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II. Let’s talk about family traditions

It goes without saying that the family is very important as a unit in our society. Nothing else but family can be an emotional centre of peo¬ple’s lives and a transmitter of culture. Understanding between all mem-bers of the family and consideration for others are very important in family relationships. Tenderness, warm-heartedness and respect must always be present in the family to make it friendly. I do think family traditions help its members respect and support one another.

A lot of activities can help members of a family to be on friendly terms: discussing all the family plans, going on trips together, visiting museums, theatres, exhibitions and exchanging opinions about them, sharing joys and sorrows.

If to speak about my family, I can say I enjoy our honest and open relationship. I like it when parents trust their children, give them free¬dom, rely on them and respect them. In my opinion these things make family relations warm and pleasant.

Unfortunately, we can’t spend much time together during a week. My parents have to work a lot to earn money for our family. But in the evening they try to spend as much time as possible with my sister and me. Everybody in our family likes having tea when we can speak about our working day, share impressions and good news, discuss our chal¬lenges and make plans for the coming day. It’s one of our family tradi¬tions. To my mind, it helps us learn more about one another and makes our family united.

Every member of our family looks forward to the weekend. We enjoy going to the cinema and cafes together. In winter we often ski and skate. In other seasons we enjoy riding bikes, going to theme parks or visiting famous sights of our country. We visit our extended family and often help them in the garden. It’s also our family tradition to spend summer holidays together either at the seaside or in the country, which I enjoy very much.

We have other family traditions. Our family see the New Year at home. We cook a lot of delicious food for the night meal which usually starts at 10 p.m. A goose or chicken stuffed with apples is our traditional New Year dish. We sing songs, play games and give presents to one another.

We have a family tradition to celebrate birthdays of each member of the family. On these days we usually have parties. Friends and relatives come with presents and flowers. Our last family birthday was mother’s birthday. We wanted to make it a special day since it was her 38th birth¬day. We had selected a nice present for her and my father and I had done all the cooking. The table was nicely laid up. The party was fantastic. All the guests seemed to enjoy themselves a lot.

As you can see, consideration for others is very important in our fam¬ily relationships. We have our family traditions which make our life more exciting and interesting, help to understand one another better, to express our emotions and feelings. Our parents feel great affection for us and try to bring us up in a proper way. They devote their free time to us and this makes our home the happiest place for me.

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II. Let’s talk about family

I believe that everything has its beginning in the family. Family is very important for every person, because it gives you a sense of stability and tradition, a feeling of having support and understanding. There is a wise saying "Blood is thicker than water". From my point of view it means that your parents and other relatives will stick by you in times of need more than other people will.

I do think the family is very important as a unit in our society. Noth¬ing else but family can be an emotional centre of people’s lives and a transmitter of culture. Understanding between all members of the family and consideration for others are very important in family relationships. Tenderness, warm-heartedness and respect must always be present in the family to make it friendly. In my opinion, when a child is brought up in a friendly family, he or she will become a reliable and responsible per¬son with a strong character and mind.

My family consists of my father, my mother, my sister and me.

I think I’d better start my story with my dad. His name is Vladimir. He is in his late thirties. He’s tall with dark hair and hazel eyes and is of a strong built. He works as an electrician. My father is a very intel¬ligent man and he is fond of reading and watching scientific programs. In some situations he is very serious but in general he is a cheerful per¬son with a good sense of humour. He enjoys telling funny stories and

taking photos. I think I take after my dad both in appearance and in character.

My mother’s name is Galina. She is a programmer. She is very in¬terested in her work and she is a professional. It has always impressed me how she can find enough time for both family and work. I can’t say that my mother’s life is easy as she has to keep the house and work but she manages to do everything in time. She is a strong and charming per¬son and she does a good job of being a mother. In fact, she means a lot to me. She understands me in the way no other person would and she always finds proper words to comfort me.

My sister Kate is seven years old. She takes after our mother in her appearance. She is a nice girl with green eyes and long fair hair. She is a first-former. She likes music and dancing. She learns to play the piano. She likes playing with toys and watching cartoons in her free time. I love my sister but sometimes we quarrel about petty things. I think I must be more patient and tolerant with her.

We don’t live with our extended family but we have many relations: two grandmothers and grandfathers, aunts, uncles and cousins. All of them live in Belarus and we get together from time to time, mainly on our birthdays or other holidays. It’s also our family tradition to spend summer holidays together either at the seaside or in the country, which I enjoy very much.

As I’ve already said the bonds of the family are always stronger than those between unrelated people. And I am happy to say that my home is a place where even the tea kettle sings from happiness. I can say that my parents trust me, give me freedom, rely on me and respect me. These things, in my opinion, make family relations warm and pleasant.

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II. Let’s talk about Great Britain

When I think about Great Britain, I immediately think of its geo¬graphical position, culture and its people.

As I know from my geography lessons, the country is surrounded by seas. The British Isles consist of more than 5000 small islands. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland consists of four formerly independent countries. They are England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The population of Great Britain is about 57 mln peo¬ple. This country is famous for great geographical discoveries and glori¬ous victories of the British fleet.

When I think about the UK I immediately think of the “foggy Al¬bion” and the Cliffs of Dover as it’s what you see first coming to the UK by ferry. Of course, I think of its capital London. It’s a kind of dream of everybody interested in English history and culture. This city can’t be confused with any other city in the world. London taxi-cabs, red publish telephones, policemen and the building of Parliament with its famous bell called Big Ben are considered as its visiting cards.

Thinking about the history of the country I immediately think of York, one of the oldest cities in Britain. This city witnessed the Roman invasion in 43 AD, the landing of Viking hordes in 866 and the ravages of the Wars of the Roses. Now it has become the richest city of the coun¬try and the northern capital of England. Young’s Hotel stands on the actual sight of Guy Fawkes birthplace.

When I think about British literature I think of William Shakespeare. Among his most famous works are such comedies as Much Ado About Nothing, The Comedy of Errors and A Midsummer Night’s Dream and tragedies Romeo and Juliette, Hamlet, Othello and Macbeth. I'd like to visit Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare. I would try to do my best to get tickets to Swan Theatre and see any of comedies or tragedies by the celebrated playwright.

