Практический курс разговорного английского языка

Ex. 9.  Reproduce the following bits of conversation.

A.

A.               Please, I want my ticket punched for the 3.45 (three-forty-five) train to Omsk.

B.               Just a moment. I’ve got only upper berths on that train.

A.               It’s O.K. I like traveling on an upper berth.

B.               Very good, sir. Here you are.

A.               Thank you.

B.

A.               Can you help me? What platform does the 5 o’clock train to Edinburgh leave?

B.               From platform two, track four.

Ex. 10. Use sentences from the exercisers above to make up your own dialogues on topics:

-         At the booking office.

-         At the inquiry office.

-         My last trip.

Ex. 11. Read and translate the text.

Travelling by air

Travelling by air is more convenient than by train because it saves you time though it does not save money. Distances more than 2000 km can now be covered by modern passenger planes on non-stop flights without landing to refuel. Statistics shows that traveling by air is as safe as by train. Last time I traveled by air two years ago when I was on holiday in the Caucasus I booked a ticket fifteen days in advance. On the appointed day after packing my luggage, I proceeded to the airport by bus. In the hall of the airport there were a lot of people waiting for boarding the plane. Before the flight passenger must register at the airport. When registering the passenger is required to have his luggage weighed after which the attendant attached a special tag to it. Each passenger is allowed 20 kilograms of luggage free of charge. There is no need to worry about suitcase, it will be looked after. The registration stopped half an hour before the time of take-off. Soon we heard the voice of announcer calling the plane going south: “Boarding the plane Flight 217 begins. Passenger is invited to take their places.” I said good-bye to my friends who came to see me off and with the other passengers went to a special bus which took us to the plane on the runway. On board the plane the stewardess helped us get comfortable in the reclining seats adjustable to some positions. I sat back and relaxed. Very soon the plane took off. At that moment we saw the notice “No smoking. Fasten your seat-belts.” In a few minutes we were above the clouds. During the flight we got information of the altitude, speed, the weather and the distance covered. The stewardess served us mineral water, juice, tea, sweets and sandwiches. Besides, newspapers and magazines were offered to the passengers. Everybody felt comfortable and nobody was airsick. The plane landed exactly on time.

Ex. 12. Say what is not allowed to do (to have) on board the plane.

Model: Passengers are not allowed to make a noise on board the plane.

-         to have heavy luggage

-         to smoke

-         to unfasten belts when the plane is taking off or landing

-         to speak with the pilot

-         to have a weapon (оружие)

-         to take strong drinks

-         to enter the cockpit (кабина пилота).

Ex. 13. Describe services available on board the plane.

Model:     Passengers can have (be given) mineral water on board the plane.

-         to have a snack

-         to ask for juice or any soft drink

-         to offer the newspaper

-         to give information about speed, altitude and the distance covered

-         to send a telegram from board the plane

-         to see video films during the flight

-         to ask the stewardess for a medicine.

Ex. 14. What will you say if you want to ask about the flight?

Ex. 15. Say what class you need and what flight you prefer.

Ex. 16.  Give the information about tickets.

Ex. 17. Read the short dialogue.

Booking Airline Tickets

A:    I’d like to book a flight to Munich for Monday the tenth.

B:    I’ll have a look in the time table for you.

A:    I need an economy class open return.

B:    There is a ticket for the first class Lufthansa, leaving at 9.25.

A:    What time do I have to get there?

B:    You’ll have to be at West London Air Terminal by 8.10 as the latest.

Ex. 19. Reproduce your own dialogues “Booking airline tickets”. Use sentences given in the exercises above.

Vocabulary:

to punch the ticket – закомпостировать билет                           

an overnight train – ночной поезд             

a day coach – дневной поезд

an inquiry office – справочное бюро

sleeping accommodation – места для сна

sitting accommodation – сидячие места

a compartment car – купейный вагон

a sleeper – спальный вагон

an upper berth – верхняя полка

bedclothes (bedding) – постельное белье

a guard – проводник

to change trains (to make a changing) – делать пересадку

to board a train – садиться на поезд

to get off a train – выходить из поезда

non-stop flight – беспосадочный перелет

refuel – заправляться горючим

on the appointed day – в назначенный день

to proceed to the airport – отправляться в аэропорт

to board the plane – садиться в самолет

boarding the plane – посадка в самолет

on board the plane – на борту самолета

to weigh – взвешивать

an attendant – обслуживающее лицо

to attach – прикреплять

take-off – вылет самолета (вылетать)

a runway – взлетно-посадочная полоса

a reclining seat – откидывающееся назад сиденье

adjustable to some positions – регулируемый на несколько положений

an altitude – высота полета

to be airsick – страдать воздушной болезнью

Role play

Work in group: discuss your future traveling, choose the mean of travel with detailed arguments. Play out your actions when

-         asking for information at the inquiry office,

-         buying tickets at the booking office,

-         boarding your mean of travel.

PART III. HOLIDAYS.

BIRTHDAYS.

Ex. 1. Read and translate the text.

Long ago, before early people had a way of marking time, little attention was paid to a person’s birthday. When birthdays were first starting to be celebrated, they were only held in honour of prominent men in a country. Today, birthdays are celebrated by the young and the old alike all around the world.

