Seasons and Weather

March, April and May are spring months. Spring has come, and everything is awakening from its winter sleep. The fields and meadows are dressed in green. There are buds on the trees and the wild flowers once more begin to peep forth. The white snowdrop is one of the first flowers of spring. How lovely it is! Then forget-me-nots, lilies of the valley, violets, daffodils, dandelions, tulips, primroses, lilac and bird-cherry make their appearance. Birds sing their merry songs among the trees and begin to get their nests ready for summer. The gardeners dig the ground and sow seeds in the gardens. The days are warmer, for the bright sunshine has come again. Everything is full of life and joy. Soon the soft spring showers will fall, water the earth and make the seeds grow.

In June summer sets in. June, July and August are summer months. June is one of the most pleasant months of the year. The days are the longest then as the sun rises early and sets late in the evening. The trees are in leaf, roses, peonies begin to blossom and their sweet perfume fills the air. July is the warmest month of the year. Summer is in full beauty. The sky is blue and cloudless. The sun is hot and bright. Sometimes dark clouds gather in the sky. How fast they move along! See, they have hidden the sun. There is no blue sky at all; it’s all black with clouds. It is dark like night. It will rain soon. Now it begins to rain. After the rain the air is remarkably fresh, the flowers smell sweet and the birds sing again.

In September summer yields to autumn. The days become shorter and the nights longer. Apples, pears, plums and nuts, melons and watermelons are now ripe and may be picked. The grain crops have ripened and harvest time begins. Most birds go away to warm countries. The green leaves are fading. They begin to fall off. Some have fallen from the trees and are lying dead on the ground. The leaves are no longer green; they are yellow, red and brown. People go to the forests to pick nuts or to gather mushrooms. It often rains. The rain doesn’t stop, it is drizzling. The weather is nasty, a piercing wind is blowing. It is more pleasant to stay indoors. It is bitterly cold at times. It is muddy; there are many pools of rainwater in the streets. Sometimes it is foggy, and the fog is very thick.

Winter has come at last. There are no flowers in the gardens and the leaves have gone from the trees. The snow lies thick on the ground, and the birds hop about looking in vain for food. Snowflakes are falling thick and fast. Snow lies on the ground, on the bare branches of the trees, on the roofs of the houses. All the rivers and lakes are frozen; everything around looks so beautiful covered with ice and snow. Children play snowballs throwing them at one another.

Lesson 44, Part I

At the Seaside

If you are going to stay in England for some time, you ought to spend at least a week at the seaside. If you can stay longer, so much the better. You ought to have no difficulty in finding a suitable hotel or boarding house. The picture shows you what an English seaside place is like. You should examine it carefully, and you oughtn’t to be satisfied until you know all about it. You can see several people in bathing suits. One of the bathers is just running in from the sea to his tent. He ought to be very healthy and strong, if he bathes every day, oughtn’t he?

When we were children we used to enjoy playing on the beach making castles and forts and channels in the sand. I expect you did the same when you were young, because it’s really one of the most delightful holidays for children. We used to love playing about on the sand and padding in the water, and getting splashed by the waves. Sometimes we’d get our clothes wet, and Nurse would get very cross and tell us we oughtn’t to have gone so far into the water.

When you are tired of London, go down to the sea for a week or a fortnight. You can walk up and down the front, listen to the band on the pier, and do more or less anything you please. If you wish to bathe, you can hire a hut or a tent. A swim now and then, or better still, every day, will do you a lot of good. Take your car with you, if you’ve got one, choose a good hotel, and you’re sure to spend a thoroughly enjoyable time.

Lesson 43, Part I

A Holiday in the Country

If you want to have a really quiet and healthy holiday you must go and stay on a farm. Last year we went to my brother-in-law’s farm in Devonshire and enjoyed ourselves immensely. But the farmer’s life though healthy is by no means an easy one. There is always plenty to do. He must look after his stables and his horses; he must milk the cows and clean the cowsheds.