Scotland is “the birthplace of valour, the country of worth”. Fine arts, forts, castles as well as a heartly welcome in an accent that trips the tongue - this is a taste of this glorious country. Edinburgh, is famous for its military tattoo which takes place every August and September and the famous Edinburgh festival where the best performances from all over the world can be seen.

Wales is the land of mountains, green fields, forests and farms. Its inhabitants take a great interest in folk music and singing, its literature is one of the most ancient in Europe. Snowdon, the second highest moun¬tain in Great Britain, is situated there. In summer it looks very peaceful and beautiful and a little train runs to it.

British people say: “Other countries have a climate, in Britain we have only weather” which means that the weather is very changeable there.

As well as I know the UK is a parliamentary monarchy. Elizabeth II is its famous queen. She goes in her golden carriage wearing her royal clothes at such traditional ceremonies as Trooping the Colour and the State Opening of Parliament. The British are proud of their monarch and carefully keep up their traditions.

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II. Let’s talk of the Republic of Belarus

The official name of our county is the Republic of Belarus. It’s total area is 207,600 km2. It is situated nearly in the extreme western part of the East-European Plain within the basins of the Dnieper, the Western Dvina and the Upper Neman. It borders on Russia in the north and east, on Lithuania and Latvia in the north-west, on Poland in the west, and on the Ukraine in the south. Belarus stretches for 560 kilometres from south to north and for 650 kilometres from east to west.

Its population is about 9.5 mln people: 83% of Belarusians, 8% of Russians, 3% of Poles and 2% of Ukrainians. 76% of the population live in towns and cities.

Belarus is situated on a plain rising to hills, the highest of which is Mt. Dzerzhinskaya reaching 350 metres above sea level. There are more than 3,000 rivers in the country. The longest are the Dnieper, Neman, Western Dvina, Prypiat, Berezina, Sozh and Vilia. Belarus is called a lake-country. There are about 10,800 lakes here noted for their great depth, transparent water and beautiful scenery. The largest of them is Lake Naroch.

The largest forests in Belarus are called pushchas. There are elks and deer, wild boars and wolves, bears and foxes, beavers and lynxes in the forests. Pinewoods, mighty oak groves, birch groves and all sorts of other mixed forest formations are the charm, wealth and pride of our homeland.

Belarus has a temperate-continental climate with moderate features which is characteristic for Central Europe, with hot summers, long, cold winters and very distinct seasons. The annual average temperature is about 7°C.

The capital of our country is Minsk. Its population is about one fifth of the country population. In accordance with the political division, Bel¬arus consists of six regions: Minsk, Brest, Vitebsk, Gomel, Grodno and Mogilev regions.

The Republic of Belarus is a democratic social state with the rule of law. The state power exercised on the basis of its division on legislative, executive and judicial. Belarus is a presidential republic. The President of the Republic of Belarus is a head of state. In accordance with the Constitu-tion the legislative body is the Parliament. The executive power is exer¬cised by the Government. The Council of Ministers is the central body of state administration. The local administration is carried through the system of local executive and administrative bodies. The judicial power belongs to the courts. We have two official languages: Belarusian and Russian.

The most developing branches of industry are motor-car construc¬tion, machine-tool construction and bearing production, electrical indus¬try, oil mining and processing, production of synthesized fiber, fertili¬zers, pharmaceutical industry, production of building materials, light and food industries.

Natural conditions of the Republic of Belarus let succesfully pro¬duce such highly remunerative kinds of production as milk, beef, pork, meat and eggs of poultry, grain, potatoes, long-fibred flax, white beet and so on.

Our country is famous for its people who are hospitable, tolerant, hard-working and friendly. I’m proud of my country and its people and I'm happy that it is my homeland.

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II. Let’s talk about weather and climate

As far as I know weather is the condition of the outside air or at¬mosphere at a particular time and place. Step outside and you will ex¬perience many faces of weather. It can be hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or windy, clear or cloudy. Humidity, air temperature and pressure, wind speed and direction, cloud cover and type, and the amount and form of precipitation are all atmospheric characteristics of the momentary condi¬tions we call weather.

It has been said that “climate is what you expect; weather is what you get”. In other words, you can expect snow in Belarus in January, but you may or may not get it on a particular day.

The climate of an area or country is known through the average weather over a long period of time. If an area has more dry days throughout the year than wet days, it would be described as a dry cli¬mate; a place which has more cold days than hot days would make it known to have a cold climate.

Belarus has a temperate-continental climate with moderate features which is characteristic for Central Europe, with hot summers, long, cold winters and very distinct seasons. Abundant snowfall may occur throughout the country from December to sometimes early March or even April.

The annual average temperature is about 7°C. In general, there are no significant differences between the districts of Belarus, due to the small size of the country. Daytime temperatures vary from -5-0°C in winter and 25-30°C in summer months. The summer lasts about 150 days in Belarus and it is most of the time sunny and dry. Local thunder¬storms are quite common in the late afternoon and evening and can be very heavy sometimes. Spring and autumn can be damp and rainy. So lightweights are worn in summer, whereas warmer clothes are needed in winter. Rainwear is recommended throughout the year.

As we live in the western part of Europe, the seasons here have their specific features, both attractive and unpleasant. Every season is beauti¬ful in its way. We should choose the right clothes to wear in order to be healthy and feel comfortable and warm. In my view, modern designers create nice and comfortable clothes. So, we can choose the clothes we like and enjoy any kind of weather.

If to speak about Great Britain, the weather there is very changeable. British people say: “Other countries have a climate, in Britain we have only weather”. Sudden changes usually occur - showers from what was only a few hours before a clear blue sky; sunshine that makes you want to leave off all your clothes followed by winds that set you wishing two overcoats. One day may be fine and the next day may be wet. The morn¬ing may be warm and the evening may be cool. British people are apt to complaining of their climate as being damp and rainy, and foreigners laugh at it and say that the British summer is made up of three fine days and a thunderstorm.

