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NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Moments Chapter 9 The Accidental Tourist

Ncert solutions class 9 english supplementary book chapter 9 – download free pdf.

*According to the NCERT Syllabus of 2023-24, this chapter has been removed.

We are offering you the most authentic NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Chapter 9 The Accidental Tourist, including answers to all the questions of the Class 9 English supplementary reader Moments. These NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English have been curated by our team of subject-matter experts so that the students get the most standard solutions for the questions of the book.

The NCERT Solutions for Class 9 will help students to get a better comprehension of the chapters of the book. The solutions are written as per the guidelines of the CBSE board. This makes it easier for students to refer to them and score really well in their examinations. You can also download the NCERT Solutions in printable PDF format for free through the link provided below and learn anytime, anywhere.

NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Chapter 9 The Accidental Tourist

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The Accidental Tourist

Think about it

Question 1. Bill Bryson says, “I am, in short, easily confused.” What examples has he given to justify this?

Answer: Bill Bryson says, “I am, in short, easily confused.” He gives some examples to justify the said statement. He would go looking for the lavatory in a cinema, for instance, and end up standing in an alley on the wrong side of a self-locking door. He tells that his particular specialty was returning to hotel desks two or three times a day and asking what his room number was.

Question 2 . What happens when the zip on his carry-on bag gives way?

Answer: The side of the bag flew open and everything within was extravagantly ejected over – newspaper cuttings and other loose papers, a 14- ounce tin of pipe tobacco, magazines, passport, English money, and film. His documents came falling down, coins bounced onto the floor and his fingers began to bleed as he had gashed his finger on the zip.

Question 3 . Why is his finger bleeding? What is his wife’s reaction?

Answer: His finger is bleeding because he had gashed his finger on the zip. His wife did not show anger or exasperation. Instead, she looked at him with an expression of wonder and said that she could not believe that he did that for a living.

Question 4 . How does Bill Bryson end up in a “crash position” in the aircraft?

Answer: Once, on an airplane, the author leaned over to tie a shoelace. At the same moment, someone in the seat ahead of him threw his seat back into full recline. That is when the author found himself pinned helplessly in the crash position. It was only by clawing the leg of the man sitting next to him that he managed to get himself freed.

Question 5 . Why are his teeth and gums navy blue?

Answer: On a plane, the author was writing important thoughts in his notebook while sucking thoughtfully on the end of his pen. The pen had leaked. The author’s mouth, chin, tongue, teeth and gums were now coloured navy blue.

Question 6 . Bill Bryson “ached to be suave”. Is he successful in his mission? List his ‘unsuave’ ways.

Answer: No, he is not successful in his mission to be suave. He does a lot of things in unsuave ways. He would rise from dinner tables looking as if he has just experienced an extremely localized seismic event, get in a car and close the door leaving 14 inches of coat outside, wear light-coloured trousers discovering at the end of the day that he has sat various times on chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup and motor oil.

Question 7 . Why do you think Bill Bryson’s wife says to the children, “Take the lids off the food for Daddy”?

Answer: Bill Bryson’s wife says to the children, “Take the lids off the food for Daddy,” because she is afraid that if Bill takes off the lids, he might create another awkward situation. She knew that such situations kept happening with her husband quite often, especially when he travelled.

Question 8 . What is the significance of the title?

Answer: The title ‘The Accidental Tourist’ is very precise and significant. The author, in his entire story, gives numerous instances which prove him to be an accidental tourist. He is a tourist who keeps facing humourous accidents and troubles. He travels a lot and yet makes undeliberate mistakes while doing things that others do without any evident difficulty.

Chapter 9 – The Accidental Tourist Summary

‘The Accidental Tourist’ is a humorous story where the author makes fun of his own ways of handling himself. He says that he is not good at living in the real world. He wonders how people manage to do things without any evident difficulty, which is beyond him. He shares numerous instances where his clumsiness gets the better of him – leaving 14 inches of his coat while getting in the car and closing the door or wearing light-coloured trousers and discovering at the end of the day that he sat on chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup, etc.

The  NCERT Solutions for Class 9 carries all the important questions and answers for all the subjects and chapters. The students can refer and easily download the solutions PDF for free to excel in the board examinations.

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• NCERT Solutions For Class 9 English - The Accidental Tourist

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NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Moments Chapter 9 - The Accidental Tourist PDF Download

The Accidental Tourist is a lighthearted novella where the author reflects on his travel adventures. Living in the actual world is possibly the most challenging thing. believes that surviving in the actual world is the hardest thing to do. When he attempted to open his bag, the zipper jammed, spilling the contents all over the place. In his flight journeys, he was always perplexed, and he perplexed others. It is a widely held belief that the world has become a smaller place as travel has grown more convenient, yet it is also true that not everyone finds travel convenient. This is a story written by Bill Bryson where the author describes a set of incidents that keep the readers laughing. According to him, the real world is not the place where you should live peacefully or safely. The string events at the airport will clearly depict why he was hilariously right. NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Moments Chapter 9 are what you need to get hold of these incidents at the airport and answer the questions accordingly. He wanted to be in Boston on the Easter festival and was a frequent flyer of British Airways. He had the membership card in a bag hanging around his neck. It was then all the troubles started to began. You can download The Accidental Tourist Class 9 PDF file on your computer and use it to study the chapter properly. Subjects like Science, Maths, English will become easy to study if you have access to NCERT Solution for Class 9 Science , Maths solutions and solutions of other subjects. You can also download NCERT Solutions for Class 9 Maths to help you to revise the complete syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

The Accidental Tourist CBSE Class 9: Summary

‘the accidental tourist' is a lighthearted novella in which the author mocks his own behaviour. he claims that he is unable to function in the real world. he is perplexed as to how individuals manage to achieve things that elude him without apparent trouble. he recounts numerous instances in which his clumsiness has gotten the best of him, including leaving 14 inches of his coat hanging in the car while getting in and closing the door; wearing light-coloured trousers and discovering at the end of the day that he sat on chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup, and other items. the author excellently narrates the string of events he faced at the logan airport before and while travelling to boston for easter. he was a member of british airways and had the membership card with him. at first, the hanging bag carrying the card was not opening as the zip got stuck. on applying sudden force, all the contents of the bag flew in the air. all his documents, british pounds, tobacco pipe, etc spread on the airport floor. he cut his finger and started bleeding. cbse class 9 english the accidental tourist describes how his wife wondered that the author traveled for a living..

He then describes what happened once he stooped down to tie his shoelaces while sitting on the airplane seat. It was then another flyer in front of him reclined his seat back and made him stuck. He had to crawl under his legs to come out. The hilarious description of such incidents in Class 9 The Accidental Tourist will keep you engaged till the end of the chapters. You can use the NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Chapter 9 Moments to understand how to write answers to the questions of a comedy piece of literature properly. All of the relevant questions and answers for the chapter are included in the NCERT Solutions for Class 9. To excel in the board examinations, students can refer to and readily download the solutions pdf for free.

Access NCERT Solutions for English Chapter 9– The Accidental Tourist

Chapter 9, ‘The Accidental Tourist’ from English Moments Class 9 English is part of NCERT Solutions which provides detailed answers to all of the questions.

1. Bill Bryson says, “I Am, in Short, Easily Confused.” What examples has he given to justify this?

Ans: Bill Bryson's journeys were never pleasant. Bill Bryson can't go about his daily business without generating a mesh. He was easily perplexed. He gave an example of being unable to find a restroom in a movie theatre and eventually found himself standing near a self-locking door. He frequently forgets how to get to the restroom. Another example is when he inquired about his room number several times a day at the motels. He has trouble remembering his hotel room number. He can forget practically everything that is required to carry out our daily activities. Most of us seldom think about how effortlessly we go about our daily lives. It's all programmed into our heads. However, certain people, such as Bill Bryson, find it difficult, if not impossible, to do so.

2. What happens when the zip on his carry-on bag gives way?

Ans: In that situation, the author became extremely perplexed. When the zip on his carry-on bag broke, everything inside spilled out all over the place. Newspaper clippings, loose documents, tobacco packets, periodicals, passports, English money, and film were strewn on the floor. The zip irritates his fingertips. He's in a lot of pain, and he's bleeding a lot. All of the items in his suitcase are flying across the airport's waiting room floor. He appears to be mocking himself and has a civilized way of behaving in a specific location.

3. Why is his finger bleeding? What is his wife’s reaction?

Ans: While attempting to pull the zip with force, his finger gashed and began to bleed. His finger has become stuck in the zip of his bag, causing him pain. His wife is astounded at how he has wreaked havoc all around him. “I can't believe you do this for a living,” his wife exclaimed, looking at him in wonder.

4. How does Bill Bryson end up in a “Crash Position” in the aircraft?

Ans: Someone in the seat ahead of him threw his seat back as soon as he leaned over for this purpose. Bill Bryson once leaned forward, stooping to tie his shoelaces while on an airplane. Meanwhile, the individual in the seat in front of him reclines his seat. As a result, he is unable to move from the kneel-down position and finds himself in a "crash position." Certain folks seem to have an uncanny ability to always end up in an unpleasant situation.

5. Why are his teeth and gums navy blue?

Ans: With him, strange things used to happen. It was the worst experience he'd ever had. While writing crucial thoughts, he was nibbling on his pen while analyzing his writing. He was engrossed in a conversation with a lovely lady and failed to notice the leak in the pen. He was so negligent that the ink got into his mouth and he didn't even realize it. It took him a little longer to win over the lady seated next to him. It was also enough time for the ink to demonstrate the strange effect in his mouth. His teeth and gums were navy blue when he went to the bathroom.

6. Bill Bryson “Ached To Be Suave”. Is he successful in his mission? List his ‘Unsuave’ ways.

Ans: It is evident that Bill Bryson yearned to be sassy. In his mission, he fails miserably. He got into a car and shut the door without leaving 14 inches of coat outside, and wore light-coloured trousers without realizing at the end of the day that he had sat on chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup, and motor oil at various moments. In public areas, there are unwritten standards that govern how we should act. You should, for example, know good dining table etiquette. Burping in public is considered uncivilized. While eating, avoid making chomping noises. The list goes on and on. While following these principles, Bill Bryson was always involved in some form of mishap. He would always make chicken chunks fly after slicing them with his fork. If he opened the lid of something tasty, he'd probably spray it all over his clothes.

7. Why do you think Bill Bryson’s wife says to the children, “Take the Lids off the Food for Daddy”?

Ans: Bill Bryson's wife was aware of her husband's travel habits. His wife was well aware of his proclivity for wreaking havoc on others. She asked her children to undertake routine chores for their father as a precaution. She says, "Take the lids off the food for Daddy," to avoid any embarrassing situations, because she didn't like her husband's method of taking the lid off the meal.

8. What is the significance of the title?

Ans: The title has a lot of weight. After reading the entire story, it is clear that Bill Bryson is The Accidental Tourist. There are other cases like these that demonstrate the title's appropriateness. The title itself alludes to the author's several unusual and unintentional events. The main character in this story is prone to making minor blunders. This can cause discomfort to other people, especially during a tour. Consider yourself seated in a railway window seat, admiring the magnificent countryside outside. Then someone on the upper deck spills his favorite curry, ruining your nice shirt as well as your mood. Those kinds of people are down at ease in their own homes. The title "The Accidental Tourist" is appropriate given the way he creates mishaps.

Why Use NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Chapter the Accidental Tourist?

Quick Preparation

When you use NCERT Solutions Class 9 The Accidental Tourist, you will understand the chapter very well and will find the right answers to the questions in the exercises properly. All the answers in Ch 9 Moments Class 9 Solutions are framed by experienced teachers who are aware of the CBSE format. These are the answers to what the examiners expect from students during an exam.

Practising Answering Questions of this Chapter

Class 9 English Ch The Accidental Tourist is a difficult chapter as you have to preserve the comic tone in all your answers. To practice writing the answers, you will require the assistance of NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Moments The Accidental Tourist.

Proper Revision

Using the NCERT Solutions of Class 9th English Chapter The Accidental Tourist will help you prepare and revise the chapter during the exam. When time is limited, you can easily complete the syllabus by referring to the answers given in the solution. Rely on the quality answers provided by the top mentors and save time to revise Ch 9 English Class 9 Moments repeatedly.

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Why Choose Vedantu for NCERT Class 9 English Chapter the Accidental Tourist Solutions?

Over the years, Vedantu has been one of the leading study portals for the students of all classes. Covering the syllabus of English becomes a lot easier for hardworking students when they have the right answers for all the chapters. The experts know how to frame the answers so that the students can easily understand them and memorize to frame their own in the exams. NCERT Solutions Class 9 English The Accidental Tourist should be followed to start preparing the English syllabus beforehand and complete it.

FAQs on NCERT Solutions For Class 9 English - The Accidental Tourist

1. How NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Moments Chapter The Accidental Tourist can Help?

The answers in the exercise of this chapter can be framed easily when you follow what experts have done in the NCERT Solutions Class 9 English Moments The Accidental Tourist.

2. How can You Increase Your Answer Writing Skills in English?

Follow the answering format and language level used by experts in the NCERT Class 9 English The Accidental Tourist solution to improve your writing skills.

3. How can you Score Better in The Accidental Tourist NCERT Solutions Class 9 Exam?

Always go for the answers provided by Vedantu’s experts in Class 9 English Moments Ch 9 Solutions. Practice answering the questions following the solution to gain more confidence and score better in the exam.

4. What is in the Chapter 9-The Accidental Tourist?

The author excellently narrates the string of events he faced at the Logan Airport before and while travelling to Boston for Easter. He was a member of British Airways and had a membership card with him. At first, the hanging bag carrying the card was not opening as the zip got stuck. It is an interesting chapter and you will find all the solutions on Vedantu for your convenience. 

5. Who is the accidental tourist in the story The Accidental Tourist?

The author is the accidental tourist in the story The Accidental Tourist. The hilarious description of certain incidents in Class 9 The Accidental Tourist will keep you engaged till the end of the chapter. It talks about being clumsy and as students, most of them can relate to it. For more help, you can visit the Vedantu website or the app. 

6. What is the speciality of Bryson in Accidental Tourist?

Bill Bryson is the narrator of the story. He was a clumsy man. He finds the simplest things difficult especially when he is travelling. He messes things up when travelling and thus calls himself an accidental tourist. He cut his finger while zipping up the bag. It is a hilarious account of events and a light read for students.

7. What is the significance of the story The Accidental Tourist?

This story signifies the character of a man who finds everything difficult. He creates a mess when travelling. He is unable to manage a safe journey. The term 'The Accidental Tourist' alludes to Bill Bryson's haphazard tendency as a frequent flier. He travelled extensively around the world. On the other hand, he consistently managed to produce some sort of mishap when flying. NCERT solutions by Vedantu offer in-depth knowledge in concise language.

8. Where Can You Find The Solutions for Class 9 The Accidental Tourist?

Vedantu offers NCERT solutions for Class 9 Chapter The Accidental Tourist for free. You can download the PDF with just a single click. Further, it provides you with revision notes and important questions too. It will be of great help at the time of your exams. The solutions offered by Vedantu uses simple language to make it easier for students to grasp any and every concept. 

