Билет № 9

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THE BIRTHDAY CEREMONY

All through the winter the people who live in Stratford can walk about the streets in comfort. But during the rest of the year it is all very differ­ent From April till October thousands of people from all over the world come to the little town. The largest crowd is there on the Birthday, this is April. 23rd, the day when William Shakespeare was born at Stratford in 1564. He died on his birthday 52 years later.

The Birthday always begins early in the morning with the ringing of the bells of Holly Trinity Church where Shakespeare was buried. There are flags on all the shops and houses. Along the main street about 100 tall poles have been put up. In the afternoon a band playing music and fol­lowed by many people marches up the street. Soon bugles are blown and then one after another a flag appears at the top of each pole. Each flag is of different country.

After seeing this ceremony many people go to see the house where Shakespeare was born. The house is still the same as it was when he lived in it. They visit the school where he had his lessons when he was a boy, and go to see his grave in the church.

Then at night they go to the beautiful theatre by the side of the river. Here they see one of his plays acted by some of the greatest actors in the country. And every night until October every seat in this theatre is filled by people from all parts of the world.

Зав. кафедрой Полушина Л.Н.

Билет № 10

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LONDON TRAFFIC

Traffic in London differs from that of the Continent. In England they keep to the left but not to the right. In England people say. «If you go left, you go right; if you go right, you go wrong".

They say that once upon a time people kept to any part of the road they liked. But then they decided to make it a rule to keep to the left. As Napoleon hated the British very much, he decided that in France the peo­ple should keep to a different side. And later on in all the countries which he conquered he made the traffic keep to the right.

There are no trams in London since 1952. The main transport is the underground. The London underground is often called the tube, because it looks like a long, narrow and dimly lit tube, with its walls plastered with all kinds of advertisements. There are no vestibules in the London underground. The sign of the London underground - a red circle crossed with a blue stripe can be seen on the buildings or just under a staircase leading straight under the ground. The London underground stations can­not be compared with those of Moscow or St. Peter's - they are old and not attractive to the eye. The London underground is very long. Its total length is about 250 miles.

Зав. кафедрой Полушина Л.Н.

Билет № 11

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ST. PAUL'S CATHEDRAL

St. Paul's Cathedral is a masterpiece of Sir Christopher Wren, Eng­land's great architect. The Cathedral was built between 1675 and 1710 to replace the old Cathedral that was largely destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666.

From far away you can see the huge dome with a golden ball and cross on the top. The inside of the Cathedral is very beautiful. After looking round, you can climb 263 steps to the Whispering Gallery, which runs round the dome. It is called so, because if someone whispers close to the wall of one side, a person with his ear close to the wall on the other side can hear what is said. Then if you climb another 118 steps, you will be able to stand outside the dome and look over London. And if you want to see still farther you can climb more steps right up to golden ball.

Among the great cathedrals of the world St. Paul's is unique in that it was conceived by one man and built under his supervision dur­ing his life time. For 35 years the building of St. Paul's Cathedral went on, and Wren was an old man before it was finished. As far as Christopher Wren is concerned he found his acknowledgement and fame only after his death. He was buried in the Cathedral. His tomb carries now an inscription in Latin which in English reads, «Reader, if you seek his monument look around you... But during his life after completing the main part of the Cathedral Christopher Wren was slan­dered and removed from work. He was not even paid all the money he had earned.

Зав. кафедрой Полушина Л.Н.