The Russian Federation

Contents

The Russian Federation- location, resources and climate……………………………………………………………2

Economy of Russia………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………4

Achievements of Russia………………………………………………………………………………………………………………7

The Russian national character………………………………………………………………………………………………….10

Russian industry………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...13

Russian agriculture……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..18

Transport of Russia……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..22

Russian food……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….23

Folk customs and rites………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...26

Russia is the land of traditions……………………………………………………………………………………………………..27

Official holidays of Russia…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….28

Sport in Russia……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..30

Russia*s 7 wonders……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..34

Regions of Russia………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….37

The Black Sea and the Caucasus.........………………………………………………………………………………………….38

The Volga river……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..43

The Seliger Lake…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….44

Nizhny Novgorod………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….45

Tatarstan……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..46

Samara region……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..47

Volgograd region………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...48

Astrakhan region……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….…50

The Golden ring…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...51

The North of Russia……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..55

The Urals………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………61

Siberia…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..64

The Far East………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….68

Literature……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..73

The Russian Federation

· The official name for Russia is the Russian Federation.

· Russia shares borders with many countries, including China, Ukraine, North Korea and Norway.

· In terms of land area, Russia is the largest country in the world.

· Russia is located across 9 time zones.

· At the beginning of 2013, Russia was estimated to have a population of around 143 million.

· Russian is the official language of Russia but there are many other languages used in various parts of the country.

· The capital and largest city in Russia is Moscow. Other major cities in Russia include Saint Petersburg, Yekaterinburg and Novosibirsk.

· Russians drive on the right-hand side of the road.

· The currency used in Russia is the ruble.

· Russia has a wide range of natural resources and is one of the world’s largest producers of oil.

· The world’s first satellite, named Sputnik, was launched by the Soviet Union in 1957.

· The Soviet Union (USSR) was a socialist state that occupied much of northern Asia and eastern Europe from 1922 until it was dissolved in 1991. Former Soviet states include Lithuania, Georgia, Latvia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and others.

· The official residence of the Russian president is the Kremlin in Moscow. The name Kremlin means fortress.

· Russia is one of 5 permanent members of the UN Security Council, along with the US, UK, China and France.

· Russia has over 40 national parks and 100 wildlife reserves.

· Lake Baikal is the largest freshwater lake in the world. It reaches 1642 metres in depth and contains around 20% of the world’s unfrozen fresh water.

· Mount Elbrus is the highest mountain in Russia (and Europe), it reaches a height of 5642 metres.

· Russia’s Volga River is the longest in Europe, with a length of around 3690 kilometres.

· Russia has the world’s largest area of forests.

· Russia produces a large amount of renewable energy thanks to its well- developed hydropower stations.

· Moscow hosted the 1980 Summer Olympic Games.

· Basketball, ice hockey and football (soccer) are popular sports in Russia.

The Russian Federation is the largest сountry in the world. It occupies about one-seventh of the earth's surface. It covers the eastern part of Europe and the northern part of Asia. Its total area is about 17 million square kilometres.

The country is bordered by 12 seas of 3 oceans: the Pacific, the Arctic and the Atlantic. In the south, Russia borders on China, Mongolia, Korea, Kazakhstan, Georgia and Azerbaijan. In the west it borders on Norway, Finland, the Baltic States, Belorussia, and the Ukraine. It also has sea-borders with the USA.

There is hardly a country in the world where such a variety of scenery and vegetation can be found. We have steppes in the south, plains and forests in the midland, tundra and taiga in the north, highlands and deserts in the east.

There are two great plains in Russia: the Great Russian Plain and the West Siberian Lowland. There are several mountain chains on the country's territory: the Urals, the Caucasus, the Altai and others. The largest mountain chain, the Urals, separates Europe from Asia. There are over two million rivers in Russia. Europe's biggest river, the Volga, flows into the Caspian Sea. The main Siberian rivers, the Ob, the Yenisei and the Lena, flow from south to north. The Amur in the Far East flows into the Pacific Ocean. Russia is rich in beautiful lakes. The world's deepest lake is Russia's Lake Baikal. It is much smaller than the Baltic Sea, but there is much more water in it than in the Baltic Sea. The water in the lake is so clear that if you look down you can count the stones on the bottom.

There is hardly a country where such a variety of scenery and vegetation can be found. We have steppes in the south, plains and forests in the midland, tundra and taiga in the north, highlands and deserts in the east. There are over 2 million rivers in Russia. The country is rich in beautiful lakes. The world's deepest lake, Baikal, is situated in Russia. They say, that the water in the lake is so clear, that if you look down you can even count stones on the bottom. Russia has one sixth of world's forests. They are concentrated in the European north of the country, in Siberia and in the Far East.

Nature has richly bestowed upon Russia all the mineral resources. Another point I want to deal with is the Russian language. Russian is the first language of more than 220 million of people throughout the world, and it is the official language of Russian Federation.

On the vast territory of the country there are various types of climate, from arctic in the north to subtropical in the south. In the middle of the country the climate is temperate and continental.

Russia is very rich in oil, iron ore, natural gas, copper, nickel and other mineral resources.

Russia is a parliamentary republic. The Head of State is the President. The legislative powers are exercised by the Duma.

The capital of Russia is Moscow. It is the country's largest political, scientific, cultural and industrial centre and is one of the oldest Russian cities.

The Russians have many peculiarities. They are believed to be industrious, tough, suspicious, brave and progressive. They are very hospitable, fond of being with other people and enjoying social life. They have a great sense of patriotism. They are generous, emotional, kind-hearted and loyal to their families. From my point of view Russians are patriarchal, dogmatic in following conventional values. They are mostly faithful and tradition-loving.

It may be interesting to say some words about Russian food. The wide range of Russian food is really worth exploring. There are many tasty dishes to try, such as Beef Stroganoff, stuffed cabbage leaves, soups, such as borshch, lovely salads, blini, pelmeni, kissel and many others. When Russians invite guests for a meal the table is usually groaning with food.

The country's history is long and eventful. There are more than 150 000 historical and architectural landmarks and monuments. There are many places of interest in Russia. And foreigners come to explore its historic buildings, to see its museums and galleries, its streets and parks. That's why Russia encourages international tourism.

At present, the political and economic situation in the country is rather complicated. There are a lot of problems in the national economy of the Russian Federation. Industrial production is decreasing. Prices are constantly rising, and as a result, the rate of inflation is very high. People are losing their jobs because many factories and plants are going bankrupt.

But in spite of the problems Russia is facing at present, there are a lot of opportunities for this country to become one of the leading countries in the world. I'm sure that we, the younger generation, can do very much to make Russia as strong and powerful as it used to be.

Questions:

1. Where is Russia situated?
2. What countries does it border on?
3. What do you know about the history?
4. What is the climate of the country?
5. Are there any natural resources Russia?
6. How many people inhabit the country?
7. What can you tell about the government system of the country?

8. What is special about the culture of Russia?