The reason why we have birthday parties goes back to when people believed that good and evil spirits appeared when a child was born and influenced that child for life. These people also believed that it was dangerous for a person to have a change in his or her life. This led people to believe that birthdays were filled with danger since each year marked a change in a person’s life. These beliefs brought about the custom of having birthday parties. They considered that surrounding the birthday person with friends, family and good wishes would scare the evil spirits away. It was an especially good influence if the well-wishers presented gifts along with their wishes. There would also be greater protection from the evil spirits if the gifts and wishes were presented early in the day. Credit is given to the Germans for starting celebrations of children’s birthdays (kinderfeste).

The custom of putting candles on birthday cake started in Germany about 200 years ago. Germans were known to be excellent candle makers. One day they began to make little tiny candles and started the tradition of putting the candles on the cake. It was also decided by these candle makers that it meant good luck if you could blow out all the candles on your cake in one blow.

About 100 years ago, Mildred Hill and Patty Hill of America wrote the song, “Happy Birthday to You”. This song was a huge hit all over the world. It is used in many different countries with a few modifications.

Have you ever received a card for your birthday? The custom of making birthday cards started in England about 100 years ago. Now people everywhere make birthday cards and send them to friends and family to wish them a happy birthday.

Birthday games became popular because people used to believe that it was like marking an end and a new beginning (the end of the past year and beginning of the new year). Two very popular games around the world include Pinning the Tail on the Donkey and Breaking a Pinata.

   Pinning the Tail on the Donkey became popular because of superstitions. When a blindfolded player tries to pin the tail where it should go, they don’t know if they will get in the right spot or not and the mistakes can be very amusing. People compared this game to life in that a person starts out each new year with a “blindfold” on not knowing whether this year will be successful or not.

Breaking a Pinata is a game that came from Mexico about 300 years ago and the main player is also blindfolded but this time uses a striking stick. It was believed that you will have a good luck if you are the one to break the piñata, a decorated paper-maché form filled with candy and trinkets and suspended over the players.

Giving spankings to the birthday person is another type of game that started as a superstition hundreds of years ago. A spank is, here, a playful striking with the open hand on the birthday child’s buttocks. Spankings are given one for each year and then one to grow on, one to live on, one to eat on, one to be happy, and finally one to get married on.

In some countries, people celebrate what is called Saint’s Day or Name Day. In these countries, children usually celebrate their saints’ name birthday rather than their own. When children are born, parents in these countries name their child after a saint when he or she is baptized. The saint then becomes the lifetime guardian of this child and in return, the child will show honour to his/her saint by celebrating the day that is the saint’s sacred day.

Ex. 2. Answer the questions:

1. Whose birthdays were celebrated long ago?

2. Why did people start to have birthday parties?

3. What could protect people at their birthday?

4. What are the most popular birthday customs?

5. Where did birthday customs originate?

6. What games are often played at birthday parties?

7. What does Saint’s Day (name Day) mean?

8. How do Russian people celebrate their birthdays?

9. What birthday customs (traditions) do you follow?

10. How do you see a perfect birthday celebration?

HALLOWEEN.

Ex. 1. Read and translate the text.

Halloween is a holiday that comes from several mysterious religions that blended together. Europeans brought these traditions to America.

The origins date back hundreds of years to the Druid festival of Samhain, Lord of the Dead and Prince of Darkness, who, according to Celtic belief, gathered up the souls of all those who had died during the year to present them to Druid Heaven on October 31.

The Druid New Year began on November 1, marking the beginning of winter and the reign of the Lord of Death. The Druids called upon supernatural forces to placate the evil spirits, and it is from that tradition that modern Halloween gets the paraphernalia of ghosts, goblins, witches, skeletons, cats, masks and bonfires.

The custom of telling ghosts stories on Halloween also comes from the Druids who lit huge bonfires atop high hills to frighten away evil spirits. And as they sat grouped around watching the bright flames they would tell ghosts stories.

As Christianity replaced the pagan religions, the church set aside November 1 to honour all saints (all Hallows) and called it All Hallows’ Day. The evening before October 31, became All Hallows’ Even – later shortened to Halloween. The inclusion of witches, goblins and fairies into the rituals arose from the pagan belief that on All Hallows’ Eve the spirits of the dead who were against the church rite made own revels.

Other customs grew over the years. If the spirits caused no problems for a family, that family celebrated later that night. Parents sent their children out to collect food from friends and neighbours. To help them keep away from evil spirits, parents dressed up their children as ghosts and other figures that looked like evil spirits, trying to scare away real spirits. When children were outside, they heard what people said the evil spirits were doing – kicking over garbage cans, taking gates off fences, letting farm animals loose and throwing paints on houses. So they began doing these things themselves. They would visit a house and called out: Trick or Treat! If they did not receive what they wanted (a treat), they would cause problems for that family (the trick). Some families cut out scary faces in large turnips and put them around the edge of their property. They thought it would help keep evil spirits away.

The jack-o-lantern, most typical of Halloween symbols, began with the Irish. According to legend a man called Jack, who was kept out of Heaven for being stingy, and of Hell for playing tricks on the Devil, was condemned to walk the earth forever carrying a lantern to light his way.

An old legend says that at midnight on Halloween all pumpkins leave their vines and do a spritely dance across the field.

Halloween is in trouble in America. Each year editorials in magazines and newspapers and on television warn of dangers to children. And each year more communities “ban” Halloween.