500 places to see before they die

Level 1
1

Elementary

Warmer

Where in the world can you find these places? Match each place with a location on the map. Then
skim-read the article to check your answers.
a) Battersea power station
b) The Nazca lines

East Yorkshire, UK

c) The Everglades
d) Little Italy
e) The Holderness coast

South Florida, USA

New York, USA

London, UK

Peru

Key words

1. To vanish, to go and never return. (para 1)

landmark

2. Opposite of common. Unusual. (para 1)

rare

3. Damage and destruction affecting a large area or a lot of people. (para 2)

disappear

4. A famous building or object that you recognize easily. (para 3)

at risk

5. Another way of saying in danger. (para 3)

diverted

6. A poisonous silver liquid metal (used in thermometers). (para 4)

marine life

7. When the course or way has been changed. (para 5)

mercury

8. Things that live in the sea. (para 5)

Regency

9. Very old. (para 5)

gloom

10. Relating to buildings. (para 6)

ancient

11. A period in history the time from 1811 to 1820 before George IV became King of
England. (para 7)

architectural

12. Bad depressing news, the feeling of having no hope. (para 8)

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NEWS LESSONS / 500 places to see before they die / Elementary

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Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2008

devastation

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Match these key words with the definitions.

500 places to see before they die

Level 1

Elementary

500 places to see before they die

are being built. Many trees are cut down to build

the roads and this leads to floods and mudslides.
New Yorks Little Italy, which was made famous
by films such as The Godfather and Mean
Streets, is also in danger as the districts around
it grow.

A new guidebook for travellers shows the sites

most at risk
Amelia Hill, social affairs correspondent
October 26, 2008
1 The first guidebook of last chance holidays will
be published tomorrow for travellers who want
to visit the most endangered tourist destinations
across the world. Frommers 500 Places To
See Before They Disappear lists places where
it is still possible to see rare animals, special
landscapes and cultural sights.
2 Holly Hughes, one of the authors and a former
executive editor of Fodors Travel Publications,
said: We all know about devastation brought on
by climate change and humans. But this book is
a list of last-chance destinations that travellers
can visit if they go soon for possibly the
last time.
3 According to Hughes and co-author Larry West,
a journalist, more than 20 of Britains best-loved
landmarks have a place in their book. The Tower
of London and Greenwich Maritime Museum, for
example, are at risk from rising sea levels which
could cause the River Thames to flood.
4 Hughes suggests that tourists go to the
Everglades in southern Florida. This ecosystem
which is filled with rare animals, birds, fish and
plants is disappearing very quickly. Already half
has been lost to farms and towns. Low water
levels and pollution have put the rest of the
Everglades at risk. The number of birds has
fallen by 93 per cent and many of the fish and
even the alligators who still live there have high
mercury levels in their blood, said Hughes.

Tourists should also visit some of Britains

ancient architectural treasures which, she says,
are in danger of falling down because there is
no money to save them. Strawberry Hill, Sir
Horace Walpoles building in west London needs
8m. One of the oldest churches in England, St
Marys, in Stow in Lindsey, Lincolnshire, needs
3m. Another London landmark, Battersea power
station, becomes more run-down every day as
government, property developers and the local
people argue about its future.

Hughes also suggests a trip to Kentish Town,

north London, to visit Little Green Street, one of
the last complete Regency streets in London.
Further north, the Holderness coast, in East
Yorkshire, loses nearly 6ft (1.8 metres) a year
due to rising sea levels caused by climate
change and man, she said.

West points out that the guidebooks message

is not all gloom. Some of the destinations can
be saved, he said. We have to learn from our
mistakes because the planet is poorer every time
we allow something beautiful to die.
Guardian News & Media 2008
First published in The Observer, 26/10/08

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NEWS LESSONS / 500 places to see before they die / Elementary

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Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2008

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5 The Dead Sea may only be a tourist destination

for another thirty years. By then, says Hughes,
it could be completely dry, because the rivers
that run into it are being diverted. Marine life
around the Falkland Islands is in great danger
from pollution. The Nazca lines in Peru, one
of the worlds most interesting and mysterious
ancient sites, may disappear as too many roads

500 places to see before they die

Level 1

Elementary

3 Comprehension check
Match the sentence halves to find information from the article.
1. The two authors of the book are ...

