Добавил:
Upload Опубликованный материал нарушает ваши авторские права? Сообщите нам.
Вуз: Предмет: Файл:
Yevdokimova. Everyday Topics for First Year Students.doc
Скачиваний:
0
Добавлен:
01.07.2025
Размер:
8.17 Mб
Скачать

II. Questions for discussion:

1. What are the main missions of Ded Moroz?

2. What was the mission of St.Nicholas?

3. Why do many countries still preserve the tradition of putting New Year presents into socks?

4. What is the origin of Snegurochka?

5. Why is Ded Moroz believed to be a kind of miracle-worker?

III. Study the vocabulary to read and understand the text better. Prepare for a discussion.

to await — ожидать

cane — трость

solely — исключительно

embroidered — вышитый, расшитый

to settle — поселиться, обосноваться

permeated — пропитанный

tamed elks — прирученные лоси

hut — хижина, бел. Хата

Attention! Ded Moroz Wanted!

Belarusian Ded Moroz (Grandfather Frost, analogue of Santa Claus) awaits visitors in the Belovezhskaya Puscha.

Witnesses say that on seeing Ded Moroz, after a thick white beard, they notice his red nose. Sometimes he is even called Ded Moroz — Red Nose. (Do not think badly of him! His nose is red solely because of cold weather). Real Ded Moroz is normally dressed in a blue caftan listed with white fur and dec­orated with silver. He also wears huge mittens on his hands and valenki (Belarusian winter footwear) on his feet. He always has a cane — a mag­ical stick that, by touching an object, is able to transform it into ice. Besides, he always has a sack of gifts — also magical. Some people say the sack is bigger inside than out.

Fact of the Matter

With the flow of time, a blue caftan embroidered with silver receded to the realm of legends. Today, Ded Moroz prefers a red Santa Claus outfit. I feel real vexation in this respect, as I would like New Year celebrations in Belarus to be related to national traditions. Attractiveness of any rituals and customs is rooted in their singulari­ty and peculiarity. Meanwhile, in our country, it is sometimes hard to distinguish whether Ded Moroz puts presents under the fir tree or Santa Claus, who mixed up New Year with Christmas. In fact, Santa brings gifts for Christmas celebrated on December the 24th-25th, while we nor­mally wait for presents on January the 1st — the New Year.

Ded Moroz Likes Belarus

Ded Moroz has decided to settle in the Belovezhskaya Puscha and it is a great surprise and remarkable occurrence for the Belarusians. This means Belarus will be permeated with fairy tale spirits.

A wooden apartment has been built for Moroz Ivanovich. The residence consists of several huts. They include lodgings for him and for Snegurochka. In a dreamlike castle called Skarbnitsa, a small museum has been created to house subjects of peasant life. The muse­um also holds paintings created by Belarusian children, and girls and boys from different countries who sent their works to Ded Moroz. Museum-keepers receive about 500 letters daily from all over the world. Four hundred lamps decorate a New Year fir tree inside the resi­dence. It is the highest New Year tree in Europe at a height of forty metres.

Young attendees (visitors) will have the chance to tour around the surround­ings, treat themselves to pancakes with tea, and feed the animals that live in the preserve out of their bare hands. Just for this occasion the pre­serve staff have brought tamed elks. Each child is pre­sented with a gift.

Соседние файлы в предмете [НЕСОРТИРОВАННОЕ]