British Holidays There are a number of holidays, which are celebrated in Great Britain every year. One of them is, of course, New Year's Day on the first of January. It is not so popular in England as in our country, but it is rather popular in Scotland. On that day people usually visit their friends and there is a lot of dancing and eating. In Scotland people bring a piece of coal for good luck in the New Year. The next holiday of the year is St. Valentine's Day. It is on the 14th of February. People buy or make Valentine cards and send them to the people they love. In March there is Mother's Day. All the children, little or adult ones, come to their mothers on that day to express their love and gratitude. In April there is Easter. At Easter children eat chocolate Easter eggs. Sometimes parents hide them in the ho-use or in the garden and children have to look for them. In June there is Father's Day. On Father's Day children give or send their fathers and grandfathers cards and presents. On the 31st of October there is a Halloween. They say ghosts and witches come out on Halloween. People make lanterns out of pumpkins. Some people have Halloween parties and dress as witches and ghosts. The 25th of December is Christmas Day. It is one of the people's favourite holidays. People put Christmas trees in their houses and decorate them. There are beautiful Christmas decorations in the streets. On Christmas Eve everybody puts the presents under the Christmas tree. People say that at night Father Christmas puts presents into the stockings which children usually hang on their beds. The traditional Christmas meal is roast turkey and Christmas pudding. British Holidays There are a number of holidays, which are celebrated in Great Britain every year. One of them is, of course, New Year's Day on the first of January. It is not so popular in England as in our country, but it is rather popular in Scotland. On that day people usually visit their friends and there is a lot of dancing and eating. In Scotland people bring a piece of coal for good luck in the New Year. The next holiday of the year is St. Valentine's Day. It is on the 14th of February. People buy or make Valentine cards and send them to the people they love. In March there is Mother's Day. All the children, little or adult ones, come to their mothers on that day to express their love and gratitude. In April there is Easter. At Easter children eat chocolate Easter eggs. Sometimes parents hide them in the ho-use or in the garden and children have to look for them. In June there is Father's Day. On Father's Day children give or send their fathers and grandfathers cards and presents. On the 31st of October there is a Halloween. They say ghosts and witches come out on Halloween. People make lanterns out of pumpkins. Some people have Halloween parties and dress as witches and ghosts. The 25th of December is Christmas Day. It is one of the people's favourite holidays. People put Christmas trees in their houses and decorate them. There are beautiful Christmas decorations in the streets. On Christmas Eve everybody puts the presents under the Christmas tree. People say that at night Father Christmas puts presents into the stockings which children usually hang on their beds. The traditional Christmas meal is roast turkey and Christmas pudding. British Isles The British Isles haven't always been a separate part of Europe. Long time ago Britain was a part of the European continent. Then about ten thousand years ago during the end of the last Ice Age, when the climate grew warmer, new rivers and sees were formed Europe slowly moved into its present shape. The ancient people of Britain were simple hunters and ate flesh of animals fruits, nuts, honey. They fished, and gathered oysters. They didn't have a permanent place of living and traveled from place to place, sheltering in caves. Then the British men have become the farmers. The Stone Age farmer had the patches in the forests that covered most of Britain. He kept half-wild cattle and pigs in a forest and in Northern Scotland, free from forests, he kept sheep. By the end of the Stone Age (2000 BC) metal was already being used. It was time of the Invasion of Beaker people. They came from the Northern Europe. They used bronze and it was them, who started the building of Stone monuments at Stonehenge. Mining and trade were growing during the Bronze Age (ab. 2000-500 BC). About 500 BC British people were learning how to smelt iron. Iron tools had an advantage over bronze ones: they were much cheaper. The beginning of the Iron Age (ab. 400 BC) British Isles were invaded by Celts armed with weapons of iron. They conquered Kent and much of Southern England. They imposed their language on the natives, its Gaelic form was used in Ireland and Scotland, the Brythonic form - in England and Wales. It was the Brythonic tribe that gave its name to the whole country. The first chronicle of Britain was written by an educated merchant from Morsel. He also wrote the first description of the people, called Celts. He said they were a gentlefolk, skilled craftsman, who welcomed visitors. The most educated visitor of Britain described the British as a fierce race. His name was Julius Caesar. Present English dates back to 5th-6th centuries, when Germanic tribes of Jutes, Saxons & Angles overran all England except Cornwall & Cumberland. Some religious terms were borrowed from Latin in connection with converting England to Christianity by St. Augustin. Some parts of England were invaded by Danes & Norwegians, that's why the languages of the Anglo-Saxons & Danes formed the basis of English. Normans contributed greatly to the developing of English language during their invasion. Next point of this