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My town.




Biography of St. Petersburg

St. Petersburg is an unusual city in many ways. We know exactly the date of its foundation, 16 (27 New Style) May 1703 and the name of its founder, Peter I. Even its geographic position is unique-no other city of its size is so far north. St. Petersburg is often called the creation of Peter I, and we seldom think that most buildings we admire today were erected during the reign of Catherine II and Nicholas I.

St. Petersburg is a comparatively young city, but its short history is rich in significant and tragic events. The city saw the glory of the Imperial Age and witnessed the exultation and cruelty of revolutions. It survived floods and fires, suffered from famine during the last war.

Peter the Great wanted to build a European city, and from the very start the city was built in stone, the streets were wide and squares spacious. The life of the city was organized in European manners, with military parades and assemblies. Peter 1 saw to it that every noble family was present at his celebrations.

Peter I loved his new city, and he ordered his associates to build their homes there. He gave them large lots of land where beautiful estates surrounded with gardens were built. In the nineteenth century most of these gardens ceased to exist, and the city acquired the look it has today. The streets of the central part of the city look like corridors lined with buildings now.

St. Petersburg has always been a busy city. It has attracted people from all parts of Russia and abroad. People came to the city and brought with them their culture and traditions. They settled in national or professional communities. With the development of industry at the turn of the past century many peasants came to St. Petersburg to work at its many plants and factories. They settled on the outskirts of the city, and lived in ugly houses built for them by plant owners.

In the past century the city changed greatly. In 1918 it ceased to be the capital. The government moved to Moscow. But the city continued to grow. New fine districts were built in the parts where ugly houses for working people used to be. The city suffered ruin and devastation during the last war when many fine buildings were destroyed and a lot of people died of starvation. Restoration work started almost immediately after the war and very soon the city became even more beautiful than it was before the war.

St. Petersburg has always been the center of public and cultural life. Many prominent people of Russia lived and worked in St. Petersburg. The city has been famous for its theaters, art galleries and museums. Since Peter's time glorious celebrations has been held to mark important events in the life of the country. This tradition is also kept now.

Shopping

When we want to buy something, we go to a shop. There are many kinds of shops in every town or city, but most of them have a food supermarket, a department store, men's and women's clothing stores, grocery, a bakery and butchery.

I like to do my shopping at big department stores and supermarkets. They sell various goods under one roof and this is very convenient. A department store, for example, true to its name, is composed of many departments: ready-made clothes, fabrics, shoes, sports goods, toys, china and glass, electric appliances, cosmetics, linen, curtains, cameras, records, etc. You can buy everything you like there.

There are also escalators in big stores, which take customers to different floors. The things for sale are on the counters so that they can be easily seen. In the women's clothing department you can find dresses, costumes, blouses, skirts, coats, beautiful underwear and many other things. In the men's clothing department you can choose suits, trousers, overcoats, ties, etc. In the knitwear department one can buy sweaters, cardigans, short-sleeved and long-sleeved pullovers, woolen jackets. In the perfumery they sell face cream and powder, lipstick, lotions and shampoos.

In a food supermarket we can also buy many different things at once: sausages, fish, sugar, macaroni, flour, cereals, and tea. At the butcher's there is a wide choice of meat and poultry. At the


bakery you buy brown and white bread, rolls, biscuits. Another shop we frequently go to is the greengrocery, which is stocked by cabbage, potatoes, onions, cucumbers, and carrots, beetroots, green peas and what not. Everything is sold here ready-weighed and packed. If you call round at a dairy you can buy milk, cream, cheese, butter and many other products.

The methods of shopping may vary. It may be a self-service shop where the customer goes from counter to counter selecting and putting into a basket to the check-out counter, where the prices of the purchases are added up. If it is not a self-service shop, and most small shops are not, the shop-assistant helps the customer in finding what he wants. You pay money to the cashier and he gives you back the change. Questions:

1 .What do we do when we want to buy something?

