ESL Podcast 230 – A New Year’s Cruise

#ESL Podcast 230 – A New Year’s Cruise

##GLOSSARY

**New Year’s Eve –** the holiday celebrated on December 31; the night before the

New Year (January 1)

*Normally their children go to bed early, but on New Year’s Eve they’re allowed

to stay up until midnight.

**harbor –** an area of ocean water near the land that has strong walls to protect

boats from bad weather

*The storm destroyed the boats that were on the ocean, but the boats in the

harbor weren’t damaged at all.

**cruise –** a relaxing journey on the ocean, usually for a vacation

*After they were married, they went on a two-week cruise in the Caribbean.

**fireworks –** small objects that explode in the sky with a loud noise, producing

bright lights in many colors, usually used for celebrations

*Many American towns and cities use fireworks to celebrate the country’s

Independence Day on the fourth of July.

**marina –** a harbor (an area of ocean water near the land that has strong walls to

protect boats) that is built especially for small boats, often with wooden walkways

over the water to get access to the boats.

*Pedro and his uncle often fish in the marina where the fish are used to small

boats coming and going.

**to board –** to get on a ship, airplane, bus, train, or another large vehicle for many

people

*Melissa was a little bit nervous as she boarded a plane for the first time.

**this was no... –** this was not a...

*He took a long time getting dressed, because he knew that this was no ordinary

day.

**boat –** a vehicle that floats and moves on the water and carries people or cargo

(good and products)

*During the summer, they take their boat to the lake every weekend.

**upper / lower –** located above (upper) or below (lower) something else

*Unlike the lower floors, the upper floors of this office building have wonderful

views of the city.

**deck –** a floor or level of a ship or bus

*Some busses in London have two decks. Tourists like to sit on the top deck so

that they can see the city.

**crew –** the staff or workers on a boat or ship

*Did all members of the crew return to the ship by 5 p.m.?

**on board –** on or inside a boat, ship, airplane, train, or bus

*Move aside, please, so everyone can get on board.

**life jackets –** vests (jackets with no arms) that people wear so that they will float

if they fall into the water, usually filled with air or other material

*These boats are supposed to have enough life jackets for everyone on board.

**captain –** the highest-ranking (most important and powerful) member of the

crew; the person who leads, runs, or manages everything on a boat or ship

*It looks like a bad storm is coming! Does the captain seem worried about it?

**passenger –** a person or guest traveling on a boat, ship, airplane, train, or bus

*Their boat is small and can only hold seven passengers.

**seasick –** a bad feeling in one’s stomach and dizziness caused by being on

moving water, usually when one is on a boat or ship

*Andrea gets seasick very easily, so she always has to take a pill before she

steps onto a boat.

**Coast Guard –** a part of the U.S. military that protects the people and land along

the country’s coasts (where water and land meet)

*Our boat’s motor stopped working while we were a mile from land, so we had to

wait for the Coast Guard to come help us.

**on shore –** on land; off of a boat or ship

*Do you know what time we’ll be able to go on shore?

**to walk the plank –** to walk down a long, flat piece of wood that goes out from a

ship over the water; in stories, pirates (thieves in ships who steal from other ships

and boats) made people walk down the long, flat piece of wood to their death

*In many movies about pirates, a beautiful young woman is forced to walk the

plank, but someone always saves her before she falls into the water.

##COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1. Why did the friends decide to take a harbor cruise on New Year’s Eve?

a) Because they didn’t get invited to any parties.

b) Because it’s how they celebrate the holiday every year.

c) Because they wanted to try something new.

2. The cruise was:

a) On the ocean near the city.

b) On a lake near the city.

c) On a river that runs through the city.

##WHAT ELSE DOES IT MEAN?

cruise

The word *“cruise,”* in this podcast, means a relaxing journey in a luxurious or

fancy boat: “He asked her to marry him while they were on a romantic harbor

cruise.” As a verb, *“to cruise”* can mean to take a cruise: “They saw a lot of

monkeys while they were cruising down the Amazon River.” The verb *“to cruise”*

can be used informally to mean to move in a car at a constant speed: “They were

cruising at 85 miles per hour when they were stopped by a police officer for

speeding.” Many cars have *“cruise control,”* which is a small button near the

steering wheel that the driver can turn on to have the car maintain a constant

speed without the driver having to constantly step on the gas or brake pedals.

board

In this podcast, the verb *“to board”* means to get onto a boat, ship, airplane, train,

or bus: “When he boarded the bus, he was disappointed to see that there weren’t

any empty seats.” To be *“on board”* means to be on a boat, ship, airplane, train,

or bus: “They had planned to be on board the 7:00 train, but there weren’t any

seats.” As a noun, a *“board”* is a long, flat piece of wood that is used to build

floors, fences, walls, and other things: “He bought some wooden boards to build

a doghouse.” *“Boards”* are also used for equipment used in some sports, such

as snowboarding or surfing: “Surfing can be dangerous if the board hits you on

the head.” A *“board”* is also a group of people who lead an organization: “This

month, the board of directors is deciding whether it will sell the company.”