was the 15th-16th centuries when written language was stabilized with help of spreading of printing. In 19th century the growth of British colonial power led to the spread of English as world language. But still it was only the 1930 when the British Foreign Office stopped using French for all its official memoranda. So It was the long way of coming-to-be the language of international communication from old Anglo-Saxon dialects to the "world language" in 20th century. British theatres Until reccently the history of the english theatre has been build around actors rather then companies. It has been hard to find any London theatre that even had a consistent policy. There are no permanent staff in British theatres. Apply is rehearsed for a few weeks by a company of actors working together mostly for the first time and it is allowed to run as long as it draws the odious and pays it's way. Another peculiarity of the theatres in Great Britain is an follows: there are two kinds of seats, which can be booked an advanced (bookable), and unbookable once have no numbers and the spectators occupy them on the principal: first come - first served. And ancient times plays were acted inside churches and later on the market places. The first theatre in England "The Blackfries" build in 1576, and "The Globe" build in 1599, which is closely connected with William Shakespeare. Speaking about our times we should first of all mention "The English National theatre","The Royal Shakespeare company" and "Covent Garden". "Covent Garden" used to be a fashionable promenade - it was, before then, a convent garden - but when it became overrun with flower-sellers, orange-vendors and vegetable-growers, the people moved to more exclusive surroundings farther west, such as "St. Jame's Square". The first "Covent Garden theatre" was build in 1732. It was burnt down in 1808 and rebuild exactly a year after. It opened in September 1809, with Shakespeare's "Macbeth". Since the middle of the last century "Covent Garden" became exclusively devoted to opera. Now "Covent Garden" in busier than ever, it is one of the few well-known opera houses open for 11 months of the year and it employs over 600 people both of the Opera company and the Royal Ballet. Canada Canada is a vast country, bigger than the United States, bigger than the continent of Australia. It is in fact one of the world’s largest countries. Its area is about 10 mln sq km. As Canada extends for thousands of miles from the Arctic Ocean to the United States and from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean, all kinds of weather conditions and scenery are to be found there. The population of Canada is 29 mln people. The capital is Ottawa; the main cities are Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver. The word Canada comes from one of the Red Indian languages – "Kannata”, meaning "a number of huts”. Canada is often called the "Land of the Maple Leaf”. The maple leaf is the national emblem of Canada. The story of Canada goes back over 400 years. The French were the first settlers to this country. In 1759 Canada became part of the British Empire. In 1931 was Independence from Britain. Today Canada is an independent federative state, consisting of 10 provinces and 2 territories. It is a member of the Commonwealth, headed by the Queen of Great Britain. The two official languages are English and French. But many other languages are spoken: Italian, Chinese, German, Polish and Greek. Canada is a country with a very high standard of living. This country is particularly advanced in the areas of health, education, social protection and human rights. Cities of the USA Amounts large and famous American cities are Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, Los Angeles, San Francisco and New York. Washington is the capital of the USA. It is situated on the Potomac River in the District of Columbia. D. Washington chose the place. The city was founded in 1791 and named after the first president. Now Washington is the residents of the president and the congress. The center of the city is on Capital Hill. This building houses both the senate and a House of Representatives. The White House is one of the oldest buildings in the city. It is the president’s residents. Washington is a large scientific and cultural center. There are five universities in the city. The national academy of sciences and the library of congress are in Washington too. The national museum, the old and new national galleries of art, Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln memorials are among the city sites. New York is the largest city in USA. It is an economic, financial, scientific and cultural center. Dutch settlers founded the city in 17 century. The heart of the New York is Manhattan. It was hear that the Dutch built the first building of the town. The name Wall Street remained from our days. The business center of New York is near Wall Street. Another famous street is Broadway. It is the longest and the widest street in New York. It is the street there most famous theaters are situated. New York is the city of famous skyscrapers. The highest buildings are Impure State Building and the united national building. Climate and Nature of Great Britain CLIMATE The climate in Great Britain is generally mild and temperate due to the influence of the Gulf Stream. The south-western winds carry the warmth and moisture into Britain. The climate in Britain is usually described as cool, temperate and humid. British people say: "Other countries have a climate, in England we have weather." The weather in Britain changes very quickly. One day may be fine and the next day may be wet. The morning may be warm and the evening may be cool. Therefore