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A call from the travel agent

by Torsten Daerr

The next day, Sandra receives a call from the travel agent. She wonders if there are more problems. However, the agent is only calling to give her some information and to ask a few questions.

Travel agent:	Hi, this is your travel agent, Jan.
Sandra:		Hi, Jan. Is there another problem?
Jan:		No, everything looks great; I just need some 
		information from you.
Sandra:		That’s a relief; I thought sure something 
		had to be cancelled! What information do you 
		need?
Jan:		I need your passport numbers, emergency 	
		telephone contacts, what type of stateroom you
		prefer, and what hour seating you want.
Sandra:		I don’t know Donita’s passport number, but 
		I can give you mine when I come to the office 
		to get our documents. Write us down for the
		late dinner seating. Then we won’t have to rush
		back to the ship if we are in port. My emergency
		contact number will be my daughter, Jenny. Her
		number is 530-1862.  
Jan:		What about the stateroom? I can reserve one in 
		the middle of the ship on the 3rd or 5th deck. 
		There is a price difference. 
Sandra:		Let us have the least expensive one. I 	
		know we won’t be in our room very much, as there
		is so much to do onboard.
Jan:		You’re right, and most of the rooms are about 
		the same size. When I travel, I like to get a 
		room as far below deck as possible because you
		don’t feel the ship moving quite as much. 
Sandra:		That’s a good idea. I don’t get sea-sick, 
		but I think Donita does. She plans on taking
		motion sickness medication with her. 
Jan:		That reminds me. Any medicine you take with 
		you needs to be in the original container. Don’t
		pack it in your suitcase, just in case it is 
		delayed or lost.
Sandra:		Thanks for telling me that; I’ll pass on 
		that information to Donita. Is there anything
		else we should know?
Jan:		Well, I thought you might like to know a 	
		little about the dress code on the ship. During
		the day, you can wear comfortable clothes, but 
		you need to dress-up for dinner. There are 3 
		formal nights, 3 semi-formal nights and the rest
		are dressy-casual.
Sandra:		Hmm. I might have to go shopping for 	
		another formal dress. What is meant by
		dressy-casual?
Jan:		It just means to dress in good taste, no 	
		bathing suits or short shorts in the dining 
		room. Skirts or pant suits for the woman. The
		men need to wear slacks and shirts. I’ll give
		you more details when you stop for the 
		tickets.
Sandra:		What if there are people who don’t want to 
		dress-up? What do they do?
Jan:		There is another dining room where food is 	
		served cafeteria style. It is close to the
		swimming pool, so guests have to wear a cover-up
		over their suits to eat inside. There is also a
		self-service kiosk next to the pool with tacos, 
		pizza, and salad. It’s a very popular place for
		families. Kids don’t like dressing-up for dinner
		and sometimes parents don’t want to either.
Sandra:		It sounds like the staff has thought of 
		something to please everyone.
Jan:		I agree. There’s even a suggestion box onboard
		to improve or add services. I like the idea that
		kids have their own club and planned activities.
Sandra:		I’m really looking forward to this trip. 
		It’s like taking all of the conveniences of home
		with you while exploring different countries.
Jan:		I couldn’t agree more. There’s a library, 	
		jewelry store, gift shop, tobacco and liquor
		store, beauty salon, physical fitness center,
		nightclubs with dancing, laundry rooms, and so
		many planned activities.
Sandra:		Planned activities?
Jan:		Yes, there’s a cruise director who will 	
		announce the activities for the day or week.
		There is everything from golf, to tennis, and
		shuffleboard to lots of inside games, too.
Sandra:		I wish we were leaving tomorrow 
		instead of in two weeks! We’ll be in the office
		in the afternoon for our appointment at 2 for
		more information.

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Where should we go on holiday?

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Sandra has decided to take a vacation. But where should she go? The question is best answered by making an appointment with a travel agent. She invites her friend, Donita to go with her. At the agency
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travel agent        a professional trip planner

tropical            a hot, humid climate

cruise ship         passenger ship for leisure

vacation            
Comprehension questions

 1.    Why does Sandra want to go on a vacation?

 2.    Does she want to go to Alaska?

 3.    Why doesn’t Donita want to go to Hawaii?

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