Wellington

urban area – городская территория

rural area – сельская местность

to cover - охватывать

peninsula - полуостров

to be notable for – быть примечательным

harbour - гавань

northeast – северо - восток

to house - вмещать

Duke - герцог

nightlife – ночная жизнь

a myriad – несметное число

Wellington is the capital city and third most populous urban area of New Zealand. The urban area is situated on the southwestern tip of the country's North Island, and lies between Cook Strait and the Rimutaka Range. It is home to 386,000 residents, with an additional 3,700 residents living in the surrounding rural areas.

The Wellington urban area is the major population centre of the southern North Island, and is the seat of the Wellington Region - which in addition to the urban area covers the Kapiti Coast and Wairarapa. The urban area includes four cities: Wellington City, on the peninsula between Cook Strait and Wellington Harbour, contains the central business district and about half of Wellington's population; Porirua City on Porirua Harbour to the north is notable for its large Māori and Pacific Island communities; Lower Hutt City and Upper Hutt City are largely suburban areas to the northeast, together known as the Hutt Valley.

Wellington was named after Arthur Wellesley, the first Duke of Wellington and victor of the Battle of Waterloo.

Wellington is New Zealand's political centre, housing Parliament, the head offices of all Government Ministries and Departments and the bulk of the foreign diplomatic missions that are based in New Zealand.

Wellington's compact city centre supports an arts scene, cafй culture and nightlife much larger than many cities of a similar size. It is an important centre of New Zealand's film and theatre industry, and second to Auckland in terms of numbers of screen industry businesses. Te Papa Tongarewa (the Museum of New Zealand), the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra, the Royal New Zealand Ballet, Museum of Wellington City & Sea and the biennial New Zealand International Arts Festival are all sited there.

Wellington has become home to a myriad of high-profile events and cultural celebrations, including the biennial New Zealand International Arts Festival, biennial Wellington Jazz Festival, biennial Capital E National Arts Festival for Children and major events such as World of Wearable Art, Cuba Street Carnival, New Zealand Fringe Festival, New Zealand International Comedy Festival, Summer City, The Wellington Folk Festival, New Zealand Affordable Art Show, the New Zealand Sevens Weekend and Parade, Out in the Square, Vodafone Homegrown, the Couch Soup theater festival, and numerous film festivals.

Exercise 36. Answer the following questions:

1. What is Wellington?

2. Where is it situated on?

3. How many residents do in the surrounding rural areas live?

4. What is the seat of the Wellington Region?

5. How many cities does urban area include?

6. Who was Wellington named after?

7. Is Wellington New Zealand's political centre?

8. What is an important centre of New Zealand's film and theatre industry?

9. Wellington has become home to a myriad of high-profile events, hasn’t it?