Then he has to take great care of the young animals: the lambs and the calves. Goats and sheep must be fed and pigs fattened. You can see the pigs in their sty, and the ewes with their lambs in their sheep-pen. Then somebody has to go round the fowl houses to collect the eggs. Cocks and hens, ducks and drakes, turkeys and geese must all be fed and fattened for the market. We all like to have a roast turkey or at least a goose for Christmas, don’t we?

When we stay at my brother-in-law’s we have to work very hard but we don’t mind. We really enjoy it, particularly, if the weather is nice. In the old days most of the work on a farm was done by hand and with the aid of horses, but now things are altogether different. Ploughing is done with a tractor and eggs are taken to market in motor vans. Cows are milked by electricity and chickens are bred in incubators. So you see a farmer’s life is not what it used to be.

Lesson 43, Part II

Work on the Farm

- What time do you have to get up when you are staying at the farm?

- About six o’clock.

- Why must you get up so early?

- Well, there is such a lot to be done.

- Are you going to the country next summer?

- I expect so.

- It must be a delightful change for you after living all the year in town.

- Yes, it is. Life in the country is so peaceful. It’s so nice to feel that you don’t have to rush for a train every morning.

- Don’t you have to work very hard on a farm?

- We can if we want to, but of course we are not obliged to. We just do as we please. There is always work that mustn’t be neglected, so we do what we can to help.

- Well, I’ve never spent a holiday on a farm, so I don’t know what it’s like.

- Haven’t you really? Oh, you ought to. Come with us next year. You needn’t be afraid that you’ll have to work too hard.

- I’d love to. But are you sure I shan’t be in the way.

- Of course you won’t. And I’m sure you’d enjoy a week or two in the open air.

- Personally, I’ve always wanted to be a farmer.

- Have you really? But it’s not a very profitable way of earning one’s living, is it?

- Oh, I don’t know. I think you can find rich men and poor just as much in farming as in any other occupation.

Lesson 30

Asking the Way

-Excuse me, can you tell me the way to Trafalgar Square?

-Certainly. Go down Regent Street to Piccadilly Circus, and then go down the Haymarket. Turn to the left at the bottom and in less than a minute you’ll be in Trafalgar Square.

-Thank you very much. How far is it from here?

-If you walk, it’ll take you ten minutes or a quarter of an hour.

-Is there a bus?

-There’s sure to be. But you’d better ask the policeman over there. He’ll give you all the information you want.

-Thank you.

-Excuse me, officer, is there a bus from here to Trafalgar Square?

-Yes, sir, any bus’ll take you. There’s a bus-stop just over there. Ask the conductor to put you down at Trafalgar Square.

-Thank you.

-Does this bus go to Trafalgar Square?

-Yes, sir. Come along, hurry up…No room on top, inside only…no standing on the platform…pass down the bus, please…Sorry, full up….Sorry, sir, you can’t smoke inside, you’ll have to wait until there’s room upstairs…Fares, please.

-Trafalgar Square, please…and will you tell me when we get there?…

-Trafalgar Square! This is where you get off, sir.

-Thank you.

Lesson 31

A Visit to London

If you can stay only a few days in London, you won’t have much time for your sightseeing; and how to spend your time to the best advantage is rather a problem. If I were you, I should make up my mind beforehand. It all depends on your tastes. You may, for instance, be interested in shops, or in art galleries, or in museums, or you might prefer to start with the principal historical buildings and monuments.

In that case you might begin in the West End and see the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Whitehall and Nelson’s Column. From there you could go along the Mall to Buckingham Palace and have a look at Queen Victoria’s Memorial, facing the Palace. Then stroll up Constitution Hill to Hyde Park Corner and take a walk through the Park and Kensington Gardens to the Albert Memorial, which faces the Albert Hall. That’s really more than enough for one day, but still, if you to see more, you might get on top of a bus going towards the City.

The bus goes along Piccadilly to Piccadilly Circus and Charing Cross, then along the Strand and Fleet Street to Ludgate Circus. There you might as well get off and walk up to St. Paul’s Cathedral.

