I'm "Conversation Cathy", and I'm a virtual expert at English pronunciation. I speak English with a Canadian accent, which is widely recognized to be regular and easily understood around the world.
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| Dialogue for L / R |
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| Restaurant Owner: | Good morning, Rosie's on Renfrew. How can I help you? |
| Student: | On Thursday, what time does your restaurant open for lunch? |
| Restaurant Owner: | We open at eleven thirty on Thursday. |
| Student: | Can you tell me what the lunch special is please? |
| Restaurant Owner: | Today's special is lasagne and salad, with a bread roll, followed by strawberries and melon for dessert. |
| Student: | What kind of salad dressing comes with the salad? |
| Restaurant Owner: | You can choose between Russian, Thousand Island, or oil and vinegar. |
| Student: | It all sounds really good! Can I make a reservation for three, please? |
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| Dialogue for P / F |
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| Student: | Can you help me please? Can you take our picture in Stanley Park? |
| Joe: | Sure, I'll help you! Stand over there and I'll take your picture in front of the totem poles. |
| Student: | Thank you! Canadians are always so friendly and helpful! |
| Joe: | Smile! There - finished. You were laughing and looked really cheerful! |
| Student: | Thanks a lot! Can you suggest other good places to take pretty pictures of Vancouver? I want to take them home to show my parents. |
| Joe: | How about Canada Place, or Capilano Suspension Bridge? Or from the top of Cypress Mountain! |
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| Dialogue for S / Sh |
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| Student: | Excuse me, I spilled some juice on my shirt and some ice cream on my shorts. Where can I wash my clothes? |
| Homestay: | You can wash them downstairs in the basement, in the laundry room. |
| Student: | I'm not sure how to use the machine. Can you show me, please? |
| Homestay: | Sure! First, you should sort your clothes into a light and a dark pile. Then, put the clothes in the washer. Next, add some laundry soap. |
| Student: | How much soap should I use? |
| Homestay: | Not too much. Use the small measuring cup. After you've added the soap, just turn the machine on. The wash cycle takes about twenty minutes. |
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| Dialogue for S / Th |
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| Mayumi: | What shall we do this weekend? |
| Fernando: | We could go shopping to either Robson Street or Kitsilano, if you'd like. |
| Mayumi: | No, we always go shopping. How about staying home and watching a movie instead? I've got "Thelma and Louise" and "Star Wars". |
| Fernando: | I don't feel like doing that. Too bad there's no more snow left on Grouse Mountain - we could have gone skiing or snowboarding, or even snowshoeing. |
| Mayumi: | There's always Stanley Park. We could go skateboarding or roller-blading, or rent bicycles. |
| Fernando: | We've done that three times already. Can't you think of anything else? |
| Mayumi: | There are lots of interesting things to look at in Chinatown. Or we could go over to Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver. |
| Fernando: | So many choices! Can I think about it? |
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| Dialogue for B / V |
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| Teacher: | Maria, what country are you from? |
| Student: | I'm from Venezuela, from Caracas. |
| Teacher: | Is this your first time in Vancouver? |
| Student: | Yes. I've never travelled before. I'm very excited to be here! |
| Teacher: | What did you do in Caracas? |
| Student: | I worked in a bank. I was a Bank Manager. |
| Teacher: | How long do you plan to stay in Vancouver? |
| Student: | My visa is for eight months, but hopefully I can stay longer. I plan to go travelling after I finish studying at VEC. Can you recommend any places to visit? |
| Teacher: | BC is a very beautiful province. Besides Vancouver, you could also go over to Vancouver Island and visit Victoria. There are beautiful places in other provinces too, like Banff in Alberta. If you really like to travel, you could even go to Nova Scotia. Canada is a very big country with lots to offer visitors. |
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Click one of the colored boxes above and she will say something to you. It's kind of like having a virtual pronunciation partner to practice with. You can repeat what Cathy says, and listen as many times as you wish. So go ahead! Start practicing your English now!
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Oct 27/09
at 09:30 PDT