«Josh: Hey, Shirley. You’re from Australia, right?»
«Shirley: Yeah, that’s right. From Down Under .»
Josh: Okay. Are you f rom Sydney?
«Shirley: No. I’m not f rom Sydney. Actually, I’m from Melbourne.»
Josh: Melbourne?
Shirley: Hmm.
Josh: Okay. So are there any nice parts in Melbourne?
«Shirley: Well, you know Josh, Melbourne is a great city. And one of the reasons is because there are lots of parks. There’s a really big park right in the center of the city.
Josh: Is it beautiful?
Shirley: It’s gorgeous. It’s called the Botanical «Gardens». And they have plants from many different places around the world. And there’s a lake, a small lake in the center. But what I really love about that park is at one time of the year, they have lots of big fruit bats that fly into the park and they hang upside down f rom the trees. They are really huge. like big sacks. It’s very cool.
Josh: That sounds beautiful.
Shirley: Yeah.
«Josh: So is there good shopping in your city?
Shirley: Oh, there’s great shopping in Melbourne. You know, Melbourne has people from many different countries. So we have a great variety of things; and clothing, cars, coffee shops, foods from many different countries. So it’s a great place to shop.
Josh: Wonderful. What about housing? Is there cheap housing or is it really expensive?
«Shirley: Well, it’s not cheap but it’s not as expensive as Sydney. Sydney is the biggest city in Australia. It’s very expensive to live. But in Melbourne, hmm, the housing is so-so.»
Josh: How do you get around in Melbourne? Do you take the bus?
Shirley: You can take the bus but Melbourne has something very special that no other city in Australia has. We have a tram system. I think they’re called trolley cars in America, maybe.»
«Josh: Yeah, that sounds familiar.»
«Shirley: Yeah. Well, Melbourne has a really big tram system so you can go lots of places in the city by tram. It’s really good fun.»
Josh: What about the tram? Is it expensive?
Shirley: Not so expensive; cheaper than the bus. Maybe about the same as the train. Cheaper than a car. Probably, one of the cheapest ways to travel in the city.»
Josh: What about schools in Melbourne. Is there a big university?
«Shirley: Melbourne has three or four really big universities and some smaller universities, too. Also, they have some very good private high schools and some very good public high schools.»
Josh: Great. That sounds like a great place to go to school.
Shirley: It’s a pretty great place to live.