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II. Let’s talk about environment

Computers project that between now and the year of 2030 we are going to have an increase of the average temperature between 1.5 - 4.5 degrees C. Sea levels would rise by several metres, flooding coastal ar¬eas and ruining vast tracks of farmland. Huge areas would be infertile and become uninhabitable. Water contamination could lead to shortages of safe drinking water. It looks like the end of civilization on the Earth.

Every year the world’s industry pollutes the atmosphere with mil¬lions of tons of dust and other harmful substances. The seas and rivers are poisoned with industrial waste. People who live in big cities are badly affected by harmful discharge from plants and city transport and by the increasing noise level which is bad for human health.

Among the most urgent problems are depletion of the ozone layer, acid rains and global warming. Another serious environmental problem is the disappearance of forests. There are a lot of places on our planet that need immediate help. The nuclear accident of Chernobyl has seri¬ously aggravated the ecological situation in Belarus. About 18 per cent of the country’s soil is unfit for farming and some districts in the south¬east of the country are dangerous to live in. So nature protection should become everybody’s concern.

I believe that environmental disasters can be avoided if people broaden ecological education and every person understands that the beauty of nature is extremely fragile. In my opinion, people must obey the unwritten rules of nature. Governments must take serous actions against pollution. Many countries reduce air pollution making plants and factories fit affective filters on chimneys and car exhausts. They try to use natural recourses more economically. Green zones around big cities are protected and extended.

As well as I know most people in America and Europe are ecologi- cally-conscious and they do many things to help the environment. For 

example, they have so-called “Clean Air Day”. Its aim is to encourage people to walk, bike, ride public transit, thereby reducing the use of per¬sonal cars. Carpooling is an arrangement among car owners by which each of them takes a turn driving the others to and from a designed place. So less gas is burnt and less emissions are discharged into the at-mosphere. In many countries people work together on the program of sustainable development called “Local Agenda 21”, which was set up in 1992.

There are many things people can do at home to help nature. They could waste less water by fixing leaky pipes, turning off the tap while brushing their teeth, taking showers instead of baths. People should re¬member that paper is not garbage and it can be recycled. By recycling of one ton of newspapers we save 17 trees. People should buy in bulk so that to eliminate the trash from extra-packaging, they should bike more and use public transport.

I strongly believe that we must consume less, recycle more, con-serve wildlife and nature, act according to the dictum “think locally, think globally, act locally”. If we don’t realize that we are responsible for what’s happening around us, we will never feel secure about the fu-ture of the world we live in.

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II. Let’s talk about travelling and tourism

Travelling nowadays has become an important part of modem life. Millions of people all over the world travel about their own countries and to foreign lands as well. They are eager to see and explore new pla¬ces and learn more about different ways of life. Tourism comprises the activities of people travelling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes. Any tourist trip is characterized by the displacement which involves different means of transport, purpose and duration.

So travelling and tourism depend on such industries as transporta¬tion, accommodation and catering, attractions and activities, tour opera¬tors, tourist agents and tourist information.

People travel to visit natural destinations such as seas, lakes, rivers, mountain ranges, deserts and so on. They also visit built destinations and resorts. There are such types of tourism as domestic tourism when peo¬ple visit destinations in their country, outbound tourism when people visit other countries and incoming tourism that involves people arriving from other counties. People can go to some destination on holiday, which is called leisure tourism, or on business. There is also such pur¬pose of travelling as visiting friends and relatives

It’s always interesting to discover new things and other ways of life, to meet different people, taste different food, examine various architec¬tural styles, visit museums and picture galleries. It’s common knowledge that travelling is a key to understanding other cultures and a wonderful opportunity to learn more about the world we live in.

Nowadays people can travel in different ways. They can enjoy the comfort and speed of airlines as well as the conveniences of modem coaches and trains, or the luxury of a sea voyage. People choose this or that way of travelling according to their likings and financial possibili-ties.

I personally prefer travelling by car. There are several reasons for it. First of all you don’t need to reserve your tickets. Then you can go as slowly or as fast as you wish, stop whenever you choose and stay at any place you choose as long as you like. And, of course, you see much more of the countryside than you do travelling by plane or even by train.

I can’t say that I have travelled a lot in my life, nevertheless, last year my parents and I spent one week in Kiev. We arrived there by train. Travelling by train has its advantages as well. Most trains nowadays have very comfortable compartments as well as dining cars. Travelling by train you have speed, comfort and pleasure combined.

I’m looking forward to a day when I can afford extensive travelling to far-away countries and about Belarus as well where there are a lot of unique and beautiful places to see. If I had an opportunity, I would visit Great Britain and Germany in future. France also attracts me very much. As for travelling in Belarus, I would like to see its beautiful castles situ¬ated in Mir and Nesvizh and the Brest Fortress which is a monument of defence architecture.

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II. Let’s talk about fashion

Fashion is something we deal with every day. Even people who say they don’t care what they wear choose clothes every morning that say a lot about them and how they feel that day. A person can say by their clothes, “This is what I think is nice and I believe it makes me look more attractive”.

Psychologists say that 85% of the information people accept is vis¬ual information. Fashion is a language which tells a story about the per¬son who wears it. We often judge people by what they are wearing. For example, people, dressed in expensive clothes are often thought to be wealthy and beautiful. People who wear old, dirty or tom clothes can't be called beautiful or reliable by others.

In our modem society fashion models, singers, musicians, dancers, actors and sportsmen are the idols of thousands of teenagers who try to copy them in the way they dress, walk and style their hair. Their life¬styles are advertised on TV and in fashion magazines. Numerous ads play on our feelings, emotions, and especially our wish to look beautiful.

Some people, especially women, believe that wearing a lot of make¬up, having long nails and long eyelashes makes them pretty. I don't find people who put on a lot of make-up attractive. I don't understand it when both women and men who don't look ugly go to plastic surgeons to im¬prove their bodies and look more attractive. Some people make tattoos or scars, have their noses, lips, eyebrows and other parts of the face and body pierced to follow the fashion.

