English Conversation 19 | Everyday English

Mirror! Mirror, mirror on the wall. .

. Who's the fairest of them all? Ehi!

lt's the new girl! Hello, l'm Elena. Come in, come in!

So good to see you, Elena. l'm Agatha, Agatha Johnson. Pleased to meet you, Mr Johnson.

Welcome to the Johnson family! l come from Madrid. No, no: Welcome to the Johnson family.

My family is in Spain. Yes, yes. l know.

You must be tired after your long journey! Sorry, l don't understand. My English is not very good.

You. . .

must. . .

be. . .

tired. . .

after your journey! Yes, very tired. .

. very long journey. Yes!

Well now, let's sit down together! Thank you. ls everything all right?

Everything is all right, Mr Johnson. No! You call me Agatha.

Alright, thank you, Agatha. You're part of the family now. Part of the family?

Yes. My family. .

. my brother, me. .

. l have 4 brothers! 4 brothers!

Wow, well, that's nice! - They're big boys. - Really?

What about sisters? l also have 3 sisters. Oh, dear!

That's too many! My family is very big. .

. many people. Yes Elena, that's nice!

You have a big family. l have a small family. Now an extra person, me!

Yes, Elena You're one of the family now. Thank you Agatha. That's nice.

Well, now, it's teatime. Oh good. .

. one cup of tea, 2 cups of tea. Yes, that's right!

l'll take your bags to room, then go into the kitchen. What. .

. what heavy bags! Yes, many bags.

No, no, l said 'heavy', heavy bags! Oh yes, heavy, very heavy bags. Ok, l'll be right back.

All right. Here we are. .

. Tea for 2. Thank you!

Milk and sugar? Yes, please. Have a biscuit.

They're homemade. No, thank you. Now you must tell me about yourself.

Your family: mum, dad. . .

l have 4 brothers. . .

and 3 sisters. Well, l'm a student, and l go to a language school. To study English.

Yes, my English is not very good. No, no, no, no. .

. It's quite good. Where is the school?

lt's near here, on Exeter Avenue. That's very close! Good.

Just 10 minutes. Oh, that's easy. Perhaps, Victor could take you by car.

Victor? Who's Victor? My brother!

Your brother. . .

That is a photo of Victor. Oh, he's a big boy! Well, he's 25!

And that is my boyfriend, Harold. Your boyfriend. .

. He works in a bank. .

. . in a bank.

That's my brother, Allan. Oh, your brother. He lives in Sydney.

ln Australia? Yes, he loves it! Oh, l want to see Australia.

Me too! Perhaps, one day. .

. And whose's that photo? Oh, that's just my sister, Betty.

Oh, your sister. . .

She lives near here. l see her everyday. Everyday?

Yes, we go shopping together. You go shopping. She's a very difficult person.

But she's your sister! Yes, she's a very difficult sister! And this.

. . This is a photo of my mother and my father.

Your mother and your father, your parents? Yes. My parents, on their anniversary day.

Sorry, l don't understand. On the day that they got married. Oh, yes, their anniversary day.

Yes. And here. .

. is the rest of my family. Oh, that's interesting.

Oh, that's Victor! He is punctual like always. He arrives at home at 5 o'clock everyday.

Everyday? He lives here? Yes, he lives with me!

Oh, he lives here. Yes, with my cat, Felix. .

. Oh, your cat, Felix. .

. . and my canary, Tweetie.

. . .

and your canary, Tweetie Hello Victor! Come in and meet Elena. Hello, darling!

Hi, Agatha. Who are you? l'm Elena.

Darling, this is Elena. Elena? Hello Elena!

What are you doing here? She's staying with us, sweetheart. Why don't you tell me about these things?

l do, l do! l tell you everything, darling! Elena, this is my gorgeous brother, Vic.

He's very handsome, very clever, and very forgetful! l'm studying English here. l come from Madrid.

Nice to meet you. . .

. studying English? Yes, l want to speak a good English and become a tourist guide.

Lovely! Lovely girl! Where.

. . where are you studying?

At the Queens School on Exeter Avenue. You know it? Do l know it?

. . .

Agatha? Do l know the school? Of course darling!

Of course he does. Of course l do! Silly me.

Silly you. Silly you! Well, l think that we are going to have a wonderful time with Elena staying here.

Yes, a wonderful time. Thank you. How long are you going to be in London?

That's right: get to know each other and. . .

l'll go start dinner. Can l help you, Agatha? No!

Sweet girl. You stay right where you are! All right.

When did you arrive? Today. And you'll be staying with us .

. . until you go back to Spain?

When? l go back to Madrid after my English course. And my language course is 8 weeks.

l'm sorry. My sister is a little. .

. eccentric. Your sister is very nice.

Tell me. . .

tell me about your family, Elena. l have many. .

. sisters and brothers. Are you the oldest?

No. l have 2 brothers and 1 sister, who are older. .

. . .

. older? Older than you.

Yes. And. .

. my mother is Carmen and my father is Fernando. And this is your first time away from Madrid?

Yes. l am happy to be in London but also l am a little sad. You miss.

. . you miss your big family?

Yes, but you are very kind and you are very nice. Thank you. And what does your.

. . What does your father do back in Madrid?

What's his job? He makes. .

. this. .

. and this. .

