Shadowing Practice: Conversational English in Real Situations | Comprehensible Input Vlog #72 - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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Welcome back to a new video guys.
521 sentences
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Welcome back to a new video guys.
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Today we are in the capital of Vietnam, Hanoi.
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In this video we'll be using comprehensible input as we explore the city.
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We'll also be talking together and teaching you guys English.
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This is my mom.
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I'm sure you've seen her in some of my past videos but she came to Vietnam specifically for one reason.
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What's that reason?
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The reason why I came to Vietnam is to congratulate you for your 1 million subscribers.
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And this video is also part of my 3,000 most common
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English word series designed to help you understand up to 95% of spoken English.
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You can get the PDF in the description.
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Ceramic.
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Ground, there's light.
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Destination, actually.
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Thrive.
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Cleaner.
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Influence.
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Barricaded light.
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Delicious.
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Correct.
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Specialties.
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Place.
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Let's get started.
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Let's go.
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Where are we heading to right now, Mo?
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We're heading to Hong Kim Lake.
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We're heading to a lake?
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I think it's the most famous lake here no i think
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it's called haong kim lake maybe i'm pronouncing it wrong
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but i'm not sure i'm just gonna call it the lake
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in the like historic center okay i got the names
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so right now we're staying in the french quarter
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which is uh on the east side of the lake
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but right now we're just walking to the lake
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because it's very beautiful we've already been here for one day
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so yesterday we walked around a bit we saw things
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but now we're gonna go and show you guys and explore or even more.
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Get my 3000 most common English words PDF and start learning the words
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that will allow you to understand up to 95% of everyday English.
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It includes clear definitions, real examples,
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and simple organization by topic and CEFR level.
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Get it in the description or at volcaenglish.com.
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So mom, when did you arrive?
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I arrived on Thursday evening after a 17, 18 hour flight.
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And how was that flight?
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Whoa, dude, that guy just started backing.
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Did you see that?
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I know.
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Whoa, that guy just started backing up.
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The flight was longer than last time when I went to South Korea.
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It's pretty far to come to see you guys.
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Yeah, it was a pretty long flight,
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but it wasn't too bad.
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You're not like very jet lagged.
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No, I was fine yesterday because drank lots of water, electrolytes.
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Yeah, no, that's good.
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I know that flight is long and I really hate flying now for like extended periods of time.
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Even if it's just an hour,
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just doing everything, like going through the airport,
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going through immigration, security, customs.
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Takes a lot of time.
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It takes so much time.
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It's like, I would rather just stay in one place now and just like explore that place, you know?
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But I have to say they're pretty organized in Asia.
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Compared to Canada and North America,
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it's way cleaner and organized.
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I just feel that they care at the airports.
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It's a nightmare flying in North America.
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Yeah, one thing I will say,
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like, every time I've been to the States,
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the United States, man, terrible service.
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I feel like everyone there is just really rude.
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In a bad mood.
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Everybody there is in a bad mood.
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I don't know if it's everywhere,
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but that's been my experience.
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Okay, so we just stopped at this store right here,
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and you know what they sell?
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They sell ice cream.
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Should we go and see what it is?
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We're not sure.
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We've been passing by this place and that place over there a lot.
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So I think we're going to go ask now what they actually sell.
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I'm pretty sure it's ice cream.
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But one thing you can also see here is this road is closed.
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So you can see there are police officers somewhere up there,
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but they barricaded this road so that you can just walk here and there are no vehicles or cars or scooters.
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Because normally this is a normal road where vehicles can drive,
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but on the weekend you can't,
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as you can see here.
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Anyways, let's go try.
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Hello, what's the original ice cream, the most popular one?
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We got the ice cream.
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I'm really not sure.
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Rice flakes ice cream.
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Okay, I guess that's the flavor.
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That one I'm sure will be good.
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I like mochi.
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So this right here is an ice cream and it is wrapped in this plastic wrap.
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And right now, can you guys tell me what I'm going to do?
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So what did I just do?
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I just tore the ice cream open and now I'm pulling the wrapper off.
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So this is the ice cream.
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This ice cream is like a lime green.
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How would you describe this?
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It's round.
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It's round.
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There's like some powder on it.
