🔥Read the text.

Setting up Camp

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Holiday means something different to everyone. Some people love to bask in the sun on the beach and listen to the lapping waves of the ocean. Others pack up the car and take a trip across the country, stopping to see natural sights and roadside attractions along the way. And some people make camping a main part of their holiday. A camping holiday gives you the chance to enjoy nature and live a little differently from the way you normally do. In many ways, camping is the best type of holiday.

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The clearest benefit to camping is the time you spend outside connecting with nature and with other people. Camping offers a chance to separate completely from a more modern, busy, technology-driven life. In fact, according to a survey of campers by GO Outdoors, a high percentage of campers strongly agree that camping is a time to get away from stress and enjoy not having something to do. Sixty-one percent of campers said that camping helps them escape the hustle and bustle of daily life.

Of course, while there are relaxing aspects to camping, there’s no getting around the fact that the packing and setup is a lot of work. Plus, some people just aren’t fans of sleeping outside on the ground. However, there are plenty of ways to have a more comfortable camping experience. Some people stay in cabins that come with far more amenities than the typical tent. People who camp a lot sometimes travel in motorhomes or camper vans, which have indoor sleeping space for everyone. And for a high-end experience, you could even try ‘glamping’, or ‘glamorous camping’. Many locations offer luxury tents with staff, meals and planned activities.

Though there is some debate about whether ‘glamping’ is true camping, the point is that there are a range of camping options: you can make the experience entirely your own. You can find islands, beaches, meadows and deep forests to camp in, depending on what you’d like to do and where you’d like to explore. While you’re camping, you can take advantage of your surroundings and go fishing, hiking, swimming and canoeing. You can also spend time with your family and friends playing board games or sitting around the campfire. No matter how you choose to spend your time, you will leave with the satisfaction of knowing that you’ve created your own unique holiday.

The good news is that once you’ve caught the camping bug, you’ll have a hard time running out of beautiful places to camp in the United Kingdom, especially at national parks. Picture putting up a tent near a scenic view of Snowdon in Wales or along the sprawling Cairngorms mountain range in Scotland. Campsites are available near the stunning stone columns of the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland and alongside wild ponies in the New Forest in England. For something completely different, you can even paddle or hike to remote campsites that don’t allow cars.

If you do decide to try a holiday in the great outdoors, you’ll likely meet plenty of fellow campers. A camping trip is a classic way to holiday that is only becoming more popular. Indeed, the annual number of camping and caravanning trips in the UK grew by four million from 2014 to 2018. The trend is undeniable: more and more people agree that camping is the best way to spend your holiday time.

🔥What is the author’s main claim or argument?

• ‘Glamping’ is the best way to camp.
• Going to the beach is the most relaxing holiday.
• Camping is the best choice for a holiday.

🔥Read the text.

The Most Important Meal of the Day?

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Whether or not we actually eat one, we all have an idea of what a hearty breakfast looks like. After all, breakfast is the most important meal of the day, isn’t it? Most of us have grown up learning about the importance of breakfast. We’ve heard that eating the right breakfast sets us up for a great day and keeps us healthier and happier. However, research suggests that the importance of breakfast may be overstated.

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Some studies have shown that eating breakfast is not as important to good health as many people believe. In fact, one study showed that eating a large dinner the night before had the same health effects as eating breakfast in the morning. Similarly, skipping breakfast may not automatically lead to worse health, poor attention or bad grades, as was once thought. Some argue that the negative effects seen in previous studies were more likely related to other unhealthy behaviours in study participants. In other words, the poor health and academic performance were not caused by skipping breakfast. An Australian study published in 2019 collected health data for over twenty-eight years from multiple countries. The results showed few differences between breakfast skippers and breakfast eaters. The study concluded that ‘breakfast is not the most important time of the day to eat, even though that belief is really entrenched in our society and around the world.’

Since not all studies prove that breakfast is the most important meal, where did this idea come from? It may be partially the result of companies trying to sell more breakfast foods. In the late nineteenth century, the groups that first made breakfast cereals needed to promote the importance of breakfast in order to sell their products. Therefore, eating a breakfast of cereal made from grains was promoted as the key to a productive, energetic and efficient day at work. A similar ad campaign in the 1920s pushed the benefits of a hearty, protein-rich breakfast in the USA. This increased the popularity of bacon and eggs on the American breakfast table.

Breakfast remains a popular meal around the world even though its importance is debated. And the importance of breakfast may depend in part on what’s actually being eaten. In Spain and France, breakfast for many adults is just coffee and a pastry. People in places such as Japan, Cambodia and South India enjoy soups or stews for breakfast. Many Venezuelans start their day with arepas, which are corn cakes filled with cheese and meat. In Nigeria, people eat beans and cornmeal cakes with fried plantains. People in Pakistan might enjoy spicy curry for breakfast, while people in Turkey and Morocco eat fruit, honey and olives. And in many countries, breakfast is simply the previous night’s leftover dinner. Clearly, if you decide to eat breakfast, there are many options.

The bottom line is that the breakfast debate is more complicated than whether we should eat it or skip it. Food choice and overall eating habits may be more important. Therefore, it’s difficult (if not impossible) to state whether breakfast is beneficial for everyone. So, rather than focusing on just one meal, try to eat balanced and healthy meals throughout the day as you feel hungry. Also, try experimenting with different food options to help determine which—if any—breakfast foods are best for you.

🔥What is the author’s main claim or argument?

• People do better in school after they eat a large breakfast.
• A breakfast of bacon and eggs is part of a healthy diet.
• Breakfast may not be as important as once thought.