it is natural for the people to use the comparison "as changeable as the weather" of a person who often changes his mood or opinion about something. The weather is the favourite topic of conversation in Britain. When two Englishmen are introduced to each other, if they can't think of any thing else to talk about, they talk about weather. When two people meet in the street they will often say something about weather as they pass, just to show their friendliness. Every daily paper publishes a weather forecast. Both the radio and television give the weather forecast several times each day. The English also say that they have three variants of weather: when it rains in the morning, when it rains in the afternoon or when in rains all day long. Sometimes it rains so heavily that they say "It's raining cats and dogs". Rainfall is more or less even throughout the year. In the mountains there is heavier rainfall then in the plains of the south and east. The driest period is from March to June and the wettest months are from October to January. The average range of temperature (from winter to summer) is from 15 to 23 degrees above zero. During a normal summer the temperature sometimes rises above 30 degrees in the south. Winter temperatures below 10 degrees are rare. It seldom snows heavily in winter, the frost is rare. January and February are usually the coldest months, July and August the warmest. Still the wind may bring winter cold in spring or summer days. Sometimes it brings the whirlwinds or hurricanes. Droughts are rare. So, we may say that the British climate has three main features: it is mild, humid and changeable. That means that it is never too hot or too cold. Winters are extremely mild. Snow may come but it melts quickly. In winter the cold is humid cold, not the dry one. This humid and mild climate is good for plants. The trees and flowers begin to blossom early in spring. In the British homes there has been no central heating up till recently. The fireplaces are often used. but the coal is not used as it's very expensive. Britain has no good coal now and imports it itself. Many schools and universities have no central heating either, and the floors there are made of stone. The British bedroom is especially cold, sometimes electric blankets or hotwater bottles are used. VEGETATION AND WILDLIFE Britain was originally a land of vast forests. mainly oak and beech in the Lowlands and pine and birch In the Highlands, with great stretches of marshland and smaller areas of moors. In the course of time, much forest land was cleared and almost all Lowlands outside the industrial areas were put under cultivation. Today only about 6 per cent of the total land area remains wooded. Extensive forests remain in eastern and northern Scotland and in south-eastern and western England. Oak, elm, ash, and beech are the commonest trees in England, while Scotland has much pine and birch. The Highlands with thin soil are largely moorland with heather and grasses. In the cultivated areas that make up most of Britain there are many wild flowers, flowering plants and grasses. The fauna or animal life of Britain is much like that of north-western Europe, to which it was once joined. Many larger mammals such as bear, wolf have been hunted to extinction, others are now protected by law. There are many foxes. Otters are common along rivers and streams, and seals live along much of the coast. Hedgehogs, hares, rabbits, rats and mice are numerous. Deer live in some of the forests in the Highlands of Scotland and England. Some 230 kinds of birds live in Britain, and another 200 are regular visitors, many are songbirds. The most numerous are blackbirds, sparrow and starling. Robin Redbreast is the national bird of Britain. The number of ducks, geese and other water fowl has diminished during recent years. There are many threats to wildlife and ecological balance around the coast. The biggest threat to the coastline is pollution. Even much-loved. Blackpool is not officially asafe. More than 3.500 million tons of industrial waste is pumped into the North Sea every year. "We cannot continue to use our seas as a dustbin and expect our coastline to survive," says Greenpeace. Many other ecological problems may be caused by privatization of the coast. Many of the rivers are "biologically dead", i.e. unable to support fish and wildlife. Culture in Great Britain It you're staying in London for a few days, you'll have no difficulty whatever in finding somewhere to spend an enjoyable evening. You'll find opera, ballet, comedy, drama, review, musical comedy and variety. Most theatres and music-halls have good orchestras with popular conductors. At the West-End theatres you can see most of the famous English actors and actresses. As a rule, the plays are magnificently staged - costumes, dresses, scenery, everything being done on the most lavish scale. The last half of the XVI and the beginning of the XVII centuries are known as the golden age of English literature, It was the time of the English Renaissance, and sometimes it is even called "the age of Shakespeare". Shakespeare, the greatest and most famous of English writers, and probably the greatest playwright who has ever lived, was born in Stratford-on-Avon. In spite of his fame we know very little about his life. He wrote 37 plays. Among them there are deep tragedies, such as Hamlet, King Lear, Othello, Macbeth, light comedies, such as The Merry Wives of Windsor, All's Well That Ends Well, Twelfth Night, Much Ado About Nothing. Customs and Traditions There are many customs and traditions in England. And I would like to tell you some of them. First tradition is called "Wrong side of the bed" When people are bad tempered we say that