Read the text and choose the correct answers.
An amazing place
St Kilda is situated in the North Atlantic Ocean, 65 kilometres west of the Hebrides Islands off the
north-west coast of Scotland. St Kilda consists of three main islands with a total area of 850
hectares. The main island, Hirta, is a beautiful green island with high mountains and dangerous
cliffs, hundreds of metres above the sea level. For hundreds of years, St Kilda was one of the
smallest and most remote inhabited islands in Europe. At one time 180 people lived on the island,
but by the beginning of the 20th century there were less than 100. The people of St Kilda went

© Macmillan Publishers Limited, 2015

fishing and collected sea birds’ eggs. They ate fish and eggs all the time. Life on the island was
very hard and the people were very poor. There were no schools so children had to leave the
island to get an education. The island had no doctor and the stormy seas around the island
meant that it was often too dangerous for a boat to land, so if people became ill they often died.
Life became too difficult there and, in 1930, the last 36 inhabitants left the island. Today, there
are no permanent residents on the island but tourists often visit in summer when the sea is calm
enough for a boat to land. There are a lot of interesting ruins on the island – three old churches
and the houses of the people who once lived there. The island is also a nature reserve and there
are thousands of sea birds and sheep.
1 Where is St Kilda?
a) off the north-west coast of Scotland b) in the South Atlantic Ocean
2 How far is it from the Hebrides Islands?
a) 850 kilometres b) 65 kilometres
3 How big is it?
a) 180 people b) 850 hectares
4 What did the people of St Kilda eat?
a) eggs and fish b) sheep
5 When did the last people leave the island?
a) 1913 b) 1930
6 When do tourists visit?
a) in winter b) in summer
7 How do tourists get there?
a) by plane b) by boat

Score /7

10 Read the text again and answer the questions.
1 Why did people often die if they fell ill?

2 Why did children have to leave the island to get an education?

3 What can tourists see if they visit the island now?


Score /3

Writing
11 Write a travel guide for an internet website describing a place in your country and things to do in
the area. Include some of the information below.
- the name of the place
- its location
- the size of the place (number of inhabitants)
- description of the place
- what you like about it (your opinion)
- why it is a good place to visit