Text 2. Canada.

Vocabulary:

to live side-by-side – жить бок о бок, в согласии

Commonwealth – содружество

to gain – добиться, получить

ties – связи, отношения

Canada is a good example of the way peoples of different ways of life and different languages can live side-by-side under one government. The Canadian government is more British in style than American, except that it is a federal government.

Parliament is divided into two parts, the Senate and the House of Commons. Voters in each province (Canada is divided into 10 provinces and 2 territories) choose candidates from different political parties. The party that wins the most seats in the House of Commons chooses the Prime Minister, who heads Canada’s government. Senators are not elected, they are appointed by the Prime Minister.

Canada now belongs to the Commonwealth of Nations (nations which once belonged to the British Empire). Queen Elizabeth II is still the Queen of Canada. But ties with Great Britain are not so strong as they were.

Canada is unique in the Americas because it gained its Independence without fight. They celebrate it on July the 1^st with fireworks and picnics. But most of Canadians do not mind that there are still some ties to the British Queen. Many like to continue old customs and still give honor to the Queen of England.

More than half of all people in Canada live in Southern Quebec and Ontario. Quebec is Canada’s oldest province. This province was settled by the French, and the people still follow French customs. The heart of French Quebec is its capital, Quebec city. In many ways the lower part of the city, with its narrow streets, old churches, and little houses built close together in long rows, resembles the cities of France.

Quebec is the largest province in size. Ontario is the largest in population. Some call it nation’s heartland, as it is Canada’s demographic and economic center and is a major force in national politics. It is Canada’s most industrialized province, producing half of the nation’s manufactured goods.

Ottawa, the capital of Canada, is the political and administrative center of the nation. Most national cultural institutions, including museums, archives, the National Gallery, and the National Art Center are in the city.

Answer the questions:

1. What Canada is a good example of?

2. Does Canada have ties with Great Britain?

3. What is Canada’s oldest province? What can you say about it?

4. What can you say about the province of Ontario?

5. What is the capital of Canada?

Text 3. Sydney.

Vocabulary:

pretty – милый, прелестный

unlike – в отличие от

coastline – береговая линия

Sydneysider – сиднеец

hub – центр

downside – недостаток

iconic landmark – культовая достопримечательность

overseas – за границей

vibrant – оживленный

Sydney is the largest Australian city, but it is not the capital of Australia. Similar to the US that has a purpose-built capital (Washington), Australia chose to build its capital (Canberra) in between two largest cities (Sydney and Melbourne).

Sydney is a very pretty city. However, unlike Moscow or St Petersburg, Sydney’s beauty does not come from its historical buildings or unique architecture. Being just over 200 years old, Sydney does not have as much history as most European cities do. Sydney’s beauty comes from its amazing coastline.

Sydney was originally built around the harbour, which happens to be the world’s largest natural harbour. It means that many Sydneysiders and visitors are often not too far from the water and can either walk to it, or drive to it.

There are more than 70 beaches in Sydney. Probably the most well-known ones are Bondi beach, and Manly Beach. They are very large and can easily be accessed by public transport, which makes them very popular among tourists and locals, who do not want to be looking for parking.

Like many other large cities in the world, Sydney has a CBD (Central Business District), which has many tall buildings, museums and many offices. It is very busy during the work week, and gets much quieter on the weekends. In addition to CBD, there are other business hubs throughout the city – some are located on the North Shore of Sydney, and some in the West.

In addition to the coastline, Sydney has some nice parks. So when you look on Sydney from above, it looks quite green. This makes Sydney a pleasant place to live and raise a family.

A big difference between Russian cities and Sydney is that most people in Sydney live in smaller buildings. In fact, Sydney is often called a ‘city of villages’, as most Sydney does not look like a large city. Sydneysiders are very proud of this ‘village’ feel and see it as a big contributor to a good work-life balance. The downside of this ‘village feel’ is that the city is very spread-out, and it can take you a long time to get from one end of the city to another end.

When people think of Sydney, they think about the iconic landmarks – the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge. These symbols of Sydney are located next to each other, which is very convenient for tourists.

Sydney is a very multicultural place. You can see people of all nationalities and races in Sydney. In fact, more than 30% of Sydney population was born overseas. This makes Sydney very vibrant, as there are different restaurants, holidays, traditions, etc. Sydney is definitely worth visiting at least once.

Answer the questions:

1. Is Sydney the capital of Australia? What city is the capital of the country?

2. What Sydney can boast of?

3. Where was Sydney originally built?

4. How many beaches are there in Sydney? Which of them are the most popular?

5. What can you say about Sydney’s Central Business District?

6. Why is Sydney called the ‘city of villages’?

7. What are the most well-known landmarks of Sydney?