2. What kinds of shops are there in every town?

3. Where do you like to do your shopping?

4. What departments is a department store composed of?

5. Where are the things for sale?

6. What can we buy in a food supermarket?

7. What methods of shopping are there?

Meals in Britain

Traditionally English people have three meals a day: breakfast, lunch and dinner. Breakfast is served in the morning. It used to be a large meal (обильный приём пищи) with cereal, eggs and bacon, sausages, tomatoes. But such a large breakfast takes a long time to prepare and is not very healthy. Nowadays, Britain's most popular breakfast consists of cereal, toast with marmalade, juice and yogurt with a cup of tea or coffee.

Lunch is a light meal. Most people have no time to go back home for lunch so they eat at school, cafes, pubs or restaurants.

The main meal is dinner, which is usually between 6 and 7 p.m. A typical evening meal is a meat dish with vegetables and dessert.

The most important meal of the week is the Sunday dinner, which is usually eaten at 1 p.m. The traditional Sunday dishes used to be roast beef, but nowadays pork, chicken or lamb are more common.

On Sunday evening’s people have supper or high tea. The famous British afternoon tea is becoming rare, except at weekends. Questions: 1 .How many meals a day do English people have?

2. What did they used to eat for breakfast?

3. What do they usually eat nowadays?
4.1s Lunch a large meal?

5. Where do English people eat lunch?

6. What dishes are served for dinner?

7. What is the most important meal of the week?

8.1s British afternoon tea still popular?

Library Books.

Libraries are very important in the life of all people. We can't buy all the books we want to read. That's why we take out books from libraries.

A lot of people go to libraries on Saturdays. They have some time to spare, because Saturday is a day off. They bring their books to the library and go home taking new books.

The librarians take books from the people who come in and give them some new books to choose for reading at home.

In a book there is a little pocket and in this pocket there is a piece of paper. The librarian takes this piece of paper out of the pocket in the book. She fills it in, that is, puts the date on the


piece of paper and on the right page of the book. Then she puts the piece of paper in the person's reading card.

Speaking about libraries it is necessary to admit that Moscow holds the first place among all the other cities in the world for the number of libraries. The largest library in the world is the State Lenin Library with an overall fund of 21 million various titles in 166 languages.

It has 22 reading-rooms, special halls for scientific reference work, for children and youth, for current periodicals, for scientific work.

I enjoy reading books and going to the library. I like to look at the books on the shelves and to feel that I have my friends around me, friends that will never let you down that will never betray. Questions:

1 .Why do we take books from the libraries?

2. When do a lot of people go to the libraries?

3. Why do a lot of people go to the libraries on Saturday?

4. What do librarians do when people come to libraries?

5. What is there in the pocket of a book?

6. Which city holds the first place in the world for the number of books?

7. What is the largest library of this country?

8. What is the overall fund of the State Lenin Library?

9. What halls are there in the Lenin Library?
lO. Do toy enjoy reading books and why?

Art: At the theatre

The 20th century brought great changes into the theatre. Cinema, radio, television, video altered the course of the major performing arts and created the new ones. But still there are hundreds of puppet theatres, conservatoires and philharmonics, musical comedy theaters, drama theaters and opera houses where the audiences are excited at the prospect of seeing a play and the actors are most encouraged by the warm reception. But before going to a theatre you should book a ticket at a box-office. The most expensive seats are in the stalls, boxes and dress-circle. The seats are in the balcony, pit and the upper circle are less expensive, and they are cheap. Then at the entrance to the theatre the attendant tears your theatre ticket in half. He gives you your half back so that you can find your seat by its number. Another attendant shows you to your seat and sells a programme that will tell you which parts the actors are playing and how many acts there are in the play.

I have always envied the dwellers of large cities. They have so many opportunities to enjoy themselves. Theaters, cinemas, variety shows, circus, conservatoire, concert halls, etc. are at their disposal. In provincial towns like mine is we have only amateur dramatics. That's why I always take the smallest chance to go to a theatre when in a city. Questions:

l. Why have you always envied the dwellers of large cities?

