Actual English 14 - Driving Habits

Reference: http://home.ebse.co.kr/actualenglish/

 

Actual talk

https://my.pcloud.com/publink/show?code=XZBEEx7ZIruQqwmnOQ0X8a5Qcp52l88uLUuy

 

W: Hey Peter, I got a new car recently and I need to get it insured. Is car insurance expensive here in Korea?

M: I don’t know exactly, but my motorcycle insurance was only $100 for the year.

W: People here, they tend to get in more, smaller car accidents. Parking here is a nightmare. Parking spaces are so teeny-tiny.

M: Well, everything in Australia is very big and open, so the way Koreans drive, it’s amazing. They’re very good at parking in tiny little spots. And they always back in.

W: So, you own a motorcycle as well? Is that easier to get around Seoul? I bought a small car as well just for that reason.

M: What kind of driver are you?

W: I’m not very aggressive by nature, but once I get behind the wheel, I tend to become a little bit more aggressive.

M: Scary Joanne?

W: No, because people tend to cut in front of me and I get very annoyed. I turn my indicator on to go into the next lane, people tend to speed up.

M: Everybody’s trying to get a little bit ahead.

W: And no one indicates either, so I don't know whether they’re trying to come into my lane. I tend to be on the defensive every time I’m behind the wheel.

M: I can be a pretty aggressive driver. I like going fast.

W: But you can never go fast here in Seoul. Traffic is like chock-a-block. It's like a parking lot.

M: Well, I still enjoy driving once in a while.

W: Oh, that’s good. I don’t enjoy driving.

 

• back in: [ba-kin]                                          (to move backwards into a position or space)
• aggressive: [uh-gres-iv]    syn. combative; pushy           (assertive; pushy)
• indicator: [in-di-key-ter]    syn. signal; blinker              (directing device; pointer; signaling device)
• speed up: [spee-duhp]                                    (increase speed)
• chock-a-block: [chok-u-blok]   syn. crowded; jammed      (extremely full; chockfull; jam-packed)

be ~ by nature

• My brother is lazy by nature.

• My brother is naturally lazy.

• My brother was born lazy.

behind the wheel / at the wheel: drive a vehicle

• I was behind the wheel and Joe was giving me directions.

• If you’ve had a drink, don’t get behind the wheel.

turn on the indicator

• I always turn on the indicator when I change lanes.

 

Actual Story

https://my.pcloud.com/publink/show?code=XZPEEx7ZUb1W4z1GRkkh5YAkLvp91fV9fo0V

(Actual Interview Question: Talk about your driving habits.)

 

I am a very cautious driver. I’m a stickler about sticking to the rules of the road. I always put on my blinkers when I turn left or right, I always stop at the stop sign for about 3 seconds, and I make sure there is enough distance between me and the driver ahead of me. And because of those reasons, I can’t really drive in Korea, because everybody here is a pretty aggressive driver and I don’t really have enough guts to drive in the city. Back at home, however, I’m a superb country driver, I would say. I can drive a lot of the back roads and it snows a lot where I live and it rains a lot so I’m pretty adept at driving in those wintery or rainy and wet conditions as well. I usually tend to keep to the speed limit or maybe go about 9 miles per hour or a little bit over because that’s the maximum you can go before getting a speeding ticket. But other than that I’m pretty safe on the road. I think that if everybody stuck to the laws we wouldn’t get into so many accidents. So in Korea I don’t really drive, I take public transportation but overall I would say that my driving habits are pretty safe and smooth sailing.