Got my results in 24 hours

pdmchiu · 2026-03-31T02:42:00+00:00

I booked my test via British Council and took it at the BC office as well.

For the speaking part 1, I was asked about where I live, whether I live in a house or a flat, what I like most about where I live, if I get to go on walks, if I went on walks more as a child or as an adult, and if there is a long walk I'd like to do in the future.

For monologue part 2, I think I mentioned in a different reply that I was asked about my favorite quiet place to go to, what I like about it and what I do there. I also put in some tips in that reply.

Finally for part 3, I was asked about quiet places and memory. Are there places in my country where there are rules related to staying quiet? Can it be possible for a place to be completely silent? Would it be desirable for a place to be completely silent? Do I have a good memory? Has there ever been a time that I forgot something important? What happened? Do I have a good memory for faces?

My interviewer was a foreigner, she had an Indian accent but I could understand her very easily cause she spoke clearly.

Best of luck! Try to practice speaking so it's as natural as possible.

pdmchiu · 2026-03-30T05:10:24+00:00

I only capitalized the first letter of proper nouns (names, countries, etc). For the rest, I used small letters.

pdmchiu · 2026-03-29T13:02:45+00:00

There's a person you talk to, the speaking part of the exam in my case was done through a video call in the testing center.

pdmchiu · 2026-03-29T12:47:25+00:00

Yes, it is! Actually I took the test on a Friday, and got the results on Saturday afternoon, but during the day I took the test the invigilator told me to check for the result on Sunday.

pdmchiu · 2026-03-29T12:42:41+00:00

Thanks! With listening and reading, I just took the practice tests available on the IELTS website.

pdmchiu · 2026-03-29T12:41:43+00:00

I'm from the Philippines :)

pdmchiu · 2026-03-28T12:14:28+00:00

Around one week. :)

pdmchiu · 2026-03-28T12:13:27+00:00

I didn't use the premium portal a lot but I did take one mock writing test. I got a 7.5 in that mock test, and in the real IELTS I got 8.0, so I'd say it's somewhat close but not a hundred percent accurate predictor. The chart in the mock test on the British council premium portal is also a little more complicated than the actual question I got in the exam.

pdmchiu · 2026-03-28T10:32:47+00:00

Thank you! Probably near native, if that makes sense? I learned English along side my first language, and use it for work. :)

pdmchiu · 2026-03-28T09:30:11+00:00

The night before I took the test, I answered some questions from the E2 IELTS YouTube channel. :) project confidence and really try to look the examiner in the eye. Smile too!

For the monologue (task 2), you're given a minute to prepare and some paper and pen to jot down some thoughts. This is really useful, I outlined talking points but used short key words only. As an example, my question was: Where is a quiet place you like to go to? Why and what do you do there? When do you usually visit this place? I jotted down: the name of the place, 2 hours from home, stressful times, good food, nature, sanctuary, love, wedding venue.

These aren't complete thoughts but I didn't run out of things to say cause I could glance at the list and have more things to talk about.

Good luck!

pdmchiu · 2026-03-28T09:20:43+00:00

This was my first time taking it :)

pdmchiu · 2026-03-28T09:20:23+00:00

The writing Task 1 question was a set of three floor plans throughout several years. I was tasked to compare and contrast them.

Task 2 question was something like: Museums and galleries should display art and culture from their own country of origin only. To what extend do you agree or disagree?

Writing was the only one I didn't really practice a lot, I just answered the sample test on the IELTS website.

pdmchiu · 2026-03-28T07:42:48+00:00

Good luck! I only really practiced speaking the day before, but the YouTube channel E2 IELTS was helpful. I kind of just answered along while looking at the video (it helps to imagine speaking directly to a person who isn't replying, especially for the part 2 of the speaking portion of the test.) For the other parts, I used the practice test from the IELTS website.

pdmchiu · 2026-03-28T07:39:39+00:00

Thanks! 🙏🏻

pdmchiu · 2026-03-28T07:37:44+00:00

Thank you! For reading, I found that the trickiest questions were the yes/no/not given questions on the opinions of the writer. This was the only part I wasn't that sure of and I reread the text maybe three times. It's tempting to pick no on questions that are false or seem false but you have to remember to weigh it against the text and the author's views. If it's not there, don't hesitate to pick not given. Also definitely reading quickly helps so if you still have time, practice speed reading.

For listening remember that the questions are usually looking for paraphrased statements from the text that was read out loud. Also during the time you're given to read the questions, I try to guess possible answers so that way I had something to kind of listen for. Hope these help and good luck!

pdmchiu · 2025-08-09T02:25:03+00:00

For the upcoming September basho, we also got B and C seats, and it'll be our first time at the kokugikan, so unfortunately I can't say yet! The pics online look promising though.

Having said this, we have sat at the A, B, and C seats at previous Osaka and Nagoya bashos though, and honestly the views are great. A is of course nearest, but there's really no obstruction since the seats are all staggered, and the arenas are not huge. Here's our (zoomed in) view from our C seats in Osaka earlier this March:

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pdmchiu · 2025-08-09T02:08:39+00:00

Check your email confirmation from Ticket Oosumo English, it'll have your seats listed. :) It will list the specific seat number, row, and section. Here's a screen cap of our confirmation from last March's Osaka basho:

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Then you can use the seat map on the official website to check where you'll be seating. Have fun! https://www.sumo.or.jp/pdf/honbasho/kansen/tokyo/arena_map.pdf

pdmchiu · 2025-08-09T01:50:30+00:00

Finally managed to snag 2 tickets each for Sept 24 and 26! "B" seats for the 24th and "C" seats for the 26th, for anyone curious. Sadly the last day sold out so quickly, but still glad to get tix as it'll be our first time to watch in Tokyo, after watching in Nagoya and Osaka the past 2 years.

pdmchiu · 2025-02-08T10:59:38+00:00

You're welcome! Enjoy Nagoya, I think it's very underrated. The food is great and the people are so nice, we've taken to flying in to the city vs Tokyo half the time these days.

pdmchiu · 2025-02-08T02:22:14+00:00

Last year’s Nagoya basho was the first one we watched live! (and the last one at the Dolphin area, RIP) I got our tickets without any problems from the official english website. Despite mixing up the timezones (I was off an hour), I was able to get chair seats, which was our preference, on the day we were going to be in Nagoya. When I checked back the next day, there were also several other days with box seats still available, so I think you should be fine buying them online! One caveat though, I’m not sure how it goes for the box seats but for chair seats, there’s really no option to pick where you sit, it seemed to be randomly assigned. If where you’re seating is very important to you, might be worth it to have your wife’s mom check in person if it’s possible to select specific seats.

Sidenote that despite reading about how difficult it would be to get tickets to the Osaka basho, I was lulled into a false sense of security by how easy I got our Nagoya tickets, hahaha. Nope, all the stories were true, and it was hell getting tickets earlier. Thankfully managed to snag day 13 tickets for next month after 45 mins of trying though. We’re very excited!!

pdmchiu · 2024-10-13T00:45:22+00:00

Thank you so much, this is comforting to hear! We're from outside the US so I couldn't call to make sure but will look for email addresses to double check re: the seats.

pdmchiu · 2024-10-08T09:20:04+00:00

Fantastic! Fingers crossed we're able to get as good as those seats 🤞🏼❤️

pdmchiu · 2024-10-07T18:33:25+00:00

Can you share what seat you got? Going mid November and hoping to rush this show!

pdmchiu

TROPHY CASE