they must have got out of bed on the wrong side. Originally, it was meant quiet literally. People belive that the way they rose in the morning affected their behaivor throughout the day. The wrong side of the bed was the left side. The left always having been linked with evil. Second custom is called "Blowing out the candles" The custom of having candles on birthday cakes goes back to the ancient Greeks. Worshippers of Artemis, godess of the moon and hunting, used to place honey cakes on the altars of her temples on her birthday. The cakes were round like the full moon and lit with tapers. This custom was next recorded in the middle ages when German peasants lit tapers on birthday cakes, the number lit indicating the person's age, plus an extra one to represent the light of life. From earliest days burning tapers had been endoued with mystical significance and it was belived that when blown out they had the power to grant a secret wish and ensure a happy year ahead. And the last tradition I would like to tell you is called "The 5th of November" On the 5th of November in almost every otwn and village in England you will see fire burning, fireworks, cracking and lighting up the sky. You will see too small groups of children pulling round in a home made cart, a figure that looks something like a man but consists of an old suit of clothes, stuffed with straw. The children will sing:" Remember, remember the 5th of November; Gun powder, treason and plot". And they will ask passers-by for "a penny for the Guy" But the children with "the Guy" are not likely to know who or what day they are celebrating. They have done this more or less every 5th of November since 1605. At that time James the First was on the throne. He was hated with many people especialy the Roman catholics against whom many sever laws had been passed. A number of catholics chief of whom was Robert Catesby determined to kill the King and his ministers by blowing up the house of Parliament with gunpowder. To help them in this they got Guy Fawker, a soldier of fortune, who would do the actual work. The day fixed for attempt was the 5th of November, the day on which the Parliament was to open. But one of the consperators had several friends in the parliament and he didn't want them to die. So he wrote a letter to Lord Monteagle begging him to make some excuse to be absent from parliament if he valued his life. Lord Monteagle took the letter hurrily to the King. Guards were sent at once to examine the cellars of the house of Parliament. And there they found Guy Fawker about to fire a trail of gunpowder. He was tortured and hanged, Catesby was killed, resisting arrest in his own house. In memory of that day bonfires are still lighted, fireworks shoot across the November sky and figures of Guy Fawker are burnt in the streets. England England is often subdivided into three parts: the South, the Midlands and the North. The South. The landscape is varied. The climate is warmer than in other areas. There are hundreds of miles of sea coast which vary from flat or stony beaches to high rocky cliffs. The mild and sunny climate makes the south coast popular with holiday-makers. Some coastal resorts are famous, Brighton among them. Somerset, Devon and Cornwall are rural countries with hidden fishing hamlets and Britain’s warmest weather in winter. There are high and deep wooded valleys. Inland, the landscape is gentle and green; it’s famous for it’s quite beauty of its countryside. One of the most beautiful countries in the South of England is certainly Kent. It is known as the gardens of England, because it is famous for its fruit and vegetables. In general, the South is wealthier than other areas of Britain. Work of all kinds is provided on the land. British Aerospace has factories building aeroplanes in several parts of the South. Lots of people are involved in service industries including financial, business and government services, computer services and information system. There are science-based companies and research organizations. The Midlands. The Midlands Region has much farming land, but this part of the country is better known as an industrial area. Birmingham which is often called ‘the big heart of England’, is the most important city of the Midlands. It is the second largest city in the United Kingdom. Birmingham is famous for engineering, especially car production. Derby is another engineering centre. Rolls Royce makes aero engines and cars there. The West Midlands, Another industrialized area where there are many collieries and steelworks, is known as the Black smoke and blackened buildings there. In contrast, the Midlands region has some beautiful picturesque countryside in the Peak District with its National Park. The North. The weather is considerably colder. There is almost always snow in winter. This is a region of great natural beauty although industry of some kind has existed here for hundreds of years. There is a great contrast in the North between the beautiful open, hilly countryside and the industrial towns and mining villages. In parts of the North – in Yorkshire particularly – there are gentle wooded valleys and green pastures and excellent farming land. West Yorkshire is very good country for ship-farming, and it has long been Britain’s most important area for the wool industry. Some famous industrial cities in the North are Manchester, Sheffield, Leeds and Newcastle-on-Tyne. Great Britain The United Kingdom of G.B. and Northern Irelands is situated on the British Isles/ The British Isles consists of two large islands, G.B. and Ireland, and about five thousand small islands. Their total area is over 244,000 square kilometers. The UK is made up of four