Whale-watching trip

by Jack Madison, 15
A while ago, my friend Olivia was telling me about a whale-watching trip she’d been on, in
Canada. I wanted to tell her I was about to do the same thing, off the north coast of the UK,
where my grandparents live. Whales had recently appeared there again, and my grandparents
were convinced we’d see some – so I was sure my trip would be as good as Olivia’s! But then I
saw some review of the trip my dad had booked for us, when no-one had seen any whales at all.
So, in the end, I decided not to tell Olivia anything about my trip, in case it wasn’t successful!
Anyway, Dad and I set off on our trip – which was Dad’s idea – and it was fantastic! Travelling
out to sea on the tour boat with our guide, we soon reached the spot where whales often
appeared. Then we waited – and nothing happened. I was sure this wouldn’t last, though. People
kept calling out they’d seen one, which was exciting – but then it turned out they were wrong.
Then finally I saw something move under the water – a minke whale! So I felt like a hero for the
rest of the trip!
The whale was a wonderful sight, with its huge back not far from the boat. Our guide said it was
around five tonnes in weight and around 10 metres long. Yet, despite its size, it swam alongside
us at speed, and with little effort. We waited to see if more appeared, and some time later, we
saw three more some distance away, that kept diving under the water and coming up again. Then
just after I’d filmed them, they disappeared.
Although the water’s less deep around the coast, larger whale species appear in the area with
minke whales, feeding on fish. But minkes are curious creatures, so they’re more likely to
approach tourist boats – which was why we were successful! Then later, up on the cliffs, we
looked out to sea, searching for signs of whales. Sometimes seabirds diving into the water means
whales are around, as they’re stealing the whales’ meal. We were unlucky, sadly – but we’ll be
back!
1 Jack wasn’t keen to mention his whale-watching trip to Olivia because
A he thought her trip sounded a lot more exciting.
B he’d read some negative reports about where he was going.
C he wasn’t sure if his dad had definitely arranged it.
D he didn’t know whether she was very interested in whales.
2 On board the whale-watching boat, Jack
 A was proud to be the first person to see a whale.
B began to worry that they might all be disappointed.
C tried not to get excited when anyone saw something.
D was glad he’d persuaded his dad to come with him.
3 When Jack saw the minke whale, he was
A surprised at how close it came to the boat.
B amazed that it was so much bigger than he’d imagined.
C impressed that it moved through the water so easily.
D delighted to see it had arrived with several others.
4 Jack suggests minke whales appeared in the same area as the boat because
A they knew there were plenty of fish there.
B they were attracted by the arrival of the visitors.
C they didn’t have to compete for food with seabirds.
D they preferred how deep the water was there.
5 What would Jack text to his grandparents about the whales?
A I’ll send you my video of the group of whales – they only appeared briefly, so they
weren’t as interesting as the first one we saw.
B Dad said he’d really wanted to go to Canada to watch whales, like my friend Olivia – but
now we’re really happy we came here.
C I must take you up to the cliffs to look for whales – we’ve seen them every time we’ve
been there, so far.
D You were so sure our whale-watching trip would be a success, while I still had doubts –
but you were right.
 Painting in Spain
My husband, David, is an artist and has always been interested in painting pictures of the
Spanish countryside. We’ve both always loved Spanish culture and have spent many holidays in
Spain. Five years ago, we decided to give up our jobs in London, sell our house and move to a
small village in the south of Spain.
We thought it would take months to get organized, but in just three months, we’d sold our home,
found a house to rent, booked our ferry and said goodbye to our friends. We were so excited to
move!
At first, we thought we’d stay here for a year, but when we arrived on a beautiful September
evening, we were amazed to realize immediately that we wanted to stay longer. The owners of
our new house were waiting to show us around and cooked us a lovely meal. Gradually, over the
following weeks, we settled into a routine. I got a job teaching English and began to learn the
language while David painted.
David loved the scenery and he was inspired by the wonderful landscape around us. But mostly
he fell in love with the bright light of the sun in the south. As a painter, he’s always looking at
the contrast between colours and light. During the first six months, he spent hours outdoors
painting. His paintings were always about the same landscape but each one of them had
something special. The elements in his work were always changing and each new painting was
even more beautiful than the previous one.
The following May while we were visiting a small town, we saw an empty shop. David thought
it would make a lovely art gallery and we decided to rent it for a year. We filled the shop with
David’s paintings and after two days, sold our first picture. Over the next few months, a lot of
tourists bought paintings, but the tourists went home in November and our shop became very
quiet. But we advertised online and soon business improved. We started getting orders from
different places. Everyone loved David’s paintings. Today our gallery is a great success and we
both feel we’re living a perfect life.
1 Why does the writer say she moved to Spain?
A to find out more about Spanish culture
B because she and her husband loved the country
C because she had never been there before
D because she lost her job in London
2 What does the writer say about leaving London?
A It was difficult to sell their home.
B None of their friends wanted them to leave.
C They organized everything quickly.
D They rented their house to some of their friends.
3 What did the writer find surprising about her first day in Spain?
A She was offered a job teaching English.
B She and her husband decided to live in Spain for more than a year.
C The owners of the rented house were unfriendly.
D There was already somebody living in her new house.
4 When talking about the shop, the writer says that
A they sold nothing for several weeks.
B it was popular with tourists.
C they sold some paintings on the first day.
D it became very busy in November.
5 What might the writer say about living in Spain?
A I’m glad we came to live here, but I wish we hadn’t rented the gallery.
B The gallery has been a great success, but now we’d like to move back home.
C We’ve had very few problems. It’s definitely the best thing we’ve ever done.
D I wish we hadn’t moved here. I really miss my friends and family.