As for me, while choosing clothes, accessories and a hairstyle it is always important to remember the rules of politeness, that there are dif-ferent styles of clothes for different types of events. From my point of view, things that a person has in the wardrobe should be comfortable to wear. It’s better to remain true to yourself. I usually spend little money on new clothes and my favourite items of clothes are blue jeans, grey sweaters and black boots. When it’s cold I often put on my warm jacket. I feel like a fish out of water when something doesn’t suit me.

My favourite fashion model is Claudia Schiffer who is a very suc¬cessful German supermodel. She has appeared on the covers and fashion pages of all the major fashion magazines and is one of the faces of

Chanel. She has a slim body and very long legs. Her most stunning fea¬ture is her attractive face with sparkling eyes and a straight nose. She is a successful businesswoman who has her own fitness video and spends a lot of time working with charity organizations.

Fashion is hot the most important thing in my life, but it helps me to feel in tune with the world I live in. I can't say I’m a dedicated follower of fashion but I always try to keep up-to-date.

In conclusion I would like to say that “all that glitters is not gold.” You should not be deceived by appearances, you should use your mind and soul to determine whether the person is trustworthy and pure in their intentions. As a wise proverb says: ‘People meet by clothes and set off by mind’. I fully agree with it.

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II. Let’s talk about sport

It goes without saying that doing sports is very important for every person. A certain amount of exercise is necessary to keep your body in good shape. Sport is given a lot of attention all over the world as it helps to bring up strong and healthy people. It creates, so to speak, a healthy body for a healthy mind. It also makes people more self-organized and better disciplined.

There is always a kind of sport which will suit you and there are many different kinds to choose from. If you like team games, you can play football, volleyball, ice hockey, field hockey or basketball. Games to play with a friend include badminton, squash and tennis. There are individual sports such as swimming, riding, horseriding or athletics.

There are summer sports such as track-and-field athletics and water sports and winter sports such as cross-country skiing, snowboarding or skating. There are sports which don’t depend on the weather, since they are played indoors. Extreme sports have also become one of the fast growing leisure activities nowadays. Among them there are parachuting, hang gliding, windsurfing, bungee jumping, cave diving etc.

An important attraction of sport is also its competitive and chal¬lenging nature. The roots of men’s desire to display their physical health and beauty go back to ancient times when the idea of the Olympic Games first appeared. For the ancient Greeks the Games were a way of saluting their gods. The original Olympics included competitions in mu¬sic, oratory and theatre performances as well. After nearly 300 Olympi¬ads they were stopped by the Roman emperor Theodosius. 1500 years had passed and the Games started again in Greece in 1896. The 2012 Summer Olympics were held in London.

At present sport in our country is paid a lot of attention to by the government and much is being done to set up all necessary facilities for its development. Many skating rinks, stadiums are built for people to go in for sports. Our country is preparing for the 2014 Ice Hockey Champi¬onship which will take place in Minsk.

Our country provides support to team sports. Our national senior and junior teams have become regular participants in the finals of top tourna¬ments, European and world championships. The stunning performance of its athletes has secured Belarus a place among the top twenty sports na¬tions. This is the best result the country has ever had in its sports history.

I’m sure that either as a sportsman or merely as a spectator almost every person likes sport. Some people do sports professionally, others have regular workouts to keep fit. As for me, I’m fond of volleyball. I love it because it’s a team game and it requires different kinds of skills. You must do your best and at the same time you should keep your eye on what your teammates are doing and you need a quick brain too.

I do think regular exercise is an essential part of our life. I believe it’s very important for people to have some regular exercises. It’s very good for the posture, which I believe greatly affects the general health of the body, and makes you feel good.

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II. Let’s talk about healthy way of life

I believe that health is better than wealth, basically because you can get by living on a small amount of money, but you cannot live without good health, and without good health nothing else is worth having. Peo¬ple nowadays are more health-conscious than they used to be.

In order to be healthy we should avoid bad habits that can affect our health. In my opinion, smoking and drinking alcohol, are the worst ones. It's common knowledge that smoking and drinking alcohol can shorten our lives dramatically. Smoking, for example, causes lung diseases, such as pneumonia, emphysema and cancer, heart attacks and high blood pressure. Besides, it makes teeth yellow and skin unhealthy. In many countries smoking has been banned in most public places because eve-ryone agrees it does harm to our health. Alcohol causes heart disease and brain damage. A drinker becomes nervous and aggressive, loses friends, and finally loses his work, family and happy life. Teenage drinking is particularly dangerous, because what happens to a grown-up in 10 years will happen to a teenager in two years.

Smoking and drinking are joined by less dangerous habits, such as skipping meals, eating unhealthy food, or even overeating. If we eat too much, we start to put on weight, and obesity leads to serious health prob¬lems. So food can be something that can make our bodies ugly and bring about diseases.

Experts say people should remember a wise proverb ‘An apple a day keeps the doctor away’. This means that we should eat more fresh vege¬tables and fruit, foods which are high in fiber and vitamins A, B, C and E. Such vegetables as Brussels sprouts, cabbage and cauliflower contain agents that block cancer. Beet greens, bell peppers, carrots and tomatoes as well as cherries, apricots and watermelon are rich in beta-carotene. We should have regular eating habits and try to have meals every day in the same time.

Regular exercise is an essential part of our life. I believe it’s very important for people to have some regular exercises. It’s very good for the posture, which I believe greatly affects the general health of the body, and makes you feel good. After doing some strenuous exercise followed by a shower, you can really feel that your life is renewed and

you have a fresh vigor with which to face the day. A person who takes regular exercise will stay physically fit, vigorous and keep a youthful shape.

Regular sleeping habits are also important. We should remember that the most important period for our brain is from 12 p.m. to 3 a.m., as during this period our brain produces hormone melatonin, which helps us stay young and active. At night while we sleep our brain also pro¬cesses and stores all the information learnt during the day. That is why staying late hours is not good for our health.

In conclusion I would like to say that it’s easier to prevent a disease rather than try to cure it after you get sick. We should take a good care of our health, because health once lost is lost forever.