2. Have you only amateur dramatics in your town?

3. Which seats are the most expensive, less expensive, and cheap?

Performing arts- виды сценического искусства; Enjoy themselves-хорошо провести время; Amateur dramatics- театральная самодеятельность.

Education in Britain

In England and Wales compulsory school begins at the age of five, but before that age children can go to the nursery school, also called play school .School is compulsory till the children are 16 years old.


In Primary School and First School children learn to read and write and the basis of arithmetic. In the higher classes of Primary School (or in the Middle School) children learn geography, history, religion and, in some schools, a foreign language. Then children go to the Secondary school.

When students are 16 years old they may take an exam in various subjects in order to have a qualification. These qualifications can be either G.C.S.E.(General Certificate of Secondary Education) or "O level"(Ordinary level). After that students can either leave school and start working or continue their studies in the same school as before. If they continue, when they are 18, they have to take further examinations, which are necessary for getting into university or college.

Some parents choose private schools for their children. They are very expensive but considered to provide a better education and good job opportunities.

In England there are 47 universities, including the Open University, which teaches via TV and radio, about 400 colleges and institutes of higher education. The oldest universities in England are Oxford and Cambridge. Generally, universities award two kinds of degree: the Bachelor's degree and the Master's degree.

l. When does compulsory school begin?

2. How long does child stay in compulsory school?

3. What subjects do children learn in Primary school?

4. What kind of exam do students have to take when they are 16?

5. Do students have to leave school at the age of 16 or to continue their studies?

6. How do private schools differ from the regular ones?

7. How many universities are there in England?

8. What is the Open University?

9. What kinds of degrees do universities award?

My weekday

I get up at a quarter to seven. I jump out of bed, switch on the radio and do my morning exercises to the radio music. Then I go to the bathroom, wash myself and clean my teeth with a tooth-brush. This does not take me much time, not more than ten or fifteen minutes. Then I dress and sit down to table and have my breakfast. I usually have a cup of tea or coffee, cheese and bread and butter.

After breakfast I go to work. As I live far away, I go by bus or by underground. My work-time begins at 9 o'clock. At a quarter to one we have a lunch hour.

As Т cannot get home for lunch, Т take it at the dining room of our work place. For lunch I have meat or fish with potatoes and a cup of strong tea or coffee with a pie. When I get home from work, I have dinner. My dinner usually consists of three courses.

For the first course I have some soup, then some meat or fish. For dessert I have stewed fruit or ice cream. After dinner I wash up the dishes.

At eight or nine o'clock I have some salad, a slice of sausage and bread, sour milk or cereal.

In the evening I listen to the radio or watch TV. If the programme is not interesting, I go to the cinema or to the theatre. Sometimes, I go for a walk with my friends. We talk about different things and usually have a good time.

At 11 o'clock I go to bed. Questions:

l. What do you get up?

2. What do you do next?

3. What do you have for breakfast?

4. When do you get home?

5. When do you go to bed?

6. What do you do after dinner?

7. What do you have for dessert?
8. What do you do in the evenings?

 

The famous personality: Thomas Edison.

Thomas Edison was born in 1847.He first went to school at the age of eight and a half. But after only three months his teacher called him "stupid" and he came home crying. From that time his mother taught him at home and he read science books by himself. He got a job sending telegraph messages. Then he started inventing things. At the age of 12 he had a job selling newspapers. He made money in a clever but simple way. He checked the news stories first. When the news was interesting he took a lot of papers; when it was boring he took only few.

In 1877 he made a "phonograph"-the first ever sound recorder. The following year he invented the light bulb. In 1882 New York was the first city in the world with electric lights. In 1889 he made a" kinetoscope". He also made films for his new machine. In 1903 he made the world's longest film (It was ten minutes long!)After more than one thousand inventions, Edison died at the age of eighty-four. In his honour they switched off the lights all over America.

Questions:

I. Thomas Edison was born in 1847, wasn’t he?

2. Why did mother teach him at home?

3. What were his inventions?

4. When did Edison die?

5. What did Americans do in his honour?

 


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