Excel / Spotlight-style lesson
What a Strange Place to Live?
Two unusual homes: the tree houses of the Korowai people in Indonesia and the fairy chimneys of Göreme in Turkey.
Photos: Wikimedia Commons (CC). Tree houses: photographer from Jayapura, CC BY 2.0. Fairy chimneys: Mykola Swarnyk, CC BY 3.0.
Exercise 1
Look at the pictures
Talk in pairs · 2 minutes
A tree house of the Korowai people, Papua, Indonesia. Photo: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0.
Fairy chimneys in Göreme, Cappadocia, Turkey. Photo: Mykola Swarnyk, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.
What do you think living in these places is like? Think about weather, safety, daily life, comfort.
Как, по-вашему, живётся в таких местах? Обсудите погоду, безопасность, обычный день, удобство.
Reading · Text A
The tree houses of the Korowai people, Indonesia
Wikimedia Commons, photographer from Jayapura, CC BY 2.0.
The Korowai people of Papua live high up in the tree tops. Their houses are up to 50 metres above the ground. They are made of wood and have thatched roofs. The houses can accommodate up to a dozen people.
To get into their houses, the Korowai climb a long wooden pole with notches cut into it. They build their houses high to be safe from floods, wild animals and mosquitoes which carry disease. Their high homes also protect them from enemy tribes at night.
In the day, the men hunt and gather food. After nightfall they chat and tell stories before going to sleep.
Tap a highlighted word to see its meaning. / Нажмите на выделенное слово.
Reading · Text B
The fairy chimneys of Göreme, Turkey
Mykola Swarnyk, CC BY 3.0; Aytazeynep, CC BY-SA 4.0. Wikimedia Commons.
In Cappadocia, over millions of years, nature created rocks that look like upside-down ice cream cones. These rocks are called fairy chimneys. Prehistoric people lived here. Centuries ago, people carved caves in the rocks.
Today, visitors admire one of the strangest landscapes. It looks like the surface of the moon. The caves are cool in hot summers and warm in cold winters, so they are cosy. There are small rooms with fireplaces and courtyards. It is a fairy-tale place.
Tap a highlighted word to see its meaning.