Докажите, что. The author combined duty with pleasure during the reading week

The author combined duty with pleasure during the reading week.

1. What film did the author see?
2. What a well known and important document did she see in the British Library?
3. What tourist attractions did she visit?
4. What places outside Britain did she manage to see?

Dear friends,

Hello, how are you? This is T's fourth mammoth (большое) e-mail! It's already been a month since I sent the last one. I cannot believe it!! Time is passing more and more quickly. Hmm... that makes me a bit upset. I love living in London. It might be especially because I can make my own decisions or do things by myself. I have always lived with my parents and they have always done everything for me. When I came here, everything was new to me (even small things such as going shopping for groceries and using the laundrette) and I couldn't feel at ease. Now that I've got used to all those things, I've started having confidence in myself! Studying abroad is wonderful! It's not only for you to improve your language skills or gain knowledge of your field of study, but also to develop yourself! Though I say it, I think I've become stronger. Well, let me tell you what I did during the last month. There might be a lot more to tell you than ever!

At school... I did my second class as a volunteer assistant teacher for Japanese. The topic was a comparison between American and Japanese universities. The text they were reading was talking about Japanese students who study really hard to enter university but play around without studying once they get there. Mmm... well, it is really the case with some people...but not all! Anyway, the students' Japanese was very nice. I must study English harder, too!

I joined a Korean seminar. It was about the Korean writing system. The lecture was actually done in Korean, so how could I understand it? I just managed to catch some words. But I really enjoyed joining it, as I love listening to the sounds of foreign languages. For me it was like a one-and-a-half hour Korean language concert! The Korean class is my favourite! We all got together and had a party in a Korean restaurant before the holidays started. The teachers also joined us! We had a really good time! The food was very nice, too. There are some people who speak a bit of Japanese in the class, so we chatted in English, Korean, and Japanese, which was fun! There are various races at SOAS. Besides, you cannot tell who speaks which language! For example, you find a European student who speaks Chinese very fluently, or an Asian student speaking Spanish!

I saw the film Harry Potter. I liked it. I read the book in English when I was in Japan. I really liked the book, because although it was written in a foreign language, I could still imagine each scene vividly. So when I saw the film, although it was my first time to see it, I often found myself thinking 'mm?? I've seen this scene before'! It was very interesting! Harry Potter's Hogwart's Express leaves King's Cross station, which the station nearest to me! I saw platform 9 3/4! There is a sign indicating where platform 9 3/4 is, and there are also some notices on the ground, such as 'Always keep your owls in a cage' or something like that.

My dear family friends kindly invited me to a carol service at Eton College! I really enjoyed it. I always like the feeling that I am learning about English culture!!! There was a choir. I love the choir's voice. My friend was a member and he was excellent!! There were some verses during which we joined in the singing. I've already learnt the melody. Now I've got to memorise the words!!

The Christmas illuminations are very beautiful in London now. I saw those in Regent Street, Oxford Street, Tottenham Court Road, Knightsbridge and Pentonville Road (in front of my hall). I like the Knightsbridge one and the Pentonville one best. They are more discreet and elegant. The others are too much for me. I really want to see the big tree in Trafalgar Square. I only saw it during the daytime.

My friend took me to Oriental City, where they deal in Asian things. We tried Japanese food, which I really liked! The shop was very interesting. There was a Japanese bookshop, too. I really felt as if I were in Japan! I could shop in Japanese!

I went outside of England to Amsterdam, Holland!! This city was...so-so. The scenery was nice. The canals run all over the city, which was lovely! Everyone spoke very good English, which was amazing! Van Gogh Museum, Rijiks Museum, Anne Frank's House, and cruising on the canal were very enjoyable. Anne Frank's house was very touching. It was actually the place where she hid, terrified. The Van Gogh Museum was interesting, too. But unfortunately I couldn't see 'Sunflowers' because it is being exhibited in another country. Well, you might want to say, 'Why is the city so-so, when you had such a good time? ' I can explain why. I really liked those things written above, but was really upset with the red-light district and drugs. If it had been a private trip, I wouldn't have gone to such places. It was actually a trip organised by ISH (International Student House). And the guide was terrible! He didn't know about the place at all, and we had to walk in the red-light area of prostitutes for about 2 hours! I felt like crying!!! The smell of drugs in the air made me more upset! I almost walked into a drug shop. I didn't know they use the real meaning of the word 'coffee shop' on the sign!

