to a tourist who came to visit your country?
A. I would suggest any foreign tourist to visit The National Museum of Vietnamese History first. This would be an excellent opportunity for him/her to learn about our history and traditions. Sa Pa is a quiet mountain town and home to a great diversity of ethnic minority peoples. The total population of 36,000 consists mostly of minority groups. Most of the ethnic minority people work their land on sloping terraces since the vast majority of the land is mountainous. Their staple foods are rice and corn. Rice, by its very nature of being a labour-intensive crop, makes the daily fight for survival paramount. The unique climate in Sa Pa has a major influence on the ethnic minorities who live in the area. With sub-tropical summers, temperate winters and 160 days of mist annually, the influence on agricultural yields and health-related issues is significant.
I would also advise this person to stay in the imperial Citadel and & tomb Architecture - Hue is one of the main cultural, religious and educational centers of Vietnam. So far, Hue remains to be the only originally historical vestiges city in Vietnam. Many of Hue’s attractions are found along the banks of the romantically named Perfume River with 11km length. This valuable construction includes more than 100 architectural works, which are the reflection of the life of Emperors and mandarins under Nguyen’s reign.

Q. Why traveling is important?
A. Traveling is in fact, a unique experience and a great source of firsthand knowledge. Travelling helps us to broaden our horizon of knowledge and deepen our understanding of the world, people, and different cultures. Lessons learned from traveling different places are proven to be quite effective in practical life. Knowledge gained from books is often too much theoretical while traveling, on the other hand, gives us the excellent opportunity to learn about life, culture, history, and geography. There is a quite interesting saying that represents the true importance and significance of traveling: “The more you will read the more will you learn. And the more you will learn the more places you would want to travel.”

Q. Have you ever been to a foreign country?
A. Yes, I have been to several foreign countries including UK, India, Malaysia, Spain, and Nepal. Each country has its own traditions and infrastructures so they gave me a whole new experience as a visitor.

Q. How do you compare the country you have visited with your own?
A. Well, the countries I have visited are quite different than my home country in terms of people, their way of grooming, the language the use, the buildings, the history, the foods and many other aspects. While my countries have very few skyscrapers and high rising buildings, the UK and Spain had plenty of them. The foods and people’s interactions were different. Finally, I am accustomed to all the aspects and way of life in my home country while these two were quite new for me in other countries

Trang Chủ