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It's white.
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This one is like lime, lime green.
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Let's try it.
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Is it good?
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I like it when they're a little softer,
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but I'll still try it like this.
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Oh, that's hard.
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I don't like matcha.
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It's yummy.
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There's not a lot of matcha in it.
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That's a lot.
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I love matcha.
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I don't like matcha.
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To me, matcha just tastes like grass.
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Anyways, let's try this one.
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Grab.
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Oh, it's really like milky, no?
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It's actually quite nice.
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I do like this one.
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So now we are in the middle of the street here.
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These are all luxury brands across here.
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And over there, you can see that is the lake.
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And like I was saying,
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these roads here, like around the lake,
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are closed on the weekend.
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So, today is Saturday and we're standing in the middle of the road.
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What do you think of that?
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I think it's great because it's very busy here.
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It was super busy yesterday with all the bikes and the cars.
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So, it's kind of nice.
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Yeah, and it's so loud.
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Yeah.
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It's so loud with all like the sounds of like honking,
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people driving, scooters, loud exhaust.
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So it's nice to have this street closed so it's just quiet and you can just hear people.
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Okay, so where are we now, Mom?
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We're at the lake.
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Correct.
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So we're at the lake.
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Here you can see we're both standing at the edge here.
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And if we take another step forward,
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we will fall into the lake.
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Do you want to fall into the lake?
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I would assume no. Maybe later.
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This water is very green.
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I would not want to fall in there.
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Anyway, your shoes look very new.
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Are they?
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Yes.
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There's too much snow in Canada,
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so I couldn't break them in.
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So, new shoes.
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Are they comfortable?
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Yes, this is my second pair, actually.
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Oh, really?
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Of the exact same shoes?
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Of the exact same shoes.
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It must be comfortable then.
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Mm-hmm.
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Anyways, you guys can see the lake here.
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The sky today isn't very blue.
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It's pretty much almost just pure white, right?
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It's not blue.
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But it's super bright bright yeah it is really bright that's one thing
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when the sky is white like this it feels very bright
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on your eyes like my eyes are kind of like half closed all the time
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but you have sunglasses on yes i think sunglasses comes in
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handy for real you have sunglasses on too i'm the only one without sunglasses
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so i'm low-key cooked but i don't like the way sunglasses look
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so yeah i am blind so i need glasses or contacts
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but i don't have either of those on blind i wouldn't describe it as blind I would say.
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I'm blind.
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That's very dramatic.
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Let's go for coffee.
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Okay, we're gonna go now to get coffee at this really popular
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and famous coffee shop that my mom wants to go to.
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What is it?
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What kind of coffee?
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It's coconut coffee.
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The specialty is coconut coffee,
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so I haven't tried that yet.
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I had two coffees yesterday,
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but not a coconut coffee.
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Coconut specialty that we need to try.
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We need to try coconut coffee.
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Let's go.
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Okay, so now we're walking to the cafe, right?
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Yes, we're going to go to the cafe.
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Let me see.
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So we're walking to the cafe and here we're walking on the sidewalk.
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This street is not closed.
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There are just no vehicles,
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but the street is open.
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And I really like the way the buildings and sidewalk looks in Vietnam, don't you?
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Like, I like how they have their flag out and like all these buildings in the old quarter look really nice.
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And they have like cafes and everything.
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It's historical buildings with their French influence.
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That's just absolutely beautiful.
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Yeah, it looks really nice.
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Also like unique boutique shops and like small little stores that sell like really niche things.
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I like it.
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Right now we're crossing the street and you can see it's very hectic and busy.
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Like although we have the green light to pass it's still busy.
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And a lot of the times it feels like those scooters are just going to hit us.
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Right mom?
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They're just coming from all directions.
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Yeah because we have like the light that says we can walk but then scooters are coming to the side so.
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Yes.
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And they don't stop.
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They don't stop.
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Usually, you know, in Canada and other countries,
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the vehicle has to wait until the person crosses and then they can go.
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But here...
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No, here, no. Here, I try to line up with you or Leon that if they hit somebody,
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they're going to hit you guys first.
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Fair enough.
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Yeah, it's not for the weak.
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No, definitely not.
