Underline all international words in the text. Give their Ukrainian equivalents.

London is one of the most famous capital cities of the world, and every year it attracts crowds of visitors from home and abroad. They come to explore its historic buildings, to see its museums and galleries, its streets and parks, and its people.

LONDON

Compose your own dialogues.

14. Read the following text and give a short summary of it:

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

Environmental protection is an important issue in the United Kingdom because as a highly populated and technologically advanced nation grows the environment suffers. Compared to many other in­dustrialized nations, the country has a relatively good record of pro­tecting the environment. Much environmental activity involves ordi­nary citizens at the local level, while the national government provides leadership, goals, and direction, particularly through the sec­retary of state for the environment. The United Kingdom, along with other prospering nations, has contributed funds and expertise toward global efforts to preserve the environment.

As the world's first industrialized society, Britain has a long history of dealing with environmental problems. Contamination from sewerage, impure water supplies, and filthy streets from mas­sive horse traffic were all problems handled with success before World War I broke out in 1914. Air pollution from smoke remained a major problem until the Clean Air Act was passed in 1955, a measure that reduced industrial pollution by three-quarters. The in­creased substitution of gas and electricity for coal as a source of energy further reduced air pollution, both from industry and homes. In recent decades, however, the large increase in the number of motor vehicles has erased many of the gains achieved by the Clean Air Act. River pollution has been more difficult to deal with. This is partly because local sewerage authorities, which were among the worst polluters, were represented on the boards regulating pollution in the rivers. In 1989 a National Rivers Authority was created that has no connection with potential polluters, and Britain's rivers are slowly improving.

Since the 1940s one of the most serious environmental problems has been disposal of radioactive waste, including the dismantling of nuclear power stations after they become obsolete. Another serious environmental issue is the pressure to develop more land. To maintain productive agricultural land and viable agricultural communities, Brit­ain has severely restricted urban and suburban development in some areas. As a result, land prices are extremely high.

London is the capital city of England and of the United Kingdom. It is situated on the river Thames about forty miles from its mouth. It is divided into two unequal portions by the river: the more important, with most of the chief buildings, standing on the north bank, and the south bank. London today stretches for nearly thirty miles from north to south and for nearly thirty miles from east to west. This is the area known as "Greater London". Greater London with its nine million population includes not only the City and the County of London, but the outer suburbs. Its population is very cosmopolitan, drawing from a diverse range of peoples, cultures and religions, speaking over 300 different languages.

London is an ancient city; it grew up around the first point where Roman invaders found the Thames narrow enough to build a bridge. They found a small Celtic settlement then known as Londinium and they turned it into a separate port and an important trading centre. Nowadays it is the cradle of British traditions and culture.

London is today one of the world’s most important centres of commerce and finance, its involvement in politics, education, entertainment, media, fashion and the arts contribute to its status as one of the key cities in the world. It has the largest university and the greatest possibilities for entertainment and for sport in Great Britain.

London is traditionally divided into four main parts. They are: Westminster, the City, the West End and the East End.

All the historical places and famous parks are in the western part of London. The West End, spreading from the political centre at Westminster, includes the shopping area of Knightsbridge, Oxford Street, Piccadilly Circus and the fashionable Covent Garden; it hosts museums and galleries, among them are the Tate Gallery, the National Gallery, the National Portrait Gallery and the British Museum. In the West End there are the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, and Buckingham Palace.

The best known streets are: Whitehall with important Government offices, Downing Street, the residence of the Prime Minister and Fleet Street which stands for the press. The name of “West End” is associated with wealth, luxury and goods of high quality. Regent Street is famous for the richest shops and supermarkets.

Piccadilly Circus and Piccadilly can’t be called quiet. On the contrary everything shines here with bright advertisements. Big hotels and shops, different clubs are situated here.

One of the oldest streets in London is the Strand. Now this street links the City and the West End.

Trafalgar Square is considered to be the very centre of London. In the middle of it stands the monument to Admiral Nelson (an English admiral who won the battle of Trafalgar). It’s a tall column with a statue of Nelson at its top. At the bottom of the column there are 4 bronze lions.

From Trafalgar Square you can go along down Whitehall and see the Houses of Parliament, which stretch along the Thames's North Bank. There are two tall towers at the corners of the building. Big Ben, the famous clock, is in the Clock Tower. It chimes the hours to the tune of Handel's music.

Near the Parliament there is Westminster Abbey, an old beautiful chapel. Many great Englishmen are buried here: Newton, Darwin, and others. The south side of the Abbey is called the Poet's Corner where famous British writers and poets lie: Chaucer, Charles Dickens, Tennyson and Thomas Hardy. Here, too, are the memorials to W. Shakespeare, R. Burns. G. Byron, W. Scott and W. Thackeray.

Another place, which is worth seeing in London, is the Tower. The history of London is closely connected with it. They say that London is the key to England and the Tower is the key to London. The Tower was founded by William the Conqueror. It was begun with the aim of protecting Londoners from invasion by the river. Since then the Tower has served as a fortress, a royal palace, a royal treasury and a prison. Now it is a museum of armour and also the place where Crown jewels are kept.

One of London’s most popular historical buildings is Buckingham Palace, the London residence of the Sovereign. When the Queen is here, the royal standard flutters over the place. Every day a large crowd of people gather to see the famous and traditional ceremony of the Changing of the Guard that takes place at eleven o’clock in the morning and provokes most interest among tourists.

One of the best known museums is the British museum with its Hyde Park, reading room and the collection of manuscripts both old and new. And one of the greatest churches is St. Paul's Cathedral, which is the Sir Christopher Wren's masterpiece. The well-known architect of those days, he took part in rebuilding the city after the Great Fire of London. Sir Christopher Wren lies buried under the roof of his own great work. These words are written on his grave: "If you want to see his monument, look around".

The City extends over an area of about 2.6 sq. km in the heart of London. About half a million people work there, but less than 6000 live there. It is the financial centre of the United Kingdom with many banks, offices and the Stock Exchange.

London has a large seaport, which is situated in the East End. It is an area of docks, unattractive in appearance, but very important in the country's commerce. There are a lot of factories, workshops there. The streets are narrow, the buildings are unimpressive. The East End is densely populated by working class families.

London is full of parks and green spaces. Hyde Park is the largest park in London, which is famous for its Speaker's Corner.

London is an international transport hub, with five international airports and a large port. It serves as the largest aviation hub in the world and its principal airport, Heathrow, carries more international passengers than any other in the world

In London all kinds of vehicles ride up and down the streets: double-decker buses, lorries, taxis, private cars. The oldest underground railway system called “tube” is still one of the largest in the world. It carries 2 million passengers every day over its 244 miles of route with their 273 sta­tions.

Vocabulary notes

Дата добавления: 2017-02-01; Просмотров: 49; Нарушение авторских прав?; Мы поможем в написании вашей работы!