After that, you could go further east, to the heart of the City, and see the Bank, the Mansion House and the Royal Exchange, and then, if you had time and weren’t too tired, you could go to the East End and see the Tower of London, Tower Bridge over the Thames, the Mint and the Monument.

Lesson 32

Sightseeing

-Is it possible to see anything of London in one or two days?

-Well, yes, but, of course, not half enough.

-What do you think I ought to see first?

-Well, if you’re interested in churches and historical places, you should go to Westminster Abbey, the Houses of Parliament, St. Paul’s and the Tower. Do you like art galleries?

-Rather!

-Then why not go to the National Gallery and the Tate?

-I’m told one ought to see the British Museum. Do you think I shall have time for that?

-Well, you might, but if I were you, I should leave that for some other day. You could spend a whole day there. It’s much too big to be seen in an hour or so.

-I suppose it is. What about going to the Zoo?

-That’s not a bad idea. You could spend a couple of hours there comfortably, or even a whole afternoon, watching the wild animals, birds and reptiles. You could have tea there too.

-I’ll do that, then. How do I get there?

-Let me see. Where are we? Oh, there’s the BBC. I think your best way from here is to walk across Regent’s Park.

-Is it much of a walk?

-Oh, no, a quarter of an hour or so, but, if you’re in a hurry, why not take a taxi?

-I think I will. Ah, here’s one coming. Taxi! The Zoo, please.

Lesson 36, Part I

Ordering New Clothes

- Good morning, I should like to order a lounge suit. What have you got in the way of materials? I want something for the autumn, not too heavy and not too light.

- How do you like this pattern, sir?

- It’s much too light in colour for autumn. I’d rather have something darker, and a bit heavier.

- What about this, then?

- Yes, that’s better. How much is it?

- This is an exceptionally good quality cloth, very soft, and guaranteed pure wool. A suit of this will cost you 50 pounds.

- I’m afraid that’s really more than I wanted to pay. I should have liked something cheaper, but still, I expect it’s worth it.

- Very good, sir. If you take off your coat, I’ll take your measurements… That’s all, thank you. Can you call in tomorrow fortnight for a fitting?

- That’ll be a Wednesday, won’t it? Yes, that’ll suit me. I’ll call in between two and three.

Lesson 36, Part II

At the Dress-shop

- I should like to try on one of these dresses.

- Please come with me to the fitting-room. This is a model gown and quite the latest style.

- I like the style but I don’t care for the colour, and it’s a bit large, too.

- What about this one? We have this model in several sizes and colours: pale-green, dark-brown, black…

- Let me see the black one in my size. Yes, that’s better but isn’t the skirt rather long?

- Yes, we’ll shorten that for you an inch or two, and the waist will have to be taken in a little as well, but you can leave all that to us.

DIALOGUES

About Families

This is a conversation between Dr. Peter Jones, a psychiatrist, and his sister Valeria, who has just returned from Oxford. Valeria enters the room and sees her brother. Peter starts the conversation.

- Valeria, you’re back! I haven’t seen you for such a long time! How’ve you been?

- Just fine. And you?

- I’ve missed you so much!

- Congratulate me, Peter! I’m a college graduate. Now I’m going to become an English teacher.

- What good ideas you always have!

- How’s your job?

- It’s fine. Imagine, Mr. Black, my old friend, is in hospital. He has lost his memory.

- What, again?

- Yes, for the third time! I’m afraid something heavy has fallen on his head. He can’t remember even his own name. Poor Mrs. Black!

- I’ve never heard that Mr. Black has a family. Please, tell me something about them!

- Well, Mr. Black has a wife and two children, a boy and a girl. Mrs. Black is a critic. That’s why she spends most of her time sitting in an armchair and reading different books. Their son John is twelve, and Mary is four years her brother’s junior, but she is much more serious than John.

- Why do you think so?

- Well, Mary is a clever girl; she likes to read and to write letters. She has a senior pen-friend in Canada, whose name is Lillian. Lily is eleven. And as for John, he plays with his toy trains all day long. So draw your conclusion!

