The Danube is not located in Asia. It is a major river in Europe.
Read the article and name the countries the Mekong River runs through.
The Mekong River
The Mekong River, which is over 4,000 kilometres long, is the world's twelfth longest river and the Southeast Asia's longest transboundary river. The Mekong started round 17 million years ago due to increased erosion from monsoon precipitation. Its original name is Mae Nam Khong. In Lao language, Mae Nam (Mother of Waters) means large rivers, and Khong is a proper name.
From Tibetan Plateau the Mekong runs through China, Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Viet Nam. It not only is rich in plant and fish diversity but also provides very important transport links in Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Viet Nam. The Mekong River plays an important role in the life of the people in Southeast Asia, providing a means for people to access natural resources, social facilities such as schools, health services. Passenger transport along the river makes a nice contribution to tourism development.
The Mekong River is also a major trade route in Southeast Asia. A lot of cargo is transported along this river every day, and the cargo ranges from petroleum, coal to fertilisers and farming products. However, though the river brings about great income and different job opportunities, the navigation potential of this river is not fully exploited. The geographical features greatly vary along its length. For instance, the upper part of this river in Laos contains a number of physical obstacles and turbulent sections and only experienced skippers and boats that are small in size can safely navigate this part of the river. Improvements are expected to make the river passable for much larger cargo boats, which will develop both regional and international exchange of goods.
Listen again and decide whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F).
1 The Mekong River has most of its drainage area in Laos and Thailand.
2 The Mekong River is to the west of the Salween River.
3 The Golden Triangle is referred to as the second tripoint the Mekong River runs through.
4 The Mekong River runs through Laos for over 1,000 kilometres before entering Cambodia.
Read the article again and choose the correct answer.
1 Compared to the other rivers in the world, the Mekong River is
A the longest.
B not as long as eleven other rivers.
C longer than twelve other rivers.
2 The Mekong River got its name from
A Chinese.
B Burmese.
C Lao.
3 The Mekong River provides means for Southeast Asian people to access
A turbulent sections and physical obstacles.
B social facilities and natural resources.
C job opportunities and challenges.
4 The navigation along the Mekong River
A is already well-developed.
B still has more potential.
C is limited in Laos only.
5 Improvements should be made so that
A more tourists could visit the countries in the Southeast Asia.
B boats can replace all of other means of transport in the Southeast Asia.
C larger boats can pass some parts of the river more easily to better the goods exchange.
SPEAKING Work in pairs. Discuss the following question.
What do you think is the most interesting thing when travelling on a boat trip or boat tour?
Listen to a talk on the course of the Mekong River. Arrange the places along the course of the Mekong River in the order of listening.
A Golden Triangle
B Tibetan Plateau
C The tripoint of Myanmar, China and Laos
D The Cuu Long River
E The Three Parallel Rivers Area
