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.docBritish traditions
London has kept many traditions and ceremonies. If you go to the City in the afternoon, you will see many people in traditional top hats - the uniform for clerks. In all prestigious colleges’ students wear uniforms; i.e. in Eton – they wear a silk hat, a short jacket and long striped trousers.
One of the most interesting ceremonies takes place every day in front of the Buckingham Palace at 11.30 - it is changing of the Guards.
The 2nd famous tradition – ravens in the Tower of London. There is a legend that the Tower will fall, if loses its ravens, so the British Parliament gives a lot of money for their food and fresh water. To be on the safe side, the ravens’ wings are clipped.
The 3rd famous ceremony takes place at Tower every evening - it is Ceremony of Keys, when the Chief Warder locks the Gates of the Tower.
Many traditions are connected with the meals. The English usually have 4 meals a day – breakfast, lunch, so-called 5’o’clock tea and dinner. Breakfast may be “English breakfast” (cornflakes with milk and sugar, bacon and eggs, toasts and marmalade, tea or coffee) or “continental breakfast” – tea or coffee and toasts or a roll. Nowadays “English breakfast” is served at hotels or pubs, people at home prefer a light meal. The English prefer “good plain food” – they want to understand what they eat. Usually hey like steak, roast beef, fish and chips, and some puddings. Dinner is usually eaten at 7 p.m. The English are not fond of any soups, but are crazy about chocolate. The main course is usually meat or fish with a lot of vegetables, something sweet – a fruit pie or pastry. The English like tea very much and have it 6-8 times a day. English tea – Russian tea.
The English do not have a lot of official holidays. They are: Christmas (25.12), Boxing Day (26.12), New Year’s Day (01.01.), Good Friday (Страстная пятница), Easter, Easter Monday(первый понедельник после Пасхи), May Day (день отдыха Первого мая), Spring Bank Holiday (весенний день отдыха- последний понедельник мая) and Summer Bank Holiday (официальный выходной день - последний понедельник августа).
The most popular holiday is Christmas. Usually there is a big Christmas tree in the Trafalgar Square from Norway; people decorate their houses, put stockings near their beds, exchanges presents and cook a Christmas pudding and turkey. They sing special songs - carols.
Boxing Day is on December, 26 – you should visit your friends and relatives or may sit at home, usually people give presents (boxes) for servants or the poor.
New Year is very little popular.
The 5th of November – Guy Fawks’s day. On that day in 1605 Гай Фокс planned to blow up the British parliament, but failed, was caught and executed. So people make his dummy, put it on fire and use a lot of fireworks.
The 14th of February - it is a day of people in love. People send a lot of cards, make a lot of presents – usually chocolate and flowers.
The 2nd Sunday in May is Mother’s day – people present special cards, flowers and chocolates for their Mums.
The English Character – The English of all classes are very polite and disciplined. They do not like to display their emotions, always stay good-tempered and cheerful. They do not like to show off or to boast. There is practically no load talks or noise in the streets. Traditionally the English help their wives a lot, and of course, they prefer to have a house not a flat. Kids and pets.