Let’s speak about Great Britain.

Let’s talk about Great Britain. What can you tell me about Great Britain?

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is situated on the British Isles. The country consists of four parts: England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The capital of the UK is London. The population of the country is over 64 million people. Britain is a small, beautiful and densely populated country, separated from the continent by the English Chan­nel and the Straight of Dover.

The UK is inhabited by the English, the Scots, the Welsh and the Irish who constitute the British nation. English is the official language, but it is not the only language spoken in the UK, Gaelic and Welsh are also used in some parts of the country.

The UK is a parliamentary monarchy and the Queen is the head of the state. But in practice it is ruled by the elected government with the Prime Minister at the head.

The national anthem is "God Save the Queen." The national currency is pound. The flag of the UK is known as the Union Jack. It has its history. It all began in 1603 when Scotland was joined to England and Wales. The flag is made up of 3 crosses.

Every part of the country has its own national emblem. The red rose is the national emblem of England, the thistle is the national emblem of Scot­land, the daffodils and the leek are the emblems of Wales and the shamrock (a kind of clover) is the emblem of Ireland.

Would you like to visit Britain? Why (not)?

Though I am not a keen traveler I would like to visit Britain one day. English is spoken everywhere, but as you know it is different in various parts of the world. To taste British English is my main reason for going there. Books can tell us what English was 10—15 years ago, but I want to know what to­day’s English is. The place where I want to head for is London to see all the sights I have read about, to look at Buckingham Palace, at Big Ben, to stay at Nelson’s monument at Trafalgar Square and to go on a double-decker bus.

I’d like to have a word with real people in real life situations.

What would you like to ask a British teenager about Britain?

What do Britons usually have for breakfast?

What is the place you would recommend a foreigner to visit?

What is your favourite place in London?

What kind of people are there?

What dishes would you recommend me to eat in Britain?

I wonder people of what nationalities live in Britain?

What sights in England would you advise me to visit?

There are a lot of interesting places in England. In London I would ad­vise you to see Big Ben, the most famous clock in the world. Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar square and the Tower are also exceptionally interesting. There are also a lot of museums in London where you can see a number of wonderful things. Madam Tussaud’s Museum is an exhibition of hundreds of life-size wax models of famous people of yesterday and today. I would also advise you to visit the Sherlock Holmes Museum devoted to the world-fa­mous private detective. Outside London you should certainly see Stonehenge, an ancient religious site. In Liverpool you can visit the Beatles museum where you will learn a lot of new facts about the greatest band in the world.

Nowadays more and more people are getting interested in customs and traditions of different countries. What do you think about it?

"So many countries so many customs" an English proverb says.

By comparing customs and cultures of people from other countries, we can leam how others view the world and why they think the way they do. By understanding others, we can not only form deeper relationship with oth­ers but can also leam more about ourselves and our own culture.