Activity 8.

Step 1. Read the following text.

ODESA

There is hardly a person in Ukraine, or in the whole former Soviet Union who has never heard about Odesa with its golden sandy beaches, noisy Derebasivska, high Potyomkinska Lestnitsa (stairs), its beautiful Opera and Ballet theatre, and its colourful and plentiful Privoz market.

The history of Odesa is the history of a cosmopolitan city with a mixture of people of different nations who lived there or came there on their ships. You can find there the influence of Greek, Italian, Turkish, French, Russian, Ukrainian, Moldovan, Jewish and many other cultures.The history of Odesa is connected not only with holiday-making and trade. There were years when the citizens of Odesa suffered greatly: during the heroic defence of the city in the Crimean war of 1853-1856, in the years of the Civil War, and especially during the Great Patriotic War.

Being the biggest seaport in Ukraine, Odesa is called «a Southern window to Europe», and it is a leading centre of sea trade with all the countries of the world. An endless stream of cruise liners, freight and cargo ships, tankers and boats under the flags of different countries of the world fill Odesa's harbour every day.

People who come to Odesa to have a rest know it as a balneological spa with hundreds of holiday centres. Those who need eye treatment turn to the famous Filatov Institute of Eye Diseases.

People who love literature know Odesa as the place where the great Russian poet Pushkin spent his exile and wrote beautiful poems, and where Mikhail Bulgakov, Yuri Olesha, Isaac Babel, Valentin Kataev, Constantine Paustovsky, Alexander Green, Ilya Ilf and Evgeniy Petrov, lived and worked, and where many other writers, poets and artists draw their inspiration.

Nowadays Odesa has become «the capital of humour». It has always been famous for the peculiar humour of its citizens, and now it is the place of annual Humour Festivals that take place on April 1. To cut the long story short, Odesa is a place to which you always want to return.

Step 2. Make up a dialogue on the basis of this text. Start with:

- Have you ever been to Odesa?

- No, it’s my first time here.

- Have you seen much of the city?

- So far, very little. Could you tell me what the most interesting places to visit are?

- Willingly…