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II. Let’s talk about modern means of communication

Modem technology is rapidly spreading all over the Earth. Every of¬fice is equipped with a personal computer, an answer-phone, a fax machine and a photocopier. Every teenager is able to use a video recorder, a camera or an MP3 player.

Ask a teenager or an adult if they can do without TV or the internet and most of them will honestly be surprised at the question. Radio and television play an important role in our life, they give the full coverage of

the latest events, comment on political and domestic affairs, contribute to the development of the information network.

Personal computers are being used in almost every field today. For in¬stance, they can pay wages, reserve seats on planes, control satellites in space, work out tomorrow’s weather, play chess and compose music. Supposing we had neither television nor the internet in our modem world, we wouldn’t be able to obtain the necessary information as quickly as possible, we would lose an important source of education and communica¬tion.

The most popular means of communication nowadays is the mobile phone. In Albania it is not unusual to see an older person riding a donkey while talking on a mobile phone. In India you can see a beggar making or taking a call on a cell phone. Advanced models of mobile phones enable users to access the internet, send and receive e-mail and text messages, watch TV, listen to music, take photos, navigate by the Global Positioning System and phone.

At the same time addiction, distraction, interruption are perhaps the most recognized problems associated with popular communications and media technology. Let’s consider the example of two newlyweds in a Euro¬pean country. According to a news report, they ‘were on the phone constant¬ly - in their cars, at the gym, even calling each other from different rooms inside their own house’. For many people the thought of being out of con¬tact for even an hour is unbearable.

If to speak about disadvantages of television, there are people who wouldn’t miss their favourite chat shows or football matches for anything in the world. Such people must remember that one can get addicted to TV, as it is a habit-forming drug impossible to resist. There are people who stop participating in any sports activities. Others stop going out to com¬municate with their friends and relatives. Doctors keep reminding us that constant viewing inevitably degrades the eyesight. Sitting slows down the blood circulation and turns you into a couch potato.

George Bernard Shaw used to say that maximum of opportunities is always combined with maximum of temptation. This saying can be fully applied to modem means of communication and technical progress.

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II. Let’s talk about customs and traditions of an English-speaking country

British customs and traditions are famous all over the world. When people think of Britain, they often think of people drinking tea, eating fish and chips and wearing bowler hats, but there is more to Britain than just those things.

In Britain customs and traditions play a more important part in the life of people than in other countries. A custom is the usual way of be¬having or acting. A tradition is a custom, opinion or belief handed down from one generation to another, often orally or by practice. The British are proud of their traditions and carefully keep them up. Some of them are very old games or plays. There is the Marbles Championship where people in beautiful clothes with ribbons and bells on them dance to tradi-tional music with handkerchiefs or big sticks. The British Champion wins a silver cup known among folk dancers as Morris Dancing,

May 1st isn't a public holiday in Britain, but the 1st Monday after it is. There are many May Day Celebrations, especially in the country. People erect a maypole then, a tall pole with ribbons hanging from the top. Young children dance round it, holding the ribbons. Teenage girls sometimes enter for the May Queen competition.

Halloween is a day on which many children dress up. The day was originally called All Halloween's Eve, because it fell on October 31, the eve of all Saint's Day. Nowadays children dress up in costumes and go from door to door where they knock on the door, or ring the doorbell, and yell ‘Trick or treat!’ The idea being that the owners of the house give the children a treat (sweets or money) or the children will play a trick on them.

‘Remember, remember the 5th of November’ are the words of an old English song. In 1605, a man called Guy Fawkes had planned to blow up the Houses of Parliament and kill James I. But he was caught and hanged. And still the British remember Guy Fawkes' Night or Bon¬fire Night. On November 5th children put their 'Guys', figures made of sacks and straw dressed in old clothes, on the bonfire, bum them and light their fireworks.

A popular Scottish event is the Edinburg Festival for music and drama held each year. A truly Welsh event is the Eisteddfod, a national festival of traditional poetry and music, with a competition for the best new poem in Welsh and for the best choir.

Some ceremonies are traditional, such as a Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, Trooping the Colour, the State Opening of Parlia¬ment. The Ceremony of Trooping the Colour is one of the most fasci-nating. It is staged in front of Buckingham Palace. It is held annually on the monarch’s official birthday on the second Saturday in June. The Queen is escorted by Horse Guards riding to the Parade. The ceremony is accompanied by the music of brass bands.

To know customs and traditions means to understand the people and their culture better. It has always been interesting for me to leam about Great Britain and its traditions. I hope one day I’ll be able to go there to see it with my own eyes.

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II. Let’s talk about Belarusian customs and traditions

Belarus has deep historical roots in the past that's why its customs and traditions often have a fascinating history. The most ancient Belaru¬sian traditions and holidays can be classified according to four seasons of the year: spring, summer, autumn and winter.

In ancient times the arrival of spring reassured mankind. It was a sign that life would return to the land, crops would grow and existence was assured. Belarus has a remarkable range of spring-time celebrations, for example Calling of Spring. This holiday dates back to the pagan times.

One of the greatest Christian holidays in Belarus has always been Easter Sunday. There are two Easter holidays in Belarus: the Roman Catholic and the Russian Orthodox ones with painted eggs and special pies.

The summer festivities start in July beginning with the greatest holi¬day Kupalle. The essential part of this celebration is the great fire. The oiled wooden wheel is set on fire to symbolize the sun. According to the belief this fire has a purifying power. Young couples hand in hand must jump it over. One of the main traditions of Kupalle is search for the mythic paparats-kvetka (fern flower). Those, who find it, will enjoy good luck for the whole year and their wishes will come true

Autumn has its own holidays. They are traditionally connected with the end of the harvesting time. In ancient times it has always been the wedding season. That's why so many traditions and customs are con-nected with marriage, for example match-making, bride-show, wedding itself, special songs, games etc.

In late autumn we have Dziady. It is a day for commemoration of the dead relatives. The special ritual food is cooked for Dziady dinner. According to the tradition part of the food and drink is left in a special plate and glass for the dead. At this day families are going to the ceme¬teries to take care of the graves.

