IELTS Cue Card -Favourite Music

1. May I know your name?

My name is Britney Spears.

2. Where do you live?

I live in Chittagong, Bangladesh.

3. Do you like games and sports?

Yes, I do. I like different types of games and sports.

4. What types of outdoor games do you play?

I do not play any outdoor games.

5. Do you play any indoor games?

In fact, I play some indoor games such as chess, carom, etc

6. Do you watch the game competitions?

Yes, I do.

7. Do you go to the stadium or watch it on TV?

Usually, I do not go to the stadium except on very special occasions. I usually watch games on TV.

8. What other TV programs do you watch?

I also watch news talk shows, magazines programs, dramas, and movies on TV.

9. How long do you watch TV every day?

Every day I watch TV for about two hours.

Your Favourite Music

My favorite music is Rabindra Sangeet. Rabindranath is by large, the greatest writer of Bengali literature.  He has written and composed hundreds of songs and lyrics. His songs are known as Rabindra Sangeet. During his time Rabindranath was an unorthodox modern writer. He set a new trend in the realm of Bengali literature. He did a lot of experiments in his songs. I like his songs because it seems to me that they tell the story of the innermost part of my heart. Whenever I am in a downcast mood, I listen to Rabindra Sangeet and feel refreshed.

IELTS Cue Card -Favourite Music-Follow-Up Questions

1. What kind of festival do you observe in your country?

In our country, we observe different festivals. Most of the festivals we observe are actually religious festivals.

The Muslims observe two main religious festivals, namely Eid-ul-Fitr and Eid-ul-Azha. The Hindus observe many Pujas around the year.

Among them the Durga Puja, the Kali Puja, etc are remarkable. The Buddhists observe Buddha Purnima and the Christians observe the x-mas day with much pomp and grandeur.

There are also some national festivals such as Bengali New Year’s Day, the international mother language day, Independence Day, victory day, etc.

2. What things do people usually do during the festivals?

During the festivals, people put on special dresses and go to visit others’ houses.

Special dishes are also prepared in every house for entertaining the guests. Houses and offices are also decorated on the occasion of the festivals.

3.  What are the positive aspects of festivals?

Festivals bring color and joy to our humdrum life. They remove boredom and give us joy and novelty.

On the occasion of the festivals, people forget old rivalry and enmity. Hence they play a role in uniting people and improving mutual relationships.

4. How the festivals of your country have changed over the last twenty years?

I think there have been some changes in festivals over the last twenty years. In the past, people interacted with one another in greater degrees.

I think the social ties have loosened to some extent. On the other hand, at present, houses and offices are decorated more gorgeously, which was not done so in such a splendid manner.

5. What changes do you foresee in the festivities of your country over the next twenty years?

I think changes will continuously take place in the festivities of the country. People are getting busier day by day.

So the scope of festivals will get narrower day by day. Though the festivals will continue to take place, fewer people will get involved in them.

However, some houses and offices will continue to be decorated more gorgeously.

6. How do you celebrate Bengali New Year?

Bengali New Year and Baishakhi Mela are Bangladesh’s biggest festivals that showcase the nation’s cultural heritage.

Every year on the 1st of Baishakh, the Baishakhi festival is celebrated with great pomp and ceremony.

The 1st Baishakh brings a new message after leaving behind all of the sadness and pain of the past year. This festival is the oldest tradition in Bangladesh.

The Bengalis celebrate this day to maintain their ancient customs and cultural heritage.

This day marks the beginning of the New Year’s account through the Halkhata ceremony. In terms of public festivals, the Baishakh festival is the biggest one.

7. Tell about a traditional Bengali festival?

The word ‘nabanna’ means ‘new food’. A festival centered on the new season.

This festival is celebrated in the autumn when new crops are harvested. This festival is celebrated in the month of Agrahayan.

Anterior means ‘first’. And ‘Hayan’ means ‘month’. From this, it is easily inferred that at one time Agrahayan was the first month of the Bengali year.

This month is forever associated with the traditional festivals and soil of the Bengali.

But the happy simple life of rural Bengal is lost in the scourge of industrialization and urbanization.

Associated with this is the influence of Western civilization on the younger generation.

However, the Nabanna festival is organized on the first day of Agrahayan to spread the auspicious shadow of Nabanna in civic life. Really, the Nabanna festival in urban life is symbolic.

Cue Card 
Talk about a situation when you had to wait.

You should say:

What you waited for
Why you had to wait
What you did while waiting
and explain how you felt after waiting.

Recently, I had to wait almost a week for a flight. So we were returning from an airport called Faro, in the south of Portugal, in the Algarve. I’m probably pronouncing it wrong, apologies to any Portuguese in the audience.

But our flight was at 8 pm back to Belfast from Portugal. And 10 to 8, so 10 minutes before the flight was about to take off, I got a text message that the flight was canceled with no explanation. I think it was the French traffic controller. So thanks a lot for that.

And what happened immediately after was we just said, OK, no problem. We went to a hotel. And that was actually a bonus because we got to visit a small town in Portugal that we wouldn’t normally go to.

And it was amazing because we got to see the real Portugal. They had a fish market and a vegetable market by the water. So it was nice to shop with the locals and have coffee with the locals. So it was actually a blessing in disguise.

Later that day, we had to decide whether to take a taxi to Spain as there were no flights available that day from Portugal to Belfast, or take a four-hour taxi ride to the capital, Lisbon, or wait for the next one. Available flights, which were five days away.

So we decided to do it because when we added up all the costs, it was actually cheaper to stay the extra five days. And it was an amazing experience as we went back to the resort we stayed at.

And since Easter had passed, it was basically us at the resort. So we got not only five-star service, but six-star service. And it was really cool and beautiful. And canceling our flight was an amazing experience.

Cue Card 

Describe an unusual meal you had.

You should say:

Where you had it
Who was with you
When you had it
and explain how you felt when you had it.

I recently had an unusual meal at a Portuguese restaurant. And for the first time, my wife and I and my two young sons ate Portuguese fish stew. I won’t try and pronounce the Portuguese version of it, but it basically comes in a big cast iron pot and has rice and shrimp and other fish and clams and other shellfish.

Why it was such an unusual experience was that it was a restaurant that was completely outside and it was set in a large garden overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and there were cliffs under the sea.

And it was very special because if you have two young sons, they don’t want to sit in a fancy restaurant. And it allowed our boys to run around the garden and look up the hill. Don’t worry, it was safe.

And it allows me and my wife to play with the boys or eat our meals. And since this stew was in a large cast iron pot, like I said, it didn’t cool.

So I’ll eat something while my wife looks after my boys, and then my wife will come back and she’ll eat something, and then I’ll go and play with my boys.

And they didn’t really eat it because they think that, you know, shrimp and things like that are gross, but we really enjoyed it. I will definitely go back to that restaurant again, and I will definitely order that food.

One thing we missed was that, as we were leaving, we discovered that they have a fresh fish counter where the fish is brought in daily and you can actually go and choose your fish.

My wife loves seafood and next time we’ll have fish stew, but we’ll pick a few other things. It was a pleasant experience and we are excited to go back.