Ten of the World’s Best Destinations for Blooms

1.Pre-reading task

1. What are the most popular tourist destinations in the world?
2. Can you name any unusual destinations for travelers?
3. Where are you going for your next holiday?

 2.Reading

1. Blue Ridge Mountains, North Carolina, the USA

Travelers can find a wealth of plant species in North Carolina’s mountains – the most in any similar sized area in North America. The most famed may be the rosy rhododendrons the blanket the slopes of the Blue Ridge Mountains in summer.

2. Lisse, the Netherlands

The Netherlands produces nearly 90 percent of the world’s tulips, making it ultimate destination for a quintessential spring experience. Cycle along the 25-mile Bollenstreek Route, where flower fields paint the countryside in dazzling color.

3. Akureyti, Iceland

Just 50 miles outside of the Artic Circle, this town in northern Iceland is home to the Artic Botanical Gardens, one of the world’s northernmost botanic gardens. Nearby, travelers find short hiking trails and birdwatching sites in the Kjarnaskogur Forest, daring ski slopes.

4. Route 1, California, the USA

California’s normally barren-looking deserts transform into a colorful oasis during warmer months. Take Highway 1 in northern California to Humboldt Redwoods State Park to see the hillsides covered with red and orange poppies.   

5. Carmona, Spain

Carmona is one of many villages, painted with whitewash made of slaked lime, that cap hilltops in Andalusia, in southern Spain. During spring, sunflowers bloom across more than 74,000 acres around the city. The best time to see them is from May to June, and you don’t need a car to get there. Buses from Seville take 40 minutes.

6. Glacier National Park, Montana, the USA

Encompassing nearly 1,600 square miles of snowcapped mountains, emerald-hued lakes, forests, and rivers, Glacier National Park offers a dizzying array of natural beauty and backcountry adventures. Ascend Going-to-the-Sun Road, a 50-mile route over the Continental Divide, to see the park’s alpine meadows bud with vibrate wildflowers best seen from late-June to mid-July.

7. Tokyo, Japan

Symbolizing the return of spring, cherry blossoms, or sakura, mirror human life – beautiful and cherished, but brief. Each year, thousands of people gather for flower-viewing parties, which date back to the ninth century when Japanese emperors would hold celebrations for the cherry and plum blossoms that would bud in early spring. “In Tokyo, urban dwellers emerge from their homes and offices to take pause underneath the fleeting bloom, their daylong celebrations often stretching into the night,” writes National Geographic writer Gulnaz Khan.

8. Washington D.C., the USA

More than 3,000 cherry trees, gifted from Japan in 1912, ring the Tidal Basin in Washington D.C. “Peak bloom,” which can last just a few days or 10, depending on the winds and rain that year, is the most ideal time to observe the fleeting blooms. For those who want to avoid the crowds, the Trust for the National Mall along with its partners, the National Park Service, and the National Cherry Blossom Festival, are streaming live from National Mall Tidal Basin.

9. Umm Qais, Jordan

Despite being 75 percent desert, Jordan’s northern highlands burst with brightly colored blooms from March to May. Take a self-guided hike on one of the several ancient trails stemming from ruins of Umm Qais or hire a local guide who can offer cultural and historical context and help you identify wildflowers along the way, including Jordan’s endangered national flower, the black iris.

10. Central Nepal

Trekking Central Nepal’s Annapurna Mountain range via the Nepal Rhododendron Trek in spring offers breathtaking views of the country’s iconic rhododendron forests. Pre-monsoon (March-April) season gives travelers the rhododendrons in full bloom, but post-monsoon (November) time gives drier weather. Go with local Sherpa guides, cooks, and porters – it’s part of the experience.   

 

Source: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/beautiful-flower-destinations-around-the-world

 

3. Vocabulary work. Follow the link and learn the words

https://quizlet.com/_bewixw?x=1qqt&i=38ehdk

    

4. Writing. Answer the following questions and fill in the table below.

 

World’s best	Why?	How to preserve heritage?
Mountain
River
Building
Museum
Park
Historic site

5. Grammar Spot. Comparative and Superlative Adjectives

Meaning and use

- We use comparative adjectives and adverbs to compare one person or thing with another person or thing.

Today is hotter than yesterday.

I think documentaries are more interesting than the news.

 

- We can repeat comparatives with and to say how something changes.

Train journeys in the UK are becoming more and more expensive.

The sky grew darker and darker and we knew the storm would break soon.

 

- We can use two different comparatives with the to say how something changes as something else changes.

The faster they went, the louder they screamed.

The taller she grew, the thinner she became.

 

- We use superlative adjectives and adverbs to compare one person or thing with several other people or things of the same kind.

September is the busiest month for our business.

Angelina Jolie was the highest paid actress last year.

 

- We often use superlatives with the present perfect to talk about a particular life experience.

That was the funniest film I have seen this year.

He swam the fastest he has ever swum to win gold.

 

Form

- We make comparatives in two ways: by adding -er or by putting more in front of the adjective or adverb.

This hotel is cheaper than the one on the beach.

Life in the country is more peaceful than in the city.

 

• We usually use than with the comparative, but not always.

He is better than me at tennis.

Ali is taller than his sister.

 

- We make superlatives by adding -est or by putting most in front of the adjective or adverb.

It’s the cheapest restaurant in town.

He spoke the most confidently in the final interviews.

 

- We usually use the before the superlative, but we sometimes use a possessive adjective.

August is the quietest month in Paris.

December is our busiest time of year.

NB! Some adjectives and adverbs have irregular comparative and superlative forms.

 

Adjective:	good	Bad	far	little
Comparative	better	further	worse	less
Superlative	best	worst	furthest	least

 

His cold has got worse since he went back to work.

It’s the best film I have seen in a long time.

 

Source: https://www.bbc.com/learningenglish/english/intermediate-grammar-guide