The winter solstice used to be a time for meditation on the year gone by and of hope for the year to come. That's why people asked the sun to come back, they sang songs to honor it. Thus the Kaliady holiday ap-peared, which later became the integral part of Christmas, the greatest holiday in the year.

New Year is widely celebrated all over the country. Preparations to this holiday start a couple of weeks before. The towns and cities of Bela¬rus put on holiday attire; illumination, New Year trees in the squares and New Year fairs add to the holiday mood. The culmination of the festivity is the December 31— January 1 night, when various concerts and open- air merrymaking take place. January 1 is an official holiday. The Belaru¬sian people are proud of the country’s past and its traditional culture. Different medieval festivals are arranged every year. The spectators can admire performances in costume, combats of knights and ancient music.

The Belarusian people have always remembered and tried to cele¬brate their national holidays, customs and traditions. To my mind it’s very good that we learn to speak about them in English as it will help us to describe the beauty of our culture to foreign people.

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II. Let’s talk about leisure time

It goes without saying that every person needs entertainment and en¬joyment, free time and rest after hard work. All our activities can be di¬vided into physical, intellectual and mental activities. Scientists prove that we can benefit from combining activities of different kinds as much as from having a rest.

The author of an article in one Polish newspaper has counted 1019 personal interests and ways to spend one’s free time. The most popular hobbies are collecting view cards, coins, stamps, badges and books. Hobbies differ like tastes. They are divided into 4 large classes: doing things, making things, collecting things and learning things. Doing things, for example, include a wide variety of activities from gardening to travelling. Making things includes painting, drawing, designing cos¬tumes, handicraft, composing music.

I studied hard at school to achieve high results and get profound knowledge. I think that would have been impossible without activities I do in my free time.

If you ask me how I usually spend my leisure time, I can say that I play volleyball, play the guitar, read for pleasure, listen to music or spend time with my best friend.

I think I’m a sporty girl. It goes without saying that sport is very im¬portant for every person. Playing volleyball helps me to keep my body in a good shape, makes me more organized and self-disciplined. Every Thursday I have volleyball classes. They help to create a healthy body for a healthy mind and give possibilities to communicate with my team¬mates. :      s

I’m keen on reading. My parents taught me to read at a very early age. Books stir my imagination, expand the boundaries of the world I live in. They teach me to live, help to form moral values, entertain and give pleasure. I like adventure stories in which brave and clever people

are shown, I’m interested in reading detective stories which show crime, criminals and clever detectives. I like psychological dramas which show how people behave in different situations.

I’m fond of listening to music. My favourite bands as ‘Three Days Grace’ and ‘Nightwish’. Music helps me to remove from tiredness and find new strength. This year I have started taking guitar classes. Every Tuesday and Thursday I go to my teacher who helps me to learn the magic of the music world. I find these lessons interesting and exciting. They get me energy and optimism. Although my fingers keep aching, I feel proud when I learn new things. I hope I will be able to play the gui¬tar well in some time.

In my free time I try to read English books in the original. It in¬creases my vocabulary. I’m fond of watching American films. It helps me to leam pronunciation and social English better.

I like to spend some of my free time with my best friend. We watch movies, listen to music or go for a walk together.

To sum up I would like to say that without leisure activities life be¬comes dull and boring, and people become frustrated.

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II. Let’s talk about shopping

Going shopping is a part of our everyday life. For some people it’s a pleasant pastime while for others it’s an everyday routine. At the same time whether people like shopping or not they have to do this because it’s a necessity.

Nowadays in big cities and in many small towns there are all kinds of shops and stores as well as supermarkets.

Supermarkets are primary foodstores which sell all kinds of food: fresh, frozen and canned; meat, fish, vegetables, fruit, dairy products and bread. Practically everything a family needs can be found in a supermar¬ket. There the customer serves himself and pays at the cash-desk on leaving the shop. Currently people prefer to do a lot of heavy shopping to take home with them in the car. Nowadays supermarkets are bright, clean and spacious, they provide a wide range of goods and services. There are big TV-screens and music. Modem supermarkets accept credit cards which makes exchange more convenient.

A lot of shopping is still done at small comer shops. They can often sell more specialized goods which a supermarket doesn’t stock. For ex¬ample, one prefers freshly baked bread and cakes from the baker’s. Some people would go to the florist’s for bunches of flowers rather than buy pre-selected flowers in the supermarket.

If people want to purchase clothes, they usually go to a department store. These shops carry ready-made women’s, men’s and children’s clothes, glassware, perfumery, jewellery, millinery, footwear, sportswear goods, stationery, china, household electric appliances and furniture. A lot of things for sale are in the shop windows so the customers may choose what they want. The two most famous department stores in Lon¬don are Selfridges and Harrods. There are also such department stores as the John Lewis Stores, Marks and Spencer. In London a lot of the best department stores are in Oxford Street which is famous for its shopping.

In Minsk there are some department stores but I prefer the ‘Belarus department store’. This is a huge 3-stored building where it’s possible to find all necessary things. In this shop they have a cafeteria where you can have a snack. There are currency exchange banks, a chemist’s booth. High quality goods both domestic and of foreign manufactures are repre-sented in the shop. The shop-assistants are attentive to the customers and they are always helpful when you need some advice.

Nowadays many people prefer doing shopping at the market where the prices are more reasonable. At the same time there are people who can afford themselves to do the shopping in boutiques where expensive clothes by well-known designers are sold.

Frankly speaking, I’m not keen on shopping at all and when my par¬ents ask me to buy something I’m often reluctant to do it. Most of all I like book and music shops. I can stay there for hours leafing through piles of CDs or records. But I do think shopping can be a pleasant pas-time when you can afford to buy the things you like.

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II. Let’s talk about national cuisine of an English-speaking country

I’d like to speak about English national cuisine. It’s common knowl¬edge that English cuisine is shaped by the country's temperate climate, its geography and its history Traditional meals have ancient origins, such as bread and cheese, roasted and stewed meats, meat pies and freshwater and saltwater fish.

