Town Festival in France Saved After Last-Minute Dispute
Listen to the story
The small town of Nay, in southwest France, held its annual festival this week after a dramatic dispute nearly cancelled it.
The trouble started when fairground traders, who set up stalls and rides for the event, learned that the town wanted to move them to a new location. The traders were unhappy about the change.
To show their anger, the traders decided to protest by blocking roads in Nay. This caused serious disruption in the town.
Because of the blockade, the local mayor announced that the festival would be cancelled. This news upset many local people, who look forward to the event every year.
The situation quickly became a local saga, with residents following every new development closely over two very busy days.
However, after further talks between town officials and the traders, an agreement was finally reached. The two sides managed to solve their disagreement about the new location.
As a result, the mayor decided that the festival could go ahead after all, saving it at the very last moment.
The festival was held as planned, much to the relief of the town's residents, bringing a happy ending to what had been a stressful couple of days for Nay.
Vocabulary7 words
- festival
- a special public event with entertainment
- fairground
- an outdoor place with rides and stalls for fun
- protest
- to act strongly to show disagreement
- mayor
- the person who leads a town
- saga
- a long story with many events
- agreement
- a decision reached together after discussion
- relief
- a good feeling after worry ends
Quiz
Answer key
1. A change in their stall location 2. Cancel the festival 3. Yes, after an agreement was reached
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
The small town of Nay, in southwest France, held its annual _____ this week after a dramatic dispute nearly cancelled it.
The trouble started when _____ traders learned that the town wanted to move them to a new location.
To show their anger, the traders decided to _____ by blocking roads in Nay.
Because of the blockade, the local _____ announced that the festival would be cancelled.
The situation quickly became a local _____, with residents following every development closely.
After further talks, an _____ was finally reached between officials and traders.
The festival was held as planned, much to the _____ of the town's residents.