9. What are some tips to write English answers effectively in Class 12 Board Exams?

For easy and impressive answers, students can use the NCERT Solutions for the chapter 'The Accidental Tourist' provided by Vedantu. In addition to this, the solutions can boost students' critical thinking capacity and help them memorize and retain important quotes and names. These can be used as effective tools in writing answers especially in a subject language like English. While following these Solutions, take a look at the notes and revise them at regular intervals. Finally, after students have reaped all the benefits from the NCERT Solutions, they can try a hand at solving the previous years’ question papers.

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NCERT Solutions For Class 9 English Moments Chapter 9 The Accidental Tourist

Chapter 9 – The Accidental Tourist

Think About It

1. Bill Bryson says, “I am, in short, easily confused.” What examples has he given to justify this?

The examples Bill Bryson gave to justify his statement that he was easily confused are that many times he went looking for the lavatory in a cinema but ended up standing in an alley on the wrong side of a self-locking door. He also said that his specialty was returning to hotel desks two or three times a day and asking what his room number was. This is why he said that he was easily confused.

All Chapters: CBSE Class 9 English Syllabus (Latest)

2. What happens when the zip on his carry-on bag gives way?

When the zip on his carry-on bag gave way, everything within – newspaper cuttings and other loose papers, a 14- ounce tin of pipe tobacco, magazines, passport, English money and film fell and scattered on the ground.   

3. Why is his finger bleeding? What is his wife’s reaction?

He had gashed his finger when he was trying to pull the zip forcefully due to which it started bleeding.

His wife looked at him with an expression of wonder and said, “I can’t believe you do this for a living”.

4. How does Bill Bryson end up in a “crash position” in the aircraft?

Once on an aeroplane, Bryson leaned over to tie his shoelaces. At the same moment, someone in the seat in front of him threw his seat back into full recline. At that time Bryson was pinned helplessly in the crash position. He had to claw the leg of the man sitting next to him in order to get himself freed.

5. Why are his teeth and gums navy blue?

Once while travelling on a plane, Bryson was writing some important notes in his notebook sucking thoughtfully on the end of his pen. He fell into conversation with an attractive young lady in the next seat and could not notice the leakage in the pen.  When he visited the lavatory he found that his mouth, chin, tongue, teeth and gums were all coloured with navy blue ink.

6. Bill Bryson “ached to be suave”. Is he successful in his mission? List his ‘unsuave’ ways.

No, Bill Bryson was not successful in his mission of being suave. He would love just once in his life to rise from a dinner table without looking as if he had experienced an extremely localised seismic event, get in a car and close the door without leaving 14 inches of coat outside, wear light-coloured trousers without discovering at the end of the day that he had at various times sat on chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup and motor oil.

7. Why do you think Bill Bryson’s wife says to the children, “Take the lids off the food for Daddy”?

Bill Bryson’s wife was very well aware of her husband’s travelling habits. She asked the children to take the lids off the food for Bill because she knew that if Bill had tried to do that himself, then he might have taken it off in such a manner that the lid would be flying away to some part of the plane and the food might spill all over the place.

8. What is the significance of the title?

The title ‘The Accidental Tourist’ is significant because it signifies characteristics of a man, Bill Bryson, who travels a lot but cannot manage to ever have a safe and accident free journey. Every time he gets into a trouble unknowingly. The story depicts many humorous travel experiences of Bill Bryson – like being pinned in a crashed position, spilling drink on a co-passenger, colouring his gums and teeth blue. He always forgot his room number and went to the hotel desk again and again to enquire about it. Through the various experiences that he mentions in the story one comes to the conclusion that he is an accident prone person not only while travelling but also in life in general. Thus, the title of the story is absolutely perfect and apt.

The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions and Answers Class 9 English Moments

The accidental tourist extra questions and answers short answer type.

Question 1. Bill Bryson says “I am, in short, easily confused.” What examples has he given to justify this? Answer: He gives the example of returning to his hotel desk two or three times a day, asking what his room number was. He also talks about looking for a lavatory and ending up standing in an alley on the wrong side of a self¬locking door.

Question 2. What happens when the zip on his carry-on bag gives way? Answer: The side of the bag flew open and everything inside it, like newspaper cuttings, other loose papers, a 14-ounce tin of pipe tobacco, magazines, passport, English money, film, etc, were scattered all over the place. He also injured his finger, which bled profusely.

Question 3. What causes his finger to bleed? How does his wife react? Answer: His finger was cut on the zip when he was trying to open it. His wife looked at him with an expression of wonder and commented that she couldn’t believe that he did that for a living.

Question 4. How does Bill Bryson end up in a ‘crash position’ in the aeroplane? Answer: This happened when he bent down to tie his shoelaces while seated in the plane, and the person in the seat ahead of him threw back his seat back in a full recline. As a result, Bill Bryson found himself doubled over and pinned helplessly in the ‘crash position’.

Question 5. Why do the writer’s teeth and gums turn navy blue? Answer: This happens when the writer was penning down important thoughts in his notebook during a flight. He had been sucking thoughtfully on the end of his pen while doing so. He had not realised that in the process, his teeth and gums had turned navy blue because of the ink.

Question 6. Bill Bryson ‘ached to be suave’. Is he successful in his mission? Answer: No, he is not suave in spite of his best efforts, because he always looks as though he has been through an earthquake when he rises from a dinner table. He can never get inside a car without having at least 14 inches of his coat hanging outside the door. He can never wear light coloured trousers without having chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup, or motor oil stains on them.

Question 7. Why do you think Bill Bryson’s wife says to the children, ‘Take the lids off the food for Daddy’? Answer: She says this because her husband is so accident-prone that she expects the food to go all over the place or some such accident to happen if he is allowed to open the lid himself. This is because of his earlier accidental incidents that always happen whenever he tries to perform simple actions, especially during flights.

Question 8. What is the significance of the title? Answer: The title suggests that the writer is a tourist, not by choice, but by accident. It is a pun on the word accident, as he has several accidents while travelling. In fact, this effectively captures the various misadventures that he has while travelling with his family. It also suggests that the anecdotes and events described are humorous and should be taken in a lighter vein.

Question 9. Why does the writer say ‘living in the real world’ is challenging for him? Answer: He says this because he has had several experiences of doing something wrong in instances where normal people have no problems. For instance, things like remembering his room number in an hotel, or finding the lavatory at a movie theatre.

Question 10. Why did the writer feel the need to open his carry-on bag at Logan Airport? Answer: He wanted to open the bag to take out his frequent flyer card, which he had kept inside it.

Question 11. Of all the things that spilled out of his carry-on bag, what was the writer most disturbed about? Why? Answer: He was most disturbed about the loss of his tobacco tin, because he was worried it might be very expensive to buy in England.

Question 12. How did the writer free himself from the crash position? Answer: He did so by clawing at the leg of the man sitting next to him.

Question 13. How did the writer affect the lady sitting next to him during one of his flights? Answer: He kept knocking soft drinks into the lady’s lap, even though he tried to be careful after the flight attendant had cleaned her up the first time he had done so.

Question 14. How did the lady next to the writer on the plane react? Answer: She looked at the writer with a stupefied expression of disbelief, and exclaimed an oath that started with ‘oh’ and ended with ‘sake’, and had words in between that he had not heard a nun utter before.

Question 15. What, according to the writer, was his worst experience on a plane? Answer: The worst experience according to him was the time his mouth and teeth turned navy blue. He had been sucking on the end of his pen while writing down his thoughts. He then spoke to an attractive lady sitting next to him, before he realised that his teeth, chin and gums had turned a striking shade of blue.

Question 16. What does the writer do to curb his accidental tendencies when he is flying alone? Answer: He doesn’t eat or drink, or lean over to tie his shoelaces. He also never puts his pen anywhere near his mouth.

Question 17. Why does the writer not get his frequent flyer miles? Answer: He does not get his miles because he couldn’t find his frequent flyer card in time. Also, he forgets to ask for the miles when he checks in, or the airline does not record them, or the check-in clerk informs him that he is . not entitled to them.

Question 18. Give an example to show that the writer is a frequent flyer? Answer: The fact that the writer says that he usually flies 100,000 miles a year in about 23 different airlines, reveals that he is a frequent flyer.

Question 19. Give an example of when the writer was not given miles because he was not entitled to them. Answer: On a flight to Australia, which could have got him a large number of air miles, he was told by the airport clerk that he was not entitled to them.

Question 20. Why were the miles not credited to the writer? Answer: They were not credited to him because the ticket was in the name of B. Bryson, while the card was in the name of W. Bryson. Even though the writer tried to tell her that ‘Bill’ was the short form of ‘William’, she refused to oblige him.

Question 21. How do we know that the writer is a positive man? Answer: We know this from the fact that though he did not get a free passage to Bali due to the insufficient airmiles on his card, he was quite philosophical about it. He remarks that it is probably a good thing, because he could not have remained hungry on the long flight from America to Bali.

Question 22. What is the meaning of ‘venerable’? What is the writer trying to say by using the phrase ‘close and venerable relationship between Bill and William’? Answer: Venerable means honourable or respectful. By using this phrase, the writer is saying that both Bill and William are closely related; they are in fact different forms of the same name.

Question 23. How was the writer planning to fly to Bali? Answer: He was planning to do so by using the air miles that he would collect for flying so frequently. They are the bonus that one is given for flying by a particular airline, where a person is awarded a free ticked to any destination after one collects a certain number of points.

Question 24. What is the tone of the lesson ‘The Accidental Tourist’? Answer: The tone is humorous and self-deprecating. The writer has made fun of his own shortcomings and clumsiness, by listing out all the accidents he has had while flying in an aircraft, as well as the embarrassing situations he has been in because of this.

Question 25. Do you think the writer’s family members have trouble travelling with him? Give reasons for your answer. Answer: I feel that the writer’s family are quite used to his clumsiness and have reconciled to the fact that he is likely to have several ‘accidents’. This is evident from the fact that his wife asks the children to take the lid off the food for the writer, because she knows even a small thing like opening the lid can have disastrous consequences if he is allowed to do it.

The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1. What kind of picture do you get of the writer’s character from the lesson ‘The Accidental Tourist’? Answer: He appears to be a positive, funny, and self-deprecating man who does not mind highlighting his shortcomings. In fact, every instance that could have embarrassed other people has been shown in a humorous light. He has found humour in the most disastrous and frustrating situations. Even when he loses the chance to go to Bali when the airline refuses to give him air miles on a technical reason, he does not lose his temper.

He does not take himself too seriously and readily accepts his clumsiness. He doesn’t try to hide any of the embarrassing accidents he has had, but honestly admits to them. His family also appears to have accepted him the way he is, and leamt to handle him along with his ‘accidents’. The writer’s most endearing quality is how comfortable he is with his own self. Even though he talks about wanting to be suave and gentlemanly like other travellers, he is not too worried when he is unable to do so, in spite of his best efforts. He thus comes across as a clumsy, accident-prone, but good natured person.

Question 2. Mention two disastrous events that the writer experiences while travelling with women travellers and trying to impress them? Answer: The first instance mentioned is when he is travelling next to a sweet young nun, and he twicp spilled his drink on her lap, thereby testing her patience greatly. In fact, she became so agitated that she used swear words, which he had not expected a nun to use. The second instance was when he was talking to his lady companion while sucking on the end of a pen. He later realised that the ink from the pen had stained his teeth, gums, and chin a bright navy blue, which had obviously made him appear ridiculous.

Question 3. Discuss the title of the story. Do you think it is appropriate? Give reasons for your answer. Answer: ‘The Accidental Tourist’ is an apt title for this story. The title is a pun on the word ‘accidental’. On one level, the writer is literally accident prone, and has a problem of having the most peculiar accidents while travelling. Some of the accidents include spilling the contents of his bag all over the airport, spilling food and drinks on his fellow travellers. At another level, it refers to him being an accidental or unwilling traveller.

We know this because he mentions that even though he travels a lot every year, he prefers to travel with his family rather than alone. In their absence, he tries to avoid eating or drinking, out of fear of causing mishaps to those travelling with him.

Question 4. How does the writer’s family behave during the writer’s mishaps and accidents? Answer: The family seems to have accepted the fact that they cannot travel with the writer without facing some accident or the other. This is revealed in the part where the writer’s wife reacts with wonder and says taht she cannot believe he does it for a living. She seems neither angry nor exasperated/annoyed with his clumsiness. Instead, when he begins to eat the food served during the flight, his children help him take the lid off the food, and his wife warns the children when he is about to cut the meat.

Question 5. How could the writer make his journeys advantageous inspite of the accidents? Why is he not able to benefit from them ultimately? Answer: The writer is a frequent flyer. Hence, he could benefit from collecting frequent flier miles that the airline offers to those who travel with their airline on a regular basis. These miles add up to a free ticket to any destination of the traveller’s choice. They writer is, however, not able to take advantage of this scheme, because he either can’t find his card on time, or forgets to ask for the miles. Sometimes, the airlines don’t record the miles, and one time, the check-in clerk informed him that he was not entitled to the points. Moreover, he doesn’t stick to a single airline, and mentions having travelled with 23 airlines, thereby losing out on points from any single airline.

NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Moments Chapter 9 The Accidental Tourist

NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English

The Accidental Tourist NCERT Solutions for Class 9 English Moments Chapter 9

The accidental tourist ncert text book questions and answers.

The Accidental Tourist Think About It

Question 1. Bill Bryson says, “I am, in short, easily confused.” What examples has he given to justify this? Answer: Bill Bryson was easily confused. Many times while searching a lavatory in a cinema, he ended up standing on the wrong side of a self-locking doorin an alley. He used to forget his room number. He had to go to the reception at least two or three times a day to enquire about his room number.

Question 2. What happens when the zip on his carry-on bag gives way? Answer: The author tried to open his bag forcefully. The side of the bag flew open and all his items fell out in the open. Newspaper cuttings, tobacco packet, passport, money, etc. rained out over an area about the size of a tennis court.

Question 3. Why is his finger bleeding? What is his wife’s reaction? Answer: The author tried to open his carry bag to find out his discount card. The zip got jammed. He tried to open it and got a long deep cut in his finger. It started bleeding. His wife looked at him with an expression of wonder. She remarked, “I can’t believe you do this for a living.”

Question 4. How does Bill Bryson end up in a “crash position” in the aircraft? Answer: Bill Bryson leaned over to tie shoe laces, just at the moment someone in the seat ahead of him pushed his seat back into full recline. He was hit badly and found himself pinned helplessly in the crash position. He could get out of this position only by clawing to the leg of the passenger sitting beside him.

Question 5. Why are his teeth and gums navy blue? Answer: Bill Bryson was writing some important thoughts in a notebook. In between he was sucking on the end of his pen. He fell into conversation with an attractive lady. He amused the lady for more than twenty minutes. He did not realise that his pen had leaked. When he retired to the lavatory, he found his teeth and gums navy blue.

