Unit 15 Leisure and Entertainment A Journey Back in Time Exercises || Compulsory English Grade 12 || Language Development

 

Unit 15 Leisure and Entertainment Exercises, Compulsory English Grade 12, Language Development

A Journey Back in Time

-Anand P. Shrestha

Before you read

a. What are the children doing in the picture?

b. What do you love doing in your free time?

 

Working with Words

A. The words in the cross-word puzzle is from the text. Find them from the text to solve the puzzle based on the clues given below.

 

Across

1. Outdated, of or relating to the Middle Ages                               - Medieval

3. The character and atmosphere of a place                                  - Ambience

6. Highly decorated                                                                                 -Ornate

7. Beat with a strong, regular rhythm; survive                              - Throb

10. with the agreement of all people involved                              - Unanimously

11. The destructive effects of something                                          - Ravages

 

Down

1. A large city                                                                                              -Metropolis

2. Wandering from place to place without any purpose          - Loitering

4. An unpleasant place; a place of extreme misery                     - hellhole

5. An active revolt or uprising                                                              - insurgency

8. Paved with cobbles                                                                            - cobbled

9. Prosperous and growing; flourishing                                           - Thriving

 

 

B. Look up the meanings of the following words in your dictionary.

Amenities - facilities/services

Exquisite - delicate/wonderful/beautiful

Etiquette - good manners

Accommodation- somewhere to live or stay

Mainstay - foundation

Antique - very old

 

C. Underline the content words in the following sentences.

Content Words/lexical words/Full words/ Picture Words: Noun, main verb, adverb, adjective

Function words - auxiliary verb, connective, preposition, article etc.,

Example: A brown fox jumps over the lazy dog quickly.

 

a. The cat sat lazily on the dirty mat.

b. She gives performances on the stage beautifully.

c. Don't count your chicken before they are hatched.

d. I came I saw I conquered.

e. It is my life, my very identity.

 

 

Comprehension

Answer the following questions.

a. Why did the author and his classmates decide to visit Bandipur?

Ans:- The author and his classmates decided to visit Bandipur because they were fed up with the hectic pace of life in the Kathmandu metropolis and to escape the ravages of modern day development.

 

b. What is special about Bandipur?

Ans:- The special thing about Bandipur is that it is still truly a living museum of Newar culture.  It gives an echo of Old Nepal exhibiting glorious 18th century architecture as well as natural beauties.

 

c. How has the business changed in Bandipur today?

Ans:- The traditional varieties of business have been changed into tourism related business. Most of the houses, dilapidated buildings, ancient temples and civic buildings have been turned into neat and clean guest houses, Inns, resorts, lodges, hotels, cafés and pubs. 

 

d. Why do the local people who have migrated to Kathmandu visit Bandipur time and again?

Ans:- The local people who have migrated to Kathmandu visit Bandipur time and again to get peace away from crowded city, to celebrate festivals with all family members, to get an indescribable feeling of happiness, and to be enchanted by its magnetic pull.

 

e. How do the locale people learn to speak English in Bandipur?

Ans:-  The mainstay of Bandipur is tourism business as every house either has a cafe or a pub or a hotel. To run these family businesses, the local people learn to speak English interacting with the tourists who visit Bandipur.

 

f. What does the author mean when he says that 'time stops in the town of Bandipur'?

Ans:- In the very beginning of the essay the author says that 'time stops in the town of Bandipur' which means Bandipur still echoes  a tiny piece of Old Nepal because of cool and cobbled Newar settlement. Most of the cities in Nepal have adopted modern developments but Bandipur still maintains typical old Nepali medieval ambience due to old houses that exhibit glorious 18th century architecture- a timeless magic of the centuries.

 

Critical Thinking

a. The writer seems to believe that rural life is better than urban life. Do you agree with him?

Ans:- When we read the travelogue 'A Journey Back in Time!' by Anand P. Shrestha, we come to know that he has a peculiar attraction to Bandipur. He is fed-up with the busy and chaotic life in Kathmandu metropolis. The writer frequently visits Bandipur to escape from the noisy and the ravages of modern development of Kathmandu. He gets peace, harmony, and indescribable feeling of happiness in Bandipur. The writer loves rural life better than urban life. I agree with the author that rural life is better than urban life because the the typical old houses, the natural beauty of snow-capped mountains, green lands, trees, fresh air, fresh water etc. gives immeasurable happiness to us. The concrete buildings, busy streets, fast paced vehicles, work load, pollution really make our life troublesome in cities. The traditional customs, festivals, rituals, traditional lifestyle, kind hearted neighbors really make our life meaningful. We fell lack of identity in the vast mist of selfish people in the city. Even in the crowd of people we feel lonely in the city. It is far better to live in rural areas than in urban areas.  

 

b. Is the writer's way of looking at Bandipur just a gaze of an urban tourist? Why why not?

Ans:- Though the writer has not visited Bandipur before he visits the place as a keen observer instead of having a gaze like an urban tourist. He is spellbound by the magic of Bandipur. When he reaches there, he finds himself in the medieval town-centuries long typical Newari town. He has a good deal of information about Bandipur. He enjoys every moment and every thing there. He is fascinated by the magical view of 18th century architecture. He visits temples, viewpoints and caves there. It is truly a living museum of Newar culture. He enjoys every bit of moments there. He is attracted to the magical pull of Bandipur while he explores every places there. After returning back to Kathmandu, the hangover of Bandipur doesn't go away from his memory as he plans to visit again in the future. To explore the place the more, he plans to make a longer and weeklong trip to that place.