One of my best friends from university, who is now studying in America, came to see me! On the first day we went to the Horse Guards' Parade, the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, Westminster Abbey and the Thames, before going to see the Changing of the Guards at Buckingham Palace. It wasn't the tourist season but there were still many people. The guards weren't wearing the red clothes...they were wearing a grey coat! Then we went to Trafalgar Square and to the National Gallery. Then, do you know what I saw there? I found 'Sunflowers' by Van Gogh, which I couldn't see in Amsterdam!!! But it seems there are many copies of it. I wonder which one is the real one. We tried a pub lunch in Leicester Square. We ordered roast chicken and fish & chips and shared them. They were nice! Then I took my friend to Piccadilly Circus and then to Covent Garden. We went shopping in Oxford Street.

On the second day we went for a one day trip to Oxford. It was my second visit to the town but was the first time for me to look at things properly. We went up to the top of the Carfax Tower, which had a very nice view of the town and its church spires. The university buildings look very different from Japanese ones. I prefer the style here with bricks! I thought Oxford was colder than London! After we got back, my flatmate took us to a bar. I don't drink, so didn't really fancy the idea of going there. But the place was interesting. It is called 'Babooshka' and the atmosphere was like an old castle. There were thick curtains and big sofas but they were worn out.

On the third day I took my friend to SOAS and then made her experience an English queue at a post office! Then we went to the Hard Rock Cafe, as she likes collecting the T-shirts. I went into the shop for the first time. Then we went to the Victoria & Albert Museum, which wasn't so interesting for us. But we enjoyed seeing the Italian sculptures from the Renaissance period. The building itself was attractive, too. We had cream tea in Harrods. It was her first time to have it. She was thinking that she should put jams and clotted cream in the middle of the scone, like a sandwich! It was my third time, so I could teach her, which was good! I love afternoon tea! We went to see King's College Choir in the Royal Albert Hall. I like this hall very much. In the first half, there weren't many carols (рождественские церковные гимны) which I knew. But in the latter half there were many. I couldn't join it because I didn't remember the words and I hadn't bought the programme, but many people were singing carols together! I will learn the words by heart!

On the fourth day I took my friend to the Tower of London and to Tower Bridge. Then we went to St Paul's Cathedral. It was my first time too. The cathedral was magnificent. I really liked the Whispering Gallery. You can hear voices coming from places where there isn't anybody! You can hear everyone's whispers. There was an Englishman who was speaking continuously and his voice was very low and echoing there, which was really scary! We went up the spiral stairs and enjoyed a really nice view of London from there. It would be lovely to go there on a summer night! Her host family happened to visit London, too. So, we went to an Ethiopian restaurant. It was a new experience for me. Well...I didn't really like the taste. It was OK though. The bread was too sour. I was surrounded by American English for the first time in months! I found myself having difficulty listening to their accent! Now it seems British English is easier for me to understand. They said my English was British. It was an interesting comment, as everyone said my English was American when I was in Japan! My friend also said my accent had changed completely. I cannot tell that myself! I tried to remember the American accent I used to have, but I failed. Well...but I'm sure my accent will change again if I listen to American English more. Anyway, whether it is true or not, I was happy to hear their comment, as I like the sound of British English very much!

On the last day, we went to the British Library and saw the Magna Carta etc etc. It was really interesting. My friend left at 11.00am. I was really nervous taking the tube or bus alone 4 months ago! Now I can show my friend around the city! She said I became a city girl! She seemed to be very tired being surrounded by many people in London - I didn't care much, although I used to. It has been very cold and the weather hasn't been so good. There's something I have been wondering about.... black coats and black umbrellas. Why do English people wear black things so much? Everyone is in black... and the sky is grey. It is like a black and white film! My mum sent me a red coat which I was wearing in Japan, but I don't feel like wearing it! I also bought a black coat here!!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! T

Agree or disagree with the statement:

“Studying abroad is wonderful! It's not only for you to improve your language skills or gain knowledge of your field of study, but also to develop yourself! ”

1. Where did the author go on the 31st of December?
2. Whom did she meet on the 22d of December?
3. Where did the author’s friend come from?
4. What Museums did the girls visit?

Dear friends,

Hello, everyone! How are you? It has been 5 months since I arrived in England, which means I am half way through... I feel a bit sad actually. The other day a friend of mine told me that for a cup of tea which has been half drunk, pessimistic people will describe it as half empty but optimistic people will describe it as half full. I will try to look at the rest of my stay as half full and cherish (ценить) each day. I will talk about Christmas, New Year, University etc. this time!

