VIP Class Notes (Vicki)

Reading

The American R&B singer Akon has said his plans to build a city from scratch will go ahead. Akon has raised funds for a futuristic metropolis with a population of 300,000 people. It will be called Akon City and be built on the coast of Senegal on Africa’s west coast. Akon has Senegalese roots. He was born in the USA to Senegalese parents and spent much of his childhood in Africa. He described his city as a “real-life Wakanda,” in reference to the city in the movie “Black Panther”. He announced that construction on the $6 billion project will commence next year and is expected to take three years to complete. He hopes his undertaking will provide much-needed employment for Senegalese.

on the akoncity.com website show a cityscape of surreal-looking gleaming glass and steel high-rises. The designs of the towering skyscrapers were inspired by traditional sculptures made in African villages. The city will boast high-tech living and high-speed Internet connectivity. Akon wants the city to be a port of call for Senegalese and other Africans facing racial injustice in the USA or Europe. He said: “The system back home treats people unfairly, in so many different ways that you can never imagine. And they only go through it because they feel that there is no other way. So if you’re coming from…the diaspora and you feel that you want to visit Africa, we want Senegal to be your first stop.”


A sushi restaurant in Japan has come up with a novel idea to help its business. It is using bodybuilders to deliver sushi to people’s homes and workplaces. The restaurant is located in central Japan and is owned by 41-year-old Masanori Sugiura. He is the third-generation owner of the 60-year-old Imazushi restaurant. As well as being a sushi chef, Mr Sugiura is a bodybuilder. He ranked third in a world bodybuilding championship earlier this year. He wanted to increase sales in his restaurant after the number of customers dropped because of coronavirus. Sugiura called his service “Delivery Macho”. Customers need to order a minimum of 7,000 yen ($66) of sushi to get their food delivered by a bodybuilder.

The Delivery Macho service is proving to be popular with customers. Even though the restaurant is in central Japan, Mr Sugiura says he has delivered sushi to places as far away as Tokyo and Osaka. Tokyo is around 350km from the restaurant. The service has also been trending on Twitter. Satisfied customers have posed for photos with the bodybuilding delivery men, who take their shirt off and pose for photos at the doorstep. The delivery men stay socially distanced. This has helped to increase orders for the restaurant. Mr Sugiura said the service has also helped to employ people out of work. He recruited his friends from fitness gyms to work as sushi delivery staff.

Grammar

Different from……
i.e. My hair is different from your hair.
i.e. My hair is different from that of yours.

Can + verb. (base form)
i.e. I can swim.

Battery – die
i.e. my battery is about to die. /My battery is dying.
i.e. my battery is dead.

Past perfect simple
Have + past participles (verb.ed)
i.e. I have finished my homework.
I.e. I have taught English before.
have done something…..

Vocabulary

phenomenon

justice system

law

policy

court

judge

regulations

injustice

Supreme Court

legislation

pass a legislation -> law

guilty -> prison (serve time)

be sentenced – 被裁决
He was sentenced to prison for 3 years / He was sentenced to serve 3 year.

Pronunciation

violent [via lent]

Homework

Review the vocab and write one sentence for each new word