IELTS Speaking Cue Card: An interesting person from a foreign country
Describe an interesting person from a foreign country.
You should say:
Who he/she is?
Where he/she is from?
How long you have known him/her?
and explain why you think he/she is an interesting person.
Sample Answer
Today, I’m going to talk about a foreigner who I think is extremely interesting.
I work as a software developer in a multinational company called Capgemini. At present, we’re working on an international project and there are many foreigners in my team. I’ve a healthy relationship with all of them but I particularly like my team leader.
His name is Martin Henze. He is from Germany. Martin has a Master’s degree in Computer Science from the Technical University of Munich. I first met him in April 2015 when I went to Munich for attending a conference. It’s been almost three years since then.
In my view, Martin is a captivating person. He has many personal and professional attributes which make him special. Professionally, his in-depth knowledge of computer programming and problem-solving skills differentiate him from others. He also has effective communication and presentation skills. His excellent rapport with his colleagues and leadership skills can’t go unnoticed.
Personally, Martin has a pleasing personality. He is very kind and generous. He never shows off his seniority and treats everyone equally. All of us can share our views freely with him. If anyone has a suggestion to improve something, he always listens to them. In my view, developing all these skills is not at all easy. One has to work really hard to develop them and be like him. In short, Martin is my professional role model.
Describe a foreign cultural festival that you like
What it is about?
How you know about it?
What difference there is between that culture and your own?
And explain why you like that foreign culture.
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SAMPLE ANSWER-
The manifold cultures are a set of learned behaviors, beliefs and norms of a specific group of individuals. Our world is full of a variety of cultures and it is something that makes every community unique. I’ve had the opportunity to experience some of the cultures when I was on a recent reunion trip to Nepal with my schoolmates. As one of our friends was from Nepal itself, we came across different cultural traditions that are practiced in that region.
We planned our trip in November, during our festive break. Surprisingly, a similar festival was taking place in Nepal which was enriched with rituals and the citizens of the country were busy decorating, making most of the festive mood. The ritual that fascinated me the most was a festival called ‘Kukur Puja’ which literally means the worship of dogs. The people of that country devoted a mini-festival solely to human’s most devoted friend faithful companion.
Being a dog lover myself, it really delighted me to witness these adorable canines treated with special love and admiration. During this festival, the Nepalese offer flower garlands and delicious food to their pet dogs as well as stray dogs which symbolized their sacredness. This particular festival is not practiced in the culture I come from. Animals, especially dogs are ill-treated and mishandled not only in India but other parts of the world as well. Humans use them for scientific experiments while some slaughter them for meat.
In Nepal, dogs are considered as mankind’s guardian. After talking to some of the inhabitants, I learned that they trusted dogs to accompany them on the way to heaven. I felt extremely overwhelmed to be a part of this heart-melting festival of Kathmandu.
India is a diverse country having four distinct seasons, namely spring, summer, autumn and winter. While the southern and western India experiences moderate summers and winters, the northern regions witness the extremes. As I belong to Chandigarh, a city in the north India, most of the people including me love the winter season. This is because summers are long and sweltering while winters bring the much awaited respite from the blazing sun.
The winters begin by the end of October and last till the end of February. The weather is usually bright and sunny with few foggy days intermittently. I really enjoy basking in the sun with my friends and sipping a cup of hot coffee. During weekends, we plan to go window shopping in the seventeen sector market plaza followed by hot meals at one of our favorite joints. Also, we plan at least one trip to Shimla, a nearby hill station in the month of December , when there are chances of a snowfall. It’s still my idea of a perfect holiday with friends as there is a bit of everything to do like trekking, shopping, sightseeing , sledging and clicking loads of pictures.
Winters also bring in a lot of healthy fruits and green vegetables. This is the perfect time to try out different recipes which are colorful and full of nutrients. We do get some grandma style goodies too like peanut and jaggery sweet bars, which I absolutely love eating every now and then. What’s more, winters offer us to dress ourselves in some stylish overcoats, cardigans, caps and boots. All this and more make winter season, the most awaited season for me.
FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS
Q1. What are the seasons that you have in your country but other countries do not? Ans. That’s a difficult question actually and I need to have a sound knowledge of other countries to answer it. Still, with whatever idea I have, I can say that India is much more diverse as there are 4 distinct seasons here unlike many foreign nations. For instance, while the gulf countries witness extreme Summers, the nations in north America and Europe have long and extreme winters.
Q2. Is there a seasonal festival in your country? Ans. Yes, we do have many festivals to celebrate seasons. Harvest festivals are also seasonal festivals , celebrating both bounty and the change of seasons. Baisakhi is a festival of spring harvest in April celebrated by both Hindus and Sikhs. Then, Basant Panchmi is celebrated to welcome spring in the month of February. People dress in yellow to mark flowering of mustard fields. Also, Pongal is a harvest festival dedicated to the Sun God. It is celebrated in January in the south of India.