Question 6. Bill Bryson “ached to be suave”. Is he successful in his mission? List his ‘unsuave’ ways. Answer: Bill Bryson tried to open his bag in a polished way but the zip gave away and his paper and other items fell around. There was always an accident on the plane. He got hit badly while trying to tie his shoe laces. He knocked soft drink twice onto the lap of a sweet lady sitting beside him. He painted his teeth and gums navy blue with his leaking pen. He used to get into a car and close the door without taking his full coat inside the car. Sometimes he used to sit on a chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup and motor oil. This type of behaviour is not acceptable in anyway. It makes a person lose his dignity. One should always be well mannered.

Question 7. Why do you think Bill Bryson’s wife says to the children, “Take the lids off the food for Daddy”? Answer: She knew if Bill was left to take off the lids himself, he would spill the contents and either spoil his own clothes or the clothes of those who were around him. She always told her children to take the lids off the food for daddy to avoid any embarrassing incidents.

Question 8. What is the significance of the title? Answer: Bill Bryson narrates humorously his experiences as a tourist. ‘Accidental’ means ‘happening by chance’. The narrator relates his experiences in the story. All the incidents, he narrates, are accidental happenings. The story is full of chance happenings in the life of the author. Hence, the title of the story is appropriate.

Torch Bearers Summary

NCERT Solutions For Class 9 English Moments Chapter 8 The Accidental Tourist

• 9th June 2023

NCERT Solutions For Class 9 English Moments Chapter 8 The Accidental Tourist is given here. These Solutions contains answers to all questions provided in the textbook. Class 9th English Moments Chapter 9 solutions are explained by the expert English teacher and as per NCERT (CBSE) guidelines.

Class 9 English The Accidental Tourist Questions and Answers

Think About It

Question 1: Bill Bryson says, “I am, in short, easily confused.” What examples has he given to justify this?

Answer: The examples Bill Bryson gave to justify his statement that he was easily confused are that many times he went looking for the lavatory in a cinema but ended up standing in an alley on the wrong side of a self-locking door. He also said that his specialty was returning to hotel desks two or three times a day and asking what his room number was. This is why he said that he was easily confused.

Question 2: What happens when the zip on his carry-on bag gives way?

Answer: The author got much confused in that condition. When the zip on his carry-on bag gave way, everything within fell on the ground and scattered all over. Newspaper cuttings, loose papers, tobacco packet, magazines, passport, English money and film spread over a large area.

Question 3: Why is his finger bleeding? What is his wife’s reaction?

Answer: His finger bled because he got it injured. He pulled the zip forcefully and got a deep wound. Blood came out in plenty. His wife looked at him in wonder and anger. She said that she couldn’t believe he did that for a living.

Question 4: How does Bill Bryson end up in a “crash position” in the aircraft?

Answer: Once onboard a flight, Bryson leaned over to tie his shoelaces. At the same moment, someone in the seat in front of him threw his seat back into full recline and Bryson was pinned helplessly in the crash position.

Question 5: Why are his teeth and gums navy blue?

Answer: Once while travelling on a plane, Bryson was writing some important notes in his notebook sucking thoughtfully on the end of his pen. He fell into conversation with an attractive young lady in the next seat and could not notice the leakage in the pen.  When he visited the lavatory he found that his mouth, chin, tongue, teeth and gums were all coloured with navy blue ink.

Question 6: Bill Bryson “ached to be suave”. Is he successful in his mission? List his ‘unsuave’ ways.

Answer: No, he is not successful in his mission. He would love just once in his life to rise from a dinner table without looking as if he had experienced an extremely localised seismic event, get in a car and close the door without leaving 14 inches of coat outside, wear light-coloured trousers without discovering at the end of the day that he had at various times sat on chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup and motor oil.

Question 7: Why do you think Bill Bryson’s wife says to the children, “Take the lids off the food for Daddy”?

Answer: Bill Bryson’s wife asked the children to take the lids off the food for Bill because if Bill had tried to do that himself, then he might have taken it off in such a manner that the lid would be flying away to some part of the plane and the food might spill all over the place.

Question 8: What is the significance of the title?

Answer: The title is quite significant. After going through the whole story it becomes quite vivid that Bill Bryson is The Accidental Tourist. There are various such examples which prove the appropriateness of the title. The title itself suggests about the various strange and accidental experiences of the author.

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The Accidental Tourist Important Questions and Answers Class 9 English Moments

The Accidental Tourist Important Questions and Answers Class 9 English Moments is given below. You can read and download the PDF of the Class 9 important questions from our site. Going through these important questions enhances your understanding level, knowledge about the concept, speed, accuracy & time management skills. Learning the answers of these important questions will help you to get excellent marks in the exams.

The Accidental Tourist Class 9 Important Questions

1. Why do Bryson’s teeth and gums look ‘Navy Blue’?

Answer:  Bryson was a confused person and always seemed to be lost in a thought. While during his flight he was writing important thoughts, sucking thoughtfully on the end of his pen and started talking to a young lady. Later he found that the pen was leaking making his teeth and gums look ‘Navy Blue’.

2. Why is the author’s finger bleeding? What is his wife’s reaction?

Answer:  The author cuts his finger while pulling a zip, and his finger started bleeding. His wife got angry and said that it was for a living that he was doing that work, so if his finger was cut how would he do that.

3. How does Bill Bryson end up in a ‘Crash Position’ in the Air Craft?

Answer:  Bryson leaned over to tie a shoe lace and just at that moment someone ahead of him reclined his seat and Bryson found himself pinned helplessly in a crash position and had to catch his leg to get himself free.

4. Why could the writer not get his frequent flyer miles?

Answer:  The writer could not get his frequent flyer miles because he could not find and produce his card, forgot to ask for the air miles and wrong spelling of his name on the ticket was also a problem.

6. Why did Bill’s hair go into panic mode’?

Answer:  The zip of Bill’s bag had got struck. So he kept pulling on it and suddenly the zip gave way littering all the contents of the bag on the floor. And later on he discovered that he had gashed his finger on the zip and the blood was flowing down. Looking at his own blood, his hair went into panic mode as he was confused and scared.

7. What measures did the writer adopt when he travelled alone?

Answer:  Whenever Bill travelled alone he never ate, drank or lean over to tie shoe laces and never put a pen anywhere near his mouth. He just sat quietly and kept his hands steady so that unexpectedly he doesn’t cause the mischief.

8. In the story, The Accidental Tourist, the narrator says that he does not do a number of things when he flies alone. What are they and why doesn’t he do them? Which values, do you think, guide him?

Answer:  The narrator is prone to accidents while travelling. Hence, he avoids many things when he flies alone. He does not eat, drink, lean over to tie his shoelaces or put a pen near his mouth when travelling alone to avoid mischiefs. Sometimes he sits on his hands to keep them from flying out unexpectedly. He sits quietly. He does not do these things because he does not wish to cause any inconvenience or embarrassment to his co-passengers. His attitude makes him lovable and thus, he is guided by concern respect and a sense of responsibility.

9. It is mandatory for the flight crew to go out of their way to ensure the comfort of the passengers? Do you agree? Give reasons taking reference from the story The Accidental Tourist.

Answer:  It is compulsory for the flight crew to go out of their way to ensure the comfort of the passengers. They have to look if the passengers are properly and comfortably seated, provide them with eatables and drinks give medication, if necessary and see to it that passengers are not disturbing others. On one occasion when Bill was travelling he knocked a soft drink on the lap of a sweet lady sitting beside her. The flight attendant had to come over to clean up the mess and provide with a replacement drink.

10. How did Bill Bryson offend his lady co-passenger in the aeroplane?

Answer:  During one of his visits, the author knocked a soft drink onto the lap of a lady sitting beside him. When the hostess cleaned her up and brought another drink for the author, he again knocked it on her and drenched her completely. The lady looked at the author unbelievingly as to how a person can make the same mistake twice that was too much within a short period of time. The lady felt offended and was very angry with the author and spoke bad words to him.

11. Bill Bryson says ‘I am, in short, easily confused’. What example has he given to justify this?

Answer:  The author, Bill Bryson is a totally confused person who always created a mess wherever he went. It was very difficult for him to do any work in a systematic manner. While searching for a lavatory in the cinema, he went around many times and ended up standing in an alley on the wrong side of a self-locking door. He used to return to the hotel desk atleast two to three times in a day asking about his room number, because of his confusion. Thus, the author says in short that he is easily confused with everything around.

12. What is the significance of the title The Accidental Tourist?

Answer:  World has become a small place because travelling has become easy, but then not everybody finds it easy to travel. The story is about a frequent traveller who makes a mess every time he travels. He is always accidentally making notes while travelling. He often forgets his hotel room number, breaks the zip while opening his bag and thus spilling all his things at the airport, spoils clothes of fellow passengers by spilling drinks on her and that too not just once but twice and also never got frequent flyer miles because he could never find his card on time. Thus, the title ‘The Accidental Tourist’ is significant.

Chapter 9: The Accidental tourist

1. In what ways does Bill Bryson describe himself as easily confused?

Explanation:

Bill Bryson often gets confused and gives examples such as struggling to find the lavatory in a cinema hall and ending up near a self-locking door, repeatedly asking his hotel room number, and getting flustered when the zipper on his carry-on bag gives way and scatters his belongings.

2. What happens when Bill Bryson’s carry-on bag zipper breaks?

When the zipper on his carry-on bag breaks, all the items inside fall out and scatter on the ground, including newspapers, loose papers, tobacco packets, magazines, passports, English money, and film.

3. Why is Bill Bryson’s finger bleeding, and how does his wife react?

Bill Bryson's finger starts bleeding after he forcefully tries to pull a zipper. His wife looks at him in wonder and says, “I can’t believe you do this for a living.”

4. How does Bill Bryson end up in a “Crash position” on an airplane?

While on a flight, Bill Bryson leaned over to tie his shoe, and the person in front of him abruptly reclined his seat, causing Bryson to end up in a “crash position.”

5. Why do Bill Bryson’s teeth and gums turn navy blue?

While absorbed in conversation with an attractive woman, Bill Bryson unknowingly sucked on the end of his pen, causing ink to leak into his mouth and turn his teeth and gums navy blue.

6. Why is Bill Bryson unsuccessful in his mission to be “suave,” and what are some examples of his “unsuave” behavior?

Despite his longing to be suave, Bill Bryson is not successful in his mission. He behaves in unsuave ways, such as getting into a car without leaving enough space for his coat, wearing light-colored trousers without realizing he had sat on chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup, and motor oil.

7. Why does Bill Bryson’s wife ask their children to take the lids off the food for him?

Bill Bryson’s wife wants to avoid any awkward situations while her husband is eating, so she asks their children to take the lids off the food for him because she doesn't like the way he does it.

8. What is the significance of the title “The Accidental Tourist”?

The title “The Accidental Tourist” is significant because it accurately reflects the various accidental and strange experiences that Bill Bryson has while travelling.

9. Have you ever found yourself in a similar situation to Bill Bryson’s confusion or unsuave behavior? Share your experience with the class.

Last year, I was attending an important job interview and was very nervous. I accidentally spilled coffee on my shirt while trying to take a sip, and it left a large stain that was visible to everyone. I felt embarrassed and tried to cover it up with my jacket, but I knew it was noticeable. It made me feel flustered and distracted during the interview, and I didn't perform as well as I had hoped.

The Accidental Tourist Class 9 Extra Questions and Answers

This content has been written by the experts keeping in mind the exam score. Go through The Accidental Tourist Class 9 Extra Questions and Answers and add highest value to your studies.

Extra Questions, Notes, Assignment and study material for Class 9 th as Per CBSE Syllabus

THE ACCIDENTAL TOURIST

By- Bill Bryson

 Introduction of the lesson- The Accidental Tourist

This is a narrative piece by Bill Bryson about his experiences during air flights. He has many bad experiences during these flights. He recalls all those experiences and we come to know how he fails to enjoy his air travels and being a frequent traveller not able to get any air card due to his carelessness. He says that travels have never been easy for him.

(इस अध्याय में बिल ब्राईसन हवाई उड़ानों के दौरान अपने अनुभवों का वर्णन करता है । इन उड़ानों के दौरान उसके अनेक बुरे अनुभव है । वह उन सभी अनुभवों को स्मरण करता है और हमें पता चलता है कि वह अपनी हवाई यात्राओं का आनंद लेने में कैसे असफल रहता है और एक नियमित यात्री होने के बावजूद भी किस प्रकार से हवाई कार्ड प्राप्त करने में भी असफल रहता है । वह कहता है कि उसके लिए यात्राएँ कभी भी आसान नहीं रही हैं ।)

Introduction of The Accidental Tourist (2):

  Travelling is not everybody’s cup of tea. Some people are so unorganized and clumsy while travelling that they often end up getting into funny situations. However, their tendency to cause unintentional accidents makes travelling a humorous experience.

Theme / Central Idea of the Lesson. Analysis of The Accidental Tourist

  The story is based on the theme that it is important to be well-planned and organised while travelling. In the absence of preparations before setting off, the traveller is bound to encounter accidents. Bill Bryson carried jumbled articles in his bag while travelling and in the process misplaced the most important ones. He would fumble even while carrying out the simplest tasks and would end up causing some clumsy accident. Another theme of the story is that one should have the humility to admit one’s shortcomings. Bryson’s ability to laugh at himself and see his actions in a lighter vein helped him to overcome embarrassment. This cheerful temperament kept him content and he never felt jealous of others.

Theme of The Accidental Tourist (2)

 Not all of us can do things properly in everyday life. We find it hard to do carry out even some simple tasks. The narrator, Bill Bryson, finds himself in such a situation. Some people also find travelling a difficult task to accomplish. They find it hard to locate places, use digital cards, secure their things, etc. They say that the world today is a small place because now it is easy to travel from one place to another by different modes of transport. But not everybody finds it easy to travel.

Justify the title of The Accidental Tourist

The title suggests that the story is about a tourist who is accidental i.e. finds himself involved in difficult or embarrassing situations as a tourist. On reading the text, one finds that the tourist, Bill Bryson, travels frequently but ends up causing one or the other accident every time. He does not learn from his mistakes and keeps repeating the same follies. He forgets to place his frequent flyer card at the proper place, he spills drinks while extending his hand to get one, leaves a big part of his coat outside while closing the door of the car, smudges his light-coloured trousers many times over without realizing it, and many such ordinary things cannot be handled by him without making a mess of them. The title, “The Accidental Tourist” is thus apt because it is amusing to see Bryson getting frequently into accidents at a time when travelling is so easy that it has made the world a small place.

