How to use  ----そう & ----ところ

It's almost Valentine's!!

仕事が始まりそうです。

しごとがはじまりそうです。

My work is about to begin.

電車が来そうです。

でんしゃがきそうです。

The train is about to come.

彼らは結婚しそうです。　　　
する conjugates to し when followed by そう

かれらはけっこんしそうです。　　　

They are on the verge of getting married/They seem likely to get married

ーーそう　has meanings of " about to " " on the threshhold of " " on the verge of "about a certain action. Notice that it's not confirmed yet, it's just in the process of confirming a certain action. Which means that there is a small amount of doubt or gap that exists. [Most likely to] would probably be another close meaning. 

**Keep in mind that this is not a direct translation, but more of a translation that can be understood in English. 

頃(ころ) vs. 時(とき) - Which one??

Don't do this at the shopping mall....... unless you're looking for leftovers

1.デパートへ歩いた時に雨が降った。

2.デパートへ歩いた頃に雨が降った。

The rain fell when I walked to the department store.

Which is more suitable? 

The answer is 1, or at least that’s the natural way to go. 

時（とき）&　頃（ころ）both have the meaning of ‘when’, however the context in which they are used creates the difference.