Holidays in the united states of america
American people start celebrating Christmas Day on the 25-th of December. In the United States the spirit of Christmas arrives about a month before the holiday itself. Late in November street lights and store windows are decorated with the traditional Christmas colours of red and green. Santa Claus, shepherds, angels appear in shop windows. Many families observe the tradition of going to Church on Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. After services, they gather around the tree and open their gifts. After that they sit down to enjoy a traditional Christmas dinner — turkey or ham, potatoes, vegetables and cranberry sauce. Dessert is usually fruit cake, plum pudding or mince pie. Many American children believe that on Christmas Eve Santa Claus (a fat, jolly man who wears a red suit, red hat and long white beard) slides down their chimney to bring them gifts. The New Year tree is usually covered with coloured balls and strings of coloured lights. The star on the top represents the star in the East which guided the three Wise Men to Bethlehem. In ancient times a branch of mistletoe was hung over doorway for good luck. Today the custom continues, but now it is for fun. Anyone standing under the mistletoe is likely to be kissed. On Christmas Day everyone sings Christmas Carols and sends Christmas Cards with greetings to friends and relatives.
The New Year is observed on the 31-th of December. At home or in restaurants most Americans spend the holiday drinking and dining with friends. One popular New Year's Eve drink is eggnog made of eggs, milk or cream, nutmeg and sugar. Champagne — the drink that symbolizes celebration — is often served for the midnight toast on New Year's Eve.
Another great American holiday is Independence Day. 4-th of July is the American nation's birthday. It honours the day in 1776 when the Declaration of Independence, which cut the tie with England and established the United States of America, was adopted. On this holiday each city or town organizes its own ceremony — a parade, speeches by public officials, guided tours through historic monuments, outdoor stages, shows, boat-races and evening fireworks displays. There are baseball games, water-melon eating contests, folk dancing, and lots of music.
Labour Day
was first celebrated in 1882. On September 5th of that year the first
Labour Day parade was held in New York City. After a mass meeting in
Union Square cheering and singing workers marched up Broadway with
banners. In 1894 the Congress of the USA made it a national holiday.
That is why Labour Day is observed on the first Monday of September.
Thanksgiving
Day is celebrated only in the United States on the last Thursday of
November. The day's most important event is the traditional
midday meal. Favourite thanksgiving food is turkey, pumpkin pie and
other home-cooked specialities. It was first celebrated in 1621 by
English settlers of the Plymouth colony, which was founded in
1621. During their first winter over half of the settlers died of
hunger or from epidemics. But, finally, the fields produced a rich
harvest and they decided to celebrate it. But it only became an
official holiday in 1863 when President Lincoln made his
"Thanksgiving Proclamation".
Memorial Day is observed on the 30-th of May. It is also known as Decoration Day. Its origin goes back to 1868 when the Commander-in-Chief of the Grand Army of Republic issued an order to decorate the graves of soldiers who fell in the Civil War. Nowadays it is also the day for honouring the memory of members of the armed forces killed in war. Memorial Day is a legal holiday in most of the states and in territories and is also observed by the Armed Forces.
Word List:
to be decorated with something - быть украшенным чем-либо
shepherd - пастух
angel - ангел
to appear - появляться
a gift (present) - подарок
cranberry sauce - клюквенный соус
plum pudding - сливовый пудинг
mince pie - пирог с мясом
dessert - десерт
jolly - радостный, праздничный, веселый
chimney - дымоход, камин
ancient - древний, старинный
a branch of mistletoe - ветка омелы
to represent - представлять, изображать
to symbolize - символизировать
tie - связь, узлы
outdoor stage shows - представления ( шоу) на улице
fireworks - фейерверк
folk dancing - народный танец
pumpkin - тыква
home-cooked specialities - фирменные блюда домашнего приготовления to die of hunger - умереть с голода
to honour the memory - чтить память
Armed Forces - вооруженные силы