Important Word-Meanings of difficult words from the lesson- THE ACCIDENTAL TOURIST

 [Page 56] :Constantly = continuously. निरंतर रूप स े; evident = clear, स्पष्ट; beyond = out of reach,से पर े; lavatory = toilet,शौचालय; alley = a narrow passage,तंग रास्त ा; en famille = with family, सपरिवार; yanked = pulled with a jerk,झटके से खींचना ; grunts and frowns = growling with anger, गुस्से के साथ गुर्राना ; consternation = surprise. विस्मय; budge = move slightly,सरकन ा; abruptly =suddenly, अचानक; gave way = broke,टूट गई; ejected = came out,बाहर निकल आना

 [Pages 57-58] : Dumbstruck = unable to speak, मूकदर्शक; sorted = separate/selected, छांटे हुए ; cascade = a small waterfall,एक छोटा झरना ; oblivions = forgetful ,भुलक्कड़ ; concourse = airport, हवाई अड्डा ; disgorging = pouring out.बाहर उड़ेलते हुए ; gashed = wounded,घायल ; shedding = flowing, बहना ; lavish = very much,बहुत अधिक ; exasperation = irritation,परेशानी ; catastrophes = calamities, आपदाएं ; clawing = searching with nail,नाखून से खुरचना ; perch = place,स्थान   ; drenched = made wet,गीला कर दिया

 [Pages 59-60] : Amused = entertained, मनोरंजन किया ; urbane = courteous, शिष्ट ; bons mots = jokes,चुटकले ; striking = strange,विचित्र ढंग ; suave = polite, भद्र ; seismic event = a calamity like an earthquake,आपदा ; frustration = confusion,परेशानी ; accumulated = collected,एकत्र करना ; venerable = holy,पवित्र

Moral/ Message of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist

  The story gives the message that one should be mature enough to laugh at one’s own follies. This temperament not only eases tense situations but also helps to move on with more important things. Bryson makes up for his lack of grace and confused behaviour by mocking at himself. This not only makes his story funny but also provides comfort as it is normal for all of us to make mistakes. Living in the real world can be confusing for some people like Bryson. However, they can draw joy even from this confusion and let others too laugh along with them.

Message of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist (2) :

This lesson gives the message that not everyone can cope with the changes taking place in modern-day life. Some people can easily adjust to the changes while others cannot. Some people are very skilful in doing things while others are not. This problem can take a worse turn during travelling. The narrator of this story finds it hard to do things in a smart manner while he is travelling. He is confused and cannot even remember the number of his hotel room. It is better to use our sense of humour and adjust to the situation rather than getting troubled by it.

Justification of the Title of The Accidental Tourist

The author is very clumsy in his behaviour during his travels. He commits a lot of accidents while he is travelling. He spills his drinks on the woman sitting in the next seat. While trying to zip his bag he spills all the items on the floor. He experiences many catastrophes while flying on planes. Often, he could not even, locate his hotel room. So, since the author’s travels are full of accidents the title is appropriate. Character Sketch Bill Bryson, the narrator: The narrator of the story ‘The Accidental Tourist’ is a clumsy man who finds it hard to do even simple things, especially while he is travelling. He is neither able to zip his bag properly nor he is able to remember the room number of his hotel. Once he spilt a soft drink on a woman sitting next to him in an aeroplane. He is also not able to use discount cards. He is constantly filled with wonder at the number of things other people do without any evident difficulty. The narrator finds it very hard to carry on living in the real world. To him, travelling is a challenging task which he cannot go smoothly.

Value Points of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist

• For the narrator, living in the real world is the most outstanding task. He failed to find the lavatory in a cinema and even forgot his room number.
• At the Logan Airport in Boston, he was aware that his card was kept in the carry on bag, hung around his neck.
• When the zip on the bag was jammed, he pulled it in anger. But it gave the way and things kept in the bag spread over a large area.
• Air travel was always confusing for the narrator. When he bent over to tie his shoelace, someone pushed him from behind and he got pinned on the floor.
• Once he knocked off soft drinks on the lap of a lady two times.
• On his flight, he held his pen in his mouth. Unfortunately, it leaked and his mouth, tongue, teeth, chin and gums became navy blue.
• He must fly 1,00,000 miles a year to get flyer miles. But he was informed by the airline clerk, that he was not authorised to get them.
• He did not get flyer miles because he was issued the ticket in the name of B. Bryson. But the card was issued in the name of W. Bryson.
• The narrator was not able to fly to Bali in the first class.

Vocabulary of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist

Outstanding— extraordinary ; Constantly— continuously ; Beyond— at or to the further side of ; Self-locking— automatic lock; Confused— in a fix; Recently— in recent past; Grunt— a low, animal-like noise; Consternation— fear resulting from awareness of danger; Abruptly— suddenly; Extravagant— in disorderly manner; Dumbstruck— surprised; Flutter— flapping ; Oblivion— total forgetfulness; Disgorge— to vomit; Cascade— sudden downpour; Gash— deep wound; Hysterics— a wildly emotional or exaggerated reaction; Panic— fear; Exasperation— great irritation; Catastrophe— hard time; Free— not under the control of another; Occasion— event; Attendant— air hostess; Perch— sit; Repeatedly— again; Drench— to make very wet; Thoughtfully— while thinking; Attractive— nice; Scatter— to spread; Lavatory— toilet; Resistant— offering resistance to something; Ache— pain; Seismic— related to earthquake; Trouser— a piece of clothing that covers the whole of your both legs; Hood— a type of cap; Unexpectedly— all of a sudden; Frustration— annoyance; Accumulate— to gather; Entitle— to give the right to have or do something; Venerable— impressive by reason of age.

Short and Simple Summary of the lesson in English- THE ACCIDENTAL TOURIST / Summary in simple Words/ Critical appreciation of the lesson – THE ACCIDENTAL TOURIST

Bill Bryson was a frequent air traveller. He finds himself always uneasy during his air travels. In this lesson, the author describes some of his experiences during these travels. He says that once he was going to England with his family. He had a carry-on bag with him. The trouble started at the airport when the checking staff asked him to open the bag. He tried hard to open the zip of the bag but it would not open. He pulled it harder and it broke. All the things in the bag were discharged like a fluttery cascade. The newspaper cuttings, other documents, the tin of pipe tobacco, magazines, passport and coins all spread over an area about the size of a tennis court.

Then he describes his another experience. He says that once on an aeroplane, he leaned over to tie a shoelace. Just at the moment someone in the seat ahead of him threw his seat back into full recline and found himself pinned helplessly in the crash position. It was only by clawing the leg of the man sitting next to him that he managed to get himself freed.

On another occasion, he knocked a soft drink onto the lap of a lady. He repeated this mischief many times. But it was not his worst experience on the aeroplane. He says that his worst experience took place on a plane flight. He says that he was writing something in a notebook. lie fell into conversation with an attractive young lady in the next seat. He was sucking his pen on one of the ends. After about 20 minutes, when he went to lavatory he discovered that the pen had leaked and that his mouth, chin, tongue, teeth and gums were now navy blue and would remain so for several days.

Despite being a frequent flyer he never got any air card. Ile says that he used to fly 100,000 miles a year but due to his carelessness or some other reasons he could get no air card.

Summary of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist (2):

 The writer’s job demands him to tour a lot but he finds it difficult to behave as per the social code of conduct required in the real world. He is amazed to see other people carry on the routine tasks with ease because he cannot even find the lavatory in a cinema or remember his room number in a hotel.

He recalls an episode when he had travelled with his family to England at Easter and had arrived at Logan Airport in Boston. At check-in, he remembered that he had recently joined the British Airways’ frequent flyer programme and the card for that same was in his carry-on bag. However, while attempting to open the jammed zip of his bag, the side flew open suddenly and all the contents littered over a huge area. Bryson watched dumbstruck and was more worried about losing his tobacco that had spilt from its tin-box than clearing away the mess he had accidentally created. He had also clumsily cut his finger on the zip and went hysterical on seeing his blood.

 Bryson admits that travelling is catastrophic for him. Recounting another experience he writes how he had got himself pinned in a crash position in a plane while tying shoelaces. He had leaned forward when the person ahead of him threw back his seat into full recline. He could free himself only by clawing the leg of the man sitting next to him. On another occasion, he had knocked off a soft drink onto the lap of a sweet little lady sitting beside him. This lady was a nun and Bryson spilt even the replaced drink brought by the flight attendant. However, his worst experience was when he sucked on the end of his pen with which he was writing something. The pen leaked and without realizing that the ink had smeared his mouth, chin, cheek, teeth, and gums, Bryson entered into a conversation with his attractive co-passenger. He tried to impress her by telling jokes and discovered his ink-smudged mouth only twenty minutes later when he went to the lavatory.

Bryson’s desire to be charming always fails. He wishes to function normally at least once. He wants to eat properly, get in the car nicely, and carry off a light-coloured trouser without messing it up. In order to avoid accidents while travelling, his wife has now instructed his children to open the lids off the food for him. But when he is alone, he does not eat or drink as a precaution. He sits just still and controls his hands lest they cause another spilling. However, he does miss the fun because of his accidents.

 Bryson also misses the opportunity to avail flyer miles like other people. Whenever he tries to gain this benefit, he either misplaces his card or forgets to ask at the time of check-in. Even the airlines cannot grant him free flying miles as his name on the card and his ticket do not match. Of course, in view of Bryson’s careless nature, all this is possible.

Summary of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist (3)

“The Accidental Tourist’ is a humorous story. The author, Bill Bryson, narrates his experiences as an air traveller. There were many things that he could not do properly. He was a confused person. He goes many times to find the lavatory in a cinema but ends up standing in an alley on the wrong side of self-locking door. He often forgets the number of his hotel room and goes two to three times a day at the hotel reception to inquire about it. Once he went to England with his family for a week on Easter. At the airport, he remembered that he had a discount card in his carry bag. He tried to open the bag and pulled the zip harder. The zip broke and the bag opened abruptly. Everything in his bag rained out and spread here and there. His wife was shocked to find her husband so absent-minded. He had many such experiences while on board. Once he found himself helplessly in the crash position when he leaned over to tie his shoelaces and someone in the seat ahead of him threw his seat back into full recline. On another occasion, he knocked soft drinks into the lap of a lady sitting beside him. The worst experience he had was when he got his mouth, chin, gums and tongue blue coloured. He was writing some thoughts on a sheet of paper. He fell into conversation with a lady sitting next to him. He had put his pen in his mouth. It leaked and his mouth was covered with ink. He did not realise it until he went to the lavatory. The narrator was so fed up with the eating habits that he preferred not to eat while on board. His wife used to take some precautions. She told the children to take the lid off the food for daddy or put their hoods up when daddy cut his meat. He often forgot to ask for air miles. He could never take benefits from the discount schemes. It was his state of mind that he missed a golden opportunity to avail himself of a first-class flight to Bali.

Summary in Hindi of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist

बिल ब्राईसन एक बार-बार हवाई यात्रा करने वाला यात्री था । वह अपनी हवाई यात्राओं के दौरान स्वयं को असुखद स्थितियों में पाता है । इस अध्याय में लेखक इन उड़ानों के दौरान अपने कुछ अनुभवों का वर्णन करता है । वह कहता है कि एक बार वह अपने परिवार के साथ इंग्लैंड जा रहा था । उसके पास एक थैला था । परेशानी उस समय आरंभ हुई जब हवाई अड्डे पर निरीक्षण करने वाले कर्मचारियों ने उसे थैला खोलने के  लिए कहा । उसने थैले की जिप को खोलने की पूरी कोशिश की परंतु जिप नहीं खुली । उसने उसे जोर से खींचा तथा वह टूट गई । थैले के अंदर रखी सारी चीजें एक फड़फड़ाते हुए छोटे झरने के समान नीचे जा गिरीं । समाचार पत्र की कतरनें, अन्य दस्तावेज, सिगार के तंबाकू की डिब्बी, पत्रिकाएं, पासपोर्ट और सिक्के टेनिस कोर्ट के आकार जितने क्षेत्र में बिखर गए ।

तब वह अपने दूसरे अनुभव का वर्णन करता है । वह कहता है कि एक बार एक हवाई जहाज पर वह अपने जूते के फीते को बाँधने के लिए नीचे झुका । उसी क्षण अगली सीट पर बैठे व्यक्ति ने अपनी सीट को पूरा नीचे की ओर कर दिया और उसने स्वयं को कुचली हुई स्थिति में असहाय पाया । तब अपने से आगे बैठे व्यक्ति की टांग पर नाखून से काटकर वह अपने-आपको उस स्थिति से मुक्त करा सका ।

दूसरे अवसर पर उसने एक महिला यात्री के ऊपर शीतल पेय की बोतल उड़ेल दी । उसने इस शरारत को कई वार किया । लेकिन यह उसका वायुयान पर सबसे बुरा अनुभव नहीं था । उसका सबसे बुरा अनुभव भी एक हवाई उड़ान के दौरान ही हुआ था ।

वह बताता है कि वह एक काँपी में कुछ लिख रहा था । वह अपने से अगली सीट पर बैठी एक युवा  महिला के साथ बातचीत करने लग गया । वह एक सिरे से अपने पेन को मुंह में डालकर चूस रहा  था । लगभग 20 मिनट के पश्चात जब  शौचालय गया तो उसने पाया कि उसका पैन लीक हो गया था और उसका मुंह , ठोड़ी, जीभ,दांत और मसूढ़े गहरे नीले रंग के हो गए और वे कई दिनों तक ऐसे ही रहे थे ।

बार-बार हवाई यात्रा करने वाला यात्री होने के बावजूद भी उसे कोई हवाई यात्रा कार्ड नहीं मिला । वह कहता है  कि वह एक वर्ष में एक  लाख मील की हवाई यात्रा कर लेता था, लेकिन अपनी लापरवाही या अन्य कारणों से उसे कोई भी हवाई कार्ड नहीं मिला ।

EXTRACTS FOR COMPREHENSION of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist

Read the following extracts and answer the questions that follow in one or two lines.

 The zip on the bag was jammed. So I pulled on it and yanked at it, with grunts and frowns and increasing consternation. I kept this up for some minutes but it wouldn’t budge, so I pulled harder and harder.

1.Which bag is being referred to in this extract?

Ans: The carry-on bag that was hanging around Bryson’s neck when he reached the Logan Airport in Boston on way to Europe along with his family is being referred to here.

2. What had happened to the zip on the bag?

Ans: The zip on the bag had got jammed and could not be opened in spite of the hard efforts of Bryson.

3. Why did Bryson want to open the bag?

Ans: Bryson wanted to open the bag to take out his frequent flyer card and avail its benefits.

4. What happened when Bryson pull harder and harder at the zip?

Ans: When Bryson pulled harder and harder at the zip, the bag gave way abruptly and its entire contents spilt over, creating a mess.

 I would love, just once in my life, to rise from a dinner table without looking as if I have just experienced an extremely localized seismic event, get in a car and close the door without leaving 14 inches of coat outside, wear light-coloured trousers without discovering at the end of the day that I have at various times sat on chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup and motor oil.

• Who makes this wish and why?

Ans: Bill Bryson, the accidental tourist, makes this wish because he desires to behave like other normal people whom he sees carrying out routine actions with ease.

2. Explain: ‘extremely localized seismic event’.

Ans: The phrase, in a literal sense, means a kind of earthquake that affects a very small area. This is Bryson’s way of humorously describing the mess that he left behind after eating dinner.

3. How does the speaker wish to sit in a car?

Ans:  The speaker, Bryson, wishes to sit in a car without leaving out any part of his coat while closing the door.

4. What does the writer find on his light-coloured trousers at the end of the day? What does this show about his character?

