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My name is Jack from To fluency.
This is A to fluency podcast. 

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Be sure to turn on subtitles. 
Listen to it once without 

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subtitles and then again with 
subtitles and then stay until 

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the end because we're going to 
go through keywords and phrases 

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used in the story. 
Let's get started. 

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The wrong suitcase. 
Lena sighed as she stood on the 

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baggage carousel watching the 
suitcases spin by. 

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She was exhausted after a flight
to Florence for a work 

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conference. 
All she wanted was to grab a 

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suitcase, head to a hotel and 
sleep. 

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Finally, she spotted a bag, Or 
at least she thought it was her 

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bag. 
A black suitcase with the same 

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bright pink ribbon she always 
tied to the handle. 

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She grabbed it, rode it out of 
the airport, and hopped into a 

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taxi. 
When she arrived at her hotel, 

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she kicked off her shoes and 
unzipped the suitcase. 

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That's when she froze. 
Inside was not her carefully 

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packed work outfits, but a 
neatly folded dress, a box of 

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chocolates, and an envelope with
a name written on it. 

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Her heart raced as she opened 
the envelope. 

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Inside was a note. 
This suitcase isn't a mistake. 

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Follow the clues. 
A Lena stared at the note, 

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confused. 
A. 

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That could only mean Alex, her 
boyfriend of two years. 

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But what was he doing in 
Florence? 

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She had left him back home, 
thousands of miles away, saying 

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goodbye at the airport just 
yesterday. 

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She picked up her phone and 
called him. 

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No answer. 
She tried texting him. 

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Nothing Frustrated but curious, 
she rummaged through the 

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suitcase and found another note 
taped to the chocolates. 

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Go to the cafe where you had 
your first cappuccino in 

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Florence. 
Lena smiled. 

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Alex had joined her on her first
work trip to Florence last year 

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and they had stumbled into the 
small cafe near the city centre.

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She remembered the way he had 
laughed at her trying to order 

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in Italian. 
After a rest, Lena set out, the 

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suitcase rolling behind her. 
The streets of Florence were 

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just as beautiful as she 
remembered, with cobblestones 

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under foot and the smell of 
fresh pastries in the air. 

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When she reached the cafe, she 
stepped inside and scanned the 

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room. 
On a small table near the window

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was a cappuccino and a note. 
Lena sat down and opened it. 

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I know you're busy with work, 
but I hope you'll make time for 

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this adventure. 
Your next clue is at the Euphizi

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Gallery, Look near the 
Botticelli paintings. 

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Lina laughed quietly to herself.
Alex knew she loved the Afizi. 

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She had spent hours in front of 
the Birth of Venus on her last 

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trip, admiring every detail. 
At the gallery, Lina felt the 

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excitement growing. 
She walked through the crowded 

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halls, stopping near 
Botticelli's famous painting. 

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There, a museum guide handed her
a small envelope. 

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How did you know to give this to
me? 

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She asked, surprised. 
The guide smiled. 

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A man came earlier, he described
you perfectly. 

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Lena blushed as she opened the 
envelope. 

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The note was longer. 
Remember when we got lost trying

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to find Aponte Vecchio? 
You said you'd never forget the 

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view. 
Go there next. 

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Lena headed toward the bridge, 
her heart racing. 

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She could picture Alex setting 
this up, his playful smile as he

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planned every step. 
Ponte Vecchio was busy with 

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tourist crowd in the shops along
the bridge. 

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Lena searched for another clue, 
feeling a little lost. 

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Then she saw a street performer 
holding a rose. 

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Are you Lena? 
The performer asked. 

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Yes. 
She replied, feeling a mix of 

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surprise and anticipation. 
The performer handed her a rose 

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and a note. 
This is the last stop. 

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Come to the Piazza Michelangelo 
at sunset. 

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By the time the sun began to dip
below the horizon, Lena was 

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climbing the steps to the Piazza
Michelangelo. 

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The view of Florence stretched 
out before her, bathed in golden

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light. 
Her heart pounded as she scanned

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the square. 
And then she saw him. 

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Alex stood near the edge of the 
Piazza, hood in a small black 

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box. 
Tears filled Lena's eyes as she 

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walked towards him. 
You did all this? 

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Alex grinned. 
I figured if you were going to 

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Florence for work, it was the 
perfect chance to remind you how

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much I love you. 
He dropped to 1 knee and opened 

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the box, revealing a sparkling 
ring. 

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Lena, will you marry me? 
Lena laughed through her tears. 

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Yes, of course. 
The Taurus around them clapped 

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as Alex slipped the ring onto 
her finger. 

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As they hugged, Lena couldn't 
stop smiling. 

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What had started as a work trip 
turned into the most 

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unforgettable adventure of her 
life. 

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In this story, we explored 10 
commonly used phrases and a lot 

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of phrasal verbs. 
Let's break those down now so 

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you can understand their 
meanings and how they're used in

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everyday conversations. 
These phrases will help you 

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sound more natural when speaking
English, and it will help you 

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understand English better. 
The first one is step off. 