##CULTURE NOTE

In the United States, many people enjoy owning a boat and using it with their

families on the weekends, boating on the country’s lakes, rivers, and “coastal

waters” (the ocean water near land). However, owning a boat is a big

responsibility and there are many boating laws in the U.S. The laws are different

in each state, but they have many things in common.

Many boating laws are related to safety. Most states have laws requiring that life

jackets or specific safety equipment be carried on the boat. There are also laws

about using lights at night and *“minimizing”* (keeping low) noise. In addition,

there are laws that *“prohibit”* (not allow) people from driving a boat if they are

*“drunk”* or drank too much alcohol.

The owners of boats with *“motors”* (a machine that moves a vehicle) and large

boats without motors usually need to register their boats with the state

government. This usually requires presenting identification, proof that you own

the boat, and an *“annual fee”* (a payment of money made every year).

Often the boat *“operators”* (the people who drive a boat) must have a boating

*“license,”* a document that permits them to drive a boat. Whether someone

needs a license depends on the type of the boat and the speed of the boat. The

laws and the requirements to get a license *“vary”* or are different by state, but

they all require that a person pass a test about boat laws. Getting a license also

may require taking a class about boat safety.

Comprehension Questions Correct Answers: 1 – c; 2 – a

##COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to number 230: A New Year’s

Cruise.

This is episode 230. I'm your host, Dr.

Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in

beautiful Los Angeles, California. Today we have a special New Year's edition of

ESL Podcast. Our topic today is going to be talking about “A New Year’s

Cruise.”

Remember to visit our website at eslpod.com. There you can download the

Learning Guide for this episode that contains all of the vocabulary, sample

sentences, additional vocabulary and a complete transcript of this podcast. Now

let's get started.

[start of story]

My friends and I decided to do something a little different this year. Instead of

going to a crowded club or throwing a party on New Year’s Eve, we decided to

take a harbor cruise instead. The cruise would be four hours long, and it

included dinner, music, dancing, and a great view of the fireworks.

On that day, we drove to the marina and we were among the first to board the

ship. This was no little boat. It was a large ship with an upper and a lower deck.

The crew helped us get on board and showed us where the life jackets were in

case of an emergency. Even the captain came out to welcome the passengers.

We had a great time. I didn’t get seasick as I’d feared, and we didn’t have to call

out the Coast Guard, either. We had so much fun, we didn’t want to go back on

shore. Finally, the captain joked that if we didn’t leave, he’d make us walk the

plank!

[end of story]

Today, we learned what Lucy and her friends did on New Year's Eve; they went

on a New Year's Cruise. A cruise, *“cruise,”* is usually a relaxing trip that you take

on an ocean, usually for a vacation. Here in Los Angeles, you can take a cruise

down to Mexico - down to the Baja region of Mexico. You can also take a cruise

to Hawaii, which will take you a couple of days, and you go on a very large ship.

Well, this is a cruise not of Hawaii or down to Mexico; this was just a short cruise

that Lucy and her friends went on. I, apparently, was not invited, which is a little

sad!

Lucy says that her friends and she “decided to do something a little different this

year. Instead of going,” she says, “to a crowded club or throwing a party on New

Year’s Eve,” they *“decided to take a harbor cruise instead.”* Normally on New

Year’s Eve, which is the evening before New Year’s - the evening of December

31st - they go to a club, which would be a dance club - a place to dance to music

- or they throw a party. Notice the expression to throw, *“throw,”* a party, means to

put on a party - to have a party at your house or your apartment. But instead of

doing those things, they *“decided to take a harbor cruise.”*

The harbor, *“harbor,”* is an area in the ocean that is next to the land. Usually it

has walls that are built to protect the boats and the ships. So, it's the place

where you can think of the boats and ships parking; it's sort of a parking lot on

the water for ships and boats.

The harbor cruise then was a cruise on a boat around the harbor - around the

other boats. Usually those are short cruises; in this case, I believe it was “four

hours long.” The cruise “included dinner, music, dancing, and a great view of the

fireworks.” The fireworks, *“fireworks,”* (always plural) are little things that you

shoot up into the air and they explode and you see a light. Fireworks are very

common for many celebrations - big celebrations: the Fourth of July - and in

some cities, there are fireworks on New Year's Eve. In Los Angeles, there are

places that have fireworks on New Year's Eve.

Lucy says that on the day of New Year's Eve, they “drove to the marina and were

among the first to board the ship.” The marina, *“marina,”* is a harbor that is built

especially for smaller boats, and usually there are walkways - sort of wooden

sidewalks - to walk out and get on the boat. We have a very large marina here in

Los Angeles called Marina del Rey - the Marina of the King - and the marina has

fireworks, where they have fireworks out over the ocean or near the ocean.

