0.5 Tour commentaries  (Page 2/3)

She says: "Welcome. I'm Francine Miller, your guide for this tour. I'll tell you all about the things you will see. If you have any questions, please ask. It's my job to answer them. All my time is free to talk to you sightseers." Sights are places or things to see. Sightseers are people who go to see these sights, or places of interest. Local tours are sometimes called sightseeing tours.

When the Silvers board (get on) the bus, Mrs. Miller introduces them to the driver. Then she takes them to the seats that were reserved (saved) for them. When they are all comfortably seated, the driver starts the bus.

Before the driver became a tour bus driver, he spent many years driving a taxi. In that way, he learned all the streets of his city. He is an experienced driver, which means that he has had practice driving in many different or difficult situations, and drives safely and well. In addition to knowing all the streets, he also knows all the traffic regulations. Only the most experienced drivers can get jobs on tour buses. He has also been specially trained to drive a tour bus. He drives carefully past the places that tourists want to see. He is also careful to avoid stopping suddenly or speeding up quickly.

People have confidence in a careful driver. Confidence means that they believe the driver does his or her job well and safely. Passengers feel comfortable riding with a driver in whom they have confidence. The driver feels that making passengers comfortable is an important part of his job.

As the bus moves through the city streets, the guide tells the sightseers about the places and buildings they are passing. They pass a large group of low buildings surrounded by a park. "That's a medical center with many different hospitals. The long low building with the playground next to it is a children's hospital."

The children ask if there are many sick people in the country. Mrs. Miller replies: "Every country has sick people. I don't know if we have more or fewer sick people than anywhere else. But I do know that we are very lucky to have such a fine medical center to help people get well."

When Mr. Silver asks how many other hospitals or medical centers there are in the country, Mrs. Miller is able to tell him. An important part of her job as a tour guide is to answer the questions people ask. Another part of her job is to explain the history of parks or monuments they pass.

After about 40 minutes of such sightseeing, the bus stops in front of a large, modern building. "This is our national museum," says the guide. "You will find many interesting works of art and historical displays inside. As you leave the bus, I'll give you a brochure that will tell you about the museum."

"Is it in English?" Tommy asks.

"May we keep it as a souvenir?" Janet asks.

Mrs. Miller answers yes to both questions and continue: "Inside you will find signs in English telling about the exhibits. You will also find a display called a diorama, a small-sized model of the entire city and the countryside around it. Around this diorama are several telephones. Pick up one of the phones marked 'English' in order to hear a description of the city. You will also hear about some of the places we saw on the way here. In addition, the recording will tell you about some of the exhibits in the museum and some of the places we will see later this afternoon."