- Oh, I see now! It must be difficult to make him study!

- It is. And I have some more news. Do you know my colleague, Henry Sandford?

- Yes, I do. He’s a very attractive person.

- Then you must know his wife, Helen. She will be twenty-seven in two weeks, and Henry has already invited me to her birthday party.

- Helen? Oh, I know her sister, Betty Smith! Has she graduated from St. Paul’s college?

- Yes, she has. Now Betty is a writer. Elizabeth Louise Smith! She is going to publish her first detective novel. I think she dreams of becoming “the second” Agatha Christie.

- I’m so eager to read this novel! And how’s Benny, their son? How old is he?

- He is four. And he has brought so many animals to the house! Now they have white mice, a hedgehog and a parrot.

- They shouldn’t have brought a hedgehog to their house as a pet! These animals do not live long, if taken to a house!

- I know it, as well as Mrs. Sandford. But it’s impossible to quarrel with Benny! Now he is eager to have a stupid, stinky rabbit! Fortunately his mother is against it.

- When you started speaking about animals, I remembered about my plans/ I’m going to Devonshire, to Mr. McDonald’s place. Do you know him?

- No, I don’t. What’s he?

- Mr. McDonald is a farmer. He has a large farm with a lot of animals. He has horses and cows, sheep, goats and swine, turkeys, hens and geese. He also has a cat and a collie, and his best friend is a funny grey donkey. So you can’t feel lonely on his farm! By the way, I’m engaged to his nephew. His name is Douglas. We met three years ago. And on Christmas Eve, when we were skating, he made a declaration of love!

- And what did he say?

- I can’t remember everything, but he said that he loved me in the morning and in the afternoon, and many other beautiful words. Douglas is so poetical.

- I’m glad you’re so happy. So, when are you going to leave?

- Douglas is waiting for me on Friday evening. I think I’ll take a train to Devonshire. So I’ll leave in two days.

- Then have a nice weekend. I’m gonna miss you, I really am.

- So am I. I wish you could go with me.

- Oh, no, I’m too busy. Have a nice weekend.

- Thank you, Peter.

Dr. Sandford’s and Mr. Black’s Families

This dialogue is a conversation between two neighbours: Betty Smith and Nancy Black. They are both at the children’s playground in the park. Betty is sitting on a bench while her nephew, Benny, is playing with the other children. And Nancy is also looking after her niece, Mary. Nancy notices the young woman and decides to start a conversation. Listen to the dialogue.

- Oh, hi! How are you? You have moved into this district recently, haven’t you?

- Yes, we have. We live in a small house at the corner.

- I know. I think we’re neighbours. By the way, let me introduce myself. I’m Nancy, Nancy Black.

- Nice to meet you. My name is Betty Smith. That’s my nephew, Benny.

- I’m very glad to meet you, Betty. And how do you like our district?

- Oh, I think, it’s wonderful! Benny and I are very fond of the playground.

- So am I. You know, I’m from Edinburgh, but my brother, George Black, lives here. Now I’m on a visit to his family.

- Really? I’ve heard so much about your brother. He is a college teacher, isn’t he?

- He is. He is a teacher of French.

- Oh, tell me about him, please.

- Well, George has a wife, Lucy. She is 33. She is an artist. I must say, Lucy and George are very fond of their professions.

- And what about their children?

- Oh, they have two pretty children: a boy, John, and a girl, Mary. And do you have children?

- I don’t, but my sister does. I live with my sister’s family. There are five of us: Helen (my sister), her husband, Dr. Sandford (my brother-in-law). They are Benny’s parents. And the fifth member of our family is old Mrs. Sandford. She is Benny’s grandmother. Benny is an only child and he hasn’t got any boys or girls to play with.

- Neither has Mary.

- Why, you’ve said she has a brother.

- Yes, she has. But her brother, John, is four years older than Mary is. He is already 12. So he doesn’t like to play with her. The only thing he likes to do is to walk with his friends.

- Then how does she spend her free time?