Lucy says that she and her friends were *“the first to board the ship.”* To board,

*“board,”* means to get on a ship or an airplane. You can also board a train or a

bus. Anything that carries a lot of people, we say that you board. So, if you're at

the airport and they say, *“The flight will be boarding in ten minutes,”* that means

that people will be getting on the plane in ten minutes. So, don't go and buy

some coffee, you may miss your flight - you may not get on the plane in time!

Lucy and her friends boarded the ship. She says, *“This was no little boat.”* “This

was no” is another way of saying this was not a little boat. This is a somewhat

difficult expression, *“this was no.”* It's used before an object - a noun - in a

sentence without any articles - without any indefinite articles, like *“a”* or *“and”* or

definite articles, like *“the.”* You can say, *“This was no little boat,”* meaning this

was not a little boat. But, if you use the word *“a”* or *“the,”* you would have to say,

*“not.”* *“This was no little boat,”* *“This was not a little boat,”* notice the difference.

A boat, *“boat,”* is something that floats on the water. It stays on top of the water

and you can get into it and you can move across the water. If it's a very large

boat, we often call that a ship, *“ship.”* So, Lucy says in the story here that “This

was no little boat. It was a large ship with an upper and a lower deck.” The

deck, *“deck,”* of a ship is the level - think of it as the floor of the ship, so there

could be more than one level - more than one floor. We also use that term if you

are talking about a bus. If the bus is what we would call a double decker that

means it has two decks. These are, or were, popular in London; I'm not sure if

they still are. If you go to London, you can probably find a double decker bus - a

bus with two decks. The top deck is called the upper deck, and the bottom is

called the lower deck.

Well, this is a large ship. *“The crew helped”* Lucy and her friends *“get on board.”*

The crew, *“crew,”* are the people who work on the boat - the staff of the boat or

the ship. To help someone get on board means to get inside the boat, or a plane

or a train. So, they helped them *“get on board”* - they helped them board would

be the same meaning - *“and showed us where the life jackets were.”*

When you go on a ship, they usually have - in fact, they have to have, according

to most state laws, some sort of life jacket. A life jacket is usually just a vest, not

an actual jacket; it is like a jacket with no sleeves for the arms, and it floats. So,

in case the boat has a problem and you have to go out into the water, even if you

can't swim, if you have a life jacket you can still survive - you can still float on top

of the water. So, they showed Lucy and her friends the life jackets in case there

was an emergency.

*“Even the captain came out to welcome the passengers.”* The captain, *“captain,”*

is the person who is in charge of - who is the head of the ship; we call that

person the captain. So, *“the captain came out,”* meaning he went outside and

greeted - said hello to the people who were getting on the boat; we would call

those people the passengers. A passenger, *“passenger,”* is anyone who travels

on a boat or a ship, an airplane, a train, a bus - any of those things, you can call

the people passengers.

You can even talk about a passenger in a car. We often use the term “the

passenger side,” which in an American car would be on the right side of the car.

In a car in Great Britain, it would be on the left side.

Lucy said she and her friends *“had a great time.”* They *“didn't get seasick.”* To

get seasick, *“seasick,”* means to get sick because of the motion of the water.

The words sea, *“sea,”* is another word for an ocean - it's like an ocean. So,

seasick is getting sick, usually to your stomach. You may even get a little dizzy if

you are on the water.

Lucy jokes that they *“didn’t have to call out the Coast Guard, either.”* The Coast,

*“Coast,”* Guard, *“Guard,”* is part of the United States military. They are the

people who protect the coasts of the United States, which are the part where the

country is next to an ocean; that would be the coast. Here in Los Angeles, we're

on the West Coast; New York City is on the East Coast.

So, the Coast Guard was not called, meaning they didn't have any emergencies.

She said that she and her friends “had so much fun, we didn’t want to go back on

shore.” To go on shore, *“shore,”* means to leave the boat and go back on land.

*“Finally,”* Lucy says, *“the captain joked that if”* they *“didn't leave”* the ship, “he’d

make” them *“walk the plank!”* The expression to walk the plank is an old one that

you sometimes see in movies about pirates - thieves - people who steal from

other ships and boats. A plank, *“plank,”* is a long piece of wood. In the old days,

especially in the movies, if you were somehow caught by the pirates - the thieves

- you might be forced to walk out on a long piece of wood and, of course, jump

off - you would have to die in the ocean. So, the expression here by the captain

is a joke, saying well, if you don't leave, I'll make you walk the plank, just like the

pirates did.

If you've seen the famous movie, *“Pirates of the Caribbean,”* we call it in English,

with that really ugly actor - what's his name? Johnny Depp, I think he calls

himself - then you know what I'm talking about. I'm just kidding, of course!

Now let's listen to the story, this time at a native rate of speech.