Traditional English cuisine is substantial but simple and wholesome. The English have three main meals a day. Breakfast is between 8 and 9 a.m. Lunch is a light meal or snack between 12 a.m. and 1.30 p.m. Din¬ner, which is sometimes called supper or tea, is the main meal of the day between 6.30 p.m. and 8 p.m. On Sundays the main meal of the day is often eaten at around 1 p.m. This meal usually consists of roast meat, Yorkshire pudding and two kinds of vegetables.

Most overseas visitors see English breakfast as the typical version of eggs, bacon, sausages, fried bread, mushrooms and baked beans, all ac¬companied with a cup of tea or coffee. Today, however, a typical Eng¬lish breakfast is normally a bowl of cereal, a slice of toast, orange juice and tea or coffee.

During the week, due to a lifestyle of often working a long distance from home, many people have a ‘packed lunch’ or sandwiches for lunch, with a packet of crisps, fruit and a drink.

Sunday lunch is different when the family sits together for a tradi¬tional Sunday roast. This consists of roast meat, different kinds of vege¬tables, always including roast potatoes with Yorkshire Pudding, a flour based batter cooked in the oven. The most commonly eaten joints of meat are beef, lamb or pork, chicken is also popular. Beef is accompa¬nied by white horseradish sauce, pork by apple sauce and lamb is eaten with green mint sauce. Gravy is then poured over the meat.

Traditionally dinner was similar to Sunday Lunch but today this is rarely eaten on ordinary days. Today most people in Britain prefer curry, rice or pasta for dinner. Fresh vegetables grown in England are also popular, such as peas, carrots, cabbage, onions and potatoes.

Needless to say, some traditional foods have remained English fa¬vourites. Fish and Chips is the most famous English food, after the Sun¬day Roast beef. Fish can be either cod, haddock or plaice and is deep fried in flour batter, then served with chips. This is England's traditional take-away meal. Steak and Kidney Pie is pastry pie filled with steak, lamb kidneys and gravy, baked in the oven. This is accompanied with chips and fresh vegetables. Shepherds' Pie is made with minced lamb and onions with light gravy, topped with mashed potato and baked in the oven. Cottage Pie is the same as Shepherds' pie but made with beef in¬stead of lamb.

At the same time English families today rarely eat together. People often consume junk food, often in front of the television. The diet in in¬creasing numbers of families consists mainly of salty or sweet snack foods - chips, crisps, chocolate bars, ready-meals, microwave pizzas which can cause obesity and health problems.

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II. Let’s talk about Belarusian national cuisine

Perhaps, one of the most pleasant ways to understand the soul of a na¬tion is to start exploring its national cuisine. Tasting of some original dish may tell a foreign visitor a lot about Belarusian traditions. Hospitable Be¬larusians will undoubtedly invite them to a home table to treat them. Yet restaurants, cafes, bars are also ready to introduce Belarusian cuisine.

Modem Belarusian cookery is based on old national traditions which have undergone a long historical evolution.

Dishes are typically based on local vegetables and cereals especially potatoes, beetroot, mushrooms, berries and barley. Potatoes are called among people "the second bread". A wide spread of potato dishes in Belarusian cuisine can be explained by natural climatic conditions which are good for growing tasty sorts of potatoes. Potato is included into many salads, it is served together with mushrooms, meat; different pi- razhki (patties) and baked puddings are made from it. There are three different ways of starting potato dishes: grated raw potatoes with the juices, drained grated raw potatoes, and mashed boiled potatoes Which are further used to prepare other dishes. The most popular dish is tradi¬tional draniki, thick pancakes, prepared from shredded potatoes.

A lot of place in the national diet belongs to meat and meat pro¬ducts, especially to the pork and salted pork fat. Salted pork fat is used slightly smoked and seasoned with onions and garlic. Sausages are made from liver and blood. The most favorite poultry is goose which is pre-pared for the festive occasions Dishes prepared from meat are usually served together with potatoes or vegetables such as carrots, cabbages, black radish, peas etc. It is characteristic that many vegetables and meat dishes are prepared in special stoneware pots.

Soups play an important role in Belarusian cuisine. There are two types of soups: hot and cold. Most popular are beetroot soup (borshch), bouillon, cabbage soup (shchy) and chilled soup (khaladnik). All soups have sour tastes. Spices in Belarusian cuisine are used sparingly and in¬clude marjoram, garlic and coriander.

Of flour dishes the most popular is zatsirka. Pieces of specially pre¬pared dough are boiled in water and then poured over with milk or gar¬nished with salted pork fat.

Sweets are not very popular. Instead of cooked sweets people eat a lot of berries and fruit in their natural form, the only exception are baked apples. Belarusians also drink sweet juices from birch and maple trees. Those juices and kvasses made from them are national beverages.

One of my favourite dishes is draniki. To make it you need the fol¬lowing ingredients: 6 potatoes, 1 egg, 2 table spoons of flour, 1 onion, salt, pepper and oil. First you peel, wash and grate potatoes and peel and chop the onion. Then you mix potatoes and onion, add the egg, flour and salt and stir well until it becomes combined. After that you heat oil in a frying pan and add potato mixture with a table spoon in the form of small flat cakes. Then you fry draniki and serve with main dishes and sour cream.

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II. Lets talk about different types of houses

Nowadays most people live in urban areas. Towns and cities are spreading into their surrounding environment to cope with the increase populations.

As well as I know, more people are buying their own houses or flats than in the past. Others live in houses or flats that they rent from a pri¬vate landlord, the local council or housing association.

My family lives in a block of flats. I think that it is the cheapest type of dwelling in any town. Flats can be of different sizes: one-roomed, two-roomed, three-roomed, so one can choose what they like. If you are going to live alone, you can prefer a studio to a large apartment. Among advantages of living in a block of flats some people name the fact that it takes less time to tidy up a flat than a house. But living in a flat has its disadvantages. Your neighbours can make a lot of noise when they hammer or drill the wall or set a party. I can say that all these disadvan¬tages don't bother me much and it is a good type of housing. The largest part of population in our country lives in blocks of flats.

