London versus Minsk

LONDON

MINSK

___ Thames ___ Trafalgar Square ___ Piccadilly Circus ___ Leicester Square ___ East End ___ North London ___ South London ___ Covent Garden ___ National Portrait Gallery ___ Westminster Abbey ___ Houses of Parliament ___ Big Ben ___ Downing St ___ Tate Britain ___ Buckingham Palace ___ Windsor Castle ___ St James's Park ___ St James's Palace ___ British Museum ___ St Paul's Cathedral ___ Natural History Museum ___ Hyde Park ___ Speaker's Corner ___ Serpentine ___ Victoria and Albert Museum ___ Science Museum ___ Kensington Gardens ___ City ___ Tower ___ Whitehall ___ Oxford Street ___ Mall ___ Tower Bridge ___ Heathrow Airport ___ London Bridge ___ Scotland Yard ___ Nelson's Column ___ Soho

Assignment 4. Supply articles where necessary. Be prepared to work in pairs asking each other questions about the British Isles.

___ British Isles is a group of islands off ___ northwest coast of ___ continental Europe comprising ___ Great Britain, ___ Ireland and a number of smaller islands.

There are two sovereign states located on the islands: ___ United Kingdom of Great Britain and ___ Northern Ireland and ___ Republic of Ireland. The group also includes ___ Crown dependencies of ___ Isle of Man and, by tradition, ___ Channel Islands, although the latter are not physically a part of the archipelago.

There are more than 6,000 islands in the group, the largest two being ___ Great Britain and ___ Ireland. ___ Great Britain is to ___ east and covers 216,777 km² (83,698 square miles), over half of the total landmass of the group. ___ Ireland is to ___ west and covers 84,406 km² (32,589 square miles). The largest of the other islands are to be found in ___ Hebrides, Orkney and Shetland to ___ north, Anglesey and ___ Isle of Man between ___ Great Britain and ___ Ireland, and ___ Channel Islands near the coast of ___ France. The islands are at relatively low altitudes, with ___ central Ireland and ___ southern Great Britain particularly low lying: the lowest point in the islands is ___ Fens at −4 m (−13 ft). ___ Scottish Highlands in ___ northern part of ___ Great Britain are mountainous, with ___ Ben Nevis being the highest point in ___ British Isles at 1,344 m (4,409 ft). Other mountainous areas include ___ Wales and parts of the island of ___ Ireland, but only seven peaks in these areas reach above 1,000 m (3,281 ft). Lakes on the islands are generally not large, although ___ Lough Neagh in ___ Northern Ireland is an exception, covering 381 km² (147 square miles); the largest freshwater body in ___ Great Britain is ___ Loch Lomond at 71.1 km² (27.5 square miles). Neither are rivers particularly long, the rivers ___ Severn at 354 km (219 miles) and ___ Shannon at 386 km (240 miles) being the longest.

___ British Isles have a temperate marine climate, ___ North Atlantic Drift ("Gulf Stream") which flows from ___ Gulf of Mexico brings with it significant moisture and raises temperatures 11°C (20°F) above the global average for the islands' latitudes. Winters are thus warm and wet, with summers mild and also wet.

Assignment 5. Fill in prepositions. Then see how much you can remember from these two texts and what information not mentioned in them you can add on the topics of the British Isles and London. If you were asked to cover an English teacher, what would your presentation on these topics be like? Get ready to give it to your groupmates.

Part A.

Just ___ the coast ___ the mainland ___ north-western Europe and only nineteen miles distant ___ it ___ the nearest point lies the small group ___ islands known as the British Isles.

The British Islands include Great Britain, Ireland and a number ___ small islands. Great Britain consists ___ England, Scotland and Wales. The southern two thirds ___ Ireland are occupied ___ the Irish Republic which borders ___ Northern Ireland.

Great Britain is a region ___ varied lowlands, rolling hills and few mountains. Although the highest peak, Ben Nevis ___ the Grampians ___ Scotland, rises ___ 4,400 feet, such heights seldom occur. The Pennine Range ___ northern England rises only slightly ___ 3,000 feet, as do the Cambrian mountains ___ Wales.

___ the extreme south ___ England are the famed chalk hills some ___ which form the Dover Cliffs.

The rivers ___ the region are short and ___ general flow ___ the central and southern lowlands ___ surrounding seas. Many ___ them are connected ___ each other ___ canals. The coast ___ the British Isles are washed ___ the Atlantic Ocean, the Norwegian, North and Irish Seas and two big channels (the English Channel and the North Channel).

Part B.

London is the capital and largest urban area ___ England and the United Kingdom. ___ its core, the ancientCity of London, ___ which the name historically belongs, still retains its limited mediaeval boundaries; but since ___ least the 19th century the name "London" has also referred ___ the whole metropolis which has developed around it. Today the bulk ___ thisconurbationforms the Londonregion ___ Englandand theGreater Londonadministrative area, ___ its own elected mayor and assembly.

An important settlement ___ two millennia, London's history goes ___ ___ its founding ___ theRomans. Since its settlement, London has been the centre ___ many important movements and phenomena ___ history such as theEnglish Renaissance, theIndustrial Revolution, and theGothic Revival. ___ light of this, the city has become one of the most popular tourist destinations ___ the world which has increased ___ the years due ___ the city's economic growth. London boasts threeWorld Heritage Sites; these includePalace of Westminster, theTower of London, and the historic settlement ofGreenwich. It is one of the world's leadingbusiness,financial, andculturalcentres, and its influence ___politics,education,entertainment,media,fashionand theartsall contribute ___ its status as a majorglobal city.

London has an official population ___ 7,512,400 (as of mid-2006) ___ the boundaries of Greater Londonand is themost populous municipalityin theEuropean Union. Theurban areaof London extends ___ the limits of Greater London and has a population of 8,278,251 (as of 2001). Themetropolitan areais estimated to have a population ___ ____ 12 and 14 million. London's diverse population draws ___ a wide range of peoples, cultures, and religions, and ___ 300 different languages are spoken ___ the city. It is an internationaltransporthub, ___ five majorinternational airportsserving the area and a largeport. It serves as the largest aviation hub in the world, and the multi-terminalHeathrow Airportcarries more international passengers than any other airport in the world.