• a day of colour, boats and Thai traditions

Listen, as often as is necessary,
then do exercises below –
use paper and pencil,
write down your answers

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Exercise 1 – multiple choice – before you play the text, read through these five questions to know what to listen for:

1. Where did the festival take place?

• A) Bangkok, northern Thailand
• B) Surat Thani, southern Thailand
• C) An island in Thailand

2. When did the Chak Phra Festival happen?

• A) October 14–22, 2024
• B) September 14–22, 2024
• C) October 1–10, 2024

3. What did the festival celebrate?

• A) The beginning of the new year
• B) The return of Buddha from heaven
• C) A traditional fishing season

4. Where did some of the Buddha floats travel?

• A) Through the mountains
• B) Along the Tapi River on large boats
• C) Around the local market streets on bicycles

5. What sport or race happened on the river?

• A) Swimming races
• B) Longboat races
• C) Sailing races

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NOW LISTEN =>

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Exercise 2 – multiple choice

1. Which country did the writer visit?

• A) Vietnam
• B) Thailand
• C) Cambodia

2. Where was music played during the event?

• A) In the streets
• B) Inside the hotels
• C) On the airplanes

3. What kind of clothes were some people wearing?

• A) Modern sports clothes
• B) School uniforms
• C) Traditional clothes

4. What size were the boats carrying the floats on the river?

• A) Small
• B) Large
• C) Narrow

5. How fast did the longboats move during the races?

• A) Very fast
• B) Very slow
• C) At normal speed

6. Why did many families come to the town?

• A) To shop at the local markets
• B) To visit relatives in the mountains
• C) To enjoy the festival

7. How did some floats move, besides traveling on boats?

• A) Through the streets
• B) On train tracks
• C) Over the bridges

8. What were the streets full of during the festival?

• A) Cars and motorbikes
• B) Market stalls
• C) People

9. How did everyone in the streets seem to feel?

• A) Happy
• B) Quiet
• C) Tired

10. What did the crowd do for their favorite boats?

• A) Clapped quietly
• B) Took video calls
• C) Shouted and cheered

11. Why did the boats look wonderful to the writer?

• A) They were illuminated with bright candles
• B) They had different colors and decorations
• C) They were moving very slow

12. Who especially enjoyed watching the celebrations?

• A) Children
• B) Fishermen
• C) Tour guides

13. What did praying at temples show toward Buddha?

• A) Great sadness
• B) Great fear
• C) Great respect

14. Where did people stand to watch the longboat races?

• A) On top of the roofs
• B) Inside the temples
• C) Near the water

15. What did the writer learn about the festival’s connection to local people?

• A) It was a brand new holiday
• B) It was very important to their religion and way of life
• C) It was only organized for international tourists

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Exercise 3 – true or false

1. The writer visited Surat Thani in October 2024.
2. Surat Thani is a town in northern Thailand.
3. The festival started on 14 October and ended on 22 October.
4. The writer felt sad during the festival.
5. The festival celebrated Buddha coming back from heaven.
6. Local families stayed at home during the event.
7. The streets of the town were completely empty.
8. People decorated Buddha floats using flowers and gold colours.
9. Some floats traveled along the Tapi River on large boats.
10. The writer took very few photos because the boats looked plain.
11. Every single boat had the exact same colours and decorations.
12. There was music playing in the streets.
13. Some people in the town wore traditional clothes.
14. Children hated watching the celebrations.
15. Longboat races took place on the river.
16. The racing boats moved very slowly on the water.
17. Spectators stood near the water and cheered for their favourite boats.
18. People prayed at the temples to show great respect for Buddha.
19. The writer learned that the festival had nothing to do with religion.
20. The writer was glad that they visited this special festival.

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Exercise 4 – gap fill, arranged in the precise order they appear in the text

1. In October 2024, I visited the Chak Phra Festival in Surat Thani, a town in __________ Thailand.
2. The festival took place from 14 to 22 __________.
3. I was happy to see this special event and learn more about Thai __________.
4. The festival celebrated the return of Buddha from __________.
5. Many families came to the town to __________ the festival.
6. The streets were full of people, and everyone seemed __________.
7. One of the best things was the beautiful Buddha __________.
8. People decorated them with flowers, gold colours and other __________.
9. Others travelled along the Tapi River on large __________.
10. I took many photos because the boats looked __________.
11. Each boat had different colours and __________.
12. Some people wore traditional clothes, and children enjoyed watching the __________.
13. The boats moved very fast, and many people stood near the water to __________.
14. They shouted and cheered for their favourite __________.
15. I learned that this festival was very important to their religion and their way of __________.

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Exercise 1:
answer key: 1-B, 2-A, 3-B, 4-B, 5-B

_____________________________

Exercise 2:
answer key: 1-B, 2-A, 3-C, 4-B, 5-A, 6-C, 7-A, 8-C,
9-A, 10-C, 11-B, 12-A, 13-C, 14-C, 15-B

_____________________________

Exercise 3:
answer key: 1-T, 2-F, 3-T, 4-F, 5-T, 6-F, 7-F, 8-T, 9-T, 10-F,
11-F, 12-T, 13-T, 14-F, 15-T, 16-F, 17-T, 18-T, 19-F, 20-T

_____________________________

Exercise 4:
answer key: 1-southern, 2-October, 3-culture, 4-heaven,
5-enjoy, 6-happy, 7-floats, 8-decorations, 9-boats,
10-wonderful, 11-decorations, 12-celebrations,
13-watch, 14-boats, 15-life

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In October 2024, I visited the Chak Phra Festival in Surat Thani, a town in southern Thailand. The festival took place from 14 to 22 October. I was happy to see this special event and learn more about Thai culture.

The festival celebrated the return of Buddha from heaven. It was an important time for local people. Many families came to the town to enjoy the festival. The streets were full of people, and everyone seemed happy.

One of the best things was the beautiful Buddha floats. People decorated them with flowers, gold colours and other decorations. Some floats moved through the streets. Others travelled along the Tapi River on large boats. I took many photos because the boats looked wonderful. Each boat had different colours and decorations.

There was also music in the streets. Some people wore traditional clothes, and children enjoyed watching the celebrations. Another big event was the longboat races on the river. The boats moved very fast, and many people stood near the water to watch. They shouted and cheered for their favourite boats.

I also saw people praying at the temples. They showed great respect for Buddha. I learned that this festival was very important to their religion and their way of life.

I really enjoyed my visit. I saw beautiful boats, met local people and learned more about Thailand. I liked the colours, the music and the happy faces. It was a wonderful day, and I was glad that I visited this special festival.

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Vocabulary

Word / Phrase	Definition
to take place	to happen
an event	something special that happens, often for many people
to celebrate	to do something special because of a happy day or event
heaven	the place where God lives
to enjoy	to like something and have a good time
a float	a large, decorated vehicle in a festival parade
to decorate	to make something look beautiful with colours, flowers or other things
a race	a competition to see who is the fastest
to cheer for a boat	to shout and clap to show that you want a boat to win
to show respect	to be kind and polite to someone because they are important
to be glad	to feel happy

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Remember how babies
learn a language:

Babies learn a language by listening.
They use their ears to hear sounds.
Their brain remembers these sounds.
Babies connect sounds with people and things.
They listen to their parents.
Then they copy the sounds they hear. They imitate words.
Slowly, babies learn to speak.

So,
LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN, LISTEN………………

SMFrockZ@gmx.at