Unit 5 English and English-speaking Countries
Lesson 20
Exercise 1.2
The United Kingdom lies in Western Europe
in the north of the Atlantic Ocean.
It is divided into for countries:
England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
The full name of the country is the United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
The short form is United Kingdom or just UK.
It is called a kingdom because
it is ruled by a king or a queen.
The present queen of the UK is Queen Elizabeth.
The UK is not a big country;
it's about the size of New Zealand,
but its population is much larger,
about 59 million.
The official language is English
and the capital is London.
The weather in the UK is mild
and it rains a lot,
although in parts of northern England
and in Scotland it can get quite cold.
People in the UK love sports a lot.
Soccer, which is the national sport,
is very popular.
The lion is a symbol which was first used
by King Richard I in the 12th century
to show the strength of England.
Today it is still used on the Queen's coat
of arms.
Exercise 2.2
I'd like to welcome all of you on our tour,
Great Sights of London.
To your right is the British Museum which
receives about 6 million visitors a year.
This is the largest museum
in the United Kingdom.
Here you will find the very famous Egyptian
mummy collection that draws visitors from
all over the world.
Now, ladies and gentlemen,
on your left is Buckingham Palace which was
built in 1705 for the Duke of Buckingham
whose family still lives there today.
Queen Elizabeth, who is the ruler of the UK,
opened Buckingham Palace to the public in 1993.
Up ahead are the Houses of Parliament.
This building consists of the House of Commons
and the House of Lords.
Let's all check the time on Big Ben,
a clock tower which is probably
the most famous symbol of London.
Finally, to you left is St. Paul's Cathedral.
This is where Prince Charles
and Lady Diana got married.
It's a beautiful sight,isn't it?