Lesson 10

Ex.1: Read and translate the text into Russian:

LONDON

London is the capital of Great Britain, its political, economic and cultural centre. It is one of the largest cities in the world. Its population is more than 9 million people. London is situated on the river Thames. The city is very old and beautiful.It was founded more than two thousand years ago.

Traditionally London is divided into several parts: the City, the West End, the East End and Westminster. The City is the oldest part of London, its financial and business centre. The heart of the City is the Stock Exchange.

Westminster is the most important part of the capital. It's the administrative centre. The Houses of Parliament, the seat of the British Government, are there. It's a very beautiful building with two towers and a very big clock called Big Ben. Big Ben is really the bell which strikes every quarter of an hour. Opposite the Houses of Parliament is Westminster Abbey. It's a very beautiful church built over 900 years ago. The tombs of many great statesmen, scientists and writers are there.

To the west of Westminster is West End. Here we find most of the big shops, hotels, museums, art galleries, theatres and concert halls. Picadilly Circus is the heart of London's West End. There are wide streets with beautiful houses and many parks, gardens and squares in the West  End.

To the east of Westminster is the East End, an industrial district of the capital. There are no parks or gardens in the East End and you can't see many fine houses there. Most of the plants and factories are situated there.

London has many places of interest. One of them is Buckingham Palace. It's the residence of the Queen. The English are proud of Trafalgar Square, which was named so in memory of the victory at the battle. There in 1805 the English fleet defeated the fleet of France and Spain. The last place of interest I should like to mention is the British Museum, the biggest museum in London. The museum is famous for its library - one of the richest in the world.

All London's long-past history is told by its streets. There are many streets in London which are known all over the world. Among them Oxford Street, Downing Street and a lot of others can be mentioned. And tourists are usually attracted not only by the places of interest but by the streets too.

In conclusion I should say if you are lucky enough to find yourself in London some day you will have a lot to see and enjoy there.

QUESTIONS:

1. When was London founded? 2. Into which parts is London divided? 3. What is the heart of the City? 4. Do you know any places of interest in London? 5. All London's history is told by its streets, isn't it?

Vocabulary:

tower - башня tomb - могила battle - битва in conclusion - в заключение

Lesson 11

Ex.1: Read and translate the text into Russian:

Places of interest in great britain

  Britain is rich in its historic places which link the present with the past.

The oldest part of London is Lud Hill, where the city is originated. About a mile west of it there is Westminster Palace, where the king lived and the Parliament met, and there is also Westminster Abbey, the coronation church.

Liverpool, the "city of ships", is England's second greatest port, ranking after London. The most interesting sight in the Liverpool is the docks. They occupy a river frontage of seven miles. The University of Liverpool, established in 1903, is noted for its School of Tropical Medicine. And in the music world Liverpool is a well-known name, for it's the home town of "The Beatles".

Stratford-on-Avon lies 93 miles north-west of London. Shakespeare was born here in 1564 and here he died in 1616.

Cambridge and Oxford Universities are famous centres of learning.

Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument, presumably built by Druids, members of an order of priests in ancient Britain. Tintagel Castle is King Arthur's reputed birthplace. Canterbury Cathedral is the seat of the Archbishop of Canterbury, head of the Church of England.

The British Museum is the largest and richest museum in the world. It was founded in 1753 and contains one of the world's richest collections of antiquities. The Egyptian Galleries contain human and animal mummies. Some parts of Athens' Parthenon are in the Greek section.

Madam Tussaud's Museum is an exhibition of hundreds of life-size wax models of famous people of yesterday and today. The collection was started by Madam Tussaud, a French modeller in wax, in the 18th century. Here you can meet Marilyn Monroe, Elton John, Picasso, the Royal Family, the Beatles and many others: writers, movie stars, singers, politicians, sportsmen, etc.

QUESTIONS:

1. What is the oldest part of London? 2. What is Westminster Palace? 3. What is called "city of ships"? 4. Why is Stratford-on-Avon famous? 5. What are the famous centres of learning? 6. What is Stonehenge? 7. Who is the head of Church of England? What is his seat? 8. What is the largest and the richest museum in the world? What unique collections does it contain? 9. What can one see in Madam Tussaud's Museum? VOCABULARY:

Lud Hill — Лад Хилл church — церковь frontage — фасад prehistoric — доисторический order — орден priest — священник Tintagel — Тинтайджэл Canterbury Cathedral Archbishop — архиепископ Кентерберийский antiquity — антиквариат; древность mummies — мумии wax — воск