Ans:  The writer finds stains of chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup and motor oil on his light-coloured trousers at the end of the day. This shows that he is very clumsy in his manners and very careless in using public places.

  (III)

  Of course, this is only when I am flying with my family. When I am on my own, I don’t eat, drink or lean over to tie my shoelaces, and never put a pen anywhere near my mouth.

• What is ‘this’ as mentioned by Bryson?

Ans: ‘This’ here means the instruction given by Bryson’s wife to his children. According to this instruction, his children would open the lids of food for Bryson when travelling.

2. Why doesn’t Bryson lean over to tie his shoelaces when he is on his own?

Ans:  Bryson had once got trapped in a crash position while tying his shoelace on an aeroplane. He doesn’t lean over to tie his shoelaces in order to avoid his earlier mistake.

3. Why does Bryson avoid putting a pen near his mouth?

Ans:  Bryson had once put his pen in his mouth while talking to a charming female co-passenger. He discovered 20 minutes later that the pen had leaked and his entire face was navy blue. He avoided a pen near his mouth after that to save himself from further embarrassment .

  4. Why wouldn’t Bryson eat or drink when travelling alone?

Ans: Bryson wouldn’t eat or drink when travelling alone because he was clumsy and prone to accidents. While lifting a glass of soft drink or any other food item, he would create a mess all over.

  Everyone I know – everyone – is forever flying off to Bali first class with their air miles. I never get to collect anything. I must fly 100,000 miles a year, yet I have accumulated only about 212 air miles divided between twenty-three airlines.

• According to Bryson, what is everyone doing?

Ans: According to Bryson, everyone he knows is forever flying off to Bali first class with their air miles.

2. Is there an exaggeration in this statement?

Ans:  Identify it. The exaggeration in this statement is that ‘everyone is forever flying’. This is an expression to emphasize the difference between the flying patterns of others with that of Bryson. In reality, everyone cannot fly forever.

3.Why ha: Bryson accumulated only about 212 air miles?

Ans: Bryson has accumulated only about 212 air miles because he either forgets to ask for the air miles when he checks in or the airlines fail to record them due to the mismatch of names on his card and tickets.

4. How do if e above lines support the fact that Bryson flies a lot?

Ans: The above lines mention that Bryson flies 100,000 miles a year via twenty-three airlines. This shows that he flies a lot.

Main Characters of the Story of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist

Bill Bryson

 Bill Bryson reflects on his experiences as a traveller and gives us a glimpse of himself as a fun-loving and jovial person. He evaluates his behaviour in an objective way and admits to all his shortcomings. He admits that he gets confused easily and cannot remember even the most routine things like a lavatory in a cinema or the number of his room in the hotel.

 He is unorganized and unsorted while travelling. He carries a hundred articles in his bag but fails to find the most important one. Sometimes he is careful about saving money as he carries tobacco with him while going to England and at other times misses his chance to get frequent flyer miles.

 He is clumsy while picking up things and spills the drink twice on his co-passenger. Bryson gets hysterical on seeing his own blood but is not affected much when it comes to others.

 He tries to be polite and respectful with women co-travellers but his accidental nature spoils his suave appearance. The manner in which he gets navy blue ink all over his face proves this.

 Bill is a tolerant person and does not feel offended when his wife asks his children to put the lid off the food for him. He does note that other people fly first class to far off places like Bali via earning frequent flyer points but does not feel jealous. He knows that it is because of his own disorganized and haphazard style that he fails to avail such an opportunity. Overall, Bryson appears as a happy-go-lucky person who has no complaints whatsoever.

Very Short Answer Type Important Questions

I. Who was Bill Bryson?

 Ans. Bill Bryson was a frequent air traveller.

2. How did Bill Bryson find himself during his air travels?

 Ans. He found himself always uneasy during his air travels.

  3. Where was Bill going when the zip of his carry bag broke?

Ans. At that time he was going to England.

4. What happened when the zip of the bag gave way?

Ans. Everything within the hag-newspaper cuttings, other loose papers, tin pipe tobacco, magazines, passport. English money-ejected on the road.

5. What happened to Bill’s finger?

Ans. Bill gashed his finger on the zip and blood was shedding in a lavish manner.

6. Why did Bill lean over in the plane?

Ans. He leaned over in the plane to tie a shoelace.

  7. What did Bill do to the lady travelling with him on one of his plane journeys?

Ans. He knocked a soft drink over the lap of the lady twice.

8. What happened when Bill’s pen leaked?

Ans. His mouth, Chin, tongue. teeth and gums were now a striking scrub-resistant navy blue.

9. Who was the accidental tourist?

Ans . Bill Bryson was the accidental tourist.

10. What type of person was Bill Bryson?

Ans. He was a confused person.

Short Answer Type Questions  of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist (30 to 40 words)

Q.1. What does Bill Bryson tell us about his habit of getting confused?

Ans. Bill Bryson says that he gets easily confused at the things which the other people enjoy performing them. He says that he can’t remember the things for long. He forgets them again and again. He gives an example that when he is staying at some hotel he has to come to the reception counter two or three times to ask the number of his room.

Q.2. What happened at London Airport when the author was going to England on a long journey with family?

Ans. When the author was going to England on a long journey, he got in a troublesome situation at the London Airport. He had put his visiting card in the carry-on bag. When he tried to open it, it would not open because its zip got jammed. When he pulled it hard, it broke and all the contents of the bag disgorged on the ground.

Q.3. Narrate briefly the incident of spilling a soft drink on to a co-passenger in a plane by the author.

 Ans. During one of his air flights, the author spilt the soft drink on to the lap of a sweet lady sitting beside him. The flight attendant came and cleaned her up. The attendant brought him a replacement drink and he knocked it into the woman again. The lady looked at him with the stupefied expression.

Q.4. What two reasons does Bill Bryson give for the absence of air miles cards with the hint?

Ans. He says that he is a frequent flyer. He must fly one lac miles a year. But he does not have more air miles cards. It is so because he forgets to ask for the air miles when he buys a ticket. And sometimes the clerk at the air-station makes an excuse of non-availability of the air miles cards.

Q5. What is the ‘most outstanding thing’ that the writer, Bill Bryson, thinks he is not good at? What does this reveal about Bryon’s traits?

 Ans: The writer, Bill Bryson, thinks that the ‘most outstanding thing’ he is not good at is living in the real world. This reveals that he is so lost in his own thoughts that he fails to conduct himself like a normal person and ends up causing accidents.

 Q6. Bill Bryson says, “I am, in short, easily confused”. What examples has he given to justify this?                                                                                                                                                     (Textual)

  Ans:  Bill Bryson supports his tendency to get confused easily by giving examples like his failure to look for a lavatory in a cinema. Instead, he ends up standing in the alley on the wrong side of a self-locking door. Another example is about his returning to hotel desks two or three times a day and enquiring about his room number .

Q7. Which two things did Bryson remember at the Logan Airport in Boston?

Ans:  At the Logan Airport in Boston, Bryson remembered that he had recently joined the British Airways’ frequent flyer programme. He also remembered that he had put the card in the carry-on bag that was hanging around his neck.

Q8. What started the trouble for Bryson at the Logan Airport in Boston?

  Ans:  The jammed zip of Bryson’s carry-on bag started trouble for him at the Logan Airport in Boston. He tried to open it using force and as a result, it gave way abruptly. Hundreds of items in the bag spilt over and created a mess.

Q9. What happened when Bryson pulled hard at the zip on his bag?

What happens when the zip on Bryson’s carry-on bag gives way?                                              (Textual)

  Ans:  Bryson’s side of the bag opened abruptly and its contents got scattered all over when he pulled hard at its zip. Newspaper cuttings, loose papers, tobacco tin, magazines, passport, English money, film – everything inside the bag spread over an area about the size of a tennis court.

 Q10. How did the contents of Bryson’s bag spill away at the Logan Airport? What was his reaction to it?

Ans:  Hundreds of contents in Bryson’s bag spilt away when the side of the bag opened up abruptly. The coins tinkled as they bounced noisily. The lid of the tobacco tin came off and the tobacco got ejected when the lidless tin rolled. Bryson was dumbstruck to see his belongings rolling away.

 Q11. “My tobacco!” I cried in honour. Why does Bryson say so?

 Ans:  Bryson says so because tobacco was many times costlier in England, especially after the recently passed budget. He was horrified at his monetary loss when he saw the tobacco getting ejected from the lidless tin.

 Q12. Why is Bryson’s finger bleeding? What is his wife’s reaction?                                              (Textual)

  Ans:  Bryson’s finger is bleeding because he has gashed it on the zip of his carry-on bag while attempting to open it. His wife’s reaction is of plain wonder, devoid of any anger or exasperation. She couldn’t believe he did such clumsy things.

 Q13. ‘Why did Bryson’s hair go into panic mode?

Ans: Bryson’s hair went into panic mode because he was confused and unable to help himself in controlling the situation that resulted after he ripped open his carry-on bag. All the contents of his bag were on the floor and his finger was bleeding.

Q14. How does Bill Bryson end up in a ‘crash position’ in the aircraft?                             (Textual)

  Ans:  Once on an aeroplane, Bryson had leaned over to tie a shoelace. At this time the person in the seat ahead of him threw back his seat into full recline, pinning Bryson helplessly in a crash position.

 Q15. How did Bryson drench his lady co-passenger twice?

Ans:  Once, Bryson accidentally knocked off a soft drink onto the lap of a sweet little lady, a nun, sitting beside him. The flight attendant cleaned her up and brought a replacement drink for Bryson. The accidental tourist as Bryson was, he knocked it off again thus drenching his co-passenger twice.

Q16. What was the worst experience of Bryson while on a flight?

Why are Bryson’s teeth and gums navy blue?                                                                               (Textual)

 Ans:  Bryson’s worst experience while on a flight was when his teeth and gums turned navy blue. This happened because the end of the pen on which he had been sucking thoughtfully, had leaked. The worst part was that he discovered this only after twenty minutes of conversation with an attractive lady in the seat next to him.

Q17. Bill Bryson “ached to be suave”. Is he successful in his mission?

List his ‘unsuave’ ways.                                                                                                                   (Textual)

Ans:  Bill Bryson was a person prone to accidents. Whenever he tried to be suave, he would cause yet another accident. His unsuave ways included littering food at the dinning-table, getting his coal trapped while closing the car door, and smudging his light-coloured trousers.

 Q18. Why do you think Bill Bryson’s wife says to the children, “Take the lids off the food for daddy”?                                                                                                                                                  (Textual)

 Ans:  Responding humorously to her husband’s accidental tendencies, Bryson’s wife tells her children to take the lids off the food for their daddy. She knew from experience that Bill was likely to topple the food and create a mess if he would be allowed to unpack it himself.

Q19. What measures did the writer adopt when he travelled alone?

  Ans:  The writer, Bill Bryson, would not drink or lean over to tie his shoelaces and never put a pen near his mouth when he travelled alone. He would just sit very quietly and control his hands from accidentally spilling over things.

 Q20. Why could Bryson not get his frequent flyer miles?

Ans: Bryson could not get his frequent flyer miles because either he forgot to produce the card when required or forgot to ask for air miles when he checked in. Besides, the airline failed to record his account because his name on the card and ticket did not match.

 Q21. Why was Bryson refused air miles when on a flight to Australia?

Ans: Bryson was refused air miles when on a flight to Australia because his card was in the name W. Bryson while the ticket was for B. Bryson. This mismatch in names made his claim to air miles invalid.

 Q22. Why does Bryson not feel bad about flying to Bali first class?

Ans:  Bryson does not feel bad about flying to Bali first class because he had decided, as a precaution, not to eat anything when flying alone. The flight to Bali was a long distance and he knew he could never go that long without eating.

Q23. Why does Bryson find it difficult to do even the most routine things?

 Ans:  Bill Bryson is a careless and unorganised person. He is also clumsy in his manners and hence finds it difficult to do even the most routine things. Besides, he does not take these shortcomings seriously. He laughs at himself and does not even try to correct his mistakes.

Q24. Bill Bryson says, “I am, in short, easily confused.” What examples has he given to justify this?

Ans. Bill Bryson never had a pleasant journey. He got easily confused. Citing examples, he said that he could not easily find lavatory in a cinema hall and finally found himself standing nearby a self-locking door. At the hotels too, he asked his room number many a time in a day.

Q25. How does Bill Bryson end up in a “Crash position” in the aircraft?                                                 

Ans. Once while he was travelling in an aeroplane, he leaned over to tie up his shoelaces. As soon as he leaned over for this purpose, someone in the seat ahead of him threw his seat back. Thus, the author ended up in a “crash position”.

Q26. Why is Bill Bryson’s finger bleeding? What is his wife’s reaction?

 Ans. The author tried to open his carry bag to find out his discount card. The zip got jammed. He tried to open it and got a long deep cut in his finger. It started bleeding. His wife looked at him with an expression of wonder. She remarked, “I can’t believe you do this for a living”.

Q27.  Why do Bill Bryson’s teeth and gums look navy blue?

Ans. Bill Bryson was writing some important thoughts in a notebook. In between, he was sucking on the end of his pen. He fell into conversation with an attractive lady. He amused the lady for more than twenty minutes. He did not realise that his pen had leaked. When he retired to the lavatory, he found his teeth and gums navy blue.

 Q28. Why did Bill Bryson return to the hotel desk frequently?

Ans. The author was a confused person. He used to forget things. While staying in a hotel, he used to forget his room number. He had to return to the hotel desk frequently to ask what his room number was.

 Q29. Why did the author, Bill Bryson, cry “My finger! My finger'”?

 Ans. While opening the bag, the zip got jammed. He tried to open it forcefully. His finger got a sharp cut and started bleeding. When he saw blood oozing out of the finger, he started crying “my finger! my finger!”.

Q30. What were the things that rained out of Bill Bryson’s bag at the airport?

Ans. When the author tried to open his bag, the zip got jammed. He pulled it harder. It broke and the bag opened abruptly. It had newspaper cuttings, a tin of pipe tobacco, magazines, passport, money, films, etc. which rained down from the bag.

 Q31. Bill Bryson “ached to be suave”. Is he successful in his mission? List his `unsuave’ ways.     

Ans . It is quite clear that Bill Bryson ached to be suave. He is not successful in his mission. He got himself in a car and closed the door leaving 14 inches of coat outside, wore light-coloured trousers without discovering at the end of the day that he had at various times sat on chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup and motor oil.

Q32. Why do you think Bill Bryson’s wife says to the children, “Take the lids off the food for Daddy”?

Ans. Bill Bryson’s wife was aware of the travelling habits of her husband. To avoid any awkward situation, she says, “Take the lids off the food for Daddy” as she did not like her husband to take the lid off the food in his particular style.

Q33. What is the significance of the title, “The Accidental Tourist”?                                                 

 Ans. The title is quite significant. After going through the whole story, it becomes quite vivid that Bill Bryson is the accidental tourist. There are various such examples which prove the appropriateness of the title. The title itself suggests the various strange and accidental experiences of the author while travelling.