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And the vehicles park on the sidewalk here.
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Like, look at all these vehicles parked along the sidewalk.
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It's kind of crazy.
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But I do really like this style.
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Like, all these shops with their signs up top.
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If you want to learn faster,
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get the workbook for this video on my website.
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It includes deeper explanations and exercises to help you remember and master what you learned.
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And if you get five or more workbooks,
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you'll get 30% off automatically at checkout.
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So go to the description or my website, VolcaEnglish.com.
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I really like this style.
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It's a nice vibe.
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And they have very beautiful, tall trees here, too.
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I like it.
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It's a very tropical kind of climate.
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I wonder if the whole city looks like this when you walk.
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Like, nice shops on the side, beautiful trees, clean.
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What do you think?
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Yeah, I've seen some parts of the city that does not look like that.
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Well, I'm sure not every part looks like this, but the majority?
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Overall, I think it's a really beautiful city, Hanoi.
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So far, yeah.
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It's just the buildings and the greenery and everything combined.
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It's beautiful.
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Yeah, it's my second time in Hanoi.
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The first time I ever came to Vietnam was three years ago.
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And I saw the whole country,
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but this is my second time.
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My first time, and this was my choice.
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I wanted to come to Vietnam.
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What other countries do you want to go to in Asia?
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China.
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China?
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I want to go to China.
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Where else?
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I think everybody goes to Thailand.
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I don't know if I want to go to Thailand.
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Haven't you been?
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Many, many years ago.
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How long ago?
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Maybe 30 years ago.
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Like, it's a long time ago.
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Wait, for what?
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Just to travel?
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Yeah.
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I did Singapore, Hong Kong,
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and I did Bangkok and some surrounding areas.
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I loved Singapore.
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I really liked Singapore, yeah.
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But it's expensive.
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Yeah, it's very expensive.
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I mean, if you're from Singapore, let me know.
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You're probably not from Singapore,
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because I know people in Singapore speak very good English.
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It's like the first language, so but
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if you've been let me know i've been too it's really nice
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but i've only been for like one day i was just there for one day
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because i had a stopover
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when i was flying to greece from japan yeah we're almost at the coffee shop
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and uh we'll see you guys there
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so where are we mom we're at the coffee shop
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that i wanted to come
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and try the coconut iced coffee this is the coffee shop
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name right here this is like a really popular chain in vietnam
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so i know it's uh i know you guys This chain is everywhere.
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I've seen it a lot.
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It comes from their history.
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It's kind of historical.
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What is this one?
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It's like the ice cream you had earlier.
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It's really good, though.
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What is it called?
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Literally rice something.
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Okay, this is called rice something,
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and we're gonna try it.
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You can see it's white.
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The one I got is coconut and cacao.
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This one is brown.
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Let's try Leon's first.
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It's good.
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Did you try it?
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I did try it.
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It's actually really good.
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That's really good, actually.
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That's my favorite one.
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It's exactly like rice pudding.
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What's this one?
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This is coconut iced coffee.
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Coconut iced coffee.
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And I love coffee.
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It's good.
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I like it because the coffee isn't overbearing.
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No. And then my one, cacao and coconut.
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And these are all frappes.
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That just means it's all blended up,
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the ice and everything together.
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They don't leave the ice in big chunks.
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Why do they call it an iced cup?
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I think it's just a term,
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like just a branding term.
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In Canada, That's very good to them.
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At Tim Hortons, which is like the biggest coffee chain in Canada,
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they call it drinks like these,
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Like frappes, they call them ice caps.
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It's very relaxing, huh?
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Really relaxing.
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It's such a nice vibe.
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We'll show you our view in a second here,
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but they also gave us water in these metal cups.
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Can you tell me the difference between these two?
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This right here is a cup.
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Cups could also be made out of any type of material.
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When it's made out of glass,
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you call it a glass.
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So this is a glass.
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This is a cup.
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Now let's show you guys the view.
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So this is our view here at Kong Cafe.
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It's really nice actually.
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You get to see all the scooters and vehicles and we get to sit here enjoying our coffee.
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Well, I didn't get coffee, but enjoying our drink.
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The coconut coffee is really delicious,
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but this is not really the first cup of coffee in the morning.