22nd December: The weather was very nice. I finished wrapping presents (I didn't know people wrap presents themselves here, very different from Japan, where shop assistants do everything for us!) and packing in the morning, and I went to Wimbledon to stay with my English family friends. It was in the late afternoon and the sky was a lovely orange and beautiful. I was looking outside the train window absent-mindedly, when I heard someone say to me, 'hanguk puniseyo? ' It was an old Korean lady. It was so sudden that I didn't understand what she said and I was just shaking my head. We chatted in English for a while, but then I finally understood that she said, 'Are you Korean? ' It is still difficult for me to understand spoken Korean immediately! My friend was at the station to meet me. Two of his friends from university were also there and we went to some pubs at night. When I entered the room which the family let me use, I found some cards and a present. They were from the friends the family had introduced to me previously. It was such a pleasant surprise! Thank you very much.

23rd December: I went to a drinks party around lunch time. There were so many people in the house and it was hard to move around. People were talking everywhere. I have seen that kind of scene in films or TV dramas, but it was my first time to experience it. It was very interesting. Because I said I would like to experience the whole English Christmas, the family kindly left the decorations for me to put up. It was interesting and enjoyable to decorate the house and the tree and also to make a nativity scene (сцена рождения Христа). I went to the church in the evening for the Festival of Lessons and Carols. After the service, people were having mulled wine (подогрето е вино с пряностями) and mince pies. I wonder if people in other Christian countries also have these.

24th December: Christmas Eve. In the evening, I went to church again! Crib Service was held there. This was for children. Girls were wearing clothes like angels and boys were like shepherds. We sang lots of carols again. There was a service by candlelight, too. We went back home and had cold food for dinner. At around 11pm, we walked to the church again for the Midnight Service. We sang carols again. We shook hands with one another and said, 'Peace be with you', even if we did not know each other. It gave me a warm feeling. By the time the service was over, it was past midnight. That means Christmas Day! We said to one another, 'Happy Christmas! '

25th December: Christmas Day. The morning greeting was 'Happy Christmas! ' My friend's father said, 'Let's see if Father Christmas came', and took me to the fireplace. There were lots of huge stockings there, and each had a name tag. Mine was very big! After every member of the family got up, we all took our stockings up to the parents' bedroom and opened the stockings there. It was very exciting to see what was in my own stocking and also in the others! Then, we had something like English breakfast for brunch (breakfast+ lunch) and then we all gathered in the drawing room to exchange family presents. It was exciting, too!! I put my presents for the family under the tree in the morning. After we had all sat down, the youngest boy delivered each present for us. It was lots of fun to open my presents, to see what the others received, and to see the reactions towards the presents I gave them! Then we just relaxed for a while. The boys were watching a film, but I went into the kitchen, because I wanted to see Christmas cooking. A huge goose was there. It had legs and a body but no face and looked a bit grotesque to me! Around 4.30 was tea-time. It was fun cracking walnuts with nut-crackers! I liked mince pies, too. The dining table was already set. We had both goose and turkey for dinner, which I found really good! I will definitely tell my friends back in Japan that English people are having delicious food! Before having dessert, we pulled crackers. There was a small present and a piece of paper with a joke on and a paper crown inside. I liked it when everyone wore the crowns! We exchanged the jokes we got from the crackers, but it was hard for me to understand them. I wish I could learn to understand jokes in English. The dessert was Christmas pudding (Рождественский пудинг с изюмом, цукатами и пряностями), which came into the dining room in flames! The pudding looked like a black lump of earth (комок земли) when it was served on the plate, but I liked it!

Many more things happened there until 29th, when I left, but I will leave Christmas here and move on to New Year! From 30th December to 2nd January, I visited another English family in Shrewsbury. My friend kindly gave me such a clear set of instructions for the journey, so I made the trip successfully on my own. As I had to change trains, I was a bit nervous, but the journey went very well. It is funny that people say, 'You were lucky! ' when I tell them my trains ran on time, but I am getting used to it! When I came to England for the first time, I found some English people were not punctual and always used the trains as an excuse for their delay, and I was wondering why... now I know what they mean. In Japan, it is a big problem if trains do not run on time, and when they do not, an apologetic announcement is made again and again on the platform. But here trains are supposed not to run on time! Shrewsbury is further north than London. I could see some snow on the ground while looking through the window. The town is small, unlike London. It was quiet and cosy. It seems the usage of some English words is different in London and in the countryside. I learnt the different usage of the words like dinner, supper, and high tea. Dinner is a main dish of the day and is often used to describe an evening meal in London, I think. And it is a bigger meal than supper... But in Shrewsbury, dinner is usually lunch, and supper is things like sweets and tea or coffee which they have before going to bed! For them, evening meals are high teas!