 Q34. What happens when the zip on Bill Bryson’s carry-on bag gives way?

Ans. The author was going on a weeklong trip to England, with his family by air. When they were checking in at Logan Airport in Boston, the author tried to open his bag forcefully. The side of the bag flew open and all his important items fell out in the open. Newspaper cuttings, tobacco packet, passport, money, etc. rained out over an area about the size of a tennis court.

Q35. Why does the author, Bill Bryson, not eat or drink while travelling alone?

Ans. The author always does mischief while eating or drinking on a flight. He had faced many awkward and embarrassing situations while on the flight. So now he does not eat or drink while travelling alone.

Q36. What was the narrator’s dream? Why did he not achieve it?

 Ans. The narrator always wanted to be the frequent flyer miles. But he was very forgetful and careless. He had issued a card indicating distance but never found his card in time. This act of him frustrated him many times. So, he was not successful to use the frequent flyer miles.

Q37. What happened to the narrator when he was going to Australia?

 Ans. The narrator was a very forgetful and careless person. Once he planned to fly one lakh miles a year. But he could gather only 212 air miles. Besides, on the way to Australia, he failed to use his card. He was issued his card in the name of W. Bryson when his ticket was issued in the name of B. Bryson. So, he failed to use his card again.

 Q38. What was the author’s worst experience on a plane flight?

Ans. He was sucking on the end of his pen while writing important thoughts. He was involved in talking with an attractive lady and could not notice the leakage in the pen. It became his worst experience when he found his teeth, chin, tongue and gums navy blue.

ESSAY TYPE QUESTIONS of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist

Q.1.How would you describe Bill Bryson as an accidental tourist? Give two instances from the test.

Ans. Bill Bryson was such a tourist who remained almost all the year round on an aeroplane. Many accidents take place with him. So he is called an accidental tourist. The two incidents from the text are mentioned below.

(i) When the zip on his carry-on bag gives way all thing fall out of a bag. The newspaper cuttings and other documents rain down in a fluttery cascade. The coins bounce here and there. The lidless tin of tobacco rolls crazily disgorging its contents. These things spread over an area about the size of a tennis court.

(ii) During one of his air flights, the author spilt the soft drink on to the lap of a sweet lady sitting beside him. The flight attendant came and cleaned her up. The attendant brought him a replacement drink and he knocked it into the woman again. The lady looked at him with the stupefied expression.

Q2. Bring out the humour in the story “The Accidental Tourist”.

Ans: “The Accidental Tourist” is a humorous account of the different accidents caused by an ever confused and clumsy person. Bill Bryson, the writer who recounts the mishaps, shares his experiences in a light-hearted manner. While explaining how he littered the contents of his carry-on bag in his attempt to find his flyer miles card, he refers to the contents as ‘a hundred carefully sorted documents’. When he gashes his finger on the zip, he justifies his hysterics on seeing his own blood. He’s getting himself pinned in a crash position while tying shoelaces is yet another funny encounter. His worst experience was when he covered his mouth, chin, tongue, teeth and gums navy blue by sucking thoughtfully on the end of his pen. He looked like a clown with his ink-stained mouth. Further, the list of ‘important thoughts’ that he mentions were actually reminders to buy socks and to clutch drinks carefully. His wife’s instruction to his children to open lids off food for him adds to the tongue-in-cheek flavour of the story. His failure to get flyer miles because his name on the card did not match his name on the ticket is yet another comical episode.

 To top everything, his reason for not flying to Bali as he cannot remain without food for that long is very amusing indeed.

Q3. What is the significance of the title?                                                                                            (Textual)

Ans:  The title is significant as it points directly to the many accidents caused by Bryson during his tours. He admits that he always has catastrophes when he travels. He ends up spilling drinks on co-passengers and lets lids or food pieces fly while having meals; He cannot even unzip his bag, put his flyer card at an easily reachable place, and wield his pen without covering his mouth in ink or tie his shoelaces properly. All his efforts to be suave fail and every tour end on a note of comical disaster. Still, he continues to travel almost 100,000 miles a year. When he is on a tour with his family, his wife and children do his little tasks to avoid accidents. When touring alone, he just sits still lest he causes some unexpected mess. He is an accidental tourist who can make even a nun swear by drenching her twice; accidentally of course.

Q4. How did Bill Bryson offend his lady co-passenger in a flight?

Ans:  Once, Bryson knocked off a soft drink onto the lap of a sweet little lady sitting beside him. However, the flight attendant quickly cleaned her up and brought another drink for him. But he was careless and clumsy as ever and instantly knocked off the replacement as well on the poor woman. He wondered how he had done this but could never figure out. He felt as if his limbs disobeyed him and behaved like those he sees in horror films. The lady who had been drenched twice got so offended that she gave Bryson a stunned expression and uttered some curse. She was a nun and Bryson had never heard a nun using such a language in a public place. Bryson’s gawky behaviour made even a nun lose her patience.

Q5. What was Bryson’s worst experience while flying? Why?

  Ans:  Once on a flight, Bryson had been writing something when he began to suck on the end of his pen. Without realising that his pen was leaking and smearing his mouth, teeth, gums, tongue and chin, he entered into a conversation with an attractive lady in the next seat. He tried to amuse her for almost twenty minutes by telling jokes and felt that he had perhaps impressed her. However, when he retired to the lavatory, he discovered that the ink over his face was a striking navy blue and scrub-resistant. It was going to remain like that for several days. This experience not only wrecked his image in the eyes of that attractive woman but he also had to live with his funny face for some days. Certainly, no other experience could have been worse than this.

 Q6. What ordeal did Bryson have to face at Logan Airport in Boston?

Ans:  Bryson always wanted to travel in a smart and seamless way as many others did but simply could not, thanks mainly to his clumsy, furtive and fumbling behaviour.

For example, he got into a very awkward and embarrassing situation at Logan Airport in Boston. It all began when he expressed his desire to redeem his frequent flyer points at the British Airways ticket counter, for which he needed his card.

 The thought of redeeming the points was matched in its suddenness by the thought that he had packed the card in his carry-on bag. That is when the real drama, real trouble and real embarrassment began for him.

To his ill-luck, the zip on the bag was jammed. No amount of pulling and yanking at it with grunts and frown would budge it. Harder pulls with more grunts caused the zip to give way and the side of the bag flew open and out came newspaper cuttings, loose papers, magazines, passport, a 14-ounce tin of pipe tobacco, English money and film. All these things were strewn over an area the size of a tennis court, even as Bryson watched helpless and dumbstruck.

 The lidless tobacco tin rolled crazily across the concourse spilling its contents as it went. Even as Bryson was regretting and assessing his loss, he was shocked to discover that the zip fiasco had caused one of his fingers to bleed. The lavish flow of blood from the wound proved to be the last straw in Bryson’s ordeal at the Logan Airport, Boston. He became hysterical, confused and panicky.

Q7. Laughing at one’s own follies helps reduce the gravity of situations that might otherwise cause serious trouble. Discuss in light of the story “The Accidental Tourist”.

Ans:  Bill Bryson was a careless and clumsy person who could not behave in public places as per the expected code of conduct. He could spill soft drinks on co-passengers, litter the airlines counter with the contents of his carry-on bag, and create a mess while eating. In the process, he not only destroyed his belongings but also created troubles for others. However, his ability to laugh at his own follies helps reduce the gravity of situations that could have otherwise caused serious trouble. The extent to which he offends the nun on whom he spills the drink twice could have led to grave penalty if he had not laughed off at his ungraceful action. The airlines could have barred him because of the number of accidents he had caused on every flight. It was Bryson’s faculty of mocking at his errors that sailed him through all the difficulties he had landed himself in.

Q8. Bill Bryson was a clumsy traveller. Write down his worst experiences on a plane flight.

Ans. The author had faced many bad experiences but he did not consider the worst. His worst experience was when he tried to write something in a notebook. He was sucking on the end of his pen. He got involved in talking with a lady and could not notice the leakage in the pen. He kept amusing her for perhaps 20 minutes. When he visited lavatory, he found his mouth, chin, tongue, teeth and gums navy blue. He became very much confused and wanted to mend his habits. The author considered it worst as he could not open his mouth even to talk for many days. One can easily imagine how critical the condition was. He wanted to do all jobs properly. He took precautions to avoid an accident.

 Q9. Even simple things like closing a zipper of a bag was a challenging task for Bill Bryson. How did the zip create troubles for the author while travelling in an aeroplane?

Ans. The zip created a lot of troubles for the author. At Logan Airport in Boston, the author wanted to take his card out of the bag. It was here where the trouble started. He found his zip jammed. He made all efforts to pull it. When he tried to pull it forcefully, it gave way and the bag flew open. All his belongings fell on the ground. He cried for his tin of pipe tobacco. He did not like to pay more money to buy tobacco in England. He diverted his attention to his finger. He started crying on seeing the blood shedding. At this, his wife looked at him with an expression of wonder and remarked, “I can’t believe you do this for a living.” All this proves that the zip created a lot of problems for the author.

Q10. ‘Confusing and ill-behaved persons become a laughing stock. Discuss the statement with reference to the story The Accidental Tourist’.

Ans. One must be well-behaved, well mannered and full of confidence to maintain one’s image in gathering. A confusing person due to lack of confidence becomes a laughing stock in many situations. As in the story, the author Bill Bryson is always desirous to project himself as a well behaved, well-mannered person, a person full of confidence but in doing so, all the time, he commits funny mistakes. He is a frequent flyer but forgets to use frequent flyer card issued by airways. He forgets to tie shoelaces, he scatters his soft drink on co-passenger. He puts the end of his pen into his mouth and begins sucking and gets his mouth, tongue, teeth and gums strained in navy blue colour. The author is very intelligent. He is a man of letters. He is a well known and renowned writer but his tendency of forgetfulness and lack of confidence bring him in the situation of embarrassment.

 Q11. “I always have catastrophes when I travel.” Mention two incidents to show why Bill Bryson feels so.

Ans. The author had faced many bad experiences while travelling. Once he tried to write something in a notebook. He was sucking on the end of his pen. He got involved in talking with a lady for about 20 minutes and could not notice the leakage in the pen. When he visited lavatory, he found his mouth, chin, tongue, teeth and gums navy blue. Another incident when Bryson got into trouble because of his absent-mindedness. At Logan Airport, he was trying to open the jammed zip of the bag to take out his card. But the zip gave way and all his things scattered on the floor. He became very much confused and wanted to mend his habits.

Q12. Bill Bryson in ‘The Accidental Tourist’ feels he should become suave. Give some measures by which he can become suave and smart.

Ans. Bill Bryson was an accidental tourist. He tried to do all things properly. But he could not do so and got easily confused. Whenever he travelled by air he did one or the other mischief. His memory was not sharp. He forgot soon and returned to the hotel desk frequently just to ask his room number. He tried to take precautions while taking meal but it also proved to be a mistake. He could not avoid making mistakes. He stopped eating or drinking on a plane. He tried to mend his habits. He wanted to be civilised and polite but it did not happen. He was not capable of getting the benefits offered by different airlines. He had to face embarrassment many times. He could not find lavatory easily.

Q13. “I can’t believe you do this for a living.” Why does Bill Bryson’s wife tell him this?

Ans. The narrator got into problems while travelling with his family. He never had a peaceful journey. He shared his experience in this regard. At Logan Airport in Boston, he tried to get his card out of the bag. But he found the zip jammed. He made every effort to pull it again and again. At last, the zip gave way and all his things lay scattered on the floor. He got confused. At another time on an aeroplane, he leaned forward to lace up his shoes. As soon as he moved forward the fellow traveller threw his seat back. He described how he got his teeth navy blue. His wife knew his habits so she asked her children to take the lids off the food for daddy. She knew his particular style. So, the narrator thought of not eating or drinking while travelling with his family. So his wife tells him this.

 Quick Review of the lesson – The Accidental Tourist

1.What type of man was Bill Bryson?

(A) determined                                             (B) easily confused

(C) sure                                                         (D) all of the above

Ans. (B) easily confused

2.On what occasions did the author go on a big trip?

(A) Easter                                                      (B) New Year Day

(C) Christmas                                                (D) His birthday

Ans (A) Faster

3.The author had joined the frequent flyer programme of :

(A) Boston Airways                                  (B) French Airways

(C) British Airways                                   (D) American Airways

Ans . (C) British Airways

4.What happened to the zip on the bag?

(A) it got jammed                                (B) it got free

(C) it was fine                                       (D) none of the above

 Ans. (A) it got jammed

5.What came out of the bag when the zip gave way?

(A) newspaper cutting                        (B) magazines

 (C) english money                             (D) all of the above

  Ans . (D) all of the above

6.The author was bleeding lavishly in his :

(A) arm                                            (B) leg

(C) finger                                         (D) toe

Ans . (C) finge r

7.Who was along with Bill Bryson when he disgorged all the things on the road??

 (B) wife                                        (D) friend

 (A) son                                         (C) daughter

Ans . (B) wife

8.Bill Bryson mainly travelled by:

(A) aeroplane                                (B) ship

(C) bus                                          (D) train

Ans (A) aeroplane

9.What did bill Bryson drop on a sweet lady sitting beside him on an air journey?

(A) soft drink                                 (B) tea

 (C) coffee                                     (D) dishes

  Ans . (A) soft drink

10.After an accident on the plane, the author’s teeth looked.

(A) green                                    (B) red

 (C) ivory white                           (D) navy blue

  Ans . (D) navy blue

11.What was Bill doing when he was crushed under a scat?

(A) leaning to tic his laces                           (B) searching a coin

(C) reading a piece of paper                       (D) learning aimlessly

Ans . (A) leaning to tie his laces

12.What was Bill’s nature?

(A) clear minded                                         (B) frustrated

 (C) intelligent                                             (D) all of the above

  Ans . (B) frustrated

13.Bill travelled a lot by air. Did he entitle to any free air miles?

(A) yes                                                         (B) no

 (C) maybe                                                 (D) not known

 Ans. (B) no

14.What type of tourist was Bill?

 (A) confirmed                                            (B) pleasant

 (C) accidental                                            (D) risky

Ans . (C) accidental

15.Who is the author of the lesson ‘The Accidental Tourist’?

(A) Bill Bryson                                            (B) William Bryson

(C) Dill Bryson                                            (D) none of the above

Ans . (A) Bill Bryson

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The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions and Answers Class 9 English Moments

Here we are providing The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions and Answers Class 9 English Moments, Extra Questions for Class 9 English was designed by subject expert teachers.

The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer Type

The Accidental Tourist Class 9 Extra Questions And Answers Question 1. Bill Bryson says “I am, in short, easily confused.” What examples has he given to justify this? Answer: He gives the example of returning to his hotel desk two or three times a day, asking what his room number was. He also talks about looking for a lavatory and ending up standing in an alley on the wrong side of a self¬locking door.

The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions Question 2. What happens when the zip on his carry-on bag gives way? Answer: The side of the bag flew open and everything inside it, like newspaper cuttings, other loose papers, a 14-ounce tin of pipe tobacco, magazines, passport, English money, film, etc, were scattered all over the place. He also injured his finger, which bled profusely.