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This is more like a dessert, so.
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Yeah, that's why I like it.
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I don't like coffee, but I like this.
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My drink is amazing.
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I gave it like a 7.7 out of 10.
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What about your drink?
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What do you give it?
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10. 10?
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Yeah, it's really good.
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So far, my favorite coffee Coffee is being desalted coffee in Vietnam.
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Vietnamese coffee is like really, really strong.
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We had egg coffee yesterday and we didn't record it.
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We were just chilling, but man,
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I could just eat the whipped egg on top.
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That's delicious, but the coffee, man, is so strong.
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So strong, dude.
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I cannot.
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I'm not a coffee person.
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I don't like coffee, but there are a lot of people that love coffee.
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I think next time I'll definitely get what Leon had.
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Let's learn a couple of words here.
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This is a glass.
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This is a spoon.
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This is a paper straw.
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Leon has a plastic straw, a plastic straw.
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This is a paper straw.
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Here we have a mug.
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This is a mug because it has a handle.
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This is a cup because it doesn't have a handle.
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And there are napkins in the mug.
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This is for your cigarette ash.
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So it's an ashtray.
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This is a cup.
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The cup is filled with water,
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not to the brim, but it is filled.
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I'm sitting on a small balcony,
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looking down at the row below.
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In front of me, there are many motorbikes parked along the sidewalk.
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Across the street, people are moving around,
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riding scooters, walking and going about their day.
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The tall green trees stretch over the road,
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creating a soft, natural canopy.
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Their branches hang above the street,
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and the leaves make the area feel cooler and more peaceful.
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Behind the trees, there are buildings, cafes and small shops.
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Everything feels peaceful, but alive.
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You can see movement, hear the traffic,
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and feel the rhythm of everyday life.
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It is not too loud or too chaotic, but steady and real.
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I am just sitting here,
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quietly observing, enjoying the moment,
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and taking it all in.
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We're in this ceramics shop.
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I was wondering what this is.
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And it's a chopstick rest.
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Chopstick rest.
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This one is in the shape of a fish,
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and this one is in the shape of a cat.
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So cute.
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This is like a nice little shop.
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This is what I was talking about.
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Like, I just love the vibe because there are
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so many of these like small little hole in the wall shops that are really unique and just focus on one thing.
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These are very light.
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They're light.
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They're not heavy they're light and they're pretty nice i mean the inside is really dirty
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but you can just clean that
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and each of these mugs have uh like some sort of
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drawing on them bro is this a frog got a frog
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this is the price 175 000 vietnamese don boy this is
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actually funny this looks like some adventure time stuff does it
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not this is like reminding me of adventure time have you
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guys seen adventure time we are now in one of the back rooms of this pottery shop
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and this place is actually huge we've been through a couple rooms now
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and look there's still more like there are just walls of mugs small plates big plates bowls
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and everything there is just a lot to see you have these like very small cups this costs 65 000
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and i like how every cup has a design it's really very cute.
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Oh, here are some proper mugs.
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Oh yeah, some mugs.
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It's really nice.
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These ones are nice, but they're more heavy-duty,
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thicker compared to those ones there.
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Let me grab one that's more delicate.
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Yeah, this right here is quite thin,
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but this one is a lot thicker and heavy-duty.
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This one doesn't have any like handle.
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It's just like a cup,
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but they do have mugs too.
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Do you like this store?
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I like it.
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I wish it was easier to transport ceramics,
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but it's a hard souvenir to buy and to take with
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because it's very fragile very fragile like these plates can easily break i can feel them there are quite thin
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and they just feel very fragile
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so they can break easily right yes that's why you can't travel with them this one's nice too i wonder
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if they made this probably oh you can also go upstairs
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i see someone going up the stairs let's go go
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and have a look here they have just a sofa for
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you to chill after looking at all of this i like this one this one's pretty cool
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but they just have shelves and shelves and walls of these
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so these are really uh good souvenirs to buy they're coasters
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and these ones would be easier to to transport yeah
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because they're flat right yes they are flat let's go upstairs yes let's do it
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and you can see here it just goes keeps on going
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and there's another room over there it's just so much it's got chickens on oh wow this This is huge.
