4. Fill in the gaps with topical vocabulary:

1. There are four …: spring, …, autumn and … . 2. The sun rises in the … and sets in the … . 3. It sometimes gets very … in winter. 4. When it …, we say the weather is rainy. 5. When the sun …, the weather is sunny. 6. There are twelve … in a year. 7. There are seven … in a week. 8. The leaves on the trees become … in autumn. 9. People try to spend a lot of time … in summer. 10. Everything looks … and new in spring. 11. In summer it sometimes rains lightly but usually it is … and hot. 12. Autumn is the … time when people buy vegetables for the winter season. 13. The streets may be very … in winter. 14. Students … in summer.

5. Answer the following questions:

1. How many months are there in the year?

2. How many seasons are there in the year? What are they?

3. What is the weather like in March? How does it change in May?

4. Does it rain often in summer?

5. Are storms frequent in summer?

6. When does the sun shine brightly?

7. What is the harvest time in Russia?

8. Do you like summer? Why? / Why not?

9. What is the usual weather in winter?

10. Do you like winter? Why? / Why not?

11. What do people like to do in winter?

12. Where do people usually go in summer?

13. What is Russian winter famous for?

14. What is the Indian summer? When is it?

13	 Samara 

1. Answer the following questions:

1. Where are you from? (I am from Samara.)

2. Where is Samara? (Samara is on the River Volga in the European part of Russia.)

3. How long have you been living in Samara? (I’ve lived here since childhood. / I’ve only recently moved here. / I’ve lived in Samara for five years. / I live in another town but rent a flat in Samara when I go to college.)

2. Read and translate the text:

I live in Samara. Samara is a big city on the left bank of the Volga River and the right bank of the Samara River which flows into the Volga. More than a million people live in Samara and it is one of the largest cities in our country. Samara is a big industrial, cultural and educational centre of Russia.

Samara was founded in 1586 as a fortress to defend Eastern borders of the country. In the middle of the 19th century Samara was made the centre of the region. It helped boost the city growth. By the end of the 19th century Samara had become a major centre of a great agricultural region with a developed food-processing industry. Railway lines connected the city with both the European part of the country and Siberia. Goods were also carried along the river. In 1941-1943 Samara was the second capital of the Soviet Union. Embassies, some government offices and lots of factories and plants were evacuated to the city.

Samara is a developed industrial city. The major industries include machine-building, aerospace, ball-bearing production, food-processing, petrochemical, chemical, metallurgical industries. Most plants are concentrated in Bezymyanka – an industrial eastern part of the city.

Samara is a cultural centre of the region. Local History and Arts Museums are the most well-known; others are museums of Lenin, Alexey Tolstoy, Aerospace Museum, and Stalin Bunker. Local History Museum has numerous exhibits telling about the history and nature of our region. Arts Museum possesses paintings and sculpture by Russian and Western artists, as well as some applied art. Our Opera House and Drama Theatre are the most popular. Samara also has Puppet Theatre, SamaArt Theatre, and Philharmonic Society Concert Hall. Young people can also go to night clubs and cinemas.

Samara is a city of students. Several universities train people in dozens of professions. Our Teacher Training University is the biggest in the city.

Samara lies in a very beautiful place. From some city squares you can have a great view on the Volga and the Zhiguli Mountains. The embankment is the favourite place for walks all year round. There are also some parks and public gardens around the city.

You can get to Samara by plane, train, bus or ship. Cruise ships bring tourists to the city in the summer time. International Airport handles flights from Moscow, Frankfurt, Prague and many Russian cities. Our railway station is a modern building and a new attraction. Various sights, historical places and surrounding nature attract thousands of tourists to Samara.