Learn English with the News – Without Tourists, Monkeys Begin Stealing from Homes in Bali

The global COVID pandemic has had so many obvious consequences and repercussions. One of those is certainly a massive drop in tourism, especially to those isolated countries that live off of international guests coming in. In Bali, it appears that monkeys, no longer scared by the crowded, bustling streets, are now stealing from homes around the island! Watch the video and then do the accompanying English language exercises.

The news is a consistent source of entertainment, knowledge and discovery that never ceases to exist and always comes out with more and more material each day. Because it plays such a vital part in our lives and is so important to keep up with, it is without a doubt a piece of your everyday routine that can’t go ignored.

Whether it is to understand the ramifications of recent legislation passed, to hear about recent events and grasp the potential consequences to your country, or simply hear about what is happening in other countries in order to compare them to what’s happening in yours, the news is certainly a staple in our lives and the most consistent way to get information.

This is why Scrambled Eggs has decided to unite two of your biggest worlds: learning English and keeping up with what is happening in the world. We hope our challenging daily exercises, composed of listening, vocabulary and comprehension exercises in English, will satisfy both of those above worlds in a satisfactory and also entertaining way.

So enough about introductions, let’s get to today’s Learn English with the News topic:

Adapted from this article.

Now that you’ve had a listen, let’s put your knowledge to the test with some of our vocabulary and comprehension exercises:

FULL TEXT:

“Hungry monkeys on the island of Bali began raiding villagers’ homes searching for food. Normally, tourists bring foods like bananas or peanuts for the monkeys in exchange for a photograph.
Residents now offer fruits and other goods to the primates in order to reduce thefts. The residents say that they are scared of the monkeys becoming wild again. There are about 600 monkeys living in the sanctuary and are considered sacred.
Before the pandemic, the area was popular for wedding photos and for attracting international visitors. The monkeys, normally tame, could be coaxed to sit on a shoulder or lap for a peanut. Since Indonesia banned all foreign travellers both the monkeys and the sanctuary have suffered.
Some villagers have offered to help the sanctuary by providing donations, but food for the monkeys is expensive: about $60 each day. This money, which usually comes from admission fees, buys cassava and bananas, the monkeys’ staple food.
These macaques are omnivorous and can eat a variety of animals and plants. At the sanctuary, however, they have had enough contact with humans that they now prefer other things. Now, they sit on roofs or wander into villages, waiting for an opportune moment to make off with food or religious offerings. The villagers hope that things will return to normal as the borders reopen.”