Welcome to Lesson 7. Any questions or comments? Please write us at: support@realenglishnow.com

Please watch the video below. Remember: Don’t write anything. Just watch and listen. By the end of the lesson you will understand everything!

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Greg: This, I’m guessing, is… Is this in the Bellagio?

Mark: This is in-

Greg: Or no?

Mark: I think this is in The Encore. So, Encore is one of the two Wynn properties. There’s…Steve Wynn is like Mr. Vegas (Words of Experience Video), and he owns The Mirage, Treasure Island…and God knows what else…The Golden Nugget. And he then has his own signature hotel just called “Wynn,” which is a great play on words because it’s his last name, but it’s also… sounds like the word “win.” Which means, you know…

Greg: Right

Mark: –to win…Win your gambling. That’s a great name. And then this was his follow-up to that hotel, which is a logical name to call it Encore. Because an Encore is, you know, ‘the thing that follows which is even better,’ if that makes sense.

Greg: Right.

Mark: So this is, long story short, The Encore Hotel.

Greg: Very nice. I’ve never been there. And I didn’t know that Wynn had anything to do with Treasure Island, which we have not mentioned…Which is actually a pirate themed…The Treasure Island Hotel. That’s kinda cool. They have this awesome boat show in the front.

Mark: It’s not enough to say “an awesome boat show.” What happens is there are two pirate ships. One of which…This is in a huge lake outside the hotel. One ship comes…It’s…They’re moving. This pirate ship moves, sails along the lake, around the bend. And they have a, you know, a cannon fight and one of the ships sinks. There’s explosions, and people are jumping off the ship. I mean, you don’t want to just say, “A boat Show”. This is a…

Greg: Sorry.

Mark: Yeah, this is a spectacle that has…has tourists lining up for hours to get good seats, to watch a free show outside of a hotel. It’s a…

Greg: Right.

Mark: It’s a hell of a (Words of Experience Video) spectacle. And let’s-

Greg: And…

Mark: Go ahead.

Greg: When we were there, though…You’ll have to come up with a picture for this, but…When we were there it was cold. And those guys were jumping into the water, still. I was like, “Man, I hope…” They must be getting paid a lot for that.

Mark: Yeah.

Greg: I think they were probably doing okay.

Mark: And of course, outside The Mirage you have…

Greg: Outside the…Oh, the volcano?

Mark: Yeah.

Greg: Yes. The Mirage. If you recall when that opened, that was, you know, there…Yeah, there weren’t that many awesome thematic hotels at the time. That was kind of like the start of it.

Mark: That was…The Mirage was the start. The Mirage was absolutely the start of the new Vegas.

Greg: Yup.

Mark: Getting back though to this picture. So we were…I was showing other pictures, Greg, while we were talking. But now, back to The Encore. Just this long, long corridor of marble, which is very hard on your legs. I might as well label this picture “Vegas Legs” because…

Greg: Right

Mark: Imagine, you know…It’s not enough that you have to walk the three miles of The Strip, you have to walk inside and around, you know, within each casino. And it’s all this marble. Unending corridors of marble. This is where you get your Vegas legs.

Greg: Alright, so is this inside of a hotel? I’ve…This doesn’t look familiar to me, or does not look like a hotel I have been in, actually. I know that’s Dasha. She’s wearing a fancy dress. Where are you? Where are you guys at?

Mark: This is the registration…front desk area of the Paris Hotel.

Greg: Oh, nice. Which…Speaking of Dasha: Which was her favorite hotel of all of them, do you think?

Mark: I think she loved — we’ll see it later, but — The Bellagio. Especially the, you know, the outside fountains, which were incredible. But we’ll show that a little bit later. Her second favorite was The Venetian, which we’ll see after this. And she loved The Mandalay. Just…That’s where we were staying, and she had never been in a room and in a suite, you know like that. So, I think those three were her standouts for her.

Greg: Looking at this picture of you under The Eiffel Tower. How good of a replica is this compared to the actual Eiffel Tower? Is it just as tall? Do you know?

Mark: It wouldn’t surprise me if this was even, like, half scale or half-size. But it’s still pretty darn big.

Greg: Right. And I noticed in this picture you can see the very top of your knee, which means you’re wearing shorts. Which means it must have been warm out. How was the weather?

Mark: It was close to Arizona temps (temperatures), which means it was probably a hundred and five, or something, in Las Vegas.

Greg: In Celsius, that would be in the forties, probably, yeah?

Mark: Yeah, probably right around forty. Yeah. Toasty, but nothing I couldn’t handle.

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God knows ___ else = and — it’s incredible — other things (or people, or places, etc) too!

Remember, in these four groups of sentences below, a native speaker will usually use the 2nd version. So, “and God knows what else” is the advanced phrase we want to learn.