Describe a famous person whom you admire.
You should say:
Who this person is?
What makes him/her famous?
Where does he/she live?
and explain why you admire him/her.
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SAMPLE ANSWER-
I think we all look for certain qualities in a person we admire or follow. I have always been a huge admirer of Amitabh Bachchan. He is a Bollywood superstar and globally recognized cinema thespian. Being one of the senior most celebrity of actor, he is 76 years of age but his energetic performance does not reflect the age.
Amitabh Bachchan’s tremendous universal appeal and influencing personality makes him top the list of World’s Most Admired People. His qualities and down to earth nature are the reasons why people regard him as one of the greatest actor any film industry has ever produced. When I read an article on his biography, I came to know about the struggles he has gone through during the early days when he encountered rejection and flopped movies. Even after being a global personality, Mr. Bachchan is well known for his punctuality and giving his 100% in all tasks. Age is just a number for him as with increasing age, he’s getting even better with his performance on screen.
Mumbai is the film capital of our country and Amitabh Bachchan belonging to India lives there. He lives there in a mansion where fans religiously stand outside on weekends just to get a glimpse of the legend.
I admire Mr. Bachchan not only because he’s a great actor, but for his contribution to society as well. He is a social activist. His donations to various non-profit organizations and reliefs funds are also worth a praise. Mr. Bachchan has also been honored with popular Indian awards, which makes me admire and respect him even more.
(267 Words)
Another Similar Cue Card
Describe a famous person you are interested in.
Who is this person and how do you know him?
Did you happen to meet him? If yes, then tell when and where?
What was the person doing before becoming famous how did he turn famous?
And what qualities do you admire in him?
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SAMPLE ANSWER TWO-
Famous persons become personalities or stars for the bourgeois society. They are intentionally broadcasted on media exhibiting their panache and lifestyle, in general. Most of us feel highly immersed in their charisma and get mesmerized by their auras. People even endeavour to impersonalize those famous characters. I, being no exception, am devotedly interested in that genius maestro of cricket and considered God by Indian cricket lovers, Sachin Tendulkar. I used to watch and play cricket since 1980’s but beginning from 90’s and for the next fifteen years, what I witnessed was a phenomenon whenever he used to be on pitch.
No, unfortunately I could never grab that opportunity of meeting the cricket doyen, but I was always in a state surpassing even anxiety and thrill, whenever I Imagined that moment. Still, I have not yet belied my hopes and I am very optimistic of meeting him some day.
Out of my curiosity for this wizard, I read and heard about him a lot. Sachin Sir hails from a middle class Brahmin family near Dadar, Mumbai. His father was a poet and mother was working with Insurance industry. He took up cricket at a very young age of 11, getting admission in India cricket Club. He has represented Bombay domestically and India internationally for nearly 25 years. He made his international test debut against Pakistan’s menacing bowling attack, when he was just 16. Later on, he traversed almost every milestone and earned immense fame and love for setting his own new landmarks in cricket.
Well, his courteous and humble personality, despite being Sachin, has always taken the wide applause everywhere. His focus and elegance in his play of game is apparently superhuman. His adroitness and blitzkrieg reflexes are awesome. His intelligence and temperament sets him apart from rest of the contemporaries.
STRONG WORDS
Word
Meaning
Menacing
fearful: Tsunami view in India was menacing.
Adroitness
skill: You need to be adroit in driving to take the car in hills.
Blitzkrieg
lightning attack: Snow Avalanche(storm) approaches like a blitzkrieg.
Ostentation
pretension: One should shed away ostentation to live an honest life.
Follow-up Questions
Q. 1 How do you think a person becomes famous?
Sample answer: Success journey to fame, wealth and power comes at a great expense. One has to be passionately involved in an action to bear good fruits. Practice, dedication, watchfulness and unwavering hope for the goal makes a person successful and success brings fame as an appendix.
Q. 2 How do you think about those who are famous for notoriety?
Sample answer: Actually, the people who get the news attention because of their misdeeds are not famous, they are rather infamous. This brings a sham for him and all those who are associated with him. Path has prominent importance in reaching to a destination. Even though infamous people earn money but they never get that respect and dignity from society.
Q. 3 Do you want to get famous? If yes, then in which field?
Sample answer: Yes, I also want to get famous. But here I should be judgemental about my talents and passions. Because, until and unless, you have an alloy of both, there are only bleak chances of success and fame. I think writing is my passion and I possess apt talent too. So, I think, with the consistent pursuance of my passion, one day I shall be a famous person.
Q. 4 Do you think there is a change in attitude of people after becoming famous?
Sample answer: We can say that, attitude inversion, is a widespread common characteristic witnessed in celebrities, nowadays. They float hefty airs around them and apparently believe in ostentation. Special attention down poured on them by public imbibes an arrogant artificiality in them. But, I think that, there do exist famous people who still live a humble and courteous life and remain polite in their demeanour and Sachin is one of them.