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And step off means to exit a 
vehicle or a mode of transport 

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by stepping down or out of it. 
So in the story, Lena stepped 

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off the plane. 
Feeling tired but excited, she 

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stepped off the plane. 
Other examples He stepped off 

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the train and looked for a taxi.
As soon as we stepped off the 

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bus, we were greeted by the tour
guide #2 is grab to grab means 

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to take hold of something 
quickly or firmly, and it's 

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often used in casual situations.
In the story, she grabbed the 

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suitcase thinking it was hers. 
She grabbed the suitcase. 

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Other examples, Can you grab me 
a bottle of water from the 

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fridge? 
Can you grab me a bottle of 

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water from the fridge? 
I grabbed my bag and rushed out 

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of the door. 
I grabbed my bag and rushed out 

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of the door. 
The third one is one that is a 

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little bit more advanced. 
It's to kick off to kick off. 

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Now, there are various meanings 
for this, but in the story at 

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the hotel, she kicked off her 
shoes to relax. 

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At the hotel, she kicked off her
shoes to relax. 

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So to kick off means to remove 
something, usually shoes in a 

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casual way. 
Another example is after a long 

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day, I love kicking off my shoes
and lying on the couch. 

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After a long day, I love kicking
off my shoes and lying on the 

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couch. 
Kick off can also mean to start 

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an event or activity. 
For example, let's kick off the 

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meeting with a quick update. 
Let's kick off the meeting with 

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a quick update #4 is set out. 
Set out. 

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To set out means to begin a 
journey or a task with a 

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specific goal in mind. 
In the story, Lena set out to 

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follow the clues Alex had left. 
Lena set out to follow the clues

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Alex had left. 
Other examples are we set out 

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early to explore the city before
it got too crowded. 

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This is something I like to do 
on vacation. 

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We set out early to explore the 
city before it got too crowded. 

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And another example, she set out
to finish her report before the 

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deadline. 
She set out to finish her report

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before the deadline. 
I like #5 which is rummage 

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through, Rummage through to 
rummage through means to search 

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for something in a hurried or 
untidy way. 

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So in the story, Lena rummaged 
through her suitcase to find 

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more clues. 
She rummaged through the 

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suitcase to find more clues. 
Other examples. 

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I rummaged through my bag but 
couldn't find my keys. 

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I rummaged through my bag but 
couldn't find my keys, and he 

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rummaged through the drawers 
looking for a pen. 

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He rummaged through the drawers 
looking for a pen. 

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You're halfway through the 
language analysis, so let's keep

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going. 
Before you do, be sure to check 

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the description for English 
Learning Resources and also for 

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all of the phrases in this 
story. 

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Number six is scan the room. 
To scan the room and to scan the

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room means to look around 
quickly, usually to find someone

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or something. 
In the story it said at the cafe

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she scanned the room for her 
next clue. 

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At the cafe she scanned the room
for her next clue. 

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Other examples are she scanned 
the room for a familiar face, 

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she scanned the room for a 
familiar face, and the teacher 

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scanned the room to see who 
wasn't paying attention. 

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The teacher scanned the room to 
see who wasn't paying attention 

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#7 is head toward. 
You might also hear head towards

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now to head toward means to move
in the direction of a specific 

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place and in the story. 
She headed toward the Uffizi 

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Gallery, excited for the next 
stop. 

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Hopefully I am pronouncing that 
correctly. 

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Other examples are we're heading
toward the park for a picnic. 

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We're heading toward the park 
for a picnic and he headed 

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toward the exit after the 
meeting ended. 

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He headed toward the exit after 
the meeting ended #8 is hand 

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over. 
To hand over means to give 

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something to someone. 
This is often formal with a 

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specific purpose, and in the 
story the performer handed over 

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a rose and a note. 
Other examples are the cashier 

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handed over my receipt and 
change, the cashier handed over 

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my receipt and change, and he 
handed over the documents to his

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lawyer. 
He handed over the documents to 

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his lawyer #9 is look around. 
To look around means to observe 

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your surroundings often when 
you're exploring or searching 

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for something. 
In the story, Lena looked around

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the Piazza, searching for Alex. 
Other examples. 

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We looked around the museum for 
hours. 

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We looked around the museum for 
hours and she looked around the 

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shop for a gift but didn't find 
anything. 

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She looked around the shop for a
gift but didn't find anything. 

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And #10 is slip on. 
To slip on means to put 

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something on quickly, often 
referring to clothing or 

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accessories. 
So in the story, Alex slipped on

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the ring after Lena said yes. 
Other examples are I slipped on 

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my jacket before heading out, I 
slipped on my jacket before 

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heading out, and she slipped on 
her shoes and ran to catch the 

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bus. 
She slipped on her shoes and ran

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to catch the bus. 
So that is today's lesson. 

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If you want to learn more 
English with me, then check the 

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description to go through the 
different lessons that I have 

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available for you. 
If you are on YouTube, then 

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simply click on more videos. 
If you're on the podcast, 

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continue listening with me. 
And if you enjoyed this, then I 

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would appreciate it greatly if 
you shared it with a friend. 

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So click that share button and 
send it to somebody who would 

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benefit from this lesson. 
Thank you for watching or 

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listening and I will speak to 
you soon. 

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Bye for now.