Tourism in Britain

Tourism is a major industry in Britain. Tourists come from all over the world. What do visitors do when they come to Britain? 75% of all visitors come to London. Some of the most popular places for sightseeing are:

The Tower of London which is where the Crown Jewels are kept. Westminster Abbey where the kings and queens of England are crowned and where many famous people are buried.

The Houses of Parliament with the famous “Big Ben” and Westminster the centre of government. St Paul’s Cathedral which was built by Christopher Wren. It is sometimes used for royal weddings Prince Charles and Lady Diana got married there.

Trafalgar Square with Nelson’s Column. Piccadilly Circus with the statue of Eros.

Many visitors go to the British Museum, Madam Tussaud’s famous waxworks, the National Gallery and the Science Museum.

But where do people go and what do they do outside London? Many visitors go to Stratford-on-Avon to visit Shakespeare’s birthplace and to go and see plays in the Memorial Theatre.

Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, is famous for its castle, its fine buildings and the annual arts festival in August.

Тексты по профессиональному чтению Amusement Parks

An amusement park is an outdoor area with games, rides and shows. They are spread over a large area, often many square kilometers. Young and old visitors can enjoy many types of attractions. They can ride on roller coasters, go high up in the air in a Ferris wheel or ride on carousels. Amusement parks also offer restaurants and bars to eat and drink, as well as green areas with grass to sit down or relax.

Most amusement parks have a fixed location. Some of them are open all year round, others only during the warmer season. Today amusement parks have beenreplaced by theme parks. These places focus on a certain topic of history or natural life. The first theme park, Disneyland, opened in California in 1955.

History

 In the Middle Ages minstrels wandered around and sang in open areas.Entertainers gathered in a town field or a market square. After a few days they went to another town. They often performed in tents and offered food and entertainment. In addition, visitors could see circus artists perform or have theirportrait painted by street painters.

The first real amusement parks emerged out of fairs and public gardens in Europe in the 16th century. Later on amusement parks in fixed locationsdeveloped in larger cities. The Prater in Vienna was the basis for many amusement parks in other locations. The first amusement park in the United States was located on Coney Island, in New York City. For a long time it was the world's biggest attraction, with bars, souvenir shops, rides along a long beach. After its peak in the 1920s , the amusement area’s popularitydeclined.

After World War II larger-scale amusement parks started developing in Europe and other continents. Up to the end of the twentiethcentury European parks are small compared to their American counterparts. The first large amusement park outside the USA was Euro Disneyland, which opened in Paris in 1990. In Japan an Asian version of Disneyland opened in 1993.In Denmark, Legoland featuresminiature buildings and attractions built out of the world-famous Lego plastic bricks.