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So big.
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You should take that one.
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I like that.
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I like it big.
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I don't think it'll fit in your suitcase.
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No, probably have to wear it as a hat.
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Let's go upstairs.
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So now we're on the second floor and there's just a lot more.
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Dude, I wonder how many years it took to make all of this.
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This probably took like dozens of years, no?
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You can show here in the back.
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It does say it's made in Vietnam.
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Oh, that's nice.
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Yeah, on all of them.
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Anyway, this shop is absolutely massive.
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So the material, all the stuff here is made out of is called ceramic.
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So the material is called ceramic.
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So these are all ceramic mugs.
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I want to show you this.
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So here I found this one in Spanish.
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It says, A sweet way to change the world.
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Yes.
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Isn't that weird?
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Yeah, I guess you put like some sort of sweet snack on there or your tea or something.
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Yeah, that's really cute.
481
If you want to speak English more clearly and naturally,
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then join my speaking and pronunciation course.
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speaking so you can stop hesitating and speak with more confidence
489
so everything we've seen here has been made of ceramic this is a ceramics store
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and they make everything here
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or at least almost everything really beautiful i really want to
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buy one of these mugs before i leave hanoi i think
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i definitely will okay mom you ready to go yes yes i'm ready
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so what do you think of your first full day exploring Vietnam.
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I loved it.
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I think I could live here.
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It's cheap.
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It is cheap.
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I should say cheaper than Canada.
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So your dollar goes further and the food is great.
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It's fresh.
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The coffee is excellent.
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Food is amazing.
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I don't really drink coffee but I know like people like you love coffee.
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They love coffee.
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Yes.
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What else?
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I think the people are really humble and kind and genuine.
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That's true.
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So yeah.
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I think it's a great destination to come and visit.
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Price, food, slash coffee, and people.
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I really like Vietnam too.
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We will be filming a lot more videos here.
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So if you guys want to see those videos,
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make sure to subscribe and check out the next videos.
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We'll be spending a couple days in Hanoi and then we're going to Hao Long Bay,
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Ninh Binh, and a bunch of other places, including Saigon again.
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So let's get going.
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And we'll also have some videos eating Vietnamese food and describing it.
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So make sure you guys stick around for that.
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About This Lesson
In this lesson, you will practice conversational English through real-life examples from a vlog set in Hanoi, Vietnam. The video emphasizes comprehensible input, enabling you to understand and engage in everyday dialogues. By shadowing the conversation, you will not only improve your listening skills but also enhance your pronunciation, enabling you to use the 3,000 most common English words in meaningful contexts. This practice is essential for learners who wish to understand up to 95% of spoken English.
Key Vocabulary & Phrases
- Ceramic - A type of pottery that is often beautifully crafted and used in decorative arts.
- Destination - The place to which someone or something is going.
- Thrive - To grow or develop well or vigorously.
- Specialties - Distinctive features or characteristics of a place or culture.
- Historic center - A traditional area of a city with cultural significance.
- Beautiful - Pleasing the senses or mind aesthetically; attractive.
- Flight - A journey made by air, especially in an airplane.
- Congratulate - To express praise or joy at an achievement.
Practice Tips
To effectively improve your English pronunciation and speaking fluency, consider using the shadowspeak technique while watching the video. Here are some tips:
- Listen and Repeat: Play the video in short segments. After each segment, pause and repeat what you heard. Focus on mimicking the intonation, rhythm, and pronunciation.
- Monitor Your Pace: The speaker's pace in the video is natural and conversational. Begin slowly, practicing shadow speech at a reduced speed, then gradually increase your speed to match the original.
- Record Yourself: Use a recording device to capture your voice as you practice. Comparing your pronunciation and tone with the original audio will highlight areas for improvement.
- Use Key Vocabulary: Integrate the vocabulary and phrases provided into your speech during practice sessions. This will help reinforce your understanding and usage of essential English words.
- Engage with a Partner: If possible, find a study buddy to practice speaking. Engage in dialogues using the phrases from the video for better retention and confidence.
By regularly practicing through shadowing and focusing on pronunciation, you'll see significant improvements in your conversational skills and overall confidence in English.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.
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