Топик SIGHTSEEING IN GREAT BRITAIN

Stratford-upon-Avon, where Shakespeare was born, is now one of the most popular tourist centres. People from all over the world come to see Shakespeare’s birthplace. There are a lot of relics in the town associated with Shakespeare and his immortal works: the Grammar School where he studied, the church where he was buried, the Royal Shakespeare Theatre. The town is famous for its great Shakespeare festivals which are held annually from April to September. No other part of the country is so unmistakably English.

Only eight miles away from Stratford-upon-Avon there is another place which attracts a lot of visitors — the ancient town of Warwick dominated by one of the finest medieval castles in Great Britain. It contains an excellent collection of arms, armour and paintings.

Another popular tourist centre is the city of York which is unique in having evidence of occupation throughout the ages from Roman, Saxon and Viking times to the present day. York has a lot of world famous attractions offering something for everyone. It has the largest cathedral in Northern Europe which is 800 years old. The Viking Centre in York brings the visitors face to face with real characters from the city’s Viking past. The National Railway Museum, the largest of its kind in the world, provides a vast collection of engines and Royal carriages.

Tourism is one of the most important industries in Scotland. Tourists from all over the world come to enjoy the beauty of Scottish scenery, to walk among heather-covered hills, to visit ancient historic castles, to eat Scottish salmon, to see Scotsmen in kilts playing bagpipes although only a few Scots wear kilts these days.

ТОПИК 2

Numerous historic and cultural places in Great Britain remind of the tremendous past of the country and its rich heritage and of course the most famous of them are concentrated in London, the capital of the country. London is one of the largest and one of the world’s most enjoyable cities. It offers visitors a great variety of places of interest. It’s a city of dream of everybody interested in English history and culture. What is it that attracts so many people to London? In my view there are three things that make London the place of the greatest attraction to visitors: its architecture, its famous museums and galleries and, finally, the Royal traditions which are so thoroughly observed in the country.

London was founded by the Romans and is more than twenty centuries old. Its population is about eight million people. The most important parts of London are the City, the East End, the West End and Westminster. They are very different from each other.

Let us go sightseeing in London and visit the principal places of interest. We’ll start our tour with the City, the oldest part of London, which is the commercial and financial centre of the country. The Bank of England and some of the richest companies in the world have their headquarters in the City. Two masterpieces — St. Paul’s Cathedral and the Tower of London — are situated in the City. St. Paul’s Cathedral, the greatest church of England, was built in the 17th century by Sir Christopher Wren. There are a lot of memorials in the cathedral including those to Wellington and Admiral Nelson. The Tower of London is associated with many important events in the English history. It used to be a royal palace and a political prison. Now it’s a museum. The most popular sight in the Tower is the Jewel House in which the Crown jewels are on the display. The Tower is guarded by the Yeoman Warders popularly known as «Beafeaters».

And now we are in the West End which by right is considered to be the most beautiful part of London. The place of pilgrimage in the West End is Trafalgar Square. It was named so in memory of Admiral Nelson’s victory at Trafalgar in 1805. There are usually a lot of visitors walking about the square and looking at Nelson’s column and the fountains. The National Gallery which adjoins Trafalgar Square contains an outstanding collection of paintings. Not far from the National Gallery is the British Museum — the biggest museum in London. It’s famous for its library and its priceless collections of ancient manuscripts, coins, sculptures and so on.

Now we’ll go down Whitehall, the street where all important government offices are situated. It will take us to Westminster, the historic and official part of London. Buckingham Palace, the Queen’s official London residence, is situated in Westminster. There one can see one of the most colourful ceremonies — the Changing of the Guard. The Houses of Parliament, called officially the Palace of Westminster, spread magnificently on the north bank of the Thames. Westminster Palace is the seat of the British Government. When the Parliament has a sitting, Union Jack, the national flag of the UK, is seen on the Victoria Tower. Opposite the Houses of Parliament is Westminster Abbey founded in 1050. It is the place where nearly all English kings and queens were crowned. Westminster Abbey is also famous for its Poet’s Corner where many of the greatest English writers and poets are buried. It would be exciting to touch the gravestones and to read the epitaphs on the graves of the famous British people.

If you want to get a good idea of London you should also visit the East End. It used to be the poorer part of London, its industrial district. But over the recent years many parts of the East End have been rebuilt and renovated. The face of the district is changing,”much to the regret of the old residents of the East End who are proud to be called «cockneys» which means «londoners».

In the evening it would be nice to go to a quiet cafe off the beaten track and to talk to Londoners because the unique atmosphere, the character and the spirit of the city are created not only by its famous historic places but also by the people who live there.