Great Britain (топик на английском)   

GREAT BRITAIN
I would like to tell you about Great Britain.
The official name of the country is The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The country is situated in the north-west of Europe and consists of two large islands, Great Britain and the Isle of Ireland, and about five thousand small islands. There are four regions in the UK: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The country is washed by the North Sea in the north, the Irish Sea in the west and the English Channel in the south. The English Channel separates Great Britain from France.
The climate of the country is humid and oceanic because of the small size of the country and the surrounding water. The English weather changes very often. It is not very cold in winters and not very hot in summers.
Great Britain has a lot of rivers and lakes. The most important river is the Thames which flows into the North Sea. The longest river is the Severn. The Lake District in the west is the most beautiful region on the British Isles. Famous British poets wrote their poems about the Lake District because of its beauty. The most famous lake is the Loch Ness. There is a legend that Nessie, the Loch Ness monster, lives in it.
The United Kingdom has a lot of industrial cities like Manchester and Birmingham and educational cities like Cambridge and Oxford. The two world famous universities, Cambridge University and Oxford University, are situated there.
Every region of Great Britain has its own administrative centre and the symbol.
England is the biggest region in the country. The symbol of England is the Red Rose. London is the capital of England and Great Britain. London is one of the biggest and most expensive cities in the world situated on the river Thames.
The symbol of Scotland is the thistle. Edinburgh is the administrative centre of the region. Scotland is a mountainous area. Ben Nevis, the highest peak of Great Britain, is situated there. The administrative centre of Wales is Cardiff and the symbol of the region is the daffodil. Belfast is the capital of Northern Ireland and the shamrock is its symbol.
The flag of Great Britain is called the Union Jack. It has three crosses on the dark blue background. The currency of the country is the pound which consists of a hundred pence.
Great Britain is a constitutional monarchy with the Queen as the Head of the state.
The legislative body of the country is British Parliament consisting of two houses: The House of Lords and the House of Commons. The head of the government is Prime Minister. The two main political parties of English Parliament are: the Labour Party (which is the leading democratic party) and the Tory (the conservative party).
Great Britain is famous for its great poets and writers such as William Shakespeare, Walter Scott, Arthur Conan Doyle and others. The Beatles rock group was born in England.
English people are famous for their love for gardening. Many of them live in small houses surrounded by beautiful green gardens.
English food does not vary much. The only dish that can be called traditional is/M and chips (fried fish with French fries). English people like going to pubs where they can have a snack and drink a pint of beer.
Great Britain is a wonderful country. I would love to go there one day.


Vocabulary:
administrative [ad'mrnistratrv административный
centre 'senta] центр
consist of [kan'sistav] состоять из
constitutional [ktmsti'tjujbnl конституционная
monarchy 'mtmaki] монархия
currency ['kvr(3)nsi] валюта
daffodil ['daefadil] (бот.) нарцисс
flow into ['flauinta] впадать в
have a snack [haeva'snaek] перекусить
head of the ['hedavda'gAV^) глава правительства
government mant]
humid ['hjumid] влажный
leading ['hdirj] ведущий, главный
legislative body ['Ied3isl3trv'bt>di] законодательный орган
mountainous area [mauntinas'eana] гористая местность
oceanic [эиц'агшк] океанский
peak [pi:k] горная вершина
pence [pens] пенс (монета в 1 цент)
pint of beer ['pamtavbi:] пинта (мера емкости, равная 0,57 л)
pound [paund] фунт стерлингов
separate ['separeit] разделять
shamrock [Хагтгок] трилистник
surrounding [sa'raundirj] окружающий
thistle ['9isl] чертополох
vary [Vean] разниться, отличаться


Questions:
1. What is the official name of Great Britain? Where is it situated?
2. What does Britain consist of?
3. What is the climate of the country like?
4. What can you say about rivers and lakes of Great Britain?
5. Does the UK have a lot of cities? Can you name some of them?
6. What is interesting about every region of Great Britain? Can you tell anything about their administrative centres and symbols?
7. What is the flag of Britain like?
8. What can you say about the political system of Great Britain?
9. What are the British famous for?
10. What can you say about British national food?
11. Would you like to go to Britain and why (not)?
 

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