Living in a detached house gives you a lot of advantages. Your neighbours do not disturb you. As you have some land around the house, you can build outhouses. If I lived in a detached house, I would certainly build a garage, a padding pool and arrange some flowerbeds.

There are also those who like semi-detached houses or duplexes. To my mind, such houses attract people because they are less expensive than mansions or bungalows and you have only one neighbour as op-posed to block of flats. And as you have a neighbor, you can always turn to them if you need something, though from time to time your neighbour can disturb you while repairing the their part of the house or listening to music loudly. But in general I am sure that it is quite convenient to live in a semi-detached house.

Some people prefer to live in the country either in a small comfort¬able cottage or in a large farmhouse. The way I see things is that people who prefer this type of dwelling really adore nature and they want to have calm life. Usually such people keep the poultry and the cattle. One of the advantages of living in such a house is that you have your own land where you can grow fruit and vegetables, make flowerbeds and plant beautiful flowers. You can also build some outhouses like a green-house, a garage and a tool shed. But the greatest disadvantage of living in a farmhouse or in a cottage, in my opinion, is that it takes much time to get to the nearest town. On the other hand, if you have a car it will not be difficult for you.

If to speak about England, I can say that the main types of houses there are detached houses, semi-detached houses, terrace houses joined together in long rows and flats. Most houses in England are made of stone or brick from the local area where the houses are built. The colours of the stones and bricks vary across the country.

In conclusion I would like to add that there are different types of housing and all people have the right to choose where to live.

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II. Let’s talk about life in the city and in the country

It’s common knowledge that tastes differ. Nowadays there are a lot of people who prefer to live in big cities, and, at the same time, there are others, who dream of living in the country.

It goes without saying that life in a big city has a lot of disadvan¬tages. The first and foremost is an air- and noise-pollution. The car ex¬haust contains several pollutants and one of them is lead, which is par¬ticularly harmful to children, because their brains and nervous systems are more vulnerable than those of adults are. Besides, life in a big city is much more stressful and expensive than that in the country or in a small town.

Everyone grumbles about exorbitant rents that must be paid for tiny flats. Apart from accommodation, the cost of living is very high. A citi¬zen runs into a lot of extra expenses paying for the public transport, snacks, food delivery and entertainment.

There are too many people living together in one city, and the streets are crowded. Minsk has a population of 2 mln people, St. Petersburg has a population of 5 mln people, London - 8 mln people, New York - 9 mln people, Tokyo - 12 mln people. It also takes people a lot of time to get to work by metro, as there are long distances between the stations. In big cities drivers suffer from traffic jams, accidents and car crashes. Pedestrians suffer from the rush hour, constant queuing and irregularity of public transport.

But whatever the disadvantages are, I’m charmed with the speed of city life and great possibilities it gives. Living in a big city gives you a lot of advantages nowadays. Firstly, life in big cities is more anonymous. You can be what you want to be and do what you want to do without anybody getting upset about it, whereas in the country almost everybody knows you and expects you to live and behave in a certain way.

Secondly, there is so much going on in the city. You have access to a huge range of concerts of different types of music - pop, classical, jazz, rock - whatever you are looking for. There are a lot of theatres, ci-nemas, museums, art galleries, libraries to visit as well as big shopping centres where you can buy any goods you need.

Big cities are beautiful. They look modem with their tall buildings, interesting architecture and design. City dwellers are sociable and com-municative. I find the city an easy place to make friends in. In fact, in a big city you have a much wider range of people to choose from and to make friends with.

I’d rather quote Samuel Johnson’s words, who said, “When a man is tired of London, he is tired of life.” To my mind it is true. If you are tired of fun, pleasure, comfort and excitement a big city offers you, you are either tired of life or, most probably, you need some relaxing break in a small town or in the country for a change.

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II. Let’s talk about choosing a career

It goes without saying that choosing one’s career is not a simple thing and it demands careful consideration. You should realistically con¬sider your abilities and how to make use of them. You should ask your¬self how much you know about the reality of you future job. As a matter of fact, many of us are still on the fantasy level about future jobs, for there is a great difference between the career aspiration and the real world of work. We often neglect the fact that every job has a share bore¬dom about it. That’s why you’d better think about pros and cons so as not to regret your decision to follow this or that career afterwards. Actu¬ally it’s not a pleasant thing to stay all your life in a job you don’t like. And certainly it’s always nice to have a well-paid job and enjoy it.

Getting a job in today’s competitive world is not easy. Most jobs re¬quire qualifications. So it’s better to think about your future job while you are still at school.

Some of my classmates try to choose their future professions under the influence of their parents, whose advice they find helpful and valuable. In my opinion, the final choice should depend on what I am interested in. I want to enjoy my future job. I think I’ll be motivated by work satisfaction rather than by profit or a good salary. That’s why I work hard at school, staying late hours, sometimes burning my candle at both ends.

I can’t say I have made up my mind what my future career will be. But I'm sure it will be connected with the English language. I have al¬ways realized the importance of foreign languages in the modem world. Firstly, it is essential for the development of international contacts in the sphere of political, social, business and cultural relations. Secondly, it offers good job opportunities and it enables you to find work almost anywhere in the world. I'm thinking of learning several foreign lan¬guages and making a practical use of them in my future job.

I think I would be able to become an English teacher as I'm fond of the English language and British culture. I think I’d like to share my knowledge with pupils. At the same time I think I wouldn’t be patient enough to explain the same grammar rules to pupils and correct their mistakes. I don’t like doing the same things over and over again.

I think I can find a job which involves a lot of travel, moving around, meeting lots of interesting people. I believe my future career will be connected with international tourism or journalism. At the same time I am aware of the disadvantages such jobs have. People who do these jobs often get fed up with travelling, living in the hotels and having little time to spend with their families. They have to work hard and stay late hours. Their jobs are often stressful and involve risks.

I don’t know exactly what practical use I will make of foreign lan¬guages in future, but I'm definitely sure that after graduating from uni¬versity I will become an educated person, useful for the progress of the society I live in.