Wonders of the World: Describing Amazing Places (3.27)

Fifty steps, by Katie's count, stand between the pavement and the view in this episode. The reward, as Tom puts it, is "A panoramic view of the entire city." — Barcelona below, the sea behind it, the Sagrada Família unfinished in the middle distance. Tom insists "Yeah but the views were worth it." Katie's verdict: "Yeah…if you say so." Around that small argument we build fifteen words for describing landscapes, cities and coastlines, with pronunciation practice on every one.

What you'll hear in this episode

We recorded the conversation outdoors, sitting, as Tom says, in "we're sitting in a park overlooking all of Barcelona". Katie starts by describing what she can actually see: the sea, the built up area in the middle, the boats, the dock just round to the right and out of sight. Tom imagines the same view at night, with the lights of the city everywhere, and points out that the cathedral is not finished — "it's still being built, and it will be for many more years I think".

Then the talk turns geographical. Tom describes Barcelona sitting in a bowl between the mountains and the sea, "a sort of natural amphitheatre", and asks "It's kind of in a valley Barcelona isn't it?"

The second half is a friendly disagreement about cities versus wilderness. Katie says she likes the feeling of isolation: "I like to feel like there are no other human beings near me". One of the hosts admits the opposite — after a bit he gets bored and wants people and activity around him. Cornwall comes up, with "The cliffs with all the flowers on" and "that feeling of…power and ruggedness" where the Atlantic hits the rock.

They also make the case for cosmopolitan cities: different spices, different foods, and being able to "hear more than one language being spoken". Tom mentions the Roman ruins and the ancient wall around the old town — "it's rich in history". And one of the speakers, talking about the town where she now lives, stops short of calling it stunning: "I don't know if I'd go that far".

Quick facts

Episode	3.27 — Wonders of the World
Pack	Vocabulary and Pronunciation 3
Level	3
Duration	15 minutes 16 seconds
Speakers	Katie and Tom
Recorded	In a park overlooking all of Barcelona
Workbook	Glossary of 15 words, two listening tasks, two pronunciation tasks, three practice exercises with answers

What you'll learn

Two skills at once. First, the vocabulary of place: the difference between describing scenery and describing a view, and which adjectives go with which noun. This matters more than it sounds. You can have panoramic scenery and a panoramic view, but not panoramic water — and Practice 1 in the workbook makes you choose.

Second, the sounds. We drill the contrasts that trip learners up in exactly these words:

the long /iː/ in scenery and steep against the short /I/ in cliffs and built up
stress on the second syllable of incredible and the third of cosmopolitan
the /ʃ/ hiding in ancient and the shore, against the /s/ in isolated
the –ed endings: /Id/ in deserted, /tId/ in isolated
the linking /t/ in built up, where the sound from built joins the next word

You'll also hear how native speakers actually hedge and soften descriptions in real time. Katie doesn't simply say a place is stunning — she asks whether you could even call it that, then decides not to go that far. Tom corrects himself mid-sentence, from "situation" to "Location". That self-repair is normal, fluent English, and getting used to it is part of learning to listen.

The words we focus on

scenery — things you can see when you are in a particular place, especially natural things like mountains and lakes
a valley — the lower area between two hills or mountains, there is often a river in it; used when Tom describes where Barcelona sits
cliffs — the vertical edge of the land where it meets the sea; the Cornwall part of the conversation
stunning — very beautiful, amazing, can be used for a person or a place
incredible — so amazing or surprising that it is difficult to believe
panoramic — a view that is very wide and allows you to see a long way in each direction
built up — with lots of buildings; how Katie describes the middle of the city
isolated — away from other things, on its own
deep / shallow — how far it is from the top to the bottom of the water
the shore — where water meets the land
a monument — a building or statue built to make us remember an event or person
steep / flat — a surface which goes up or down very quickly / one which does not
cosmopolitan — has a lot of different cultures, has foods and languages from different countries
ancient — very old, especially of buildings and civilisations
deserted — there are no people there

In the workbook

The workbook for this unit follows the audio step by step. You get the full transcript of both English conversations, so you can go back and read the lines you didn't catch, and a glossary with a phonemic transcription and a plain-English definition for all fifteen items.

Then three practice exercises. Practice 1 gives you a noun in bold — scenery, city, cliffs, water, view — and asks you to underline which adjectives are actually possible with it. Practice 2 is a gap-fill about India, Rio de Janeiro and the beaches of Thailand, with the first letter given: stunning scenery, ancient monuments, the climb up to Christ the Redeemer that's "quite steep", the shore that stretches for miles. Practice 3 is pure pronunciation: three underlined sounds, two the same and one different — spot the odd one out. Answers for all three are included at the back.

This workbook is part of the Zapp! English all-in-one pack, which covers every episode across the series for €39.

Get the complete courseAll workbooks and audio — €39

Common questions

Is the audio scripted?

The conversation between Katie and Tom is completely unscripted — hesitations, overlaps and a mild argument about a staircase included. The teaching sections that set up each task and give the answers are scripted, so the instructions stay clear.

What level is this episode?

Level 3, from the Vocabulary and Pronunciation 3 pack. It runs 15 minutes 16 seconds.

Can I use the audio without the workbook?

Yes. The audio is free and works on its own. The workbook adds the transcript, the glossary and the three practice exercises with answers.

Do I have to repeat out loud?

That's the point of the pronunciation tasks. You repeat after the beep, with the tricky detail named first — the stress on cosmopolitan, the linked /t/ in built up.

How do I get the workbook?

It comes with the all-in-one pack at €39, along with the workbooks for every other episode.

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