Accidental Tourist Class 9 Extra Questions Question 3. What causes his finger to bleed? How does his wife react? Answer: His finger was cut on the zip when he was trying to open it. His wife looked at him with an expression of wonder and commented that she couldn’t believe that he did that for a living.

The Accidental Tourist Class 9 Questions And Answers Question 4. How does Bill Bryson end up in a ‘crash position’ in the aeroplane? Answer: This happened when he bent down to tie his shoelaces while seated in the plane, and the person in the seat ahead of him threw back his seat back in a full recline. As a result, Bill Bryson found himself doubled over and pinned helplessly in the ‘crash position’.

The Accidental Tourist Question Answer Question 5. Why do the writer’s teeth and gums turn navy blue? Answer: This happens when the writer was penning down important thoughts in his notebook during a flight. He had been sucking thoughtfully on the end of his pen while doing so. He had not realised that in the process, his teeth and gums had turned navy blue because of the ink.

The Accidental Tourist Nominations Question 6. Bill Bryson ‘ached to be suave’. Is he successful in his mission? Answer: No, he is not suave in spite of his best efforts, because he always looks as though he has been through an earthquake when he rises from a dinner table. He can never get inside a car without having at least 14 inches of his coat hanging outside the door. He can never wear light coloured trousers without having chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup, or motor oil stains on them.

The Accidental Tourist Questions And Answers Question 7. Why do you think Bill Bryson’s wife says to the children, ‘Take the lids off the food for Daddy’? Answer: She says this because her husband is so accident-prone that she expects the food to go all over the place or some such accident to happen if he is allowed to open the lid himself. This is because of his earlier accidental incidents that always happen whenever he tries to perform simple actions, especially during flights.

The Accidental Tourist Class 9 Question 8. What is the significance of the title? Answer: The title suggests that the writer is a tourist, not by choice, but by accident. It is a pun on the word accident, as he has several accidents while travelling. In fact, this effectively captures the various misadventures that he has while travelling with his family. It also suggests that the anecdotes and events described are humorous and should be taken in a lighter vein.

Question 9. Why does the writer say ‘living in the real world’ is challenging for him? Answer: He says this because he has had several experiences of doing something wrong in instances where normal people have no problems. For instance, things like remembering his room number in an hotel, or finding the lavatory at a movie theatre.

Question 10. Why did the writer feel the need to open his carry-on bag at Logan Airport? Answer: He wanted to open the bag to take out his frequent flyer card, which he had kept inside it.

Question 11. Of all the things that spilled out of his carry-on bag, what was the writer most disturbed about? Why? Answer: He was most disturbed about the loss of his tobacco tin, because he was worried it might be very expensive to buy in England.

Question 12. How did the writer free himself from the crash position? Answer: He did so by clawing at the leg of the man sitting next to him.

Question 13. How did the writer affect the lady sitting next to him during one of his flights? Answer: He kept knocking soft drinks into the lady’s lap, even though he tried to be careful after the flight attendant had cleaned her up the first time he had done so.

Question 14. How did the lady next to the writer on the plane react? Answer: She looked at the writer with a stupefied expression of disbelief, and exclaimed an oath that started with ‘oh’ and ended with ‘sake’, and had words in between that he had not heard a nun utter before.

Question 15. What, according to the writer, was his worst experience on a plane? Answer: The worst experience according to him was the time his mouth and teeth turned navy blue. He had been sucking on the end of his pen while writing down his thoughts. He then spoke to an attractive lady sitting next to him, before he realised that his teeth, chin and gums had turned a striking shade of blue.

Question 16. What does the writer do to curb his accidental tendencies when he is flying alone? Answer: He doesn’t eat or drink, or lean over to tie his shoelaces. He also never puts his pen anywhere near his mouth.

Question 17. Why does the writer not get his frequent flyer miles? Answer: He does not get his miles because he couldn’t find his frequent flyer card in time. Also, he forgets to ask for the miles when he checks in, or the airline does not record them, or the check-in clerk informs him that he is . not entitled to them.

Question 18. Give an example to show that the writer is a frequent flyer? Answer: The fact that the writer says that he usually flies 100,000 miles a year in about 23 different airlines, reveals that he is a frequent flyer.

Question 19. Give an example of when the writer was not given miles because he was not entitled to them. Answer: On a flight to Australia, which could have got him a large number of air miles, he was told by the airport clerk that he was not entitled to them.

Question 20. Why were the miles not credited to the writer? Answer: They were not credited to him because the ticket was in the name of B. Bryson, while the card was in the name of W. Bryson. Even though the writer tried to tell her that ‘Bill’ was the short form of ‘William’, she refused to oblige him.

Question 21. How do we know that the writer is a positive man? Answer: We know this from the fact that though he did not get a free passage to Bali due to the insufficient airmiles on his card, he was quite philosophical about it. He remarks that it is probably a good thing, because he could not have remained hungry on the long flight from America to Bali.

Question 22. What is the meaning of ‘venerable’? What is the writer trying to say by using the phrase ‘close and venerable relationship between Bill and William’? Answer: Venerable means honourable or respectful. By using this phrase, the writer is saying that both Bill and William are closely related; they are in fact different forms of the same name.

Question 23. How was the writer planning to fly to Bali? Answer: He was planning to do so by using the air miles that he would collect for flying so frequently. They are the bonus that one is given for flying by a particular airline, where a person is awarded a free ticked to any destination after one collects a certain number of points.

Question 24. What is the tone of the lesson ‘The Accidental Tourist’? Answer: The tone is humorous and self-deprecating. The writer has made fun of his own shortcomings and clumsiness, by listing out all the accidents he has had while flying in an aircraft, as well as the embarrassing situations he has been in because of this.

Question 25. Do you think the writer’s family members have trouble travelling with him? Give reasons for your answer. Answer: I feel that the writer’s family are quite used to his clumsiness and have reconciled to the fact that he is likely to have several ‘accidents’. This is evident from the fact that his wife asks the children to take the lid off the food for the writer, because she knows even a small thing like opening the lid can have disastrous consequences if he is allowed to do it.

The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1. What kind of picture do you get of the writer’s character from the lesson ‘The Accidental Tourist’? Answer: He appears to be a positive, funny, and self-deprecating man who does not mind highlighting his shortcomings. In fact, every instance that could have embarrassed other people has been shown in a humorous light. He has found humour in the most disastrous and frustrating situations. Even when he loses the chance to go to Bali when the airline refuses to give him air miles on a technical reason, he does not lose his temper.

He does not take himself too seriously and readily accepts his clumsiness. He doesn’t try to hide any of the embarrassing accidents he has had, but honestly admits to them. His family also appears to have accepted him the way he is, and leamt to handle him along with his ‘accidents’. The writer’s most endearing quality is how comfortable he is with his own self. Even though he talks about wanting to be suave and gentlemanly like other travellers, he is not too worried when he is unable to do so, in spite of his best efforts. He thus comes across as a clumsy, accident-prone, but good natured person.

Question 2. Mention two disastrous events that the writer experiences while travelling with women travellers and trying to impress them? Answer: The first instance mentioned is when he is travelling next to a sweet young nun, and he twicp spilled his drink on her lap, thereby testing her patience greatly. In fact, she became so agitated that she used swear words, which he had not expected a nun to use. The second instance was when he was talking to his lady companion while sucking on the end of a pen. He later realised that the ink from the pen had stained his teeth, gums, and chin a bright navy blue, which had obviously made him appear ridiculous.

Question 3. Discuss the title of the story. Do you think it is appropriate? Give reasons for your answer. Answer: ‘The Accidental Tourist’ is an apt title for this story. The title is a pun on the word ‘accidental’. On one level, the writer is literally accident prone, and has a problem of having the most peculiar accidents while travelling. Some of the accidents include spilling the contents of his bag all over the airport, spilling food and drinks on his fellow travellers. At another level, it refers to him being an accidental or unwilling traveller.

We know this because he mentions that even though he travels a lot every year, he prefers to travel with his family rather than alone. In their absence, he tries to avoid eating or drinking, out of fear of causing mishaps to those travelling with him.

Question 4. How does the writer’s family behave during the writer’s mishaps and accidents? Answer: The family seems to have accepted the fact that they cannot travel with the writer without facing some accident or the other. This is revealed in the part where the writer’s wife reacts with wonder and says taht she cannot believe he does it for a living. She seems neither angry nor exasperated/annoyed with his clumsiness. Instead, when he begins to eat the food served during the flight, his children help him take the lid off the food, and his wife warns the children when he is about to cut the meat.

Question 5. How could the writer make his journeys advantageous inspite of the accidents? Why is he not able to benefit from them ultimately? Answer: The writer is a frequent flyer. Hence, he could benefit from collecting frequent flier miles that the airline offers to those who travel with their airline on a regular basis. These miles add up to a free ticket to any destination of the traveller’s choice. They writer is, however, not able to take advantage of this scheme, because he either can’t find his card on time, or forgets to ask for the miles. Sometimes, the airlines don’t record the miles, and one time, the check-in clerk informed him that he was not entitled to the points. Moreover, he doesn’t stick to a single airline, and mentions having travelled with 23 airlines, thereby losing out on points from any single airline.

The Accidental Tourist Important Questions for Class 9 Moments

Extra questions and answers for the accidental tourist class 9 english moments.

Important questions for Chapter 9 The Accidental Tourist  has been prepared by our expert teachers. Students can read and learn from these questions and these are very important in their examination. Class 9 English Moments The Accidental Tourist extra questions are very helpful in understanding the chapter. It also help in the revision of the chapter. Students can rely on these important questions and answers taken from the chapter The Accidental Tourist to get good marks in their English Paper. By understanding these questions, students will be have better knowledge of the story.

The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions Class 9 English

Short answer type questions for  the accidental tourist, contact form.

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The Accidental Tourist Class 9 MCQ Questions with Answers English Chapter 9

We have compiled NCERT MCQ Questions for Class 9 English Moments Chapter 9 The Accidental Tourist with Answers Pdf free download. MCQ Questions for Class 9 English with Answers were prepared according to the latest question paper pattern. Practicing these A House is not a Home Class 9 English MCQs Questions with Answers really effective to improve your basics and learn all the key concepts.

MCQ Questions for Class 9 English Moments Chapter 9 The Accidental Tourist with Answers

Question 1. What type of tourist was Bill? (a) confirmed (b) pleasant (c) accidental (d) risky

Answer: (c) accidental

Question 2. What was Bill’s nature? (a) clear minded (b) frustrated (c) intelligent (d) all of the above

Answer: (b) frustrated

Question 3. After an accident on the plane, the author’s teeth looked. (a) green (b) red (c) ivory white (d) navy blue

Answer: (d) navy blue

Question 4. Bill Bryson mainly travelled by: (a) aeroplane (b) ship (c) bus (d) train

Answer: (a) aeroplane

Question 5. The author was bleeding lavishly in his : (a) arm (b) leg (c) finger (d) toe

Answer: (c) finger

Question 6. What happened to the zip on the bag? (a) it got jammed (b) it got free (c) it was fine (d) none of the above

Answer: (a) it got jammed

Question 7. On what occasions did the author go on a big trip? (a) Easter (b) New Year Day (c) Christmas (d) His birthday

Answer: (a) Faster

Question 8. Why was Bill’s finger bleeding? (a) because of a cut (b) because it was struck in the zip and was cut (c) because he cut it with a knife (d) none

Answer: (b) because it was struck in the zip and was cut

Question 9. How would Bill’s dining table appear? (a) as if earthquake had struck (b) clean (c) messy (d) None

Answer: (a) as if earthquake had struck

Question 10. What happened when Bill was trying to open the zip of a carry bag? (a) All the things in it flew out (b) everything scattered here and there (c) papers and coins flipped and rolled on the floor (d) all

Answer: (d) all

Question 11. Why was Bill’s wife wondering at him? (a) because of his strange behavior (b) because of his capacity to spill the things (c) because of unzipped bag (d) because of his dress

Answer: (a) because of his strange behavior

Question 12. Tell the adjective form of the word ‘speciality’ in the lesson. (a) speciaization (b) special (c) specific (d) none

Answer: (b) special

Question 13. What did Bill forget while travelling to Australia? (a) his wallet (b) his pen (c) his keys (d) his name

Answer: (d) his name

Question 14. What did Bill knock on the lady sitting next to him while travelling? (a) a glass of cold drink (b) a water bottle (c) cup of coffee (d) none

Answer: (a) a glass of cold drink

Question 15. What did Bill forget in the hotel? (a) his wallet (b) his keys (c) his room number (d) none

Answer: (c) his room number

Question 16. What kind of man is Bill Bryson? (a) wise (b) confused (c) jovial (d) none

Answer: (b) confused

Question 17. Who is the writer of this lesson? (a) Bill Coyte (b) Bill Bryson (c) Bill Cosby (d) All

Answer: (b) Bill Bryson

We hope the given NCERT MCQ Questions for Class 9 English Moments Chapter 9 The Accidental Tourist with Answers Pdf free download will definitely yield fruitful results. If you have any queries related to CBSE Class 9 English The Accidental Tourist MCQs Multiple Choice Questions with Answers, drop your questions below and will get back to you in no time.

The Accidental Tourist

by Anne Tyler

• The Accidental Tourist Summary

The Accidental Tourist opens with Macon and Sarah Leary driving back home to Baltimore in the rain after a vacation at the beach. When Macon refuses to stop the car, Sarah suddenly announces that she wants a divorce. She accuses Macon of being incapable of comforting her, especially after the tragic murder of their 12-year-old son, Ethan . Macon is surprised. The book then flashes forward to after the couple has separated. Macon tries to adjust to the change, finding it strange to live in their family house all alone. In a somewhat compulsive way, Macon comes up with various "systems" of organization in order to manage the household chores. These habits are highly strange, such as washing the clothes in the bathtub while he showers. Macon, overcome by a grief he won't directly acknowledge, also struggles to keep a normal sleeping and eating routine.

Meanwhile, Macon tries to maintain a regular work schedule. His job is writing travel guides aimed at businessmen who are reluctant to leave their hometown. It is an ironic role for Macon, as he hates traveling and leaving his comfort zone in any way. Macon soon has to leave for a trip to England. Right before his departure, Sarah calls him to ask if she can come by and get her rug. They reveal to each other that they have both been struggling since the separation. On the way to the airport, Macon drops off his dog, Edward , at a kennel, where he strikes up a conversation with a young receptionist named Muriel Pritchett . In England, Macon has difficulty getting his work assignments done and itches to go home. When he returns to Baltimore, he picks up Edward and Muriel Pritchett tells him the dog was well-behaved, subtly flirting with Macon and giving him her business card. Macon can only think about Sarah, and he feels her absence as he walks back into his house with Edward.