On 31st, they planned a trip to Wales for me. We went to Montgomery and Welshpool and saw castles and towns. As I heard before, the road signs were really written in both Welsh and English. But I couldn't hear anyone speaking Welsh. Maybe I should go further inland. In England, they don't celebrate New Year as much as in Japan. It seems they celebrate a lot in Scotland. We had some drink and sweets, and watched Big Ben in London chime 12 o'clock on TV. Then we said, 'Happy New Year' to each other.

On 1st and 2nd, they gave me a tour of the town. There were many buildings which had white walls with black lines of timber, which reminded me of Stratford-upon-Avon. The place looked historic and the buildings were so old as to be leaning to one side.

My three week winter holiday was over and the 2nd term started. I am studying Japanese linguistics, psycholinguistics, and Korean this term. Just after the holiday, I had to submit an essay on Japanese linguistics. As my two outlines which I had to hand in last year were not so good, and I was not studying during the holiday, I was a bit nervous. But a few days before the deadline, a good idea came to mind, so I could finish my essay within 3 days! In fact I received the result today, which was really good! My tutor gave me lots of compliments!! The English university gives us lots of essay assignments. I completed two essays last week, but now I already have to start working on another one! There are not so many classes, but the time to spend studying is much more than in Japan, I think. It is not really my case, though. I am actually thinking of the 10 months like a long holiday!! I study a lot and play a lot! There are so many foreign students in this university. It is also hard to find pure British people. Many of them are offspring of immigrants, so it is not easy to tell people's nationalities just by looking. I actually felt as if I experienced England a lot for the first time during the holiday by spending time with my English family friends!! I had a sushi party with my Korean classmates and some of their friends. We actually made sushi ourselves. My family do not normally make 'nigirizushi' or 'maki zushi' (rolled one), so it was my first time to make those! I found it quite fun!

My friend who is studying in Cambridge visited me in London. I really enjoyed seeing her for the first time in 4 months. She also said my English accent has changed. According to her, 4 months ago when we met in Cambridge, I was still speaking with an American accent, but now it has disappeared. I always find it interesting when people give me this comment, because I cannot see the change at all myself. Together we went to Madame Tussaud's, the British Museum, Tate Britain and so on.

These are the main things which happened to me in the last month! I will make the rest of my stay more fruitful!! T

Дайте аргументированный ответ на вопросы.

What new experiences and impressions did the author get? What are they connected with?

1. What stage productions did the author see?

2. How many times did she see the London Eye?

3 What restaurant did she go for the first time?

4. What are “robins”?

Dear Friends,

Hello, how are you? This is a belated 6th month's e-mail. I had to submit two essays last week, so I could not have written this summary until now. Anyway, I have been enjoying my life in London as usua l!!) I will talk about 22nd January to 21st February here.

Actually, nothing so special happened during the past month... I was studying most of the time. As I had two essays to do, I have been terribly busy. After I finished the essays, I was thinking of buying ISH (International Student House) travel tickets to Wales and Stratford... However, when I finally handed them in and went to ISH, I was told the tickets were both sold out! I was really shocked!: (I might not be able to travel much this month, either. I have to submit two essay outlines and one essay before the Easter holiday. There is one more just after the holiday, too. I would like to study during the term as hard as I can, and enjoy the holiday a lot, because it is going to be the last holiday I will have during this time of my stay! I am now thinking of taking an intensive French course for the latter half of the holiday and I want to make some trips during the first half. I have already applied for a trip to Wales. I would also like to go to Ireland or maybe to the Continent, if I can.

