English News Pod

#1: Flight to Nowhere

Caroline Episode 1

Episode 1 is finally here! Today's news in English will look at Qantas' flights from Australia to Antarctica during the Coronavirus pandemic. Look below for a full transcript:  

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Hello my beautiful students and welcome back to English News Pod, the best way for you to learn practical English through news - on the go. I’m your host and teacher, Caroline. 

Now, let’s take a look at today’s top news. You can find a full transcript of this podcast episode in the description. 

An Australian airline company, Qantas, is conducting flights from Australia to Antarctica. Qantas calls these “sightseeing flights,” because they begin and end in the same destination in Australia. Currently, Australians cannot leave Australia due to the Coronavirus pandemic. So, these 12 hour tours to nowhere are increasingly popular for travel bugs looking to safely explore somewhere new. 

Let’s take a look at some grammar:

  1. The word “sightseeing,” as a verb, means to see new sights or places. We use this with the verb “to go” … “to go sightseeing.” We can also use it as a noun. For example, we can say tourists are sightseers. 
  2. The term “travel bugs” is a popular phrase we use to describe people who love to travel and who travel often. For example, “these 12 hour tours to nowhere are increasingly popular for travel bugs looking to safely explore somewhere new.” 

That wraps us up for today. If you liked this podcast, please subscribe and follow for episodes 3 times a week, every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. 

Thanks for listening, and I will see you soon for more news stories in English!

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