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Joy English · Level A2 · Postcardsjoy-english.com

A postcard from a trip

Name:Date:

Write a postcard or holiday message about where you are, what you did and what you plan to do next.

Greetings from the mountains

Dear Grandma,

Greetings from the mountains! We're staying in a little wooden hotel next to a lake. The weather is cold but sunny, and the air is so fresh.

Yesterday we walked for five hours to a waterfall. It was hard work, but the view was amazing. In the evening we ate hot soup and played a board game by the fire.

Tomorrow we're going to take a boat across the lake. I'm going to send you lots of photos!

Lots of love,

Jamal

Choose the correct tense

Choose the best form for each sentence from a postcard.

  1. We ___ in a small hotel near the beach at the moment.
    • a) stay
    • b) are staying
    • c) stayed
  2. Yesterday we ___ a boat trip to the island.
    • a) take
    • b) are taking
    • c) took
  3. Tomorrow we ___ visit the old castle.
    • a) are going to
    • b) went to
    • c) going
  4. The food here ___ delicious!
    • a) are
    • b) is
    • c) were
  5. Last night we ___ fish at a little restaurant by the sea.
    • a) eat
    • b) ate
    • c) eaten
  6. The beach was beautiful, ___ the water was very cold.
    • a) because
    • b) so
    • c) but
  7. Which is a good ending for a postcard to a friend?
    • a) Wish you were here!
    • b) Yours faithfully,
    • c) Please reply within five working days.

What did you do?

Type the past simple form of the verb in brackets.

  1. On Tuesday we ___ (go) to the market.
  2. I ___ (buy) a hat for you!
  3. We ___ (see) some dolphins from the boat.
  4. My brother ___ (swim) in the sea every morning of the holiday.
  5. Our bus ___ (arrive) two hours late.
  6. We ___ (not / enjoy) the long walk in the rain.

Writing task

You are on a trip. Write a postcard to a friend or family member. Say where you are staying and what the weather is like. Describe one thing you did and how it was. Say what you are going to do next, and finish in a friendly way.

80–120 words

Check your writing

  • I started with Dear or Hi and a name.
  • I said where I am staying and described the weather.
  • I used the past simple for something I did.
  • I gave my opinion (It was ...).
  • I used going to for a plan.
  • I finished with a friendly line and my name.

Answer key

Choose the correct tense

  1. b) are stayingAt the moment means now, so we use the present continuous: we are staying.
  2. c) tookYesterday is finished past time, so we use the past simple: took.
  3. a) are going toFor a future plan, use be going to + verb: we are going to visit.
  4. b) isFood is uncountable, so it takes a singular verb: the food is.
  5. b) ateLast night is finished past. The past simple of eat is ate.
  6. c) butBut shows a contrast between a good point and a bad point.
  7. a) Wish you were here!Wish you were here! is a friendly, typical postcard ending. The other two are for formal letters.

What did you do?

  1. wentGo is irregular: go, went.
  2. boughtBuy is irregular: buy, bought.
  3. sawSee is irregular: see, saw.
  4. swamSwim is irregular: swim, swam.
  5. arrivedArrive is regular. It ends in e, so just add -d.
  6. didn't enjoy / did not enjoyThe past simple negative is didn't + verb: didn't enjoy (not didn't enjoyed).

Model answer

Hi Lena,

I'm writing this from a café by the sea in a small fishing town. We're staying in a flat above a bakery, so every morning smells of fresh bread! It's hot and sunny and the sea is very blue.

On Monday we hired bikes and rode along the coast to a lighthouse. It was a long ride, but it was great fun and we stopped for ice cream on the way.

On Friday we're going to visit an island with lots of birds.

See you soon,

Sofia

Joy English · free English practice · https://joy-english.com/writing/postcard-from-a-trip