Activity 53

ざっと読みするために文章を読むときは同時にリスニングを行う。音声を途中で止めたりせずに、話されるスピードについていこう。これはあなたにいくつかの単語をスキップさせることになるだろう。それは実は大事なスキルだ。章は短いので、１０分費やすために何度も同じ章を繰り返しざっと読みすることになるだろう。

Listen to HNT Chapter 9 on YouTube (download it, or open another window) and follow along with the text below (you'll listen as you read).
 
Don't pause. Just allow the audio to continue smoothly.
 
Repeat until the 10 minutes are up.  Your job is simply to spend the time, not to understand every word.

Listen softly, lightly.


HNT Chapter 9
 
In a few days, Mami and I will start our trip. There is not enough time to meet all of Mami’s family and friends. Not unless we stop the clock. Maybe after our trip—in three months—we’ll be able to. As long as we don’t get lost by following the wrong road.
 
This is April, the time of the cherry-blossom season. Rumi has a free day off work. It’s possible she told them she’s got a cough. She drives us in her car to a picnic outside under the pink blossoms. She knows of a good spot opposite some rocks near an onsen.
 
This may be our last chance to see the flowers. Rumi and Mami have prepared a picnic for our lunch. The obento box contains foods in many colors: yellow, red, green, orange and white. The fruit and cooked vegetables have been cut into cubes, segments and triangles. 
 
During the drive, I watch the scenery. Kyushu has many buildings. There’s not much distance between towns. However, there’s still plenty of greenery: rice fields, trees, mountains and so on. Most houses have got gardens and bonsai trees in pots.
 
Of course, in a car you move very quickly. You do not have a lot of time to enjoy the scenery. It will be easier to look around at leisure later on, on foot. Walking is slower, but it is more interesting too. At least, that’s what I think.
 
Although probably hotter too, if I jog.