He ate a chocolate bar, four donuts, two pieces of cake, and — it’s incredible — other foods, too.
He ate a chocolate bar, four donuts, two pieces of cake, and God knows what else.

She went out with Mike, Dave, Tom, Bill, Roger… and — it’s incredible — other guys, too.
She went out with Mike, Dave, Tom, Bill, Roger, and God knows who else.

He went to two bars, a party, then another bar, and then some club, and — it’s incredible — other places, too.
He went to three bars, a party, then another bar, and then some clubs, and God knows where else.

Steve Wynn owns the Mirage, Treasure Island, the Wynn, the Golden Nugget and — it’s incredible — other casinos, too.
Steve Wynn owns the Mirage, Treasure Island, the Wynn, the Golden Nugget and God knows what else.

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long story short = without explaining it more than I already have

Remember, the 2nd version (the sentences with “long story short”) is what a native speaker would say.

This weekend I met the owner of a software company. He liked my ideas, gave me an interview and — without explaining it more than I already have — I’m moving to Boston to work for him.
This weekend I met the owner of a software company. He liked my ideas, gave me an interview and, long story short, I’m moving to Boston to work for him.

I asked her if she would like to go to dinner with me, and without explaining it more than I already have, we are meeting for dinner tomorrow.
I asked her if she would like to go to dinner with me, and long story short we are meeting for dinner tomorrow.

The waiter was rude. The food was awful. Without explaining it more than I already have, I did not enjoy that restaurant.
The waiter was rude. The food was awful. Long story short, I did not enjoy the restaurant.

So this is — without explaining it more than I already have — The Encore Hotel.
So this is, long story short, The Encore Hotel.

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to come up with = to find (also = to think of, to produce, to create)

“to come up with” is a difficult phrasal verb in English because it has two prepositions (“up” and “with”).

If you don’t find the key to the house, we won’t be able to go inside.
If you don’t come up with the key to the house, we won’t be able to go inside.

I couldn’t find a solution to your problem.
I couldn’t come up with a solution to your problem.

I tried to find the missing part, but it was too dark to see.
I tried to come up with the missing part, but it was too dark to see.

When we were there, it was really cold. You’ll have to find a picture for that.
When we were there, it was really cold. You’ll have to come up with a picture for that.
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to be hard on someone, something = to be stressful for

Accelerating so quickly like that is very stressful for the engine.
Accelerating so quickly like that is very hard on the engine.

His new job is too stressful for him.
His new job is too hard on him.

While you are sick, you shouldn’t be outside in the cold. It is too stressful for your body.
While you are sick, you shouldn’t be outside in the cold. It is too hard on your body.

In the hotel there is this long corridor of marble which is very stressful for your legs.
In the hotel there is this long corridor of marble which is very hard on your legs.

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a standout = an impressive thing or example

In high school, Michael Jordan was not an impressive basketball player.
In high school, Michael Jordan was not a standout basketball player.

I think the new BMW is the impressive car this year.
I think the new BMW is the standout car this year.

She was always an impressive singer.
She was always a standout singer.

For Dasha, the Venetian and the Bellagio were the two impressive hotels in Las Vegas.
For Dasha, the Venetian and the Bellagio were the two standout hotels in Las Vegas.

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toasty = hot , warm (depends on context)

My fingers were warm inside my new gloves.
My fingers were toasty inside my new gloves.

It was cold last night, but I was warm inside my thick blanket.
It was cold last night, but I was toasty inside my thick blanket.

The pizza was really hot. I almost burned my tongue when I took a bite.
The pizza was really toasty. I almost burned my tongue when I took a bite.

The temperature in Las Vegas was over 100 degrees. That’s hot, but nothing I can’t handle.
The temperature in Las Vegas was over 100 degrees. That’s toasty, but nothing I can’t handle.

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Easy: He ate a chocolate bar, four donuts, two pieces of cake, and — it’s incredible — other foods, too.

Advanced: He ate a chocolate bar, four donuts, two pieces of cake, ___ ___ _____ ____ ____ .

Easy: This weekend I met the owner of a software company. He liked my ideas, gave me an interview and — without explaining it more than I already have — I’m moving to Boston to work for him.

Advanced: This weekend I met the owner of a software company. He liked my ideas, gave me an interview and, ____ _____ _____, I’m moving to Boston to work for him.

Easy: I couldn’t find a solution to your problem.

Advanced: I couldn’t ___ ___ ___ a solution to your problem.

Easy: Accelerating so quickly like that is very stressful for the engine.

Advanced: Accelerating so quickly like that is very ____ __ the engine.

Easy: In high school, Michael Jordan was not an impressive basketball player.

Advanced: In high school, Michael Jordan was not __ ______ basketball player.

Easy: My fingers were warm inside my new gloves.

Advanced: My fingers were _____ inside my new gloves.