New zealand

New Zealand lies in the Pacific Ocean, 1,600 km to the east of Australia. It consists of two large islands and a number of smaller ones. It's similar in size to the United Kingdom but it only has a population of about 3.8 million people. Most of ’ them live in the North Island and over one million in Auckland, which is country's largest city. New Zealand's capital is Wellington.

The South Island is a little larger than the North Island and is famous for its Southern Alps. You might think you were in Switzerland, not New Zealand. The eastern side of the Alps is dry but the west coast has a lot of rainfall and magnificent forests, lakes, mountains and glaciers. Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island. It is smaller than Auckland but has good international travel links.

Speaking about New Zealand's landscape it’s necessary to mention that the main characteristic of the landscape is its diversity: mountains, lakes, rivers, beaches, hills, volcanoes, rainforests and fjords are all contained in quite a small area. From the volcanoes of Tongariro National Park to the cliffs of Fjordland, New Zealand's thirteen national parks contain an amazing range of scenery, beautiful walking tracks and various plants and animals that are not found in other parts of the world.

There are a lot of sporting events that are held during New Zealand's Sporting Year. The Southern Traverse is in mid-November. It is an adventure race for teams of three to five people through some of the most difficult terrain in the South Island, finishing in Nelson. Apart from cycling, competitors have to use kayaks and rafts to cross lakes and rivers.

Yachting has been a popular pastime in Auckland since the 1870s, when the first sailing regattas were held on Waitemata Harbour. The biggest event is the Auckland Anniversary Regatta, in late January. Up to 600 yachts take part in one of the world's largest one-day regattas.

World Heli-Challenge takes place in late July at Wanaka, on the South Island. It is just one of the many adventure sports events in New Zealand. International skiers and snowboarders take part in three days of skiing events.

The International Dragon Boat Championships in February celebrate the Chinese New Year. Competing crews come from all over the world to race on Wellington's Lambton Harbour.

Questions:

1. Where is New Zealand situated?

2. What is the population of New Zealand?

3. What is the country’s largest city?

4. What is the South Island famous for?

5. What can you say about Christchurch?

6. What is the main characteristic of New Zealand landscape?

7. What sporting events are held in New Zealand?

8. What is the most interesting to your mind? Speak about it.

9. What celebrate the Chinese New Year in February?

10. What else do you know about New Zealand?

City tours

Barcelona is the capital of Spain. It is the centre of trade fairs and world exhibitions. There is a lot of sightseeing, among which the Sagrada Familia, the famous La Pedrera (Casa Mild) building, Palacio Guell and many houses built by Barcelona's most famous architect, Antoni Gaudi, for rich industrialists.

In 1890 the industrialist Eusebi Guell commissioned Gaudi to design a park on a hill above the city. Gaudi worked on Pare Guell for the next fourteen years. He hated straight lines and wanted to show nature in all his works, like the curved shapes in stones, waves and wet sand.

From 1909 until 1926 Gaudi worked only on the Sagrada Familia. He got up at seven o'clock in the morning every day and walked to mass in Gracia. He ate nothing and his furniture was an old bed and an uncomfortable sofa and he had an old coat for a blanket.

In the Olympic Village there is the golden fish sculpture which was created for the Olympic Games in Barcelona in 1992. The most important rebuilding for the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona was the demolition of the old industrial waterfront. Four kilometres of promenade and sandy beaches seemed like a seaside resort. The city council built 2,000 apartments with parks and called the area Nova Icaria. This area is still the Olympic athletes originally stayed there.

On the seafront there are two forty-four-floor buildings, Spain’s tallest skyscrapers. One of these towers is an office block; the other is the modern and luxurious Arts Hotel. The towers stand by the Olympic port which was also constructed for the 1992 games. This area has shops and nightclubs, but the main reason for visiting is the two levels of restaurants around the marina, which make it a popular place to eat out. The wonderful outdoor selling attracts business people at breakfast and lunchtime. After lunch they can walk along the beach or sit in one of the stylish promenade cafes.

The Pare de la Ciutadella has a large boating lake, orange groves and palm trees full of parrots. The park was originally the site of a fortress. In 1878, most of the fortress that occupied the site was pulled down and the park was given to the city to become the venue for the Universal Exhibition in 1888. The architect, Josep Fontsere, designed the cascade in the park with the help of Antoni Gaudi who was then still a young student.

Barcelona's zoo in the city park was not opened until the 1940s. The zoo had a special design in which moats, or small pools of water separated the animals. The only known example of an albino gorilla, Floquet de Neu, or Snowflake, arrived at Barcelona zoo in 1966 when he was three years old. Snowflake soon became the zoo's mascot and fathered twenty baby gorillas. Nowadays, the visitors can also see dolphin and whale shows in one of the aquariums at the zoo.

Questions:

1. What works by Antoni Gaudi are mentioned?

2. What facts of the construction of the Sagrada Familia can you tell?

3. What did Gaudi work on for fourteen years?

4. What sculpture is there in the Olympic Village?

5. Can you describe the two skyscrapers situated on the seafront?

6. What is the Pare de la Ciutadella?

7. When did the park become the venue for the Universal Exhibition?

8. Who designed the Cascade in the park?

9. What can you tell about Barcelona’s zoo?

10. What interesting facts about history of Barcelona do you know?