... in Little Italy, New York.

2. The book lists the 500 most ...

... to visit the places mentioned in the book.

3. Part of the film The Godfather was filmed ...

... in Florida have too much mercury in their blood.

4. Fish and alligators in the Everglades ...

... within 30 years.

5. Little Green Street is a beautiful Regency street ...

... a journalist and an editor.

6. The Nazca lines in Peru are in danger because ...

... is near the River Thames in London.

7. The Greenwich Maritime Museum ...

... too many new roads have been built.

8. The Dead Sea could be dry ...

... in north London.

9. There is still hope for many of the places listed ...

... endangered tourist destinations.

10. If you are quick you will still be able ...

... in the book.

4 Vocabulary: Prepositions
Put the prepositions into the phrases from the article.

3. ... the Everglades ________ southern Florida

4. ... has fallen ________ 93 per cent
5. ... the rivers that run ________ it are being diverted

of (x3)

6. ... is also ________ danger

in (x2)

8. ... in danger ________ falling down

by (x2)

7. ... visit some ________ Britains ancient architectural treasures

9. ... rising sea levels caused ________ climate change
10. We have to learn ________ our mistakes ...

Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2008

NEWS LESSONS / 500 places to see before they die / Elementary

across

2. ... tourist destinations ________ the world

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into

1. ... one ________ the authors

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from

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500 places to see before they die

Level 1

Elementary

5 Discussion
How many tourist destinations can you find in the article? Underline them. Have you been to any of the
places in the article? Which one would you most like to visit?

6 Webquest
a) Choose one of the destinations in the article and find it on Google Earth (weblink:
http://earth.google.com/).
b) Does the destination have an official website?
c) What can you see or do there?
d) How could you travel there?
e) Where can you stay while youre there?
f) How much would a trip to visit this destination cost?

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NEWS LESSONS / 500 places to see before they die / Elementary

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Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2008

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g) What is the weather like there at the moment?

500 places to see before they die

Elementary

KEY

1 Warmer

4 Vocabulary: Prepositions

a)
b)
c)
d)
e)

1. of
2. across
3. in
4. by
5. into
6. in
7. of
8. of
9. by
10. from

London, UK
Peru
South Florida, USA
New York, USA
East Yorkshire, UK

2 Key words
1. disappear
2. rare
3. devastation
4. landmark
5. at risk
6. mercury
7. diverted
8. marine life
9. ancient
10. architectural
11. Regency
12. gloom

5 Discussion

2. The book lists the 500 most endangered tourist

destinations.
3. Part of the film The Godfather was filmed in Little
Italy, New York.
4. Fish and alligators in the Everglades in Florida have
too much mercury in their blood.
5. Little Green Street is a beautiful Regency street in
north London.
6. The Nazca lines in Peru are in danger because too
many new roads have been built.
7. The Greenwich Maritime Museum is near the River
Thames in London.
8. The Dead Sea could be dry within 30 years.
9. There is still hope for many of the places listed in
the book.
10. If you are quick you will still be able to visit the
places mentioned in the book.

Macmillan Publishers Ltd 2008

NEWS LESSONS / 500 places to see before they die / Elementary

Teachers notes
Here you can see photos of some of the places and
wildlife (in Britain) mentioned in the book:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/travel/gallery/2008/oct/26/endangered-britain-ireland?picture=338973178
You could show the pictures as a warmer or anytime
during the lesson.
This links directly to the book:
http://www.frommers.com/bookstore/047018986X.html
The new book title is an homage to / is inspired by the
bestseller 1000 Places To See Before You Die:
http://www.1000beforeyoudie.com/
The webquest can be done during class time if you
have the technology available. If not, it can be set as
homework and the students can present their findings
in the next lesson.

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1. The two authors of the book are a journalist and

an editor.

The Tower of London

The Greenwich Maritime Museum
The Everglades in Florida
The Dead Sea
The Falkland Isalnds
The Nazca Lines in Peru
Little Italy in New York
Strawberry Hill in London
St Marys Church in Stow in Lindsey
Battersea power station, London
Little Green Street, London
The Holderness coast, East Yorkshire

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3 Comprehension check

CA

Level 1