Describe a leisure activity near or on the sea You should say:
What it is
What you should prepare Why you have to prepare
And explain how you feel about it.
Sample answer:
I would like to talk about one of my favorite activities on the beach, swimming. You know, I live in Hai Phong, a coastal city with golden beaches and the nearest seashore is just fifteen minutes away from my house. So, in the summer, my friends and I often go there and swim in cool water to avoid the hot weather. Actually, swimming is a relatively easy sport. You know, I learned how to swim when I was 8 and it took me only a week to be familiar with some swimming strokes like the breaststroke, the backstroke and the butterfly stroke. Before entering the water, I often warm up and stretch my muscles and joints to avoid injuries, then put on my swimsuit and jump into the water.
I really enjoy swimming on the beach because of some reasons. Firstly, unlike other water sports like diving or windsurfing, which require costly equipment, swimming costs nothing. Secondly, swimming is extremely beneficial to our health. It provides an allover body workout, as nearly all of our muscles are used during swimming. So, it builds endurance, muscle strength and cardiovascular fitness. Lastly, going swimming is a good means of recreation as it allows me to unwind myself, alleviate stress and have great time with my friends. Summer is coming so I’ll definitely make a plan to visit some beaches. I intend to go to Nha Trang beach because it is considered as one of the most magnificent beaches in the world.
Follow-up questions:
- Why do so many people like going to places with water such as lakes, rivers or the ocean?
Option 1: Well, I guess the main reason is that water has a kind of calming effect on people. And when you consider all the stress that people are under these days, and then I think it’s easy to understand why people gravitate to places new water.
Option 2: If you ask me, I would have to say that the youths benefit more from going to the beaches or the seaside than the elderly. The first point worth mentioning is that young people are dynamic and adventurous, so they are pretty into taking part in a mixed diversity of outdoor activities. So obviously, they can take a full advantage of their trips. On the contrary, the older citizens are passive and wouldn’t love to move their bodies around. This means that they merely consider such travel trips as an occasion to idle their time away
Option 3: That’s very hard to say, because personally I think the seaside is a good place to go for both the young and old, but in terms of which age group it’s more suitable for, then I suppose I’d have to say the elderly, simply because they are more aware of the dangers of the ocean. So if children go to the beach, their parents need to keep a close eye on them. - As a place to spend some leisure time, do you think the seaside is more suitable for children or old people?
Option 1: That’s very hard to say, because personally I think the seaside is a good place to go for both the young and old, but in terms of which age group it’s more suitable for, then I suppose I’d have to say the elderly, simply because they are more aware of the dangers of the ocean. So if children go to beach, their parents need to keep a close eye on them. - What activities would you do if you were spending some leisure time at a beach?
Option 1: I think I would do a few things. For example, I would definitely go paddling in the sea, because I always enjoy doing that whenever I go to the beach, and it’s much less effort than swimming! So that’s one thing, and what else would I do? Um…well, I suppose another thing I would probably do is just lying on the beach, which I know is quite boring, but’s also really relaxing – you know, you can just close your eyes and listen to the sound of the waves crashing against the shore.
Option 2: There is a great deal of stuff we can take part in when going to such places. Firstly, we can take advantage of some voyages to do the sights, look at the blue sea and skies and enjoy life. Secondly, we can go for a swim or soak in the sunshine on the beach, feel the cool breezes in our faces. Finally, at some riverbanks or lakes, we can have a good time recharging our batteries, and enjoying our temporary escape from the hustle and bustle of city life Option 3: All kinds of things really, you know, some people like doing exciting things jet
skiing or scuba diving, while others prefer doing more relaxing things, such as just lying down on a desk chair with a book. So it really kind of varies! - Do you think the government should invest money in developing facilities tor water sports?
No, not really. Because I think there are a lot more important things that the government should focus on. I mean, after all, water sports are purely recreational, so if no money’s invested in them, then it’s not really going to have a significant effect on anyone. So I think the government could put their money to much better use by investing in things such as education and healthcare, which will make a much bigger difference to people’s lives. - Do you think children and old people do the same types of things when they go to a beach?
No, I don’t really think so. The range of activities and their interests vary a lot. For the young, they show a fancy for strenuous physical activities like surfing, swimming or sand castle building, so they tend to be really engrossed in what they are doing. By contrast, old people would rather pick up a good book to read, prepare some snacks for their kids to graze or find time to have a chat with one of their relatives, whom they may not have been in touch for ages. - Why do some people like water sports?
Obviously, some like the youths are extremely into aquatic sports. This can easily be understood because they are dynamic and adventurous so they are pretty drawn by water polo, surfing, snorkeling to name but a few. Some sports like those tend to be risky so it can be a time for the young guys to challenge themselves and test their own limit, which can give them more confidence in life. - Do you think the government should invest money in developing facilities tor water sports?
Not necessarily I reckon. This is because governments should rather provide more essential services for its citizens like improving healthcare or education. The task of upgrading and expanding water sports facilities should rest with the clubs that do business in these areas Besides, not many people are into water sports these days since they even can’t find time to go to somewhere with water during the whole year - Do you think that human activity is posing a threat to the oceans of the world? Yes, definitely. Although some argue that the ocean is vast and the pollution we cause is trivial, I would say that it does have negative effect on the marine ecosystem. For example,
more trading activities mean more vessels being used to transport the goods across the oceans, and there have been many oil spills reported till now. This has claimed many lives of animal creatures and affected the local environment as well. Furthermore, sewage being directly dumped into the rivers means sometime in the future the ocean will probably suffer - How important is water in people’s everyday lives?
Well, water plays a crucial role in our routine lives. Imagine that if there were no water, human beings would be dirty and smelly as there would be nothing to wash our bodies cleanly except for water. The second one is that we need water to wash the raw foods and vegetables we eat on a daily basis; otherwise, humans could suffer from some health related issues like food poisoning, cholera and diarrhea, to name but a few. - What do you think are the advantages and disadvantages of traveling on the ocean? Going in a boat is an adventure. The food on cruise ships is probably as good as it can be on a budget for economy class and when fresh ingredients are out of reach, and when thousands of meals have to be cooked and served nearly at once. It’s also relaxing and you get a chance to meet many other people. However, a voyage can be really costly and with soaring competition among travel agencies, it has become difficult for tourists select the right one. Moreover, as we all know the pristine environment of these regions is now vulnerable to pollution, so this exposure is undoubtedly affecting terrestrial and aquatic life adversely.