Culturestudy Lesson1

 The United Kingdom of G.B. and Northern Irelands

The United Kingdom of G.B. and Northern Irelands is located on the British Isles. The British Isles consists of two large islands: G.B. and Ireland, and about five thousand small islands. Their total area is over 244,000 square kilometers. The UK consists of four countries: England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. GB consists of England, Scotland and Wales. The capital of the UK is London.

The British Isles are separated from the European continent by the North Sea and the English Channel. The western coast of GB is washed by the Atlantic Ocean and the Irish Sea. The surface of the British Isles varies very much. The north of Scotland is mountainous and has the name Highlands, while the south, which has beautiful valleys and plains, is called the Lowlands.

Great Britain has a lot of rivers and lakes. The most important river is the Thames, which flows into the North Sea. The longest river is the Severn. The Lake District in the west is the most beautiful region on the British Isles. Famous British poets wrote their poems about the Lake District because of its beauty. The most famous lake is the Loch Ness. There is a legend that Nessie, the Loch Ness monster, lives in it.

The climate of the country is humid and oceanic because of the small size of the country and the surrounding water. The English weather changes very often. It is not very cold in winters and not very hot in summers.

The UK population is estimated to be 68mln.The biggest cities in the UK are London, Cardiff, Edinburgh, and Glasgow. The United Kingdom has a lot of industrial cities like Manchester and Birmingham and educational cities like Cambridge and Oxford. The two world famous universities, Cambridge University and Oxford University, are located there.

Every region of Great Britain has its own administrative centre and the symbol.
England is the biggest region in the country. The symbol of England is the Red Rose. London is the capital of England and Great Britain. London is one of the biggest and most expensive cities in the world situated on the river Thames.
The symbol of Scotland is the thistle. Edinburgh is the administrative centre of the region. Scotland is a mountainous area. Ben Nevis, the highest peak of Great Britain, is located there. The administrative centre of Wales is Cardiff and the symbol of the region is the daffodil. Belfast is the capital of Northern Ireland and the shamrock is its symbol.
The flag of Great Britain is called the Union Jack. It has three crosses on the dark blue background. The currency of the country is the pound, which consists of a hundred pence.
Great Britain is a constitutional monarchy with the Queen as the Head of the state.
The legislative body of the country is British Parliament consisting of two houses: The House of Lords and the House of Commons. The head of the government is Prime Minister. The two main political parties of English Parliament are the Labour Party and the Conservative party.

Foreigners usually call the British people «English», but the Scots, the Irish and the Welsh do not consider themselves English. The English are Anglo-Saxon in origin, but the Welsh, the Scots and the Irish are not. They are Celts; descendants of the ancient people who crossed over from Europe to the British Isles centuries before the Roman invasion. It was these people, whom the Germanic Angles and Saxons conquered in the 5th and 6th centuries A.D.

Watch  the video about Scotland

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WPixTH8-FSaWU9pWZtTY6sqdyawRhkgz/view?usp=sharing

Answer the questions

1.What places (cities, castles, isles etc) would you like to visit in Scotland?

2. What activities/sports would you like to try while in Scotland?

Watch  the video about Snowdonia.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1SHzqy7kro3HMglVKAtsX6LrxPh8U4o-S/view?usp=sharing

Answer the questions

1. What is Snowdonia and where is it?

2. What is a zip wire? In what way is  the Zip World in Snowdonia special?