Part 2 cue cardLeisure and relaxation

Describe a place where you go to think

The third bullet is where answers go vague: "many things" or "my life" gives the examiner nothing. Name one real decision or worry you worked through there, then use the last bullet to say what the place does that home can't.

1 minute to prepare
Up to 2 minutes
Samples at Band 6, 7 and 8
Updated 20 October 2026

Describe a place where you go to think.

You should say:

where it is
when you go there
what you think about
and explain why it helps you

Rehearse the long turn

1 minute to prepare · 2 minutes to speak

Sit this card with the AI examinerThen the Part 3 discussion, and a full report

A 60-second plan

where it isharbour wall, south coast, near Galle
when you go theredawn, before the boats come in
what you think aboutColombo job offer; replaying arguments
and explain why it helps youwaves, horizon, no signal, nobody watching

Sample answers

224 words · about 1:57 spoken at a Band 6 pace

The place where I go to think is the harbour wall in my town. My town is a small fishing town in south coast of Sri Lanka, near Galle. The wall is very long and it goes inside the sea, and at the end there is a place where I can sit and watch the sea.

I go there usually in the early morning, about six o'clock, because after that the fishing boats are coming and it becomes very crowded. I don't go every day, only when I have some problem in my mind.

Last year I got a job offer in Colombo. It was a good job, but if I take it, my parents have to look after our hardware shop alone. So it was very difficult decision for me. I went to the wall many mornings and I thought about it again and again. Sometimes I also think about small things, for example when I had a fight with my friend.

This place helps me because the sound of the waves makes me calm and I can think more clear. Also when I look at the sea, my problems feel smaller. And there is no good phone signal there, so nobody can call me, which is good actually. Finally I decided to stay with my family and I am happy with that.

The mistakes that keep it at Band 6

in south coast of Sri Lanka should be on the south coast of Sri Lanka
it goes inside the sea should be it goes out into the sea
the fishing boats are coming should be the fishing boats come in
some problem in my mind should be a problem on my mind
if I take it, my parents have to should be if I'd taken it, my parents would have had to
very difficult decision should be a very difficult decision
think more clear should be think more clearly

Why this is Band 6, not Band 7

Fluency and coherence: Willing to speak at length and answers every bullet, with the job decision giving it a real centre. Not Band 7 because the links are basic ("So", "Also", "And", "Finally") and the reasons in the last paragraph are listed in short sentences rather than explained.
Vocabulary: Clear enough, with some useful words ("harbour wall", "job offer", "phone signal"), but some choices are inaccurate: "it goes inside the sea" is not how English describes a breakwater, and "some problem in my mind" has the wrong preposition and determiner. Band 7 needs more precise, less common vocabulary.
Grammar: Some complex sentences, but the conditional goes wrong where it matters: "if I take it, my parents have to" should be a past hypothetical. Articles slip too ("very difficult decision", "in south coast"), and "think more clear" uses an adjective for an adverb. That is Band 6 accuracy.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

264 words · about 2:02 spoken at a Band 7 pace

The place I go to when I need to think is a harbour wall in my home town, which is a small fishing town on the south coast of the Sri Lanka, not far from Galle. It's a long concrete wall that stretches out into the sea, and at the very end there's a spot where you can sit and look out over the water.

I usually go there early in the morning, at about six, before the fishing boats come back and it gets busy and noisy. I don't go every day, but whenever I've got something on my mind, that's where I end up.

The biggest thing I've thought about there was a job offer in Colombo last year. It was a good opportunity, but if I'd taken it, my parents would have had to manage our family's hardware shop on their own, so it was a really difficult decision. I went out to the wall almost every morning for two weeks, weighing up the pros and cons. Other times I just think about everyday problems, like an argument with a friend.

There are a few reasons why it helps me. Firstly, the sound of the waves is very calming and it helps me to think more clearly. Secondly, when you look at the horizon, your problems seem a lot smaller somehow. On top of that, the phone signal there is terrible, so nobody can disturb me. In the end I decided to stay at home, and I'm sure the time I spent on that wall helped me make the right choice.

The slips

of the Sri Lanka should be of Sri Lanka

Why this is Band 7, not Band 8

Fluency and coherence: Speaks at length without effort and gives the thinking a concrete example before the reasons ("The biggest thing I've thought about there", "On top of that", "In the end"). Not Band 8 because "Firstly" and "Secondly" make the final section sound listed rather than spoken.
Vocabulary: Some less common, natural items ("something on my mind", "weighing up the pros and cons", "stretches out into the sea") used accurately. Band 8 would be more idiomatic and precise, especially in the reasons, where "very calming" is rather general.
Grammar: A range of complex structures, mostly accurate, including a third conditional ("if I'd taken it, my parents would have had to") and present perfect forms. One slip, "of the Sri Lanka", where the country's name takes no article.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

280 words · about 1:56 spoken at a Band 8 pace

Where I go to think is the old harbour wall in my home town, a small fishing town on the south coast, about twenty minutes from Galle. It's a long concrete breakwater that curves out into the sea, and if you walk right to the end, past the nets and the crates, there's a flat bit where you can sit with your feet hanging over the water.

I tend to go at dawn, around six, before the boats come in and the whole place turns into a fish market. I wouldn't say it's a daily habit; it's more that I find myself heading there whenever something's weighing on me.

Last year, for instance, I was offered a job in Colombo, which on paper was exactly what I'd studied for, but it would have meant leaving my parents to run the family hardware shop on their own. I must have walked out to that wall a dozen times, turning it over and over. More often, though, it's smaller things, like replaying an argument and working out what I should have said, or rehearsing something difficult I need to tell someone.

I think it helps for a few reasons. The rhythm of the waves seems to slow my thinking down to a manageable speed, and staring at the horizon has a way of putting things in perspective. There's also barely any phone signal at the end, which is a blessing in disguise. And the only other people there are fishermen mending their nets, who couldn't care less what I'm doing. In the end I turned the Colombo job down, and I've never regretted it, which I partly put down to that wall.

Why this is Band 8, not Band 9

Fluency and coherence: Fluent and fully coherent, with the Colombo decision introduced in bullet three and resolved at the very end ("In the end I turned the Colombo job down"). Short of Band 9 only because a few links ("for instance", "More often, though") are conventional.
Vocabulary: Wide and idiomatic: "weighing on me", "turning it over and over", "putting things in perspective", "a blessing in disguise", "couldn't care less". Band 9 would show the same flexibility in the opening description of the wall.
Grammar: Flexible and accurate: an unreal past ("it would have meant leaving"), a modal of deduction ("I must have walked out"), "should have said" for regret. No errors; the gap to Band 9 is the occasional safe structure.

Pronunciation is the fourth criterion; it is judged from your voice, so a written sample cannot show it.

Rounding-off questions

Is it hard to find quiet in modern life?: Very, especially in cities. Even when a room is physically quiet, your phone isn't, so real quiet now means making an effort to switch off, not just finding an empty space.
Why do people need time alone?: Because it's the only time you hear your own opinions without other people's mixed in. Without it, people tend to make decisions to please others rather than because they've actually thought them through.