English study

Нашла тетрадь – изучала английский. Некоторые домашние задания показались интересными.

Lena and me.

I don’t smoke, but Lena sometimes smokes. We both like a good wine. Lena doesn’t like Chinese food, but I don’t know, because I have never eaten it. We both like cooking. Lena doesn’t play cards, but I can play. We both play tennis. We both read a lot. I watch only news on TV, but Lena watches not only news.



***

Two years ago in summer I went to the Crimea for six weeks. I traveled by train and I stayed in a tent on the coast and in a hotel or in an own house in towns. I went swimming and sunbathing, walked on the coast, made some trips to towns. I saw the Azov and the Black seas, the Kazantip cape, the nature of the Crimea, some towns and some fortresses of the Crimea. I enjoyed the holiday very much.




MEALS IN RUSSIA

The modern Russian cuisine preserved many traditions. But also many dishes benefited from some nations living in other countries. European cooking traditions are popular. Russian people use some recipes benefited from Central Asia and the Caucasus.   
Before work or studies people usually have boiled eggs and sandwiches for breakfast. Some people have porridge. Porridge is an ancient traditional dish of Russian cuisine. People drink coffee or tea in the morning. In Russia people like black teas very much.
The main meal is the day meal (lunch or dinner). Usually people have dinner between 13 and 14 o’clock. It consists of the first and the second course, snacks and dessert. The first is a meat or fish soup. The second is a fish or a meat with vegetables. National vegetable is potato. Snacks are often some pickled vegetables or marinades, and a dessert is various buns. Traditionally Russians eat a lot of bread and flour products (pancakes, scones, sochnik).
People usually have supper at home in family circle at about 19 o’clock. They have a meat or fish dish.
In Russia people like dairy products. There is rich assortment of various yoghurts, kefir in the shops. There are many recipes cooking from curds (for instance, sirnick).
Russians are very sociable. On holiday or at weekends people often get together at the table with a great number of home-made dishes. But also in cities and towns Russian people like having a time in a restaurant with friends.
I think the combination of world traditions, traditions of Russian cuisine and scientific studies will help to people to keep health and youth for all life.



Jennifer Bassett “The girl with green eyes”. Задания по тексту.

1. Jennifer Bassett, the author of this story, is an experienced teacher and writer. She lives and works in Devonshire, in the south-west of England.

2. The action opens up in the carriage of the train. There were seven people in the carriage. Everyone went for a rest. The married couple Julie and Bill, the mother with two children, the man in the brown hat and the tall dark man. It was boring. Bill and the man in the brown hat were telling the boring stories to each other and were laughing for all trip. The children were hot and thirsty. The tall dark man read his newspaper. Julie felt sad and was boring very much. But suddenly she looked up and saw the tall man’s eyes, and then her thoughts flowed in other direction. Julie and the handsome man didn’t say a word to each other, they only looked at each other. When Bill and the man in the brown hat went out to the restaurant, the tall dark man took out a book and put it on the seat next to him. “Famous towns of Italy”, read Julia. The station of the dark man was in several stations. He got off the train at his station. When the train moved away from the station Julia already wasn’t on the train. She got off with the tall dark man at the station.

3. a) Julia is a young woman. She has long red hair and very green eyes – the colour of the sea water. She is a pretty woman. She is nice, polite and kind (She is liked children). She is imaginative, and her deed shows she is courageous!

   b) Bill is a young guy. He has short brown hair and a happy smile. He is very sociable and noisy. The finale of this story shows that he is selfish and jealous.

   c) We know little about the tall dark man. He has dark brown eyes. He’s dressed in an expensive suit and wears a very expensive Japanese watch. Probably he is very clever as he has been expert in Julia’s feelings. He has masculine personality and Julia’s behavior is a good example to it.

4. It is a well-done story with a love triangle. The author doesn’t express own opinion on these people anywhere. A reader has to decide himself on which side he is and what he thinks about these people and their deeds.
I think such stories are very useful for young women when they marry. Besides it’s a very good practice in English for beginners.



Jennifer Bassett ”Mr. Harris and the Night Train”. В задании требовалось сочинить страничку дневника героя.

A page of Mr. Harris diary
Oulu, 15 September 1963

God, my God… Why did that happen to me? What does it mean? What a terrible night!
Now I’m calm, but yesterday… Telling about it is meaningless. I don’t believe myself. The guard’s calm is surprised. He got into the custom of being of them, that happens every year, though he doesn’t see it once time. Poor, poor Elena… I can’t remember about her without to feel sorry. But what could I do? What could I help her? I‘m surely helpless on the whole. I repeat it to myself almost every day. But then she needed somebody’s help, and nobody was nearby. Poor, unhappy Elena…
I am so lonely. I live only for myself. And at the moment when I ought to make any deed I haven’t got enough courage. I am weak to change. But poor, poor Elena…
My temperature is 36.7°C. I feel well.



MOSCOW

The capital of my country is Moscow.
Moscow has a population about 12 million people. It lies on the Moskva river, and it was founded 870 years ago. Moscow is one of the biggest cities in the world.
Moscow is famous for many things. You can come to the Red Square and listen to the chimes of the Moscow Kremlin. Walk around the Boulevard ring and travel by the very beautiful and famous Moscow metro. Doors of Moscow theatres are opened for everyone. Here is the most famous the Bolshoy Theatre.
Problems of Moscow are similar to problems for all big cities. There are too many cars. Traffic and pollution are very high. Today the authorities of Moscow invest much means for control of ecology of the city. I think the chief problem of my city is the housing problem. Probably it will be solved in the future.
The best thing about Moscow is certainly the churсhes, the monasteries and the convents. Even specialists often don’t know everyone. You can find these beautiful buildings all over the whole city, and every has own history.



***

I have two grandmothers. They are completely not similar. They have different interests and different appearances.
One of my grandmothers is very calm. She likes very much doing some needlework or reading some gripping stories. In summer she lives in the country and spends much time in her kitchen garden. She has kept her figure, and she looks like a young woman. You can’t see her without work. She loves working. Also she loves children very much.
The other grandmother is like a traditional Russian woman. She cooks excellent. She likes dancing and singing. She often invites guests to her. She worked as a dressmaker and she loves beautiful clothes.
I think I am similar to both my grandmothers. And of course, I love both of them.



DESCRIPTIONS

A boy
It’s a pretty baby. He is four now. He has blond curly hair and light blue eyes. In spring his face has freckles. He is very funny because of his up-turned nose and wide smiling mouth.

An old man
It’s a high and strong man. Now he has gray hair, but his eyes are blue as before. He has delicate features. His face is pale with thin lips. A straight nose. And people remember a firm glance of his eyes.