. Oh! He makes.

. . he makes furniture!

Yes, yes. And your mother? Does she work?

My mother works very hard in the house. . .

cooking, washing, cleaning. Your mother is a housewife. - A housewife.

- Housewife. So. .

. how are you getting along? Just fine thanks, Agatha.

Very fine. Thank you. Wonderful!

Now come and help me set the table. Ok. Can l help?

Yes, please. Set the table, dear. Set the table?

l'll help you. That's a good boy. The plates.

ls your boyfriend Harold eating with us? No, Harold is in Oxford. Harold's bank has an office in Oxford.

The knives and forks. Knife. .

. fork and. .

. spoon! ls the table set?

Yes, Agatha. Good. Sit down, please.

Dinner is ready. Are we having dinner now? Why of course, dear.

What are we having? We are having soup and a salad. Do you like chicken soup, Elena?

Yes. Thank you. Please, put the napkins on the table, Victor!

Sorry. Here they are. My silly Victor he forgets everything!

Everything! Here's your soup. .

. help yourself to the bread. Thank you, Agatha.

You're welcome, my dear! lt's so nice to have you here. Yes.

lt's. . .

it's nice to have you here. Thank you. That is very kind.

Nonsense. Now, let's eat! How's your soup?

lt's delicious. What's wrong, dear? Don't you like it?

Well. . .

You don't feel well? No, l'm sorry. lt is a bit early for me.

l am not really hungry. Not hungry? What time does your family eat dinner back in Spain?

We eat dinner at 10 o'clock at home. Well, imagine that! We're usually in bed before midnight!

Elena, darling, you must forgive our strange English habits. No, it is all a bit strange for me now. My poor dear!

You must be exhausted! Maybe you should go to bed soon, Elena. Yes, please.

l'm sorry. No! Don't worry.

You go and sleep. Thank you both. Good night, Elena.

Night. Sleep well dear! Not again, Agatha.

Don't do this to me again! Why, my darling brother. What are you talking about?

Oh! Good morning! You're up early!

Yes, l'm looking for. . .

for my. . .

For your keys? - Yes. - They're here.

Thank you. Thank you Victor. Do your classes start today?

No, l start classes on Wednesday. l'm looking for a job today. Oh.

lt's a good idea to get the paper early. Can l. .

. can l make you some tea? Do you have coffee?

Sorry, l'm not sure if we have any coffee. Let me have a look. Darling!

Good morning! Good morning, Agatha! What a clever girl!

You're doing morning exercises! Oh, yes, yes. Did you sleep well?

Very well. Sorry, no coffee. Maybe we should add it to the shopping list.

Yes, yes. Tell me what you need. l'm going shopping with my sister, Betty.

Coffee would be nice. Well, what are your plans for today, sweetheart? She's job hunting.

She's looking fora part-time job. How industrious! Well, a pretty girl like you will have no trouble finding a job!

- Here's the paper. - Thanks. And look!

There's one. lt's here in Kensington. 'Video Store on the High Street.

. . ' 'Young person with excellent communication skills' That's perfect!

And. . .

'Afternoon shifts Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. ' Where is the High Street? Just make a left at the top of our road onto Hornton.

And then make another left onto the High Street. The store is on your right, next to the Tube Station. The Tube?

l'll walk you up there. Ok? Thank you!

That is very kind of you. Nonsense! My brother is a gentleman.

Go get ready and l'll meet you downstairs in 15 minutes. Ok? Ok.

Well, good luck my dear. Have a nice day. Thanks.

You too Agatha! l'll see you in a little while. - Bye!

- Bye bye! Hello! Hello.

How was your day? Fabulous. Fabulous?

'Fabulous' is excellent! l had a fabulous day, too! Going shopping?

Yes, Betty and l shopped all day. Look at my new nail polish. And this blouse is new.

lt looks divine on me, don't you think? lt's very beautiful. And l have a skirt to go with it and.

. . a pair of boots.

Lovely! Of course, Betty is jealous. She says l spend too much money on clothes.

Hi girls. lt's getting cold out there. l think it's going to rain.

l hope not! Had a productive day, Agatha? Yes.

Delightful! And how was your interview, Elena? Productive!

l start work on Thursday after the school. Congratulations! Well done, darling!

And when do you finish work? My shifts are from 3 to 7. And what will you do at the store?

l put the videos on their shelves and l find information on the computer for customers. l love movies! Do you know what my favourite movie is?

No. What is your favourite movie? 'Butterfield 8'.

Well, any movie with Liz Taylor. l don't know it. Agatha watches it a lot.

Betty has the video. l would like to see the movie, too. You will love it!

Liz wears the most brilliant clothes. . .

and Laurence Harvey. . .

Oh! What a man! Do you like it, Victor?

lt's a bit old for me. l prefer science fiction and fantasy stories. When l finish my course, l'd like to try painting sets for films.

Oh! That sounds exciting! Speaking of clothing, do you have a warm coat, Elena?

This is my coat. You will die of cold in that coat! You will really need a warmer coat soon, Elena.

lt gets very cold in London. Not like sunny Barcelona! Madrid!

We might get some snow at Christmas. Snow? .

That would be a new experience for you! Yes! How wonderful!

You don't have school tomorrow. Let's go shopping! Ok.

Let's go shopping!