countries: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. GB consists of England, Scotland and Wales and doesn't include Northern Ireland. The capital of the UK is London. The British Isles are separated from European continent by the North Sea and the English Channel. The western coast of GB is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea. The surface of the British Isles varies very much. The north of Scotland is mountainous and is called the Highlands, while the south, which has beautiful valleys and plains, is called the Lowlands. There are a lot of rivers in GB, but they are not very long. The Severn is the longest river, while the Thames is the deepest and the most important one. The mountains, the Atlantic Ocean and the warm waters if Gulf Stream influence the climate of the British Isles. The weather in GB is very changeable. A fine morning can change into a wet afternoon and evening and the wrong side out. The English people say: "Other countries have a climate; in England we have weather." The English also say that they have three variants of weather: when it rains in the morning, when it rains in the afternoon or twhen it rains all day long. The weather is the favorite conversational topic in GB. After they greet each other they start talking the weather. The best time of the year in GB is spring (of course, it rains in spring too). The two worst months in Britain are January and February. They are cold, damp and unpleasant. The best place in the world then is at home by the big fire. Summer months are rather cold and there can be a lot of rainy days. So most people who look forward to summer holidays, plan to go abroad for the summer. The most unpleasant aspect of English weather is fog and smog. This is extremely bad in big cities especially in London. The fog spreads everywhere so cars move along slowly and people can't see each other. They try not to be run over by a car but still accidents are frequent in the fog. Higher Education in The U.K. There are more than 60 universities in the U.K. The leading universities are Cambridge, Oxford and London. English universities differ from each other in traditions, general organization, internal goverment, etc. British universities are comparatively small, the approximate number is about 7-8 thousand students. Most universities have under 3000 students, some even less than 1500 ones. London and Oxford universities are international, because people from many parts of the world come to study at one of their colleges. A number of wellknown scientists and writers, among them Newton, Darvin, Byron were educated in Cambridge. A university consists of a number of departments: art, law, music, economy, education, medicine, engineering, etc. After three years of study a student may proceed to a Bachelor's degree, and later to the degrees of Master and Doctor. Besides universities there are at present in Britain 300 technical colleges, providing part-time and full-time education. The organization system of Oxford and Cambridge differs from that of all other universities and colleges. The teachers are usually called Dons. Part of the teaching is by means of lectures organized by the university. Teaching is also carried out by tutorial system. This is the system of individual tuitio organized by the colleges. Each student goes to his tutor's room once a week to read and discuss an essay which the student has prepared. Some students get scholarship but the number of these students is comparatively small. There are many sociaties and clubs at Cambridge and Oxford. The most celebrating at Cambridge is the Debating Sociaty at which students discuss political and other questions with famous politicians and writers. Sporting activities are also numerous. The work and games, the traditions and customs, the jokes and debates - all are parts of students' life there. It should be mentioned that not many children from the working-class families are able to receive the higher education as the fees are very high (more than L1000 a year). Besides that special fees are taken for books, for laboratory works, exams and so on. Holidays in Great Britain There are some holidays in G.B. They are Christmas day, Boxing Day, new years day, Easter, mayday, spring bank holiday and simmer bank holiday. Public holidays in G.B. are called bank holidays because the banks as wall as most of the offices and shops are closed. The most popular holiday is Xmas. Every year the people of Norway give the city of London the present. It is a big Xmas tree and it stands in Trufalger square. Central streets are beautifully decorated. Before Xmas groups of singers go from house to house. They collect money for charity and sing carols traditional Xmas songs. Many churches hold a carol serves on the Sunday before Xmas. The fun starts the night before, on the 24 of December. This is the day when people decorate their trees. Children hang stocking at the end of their beds, hoping that Santa Claus will come at night and full them with toys and sweets. Xmas is a family holiday. Relatives’ prepare for the big Xmas dinner of turkey and Xmas pudding and every one gives and gets presents. The 26 of December, Boxing Day are an extra holiday after Xmas. This is the time to meet friends or sit at home and watch TV. New years day is less popular in Britain then Xmas. Besides public holidays there are some special holidays in Britain. One of them takes place on the 5 of November. On that day in 1605 Guy Fawkes tried to blow up the House of Parliament and kill a King James the first. But he didn’t succeeded. The King’s man found the bomb and took Guy Fawkes to the tower. Sins what day the British celebrate the 5 of November.
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