Weeks go by and Macon is challenged by completing his England travel book. His boss, Julian, starts to call him, inquiring on his progress, and Macon promises he will have it done in a few weeks. Instead of working, Macon focuses his energy on his household systems, devising ones to ensure that he almost never has to leave the house to do grocery shopping. Despite being invited over for meals by his neighbors, who now know about his separation, Macon declines the gesture, feeling that he can trust no one. Much of his time is spent daydreaming about his former life and what went wrong in his marriage to Sarah. One night, when Macon walks down into his basement, he falls and breaks his leg. He ends up having to stay at his family house, with his sister Rose and his brothers Charles and Porter , while he recovers. We learn more about the Leary siblings and their shared tendency for strange organizational habits. We also learn about their childhood, and how the children were left to live with their grandparents by their volatile mother, Alicia .

Edward the dog increasingly starts acting out, eventually biting Julian when he visits Macon at the family house one day. Macon realizes he must do something about it and remembers Muriel Pritchett's business card. He calls her and they make an appointment to train Edward. At their meeting, Muriel is very forward and reveals many personal details about herself. Macon does not know how to interact with her, continually trying to bring the conversation back to training Edward. They continue with training lessons over the next few days. One night, Macon has a sexual dream about Muriel; the next day, when he sees her for the lesson, he abruptly kisses her and then instantly apologizes for it.

By October, Macon has finally made progress on his travel guide and goes to hand it in at Julian's office. Julian has slowly been hinting at his interest in Macon's sister, Rose, and requests to be invited over for dinner one night. He also asks Macon if he can start working on another U.S. guidebook.

As it turns into winter, Macon is able to remove his cast. Despite his recovery, he is continuing to stay at his family home rather than return to his old house. He takes off to New York City for a work assignment. While there, he goes to review a restaurant on the top of a very tall skyscraper. There, he has an anxiety attack—not only from the height, but also from the feeling of being very small and far away from everyone he loves. He calls his brother Charles for help and discovers that Edward has cornered Charles in the pantry. He has to call Muriel from the top of the building and ask her to go to his house to tame Edward.

The dog lessons continue and Edward shows improvement. Muriel increasingly shows her interest in Macon, which Macon tries to deflect. Muriel invites Macon to come to dinner with her and her 7-year-old son, Alexander , which Macon is unsure about, feeling that he is not ready to start another relationship. He drives to Muriel's house the night before the proposed dinner and tells her about the death of Ethan and his mixed feelings. Muriel comforts him and they end up sleeping together.

Macon starts to spend more and more time with Muriel, staying over at her house and becoming a surrogate father for the sickly Alexander. He enjoys settling into this new routine and the strange and foreign atmosphere of Muriel's working-class neighborhood. At the same time, he begins to notice more of Muriel's quirks that annoy him, such as her relentless talking and superficial interests. Macon's siblings start to become concerned that he is spending so much time away from them, wondering whether this new relationship is good for him. Macon finds out from Julian that he plans on proposing to Rose on Christmas.

Muriel and Macon's relationship progresses, with him meeting her parents and ingraining himself into her life more and more until he is practically spending all his time with her. Macon brings Muriel as his date to his sister Rose's wedding. There, he realizes the similarity between the flakiness of his mother, Alicia, and Muriel's own flightiness. Sarah is also at the wedding, and Macon is curious to learn if she has been dating anyone else. His concern with this makes him recognize his lingering feelings for his ex-wife.

In the following months, Muriel starts to pressure Macon to show more commitment to her. She requests to marry him in June, to which Macon replies that he's not ready, wanting to keep things more casual. She also begs to accompany him on his business trip to France, but Macon declines. Muriel suspects that Macon wants to leave her to go back to Sarah. Their two different attitudes to the relationship lead to the relationship's rupture, with Macon going back to live in his old house with Sarah. Macon and Sarah try to resume their former relationship, going on errands and seeing their friends together, but something has clearly changed between them.

When Macon is departing on his flight to Paris, he is startled to discover that Muriel is on the same plane. She has found out his travel information and has booked the same tickets, desperate to renew her connection with him. Macon allows her to follow him around to some degree in Paris, although he has committed to Sarah. One night, he hurts his back and is resigned to bed, unable to complete his assignments. Sarah shows up in Macon's hotel to take care of him while he is bedridden. She, of course, discovers Muriel's presence, and Macon must make a final choice between the two women. Considering how he has never been able to make his own choices in life, feeling always overwhelmed by the chaos of life around him, Macon chooses to leave behind the past and be with Muriel.

The Accidental Tourist Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for The Accidental Tourist is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Standing water in the road is compared to a wide lake.

A wide lake, it seemed, in the center of the highway crashed against the underside of the car and slammed it to the right.

How does Macon meet Muriel?

Macon meets Muriel when he hires her to train his dog.

How is Macon described in Chapter 1?

From the text:

He was a tall, pale, gray-eyed man, with straight fair hair cut close to his head, and his skin was that thin kind that easily burns.

Study Guide for The Accidental Tourist

The Accidental Tourist study guide contains a biography of Anne Tyler, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About The Accidental Tourist
• Character List

Essays for The Accidental Tourist

The Accidental Tourist essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler.

• The Accidental Acceptance: Family and Modernity in 'The Accidental Tourist' and 'Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant'

Lesson Plan for The Accidental Tourist

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
• Common Core Standards
• Introduction to The Accidental Tourist
• Relationship to Other Books
• Bringing in Technology
• Notes to the Teacher
• Related Links
• The Accidental Tourist Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for The Accidental Tourist

• Introduction
• Plot summary

The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions and Answers Class 9 English Moments

Without further ado, let’s delve into the captivating world of “The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions and Answers Class 9” and explore the profound life lessons it imparts. As we accompany Macon on his emotional odyssey, we invite you to join us in reflecting on the themes of loss, love, and the transformative power of unexpected encounters. Read this also Extra Questions for Class 9 English with Answers .

The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions and Answers Short Answer Type

Question 1. Bill Bryson says “I am, in short, easily confused.” What examples has he given to justify this? Answer: He gives the example of returning to his hotel desk two or three times a day, asking what his room number was. He also talks about looking for a lavatory and ending up standing in an alley on the wrong side of a self¬locking door.

Question 2. What happens when the zip on his carry-on bag gives way? Answer: The side of the bag flew open and everything inside it, like newspaper cuttings, other loose papers, a 14-ounce tin of pipe tobacco, magazines, passport, English money, film, etc, were scattered all over the place. He also injured his finger, which bled profusely.

Question 3. What causes his finger to bleed? How does his wife react? Answer: His finger was cut on the zip when he was trying to open it. His wife looked at him with an expression of wonder and commented that she couldn’t believe that he did that for a living.

Question 4. How does Bill Bryson end up in a ‘crash position’ in the aeroplane? Answer: This happened when he bent down to tie his shoelaces while seated in the plane, and the person in the seat ahead of him threw back his seat back in a full recline. As a result, Bill Bryson found himself doubled over and pinned helplessly in the ‘crash position’.

Question 5. Why do the writer’s teeth and gums turn navy blue? Answer: This happens when the writer was penning down important thoughts in his notebook during a flight. He had been sucking thoughtfully on the end of his pen while doing so. He had not realised that in the process, his teeth and gums had turned navy blue because of the ink.

Question 6. Bill Bryson ‘ached to be suave’. Is he successful in his mission? Answer: No, he is not suave in spite of his best efforts, because he always looks as though he has been through an earthquake when he rises from a dinner table. He can never get inside a car without having at least 14 inches of his coat hanging outside the door. He can never wear light coloured trousers without having chewing gum, ice cream, cough syrup, or motor oil stains on them.

Question 7. Why do you think Bill Bryson’s wife says to the children, ‘Take the lids off the food for Daddy’? Answer: She says this because her husband is so accident-prone that she expects the food to go all over the place or some such accident to happen if he is allowed to open the lid himself. This is because of his earlier accidental incidents that always happen whenever he tries to perform simple actions, especially during flights.

Question 8. What is the significance of the title? Answer: The title suggests that the writer is a tourist, not by choice, but by accident. It is a pun on the word accident, as he has several accidents while travelling. In fact, this effectively captures the various misadventures that he has while travelling with his family. It also suggests that the anecdotes and events described are humorous and should be taken in a lighter vein.

Question 9. Why does the writer say ‘living in the real world’ is challenging for him? Answer: He says this because he has had several experiences of doing something wrong in instances where normal people have no problems. For instance, things like remembering his room number in an hotel, or finding the lavatory at a movie theatre.

Question 10. Why did the writer feel the need to open his carry-on bag at Logan Airport? Answer: He wanted to open the bag to take out his frequent flyer card, which he had kept inside it.

Question 11. Of all the things that spilled out of his carry-on bag, what was the writer most disturbed about? Why? Answer: He was most disturbed about the loss of his tobacco tin, because he was worried it might be very expensive to buy in England.

Question 12. How did the writer free himself from the crash position? Answer: He did so by clawing at the leg of the man sitting next to him.

Question 13. How did the writer affect the lady sitting next to him during one of his flights? Answer: He kept knocking soft drinks into the lady’s lap, even though he tried to be careful after the flight attendant had cleaned her up the first time he had done so.

Question 14. How did the lady next to the writer on the plane react? Answer: She looked at the writer with a stupefied expression of disbelief, and exclaimed an oath that started with ‘oh’ and ended with ‘sake’, and had words in between that he had not heard a nun utter before.

Question 15. What, according to the writer, was his worst experience on a plane? Answer: The worst experience according to him was the time his mouth and teeth turned navy blue. He had been sucking on the end of his pen while writing down his thoughts. He then spoke to an attractive lady sitting next to him, before he realised that his teeth, chin and gums had turned a striking shade of blue.

Question 16. What does the writer do to curb his accidental tendencies when he is flying alone? Answer: He doesn’t eat or drink, or lean over to tie his shoelaces. He also never puts his pen anywhere near his mouth.

Question 17. Why does the writer not get his frequent flyer miles? Answer: He does not get his miles because he couldn’t find his frequent flyer card in time. Also, he forgets to ask for the miles when he checks in, or the airline does not record them, or the check-in clerk informs him that he is . not entitled to them.

Question 18. Give an example to show that the writer is a frequent flyer? Answer: The fact that the writer says that he usually flies 100,000 miles a year in about 23 different airlines, reveals that he is a frequent flyer.

Question 19. Give an example of when the writer was not given miles because he was not entitled to them. Answer: On a flight to Australia, which could have got him a large number of air miles, he was told by the airport clerk that he was not entitled to them.

Question 20. Why were the miles not credited to the writer? Answer: They were not credited to him because the ticket was in the name of B. Bryson, while the card was in the name of W. Bryson. Even though the writer tried to tell her that ‘Bill’ was the short form of ‘William’, she refused to oblige him.

Question 21. How do we know that the writer is a positive man? Answer: We know this from the fact that though he did not get a free passage to Bali due to the insufficient airmiles on his card, he was quite philosophical about it. He remarks that it is probably a good thing, because he could not have remained hungry on the long flight from America to Bali.

Question 22. What is the meaning of ‘venerable’? What is the writer trying to say by using the phrase ‘close and venerable relationship between Bill and William’? Answer: Venerable means honourable or respectful. By using this phrase, the writer is saying that both Bill and William are closely related; they are in fact different forms of the same name.

Question 23. How was the writer planning to fly to Bali? Answer: He was planning to do so by using the air miles that he would collect for flying so frequently. They are the bonus that one is given for flying by a particular airline, where a person is awarded a free ticked to any destination after one collects a certain number of points.

Question 24. What is the tone of the lesson ‘The Accidental Tourist’? Answer: The tone is humorous and self-deprecating. The writer has made fun of his own shortcomings and clumsiness, by listing out all the accidents he has had while flying in an aircraft, as well as the embarrassing situations he has been in because of this.

Question 25. Do you think the writer’s family members have trouble travelling with him? Give reasons for your answer. Answer: I feel that the writer’s family are quite used to his clumsiness and have reconciled to the fact that he is likely to have several ‘accidents’. This is evident from the fact that his wife asks the children to take the lid off the food for the writer, because she knows even a small thing like opening the lid can have disastrous consequences if he is allowed to do it.

The Accidental Tourist Extra Questions and Answers Long Answer Type

Question 1. What kind of picture do you get of the writer’s character from the lesson ‘The Accidental Tourist’? Answer: He appears to be a positive, funny, and self-deprecating man who does not mind highlighting his shortcomings. In fact, every instance that could have embarrassed other people has been shown in a humorous light. He has found humour in the most disastrous and frustrating situations. Even when he loses the chance to go to Bali when the airline refuses to give him air miles on a technical reason, he does not lose his temper.

He does not take himself too seriously and readily accepts his clumsiness. He doesn’t try to hide any of the embarrassing accidents he has had, but honestly admits to them. His family also appears to have accepted him the way he is, and leamt to handle him along with his ‘accidents’. The writer’s most endearing quality is how comfortable he is with his own self. Even though he talks about wanting to be suave and gentlemanly like other travellers, he is not too worried when he is unable to do so, in spite of his best efforts. He thus comes across as a clumsy, accident-prone, but good natured person.

Question 2. Mention two disastrous events that the writer experiences while travelling with women travellers and trying to impress them? Answer: The first instance mentioned is when he is travelling next to a sweet young nun, and he twicp spilled his drink on her lap, thereby testing her patience greatly. In fact, she became so agitated that she used swear words, which he had not expected a nun to use. The second instance was when he was talking to his lady companion while sucking on the end of a pen. He later realised that the ink from the pen had stained his teeth, gums, and chin a bright navy blue, which had obviously made him appear ridiculous.

Question 3. Discuss the title of the story. Do you think it is appropriate? Give reasons for your answer. Answer: ‘The Accidental Tourist’ is an apt title for this story. The title is a pun on the word ‘accidental’. On one level, the writer is literally accident prone, and has a problem of having the most peculiar accidents while travelling. Some of the accidents include spilling the contents of his bag all over the airport, spilling food and drinks on his fellow travellers. At another level, it refers to him being an accidental or unwilling traveller.

We know this because he mentions that even though he travels a lot every year, he prefers to travel with his family rather than alone. In their absence, he tries to avoid eating or drinking, out of fear of causing mishaps to those travelling with him.

Question 4. How does the writer’s family behave during the writer’s mishaps and accidents? Answer: The family seems to have accepted the fact that they cannot travel with the writer without facing some accident or the other. This is revealed in the part where the writer’s wife reacts with wonder and says taht she cannot believe he does it for a living. She seems neither angry nor exasperated/annoyed with his clumsiness. Instead, when he begins to eat the food served during the flight, his children help him take the lid off the food, and his wife warns the children when he is about to cut the meat.

Question 5. How could the writer make his journeys advantageous inspite of the accidents? Why is he not able to benefit from them ultimately? Answer: The writer is a frequent flyer. Hence, he could benefit from collecting frequent flier miles that the airline offers to those who travel with their airline on a regular basis. These miles add up to a free ticket to any destination of the traveller’s choice. They writer is, however, not able to take advantage of this scheme, because he either can’t find his card on time, or forgets to ask for the miles. Sometimes, the airlines don’t record the miles, and one time, the check-in clerk informed him that he was not entitled to the points. Moreover, he doesn’t stick to a single airline, and mentions having travelled with 23 airlines, thereby losing out on points from any single airline.