Moments The Accidental Tourist - NCERT Solutions

CBSE Class 09 English Language and Literature
NCERT Solutions
Moments Chapter 9
The Accidental Tourist

Page No: 60 Think About It
1. Bill Bryson says, “I am, in short, easily confused.” What examples has he given to justify this?
Ans:
 Bill Bryson claims that he gets easily confused and cannot even do his routine work without creating a mess. Many times he went looking for the lavatory in a cinema and ended up standing in an alley on the wrong side of a self-locking door. He would forget his hotel room number and would return twice or thrice to the reception to confirm.He would spill his drink on others or just scatter his things.That is why he said that he was easily confused.

2. What happens when the zip on his carry-on bag gives way?
Ans:
 His fingers get hurt when the zip of his carry-on bag gives way. He is bleeding profusely. All belongings in his bag come flying across the floor of the waiting hall of the airport. He seems to be making a mockery of himself and of being civilized and way of behaving at a particular place.

3. Why is his finger bleeding? What is his wife’s reaction?
Ans:
 His finger gets stuck in the zip of his bag and starts bleeding. His wife is astonished by the way he has created a mess all around himself.

4. How does Bill Bryson end up in a “crash position” in the aircraft?
Ans:
 Once on board 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.

5. Why are his teeth and gums navy blue?
Ans:
 On one occasion, while on a plane, Bryson was pondering over his notes in his notebook and kept sucking on the end of his pen. He was careless enough to notice that the pen had leaked and his gums, teeth, tongue and chin were all colored with navy blue ink.

6. Bill Bryson “ached to be suave”. Is he successful in his mission? List his ‘unsuave’ ways.
Ans:
Bill Bryson"ached to be suave" .The way he behaves in public shows that he has failed in his mission.He would sometimes show the most uncivilized act.He would love, just once in his life ,to rise from a dinner table without looking as if he has experienced an extremely localized seismic event or get in a car and close the door without leaving 14 inches of his coat outside or wear light-colored 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”?
Ans:
 Bill Bryson’s wife knew his knack of creating misery for himself and putting others in trouble.So, to avoid being in such kind of a situation again ,she asked the children to take the lids off the food for Bill .She knew that if Bill tried to do that himself, then he might take 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 or on some passenger.

8. What is the significance of the title?
Ans: The title is significant because it is about a man who travels a lot and is always confused. He gets into trouble because of his acts which are not deliberate. The story depicts humorous travel experiences – like being pinned in a crashed position, spilling drink or food on a co-passenger, unknowingly gets his gums and teeth covered in ink and many more such instances are there when the author accidentally gets into trouble, thus justifying the title.