BQ: How does Michael Palin use language to advise people going on a long journey? KNOW BEFORE YOU GO by Michael Palin Part of the pleasure of travel is getting to know a place in advance. Read. But nothing will be more use to you than some contact with a person of the country you’re going to. I don’t mean a guide or a travel agent – but someone who lives or has lived in the country. Nothing is more valuable to a traveller than inside information. The better you know the language the more you will understand and appreciate a place. Enough greetings, words of thanks and appreciation in the local language make the first contact and very often coax out someone who is also shy about trying out their English. Read up carefully on the habits and customs of a country. In some places how you dress, how you eat, even how you say hello will be quite different from home. It is amazing how much difference it makes if people feel you have made some attempt to understand their way of doing things. Packing: worth thinking about carefully. Run the trip through in your mind. Remember it’s the most mundane things that matter most. So, keep wardrobe simple and concentrate instead on things like toilet paper. Single sheets in flat packs are much easier to pack, and use, than a roll. Know your luggage. When you pack, make sure you know what you’ve put in and where it all goes and try and keep it the same every time you re-pack. Save yourself both panic and stress. Find an imperative in paragraph 1. STARTER: Do you like getting advice? Explain. Why do you think Palin has included the underlined comment? Why tell readers that others feel shy about speaking English? The best advice is… Find an imperative in paragraph 4. How does it link to paragraph 1? Tick the ingredients you may find in advice: Description Evidence Reasons Information Instructions Friendly tone Modal verbs: should, might etc. Imperative verbs / commands Heading Sub-heading First person (I), second person (you) or third person Why do you think Palin includes comments about toilet paper? Would you follow Palin’s advice? Explain.