65 To move house means to change from one place to another. 2. You can live in a building like a terraced house, a permanent place or a house. A garden is not a building or in a building, it is outside. 3. To buy, to rent and to move in are all related to finding a home and starting to live there. To move out is another phrase for to leave a place. 4. A longboat, a canal boat and a houseboat are all places to live on water. An owner is a person, not a boat. 5. To get, to buy and to get hold of are words describing the buying process. Expensive refers to a high price, not to the process of buying. 6. To get out, to leave and to move are dynamic actions. To stay is static. 7. A flat, a terraced house and a cottage are places where you can live. A roof is just the top part of a building. Test practice: Living on a houseboat (Transcript and key) Presenter: Today renting a flat or buying a house is extremely difficult, especially for the young. Welcome to our panel discussion on “Are houseboats the solution to the housing crisis?”, in which we would like to discuss if living on a houseboat can be the solution for the future. Please welcome my guests Charles Bonington, the owner of a houseboat for 35 years, and Elizabeth Harring, a housing expert from the local council here in Islington. Charles, you’ve been living on a houseboat in London and all over the country for the past 35 years. Please give us a brief account of what it’s like to live on the water. Charles: First of all, thanks for inviting me, it’s a pleasure to be here. Ah – well, what is it like to live on a boat? Well, I would say it’s a fantastic experience, I love it. We used to live in a small terraced house in a small road in South East London, with many kids in the neighbourhood – which was great, of course – but the disadvantage was that everybody knew you and that meant that there was always someone watching you. And we didn’t go on holiday on a regular basis either, so it was sometimes quite boring as well. Now, when I was old enough to look for a flat to rent or a house to buy, I wanted to get out, but I found that most places, even small cottages, were simply much too expensive and I did not want to hand all my money over to a developer. And – this is also important – I did not want to live in a block of flats, either. Presenter: Hm. So how did you come across the idea to get a houseboat? Charles: It was pure coincidence. A friend of mine got married and before his big day he invited us on a river cruise on a longboat, you know, these long narrow canal boats that are quite common on British waterways. At first, I was not really interested as I can’t swim, but then I found it quite exciting. And when such a longboat became available, I bought it. It was in very, very bad condition, but with my little money I could buy it on the spot. And that’s how it all started. Well, the downside is, we don’t have a garden. Presenter: That’s interesting, Charles. Elizabeth, do you think that houseboats could solve our housing crisis? Elizabeth: Well, first thanks, Charles, for your account, that is such a typical story. Many people are faced with the same problems as you. They are young, they want to move out, but they just cannot afford to. For the lucky ones who can get hold of a houseboat this might well be the solution to their individual problem. But is it a solution for everybody? Well (sighs) … I doubt it. The main reasons are that the space on our waterways is even more limited than on land. So if everybody in need of a permanent place to stay got a houseboat, there would simply be no space left on our rivers and canals. Charles: If I may interrupt you there, do you think that thousands of people would rush to get a houseboat if they could? Elizabeth: Of course not, I was just explaining the technicalities of the issue. We must be aware that houseboats are nice and romantic, but not everybody can cope with such a lifestyle space – let alone wants to do it. Presenter: Well, thanks for the first round of answers. It looks as if the issue is more complicated than many people think. 0: d, 1: b, 2: c, 3: d, 4: c, 5: a, 6: d 5 + 11 Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
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