I didn't go outside of London, but saw some stage productions: Onegin (a ballet), The Last Empress (a musical), and The Mikado (an opera). To buy a ticket for Onegin, I queued up with some friends from early in the morning at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden. The door opened at 10 o'clock, but we went there at 8!! It was my first experience of queuing up like that to buy a ticket. There seem to be some people who queue there regularly. They were friendly and we had a short conversation. We bought tickets for 11 pounds, so our seats were quite near the back. The dancers were very small, but I could have a full view. The stage was like a little box and I felt as if I were watching a puppet play. My Korean class teacher recommended The Last Empress. It was about Queen Min in Korea, who was assassinated by Japanese. It was based on history, but I am ashamed to say that I didn't know about the story at all. We do not learn about her in the history class at school. It was anti-Japanese but was a good opportunity to learn a bit of Korean history. I liked the stage costumes and singing voices, and I really enjoyed it. Most of the audience was Korean people and there were a lot of empty seats... The Mikado was the first opera I have seen. To be honest, I had no idea what they were saying! Judging from the fact that people were laughing, it seemed they were saying something funny...:. I hope I can improve my English enough to laugh at English jokes some day!! I studied the plot in advance, so I could understand the plot well and above all I really enjoyed the music!

Talking of difficulty in listening English, it seems there are various English accents here and it is not always easy to understand what they say! For example, the maintenance man in my hall of residence... he is very friendly but it is hard to hear what he says! The other day, he fixed the drainpipe of our kitchen and kept talking to me while doing so. When he finally finished it, he seemed to say, 'Is that better? ' but to my ear, it sounded like 'Is that bad? ' He often doesn't pronounce the 't' sound, and 'a' sounds like 'ai' not 'ei'. My male English flatmate's English seems to be a typical London accent, according to another of my flatmates. His English is hard to understand for me, too. Also, the Cypriot English accent of my other flatmate is also difficult! I thought 'Aaaah it is too difficult!!! ' last year, but I have finally got used to them and started to understand that they are teasing me!:

I visited some parks: Hampstead Heath and Regent's Park. Hampstead is a pretty place. Compared to the centre of London, it is much more quiet and peaceful (!). There is a French crepe shop, which often seems to appear in magazines, and there is always a queue there. I love their crepes. They opened another shop near Knightsbridge recently, so I would like to go there sometime. Hampstead Heath is a park in Hampstead and the top of Parliament Hill commands a fine view of London. There are people who are flying kites. It is a nice place to relax. Regent's Park is located in front of International Student House. The park is the closest one to my hall, but it takes some time to walk there, and I had never been there before! As I did not have much time, I only saw a part of the park called the English Garden. There were lots of newly planted flowers and it was nice to see the fresh buds. There were many squirrels, too. When I squatted down (присесть на корточках), they came up close to me. Unfortunately, I did not have anything to feed them. I saw a robin for the first time. Robins are small birds with a red chest, which are often shown on Christmas cards. It was singing beautifully.

A friend of mine introduced his Korean friend to me, and we spent one day together in London. We went to the London Eye, the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, St James's Park, Buckingham Palace, Green Park, the Royal Academy of Arts, Fortnum & Mason's (for afternoon tea), Somerset House, King's College, Lincoln's Inn Fields, Hatton Gardens, the Monument, St Katharine's Docks, Tower Bridge, and” Rules” (an English restaurant). What a plan! We visited all of them within just one day. I have seen the London Eye several times, but I haven't actually got on it yet. I must try it before leaving here. I love walking along the water in Saint James's Park. I love afternoon tea! It is fun to walk in the fountain of Somerset House. Lincoln's Inn Fields is a quiet, nice place, unlike most other bustling parts of London. Hatton Gardens is a street full of jewellery shops. I love Saint Katherine Docks at sunset, which is beautiful! Of course, Tower Bridge is my favourite! I went to an English Restaurant for the first time. It was actually surprising that English restaurants exist!! I often see Italian restaurants, French restaurants, and Chinese restaurants, but I have never seen an English restaurant!! “Rules” is the oldest restaurant in London, and is located in Covent Garden. We ordered a steak and kidney pie and a roast beef with Yorkshire pudding, and shared these. They were delicious. Who said English food is terrible? I like English dishes! The restaurant had a cosy atmosphere. There were many portraits on the wall and stuffed animals. For dessert, we ordered an apple & rhubarb (ревень) crumble (пудинг) and a trifle (бисквит, пропитанный вином и залитый сбитыми сливками). I really liked the restaurant.

I thought it was getting warmer here, but it has started to get cold again. The weather is not so good and we have had lots of rain. When it rained, the wind was also strong and my umbrella was broken! I am still using it, though...because even if I buy another one, it will be broken soon. I am just looking for a reasonably priced umbrella. I would like to read in a park when it becomes warm...

Regards, T