- Well, Mary likes to read. She also likes to go out, to be in the fresh air. We often go to the park together. And every summer we go to my mother’s farm. My parents live in Scotland, in the Highlands. They keep a very busy farm. There they have many different animals and birds, such as hens, ducks, turkeys, goats, sheep and a cow. And they love them all.

- I see. And our Benny is fond of animals, too. We have white mice, a hedgehog and a parrot in the hose. Now he is eager to have a rabbit, but his mother is against it. She says that our house looks like old McDonald’s farm. Do you remember this song?

- Yes, I do. I have a cousin, her name is Kate. So she adores this song. And although she is only 2 years old she knows it by heart.

- What a clever girl! By the way, Benny has two cousins, too. They are: a five-year-old boy, Georgie, and a four-year-old girl, May. They are in Canada now with their parents.

- In Canada? Canada is such a faraway country!

- It is. That’s why we can’t see them very often.

- That’s a pity! But, of course, you can write to them.

- You are right… Look, it’s getting late! And we’ve got to go home! But I really hate to say good-bye!

- So do I!

- Oh, I have a nice idea! Would you like to join us and have a cup of tea with Benny and me?

- It sounds great! I’d love to. And I’m sure Mary won’t mind it either.

- Good. Come along, Nancy.

- Come along.

Dr. Sandford’s and Mr. Black’s Families

This dialogue is a conversation between Alice Black and her best friend Helen Sandford. Now listen to the dialogue.

Helen: Alice, you`re back! I haven`t seen you for a long time! I`m so glad you`re back, Alice! Please, stay in touch! How`ve you been?

Alice : Just fine. It`s been a long time!

Helen: Come in, Alice. Oh, you look wonderful!

Alice: Thanks, you too. How`s Henry?

Helen: He`s fine. But he isn`t at home yet. Henry is still in the hospital, because he has an urgent operation.

Alice: Oh, that`s a pity! How`s Benny?

Helen: He`s fine. But he isn`t at home either. He is in the park with old Mrs. Sandford. They went there to see a squirrel. Oh, Alice! You know, my son is very fond of birds and animals. We have white mice, a hedgehog and a parrot in the house. Now Benny is eager to have a rabbit. But I`m against it, we have no peace because of all Benny`s birds and animals!

Alice: Oh, I see. I went to my cousin Tom`s farm.

Helen: Oh, I guess you enjoyed yourself immensely!

Alice: Well, you are not right. The farmer`s life, though healthy, is by no means an easy one. There`s always plenty to do. He must look after his stables and his horses, he must milk the cows and clean the cowsheds. He also has to take great care of the young animals. There are cocks and hens, ducks and drakes, turkeys and geese, rabbits, pigs and swine, sheep and lambs, cows and calves on his farm. And they all must be fed and fattened for the market.

Helen: Oh, my! It`s very hard work! My parents also live in the country, but they have only cocks, hens and naturally a dog and a cat. All our family gathered there last year. I met my uncles, aunts, cousins, nieces and nephews. My parents were very glad to see us.

Alice: Say hello to them. Oh, I quite forgot about Betty! How`s she?

Helen: She`s fine. You know Betty has published her first book, I`ve already read it. Well, it`s very nice for the first time. Now she is writing her second book.

Alice: I think she`ll become a very good and well- known writer. By the way, how`s Mrs. Sandford getting on?

Helen: To tell the truth, she is not well.

Alice: What`s the matter? It`s not the flu, is it?

Helen: Oh, no, it`s a a bad cold! But now she`s better.

Alice:Well, it`s getting late. I`ve got to go home.

Helen:Oh, no, please, don`t go!

Alice: But I`ve really got to go home!

Helen: Come to my place tomorrow for dinner! Will you come?

Alice: Yes, with great pleasure!

Helen: OK. I`ll call you. Bye-bye!

Alice: Say hello to Henry, Mrs. Sandford and Betty.

Helen: I will. Take care. See you tomorrow!

Date: 2015-12-11; view: 1671