My favourite book is «The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes» by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I first discovered these stories when I was about twelve and I’ve loved them ever since. They’re brilliantly written, full of bizarre crimes and they’ve got a terrific Victorian atmosphere. When you read them you really feel like you’ve been carried back to nineteenth-century London. All

George Washington (1732-1799) won a lasting place in American History as the «Father of our Country». For nearly twenty years he guided his country much as a father cares for a growing child. Washington lived an exciting life in exciting times. As a boy, he explored the wilderness. When he grew older, he helped the British fight the French and

1). People live a very busy life nowadays, so they have little time to spare. 2). Still they try their best to make use of those rare hours of leisure. 3). Some people find it a pleasure to go to the theatre. 4). The theatre is one of the most ancient kinds of arts. 5). For centuries people have come

Walking along the street, we can always see some creatures. It can be a dog or a cat. They all are different, but there is one thing which unites them. These animals have not any home and any headmaster. The problem of such homeless animals is actual nowadays, and people try to find fairer and easier solution to this problem.

There are moments in every person’s life when he wants to travel. Everyone understands travelling in his own way. Some people consider trips to new towns and countries offered by different tourist firms to be the best way to travel. These package tours are for the laziest. The others prefer walking tours and tourism. There is nothing more beautiful for

Charles Robert Darwin was born on February 12, 1809 in Shrewsbury, England. He was the fifth child and second son of Robert Waring Darwin and Susannah Wedgwood. Darwin was the British naturalist who became famous for his theories of evolution and natural selection. Like several scientists before him, Darwin believed all the life on earth evolved (developed gradually) over millions

Getting a job When Paul left school he applied for (= wrote an official request for) a job in the accounts department of a local engineering company. They gave him a job as a trainee (= a very junior person in a company). He didn’t earn very much but they gave him a lot of training (= organised help and

No doubt, everyone dreams of having a true and faithful friend but not all of us are lucky enough to find one. Frankly speaking, I’m rather sociable, that’s why I have many friends. As for me I’m happy with my friends. Firstly, I don’t have «fair weather» friends. Secondly, all my friends are very pleasant people, and I’m never bored

Ukraine is a rich agricultural, industrial and mining region in south-eastern Europe. It is an independent democratic state. Its population is about 52 mln people. The capital of Ukraine is Kiev. Ukraine has its own armed forces, and maintains its own diplomatic relations with foreign countries. Ukraine covers about 603.700 sq. km being larger than any country in Western Europe.

Canada is a country with rapid growth of the population. It is mainly concentrated in large cities. The most important among them is the capital of the country, Ottawa. It is situated on the picturesque bank of the Ottawa River. One third of its population is descendants of English and French immigrants. Before the colonization the Ottawa region was an

At the age of 6 or 7 boys and girls go to school. I go to school too. The number of my school is 1226. It is one of the oldest schools in Lefortovo. Our school was built in 1944. At first there was a Woman gymnasia. Later it became social school for boys and girls. And the school changed

Moscow has long been a centre of Russian and world culture. The Bolshoi Theatre presents operas and ballets. The Bolshoi Ballet has become internationally known and admired. Dancers from all over the country are trained at the Bolshoi Theatres school. The Moscow State Symphony and other orchestras perform at the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall in Moscow. The city also features a

Babies smelling of camomile tea, cologne water, wet laundry, dog soap. Babies who appear old, disillusioned and tired of life at six months. Babies that cry «Papa!» to blushing youths of nineteen or twenty at church picnics. Fat babies whose earlobes turn out at an angle of forty-five degrees. Soft babies asleep in perambulators, the sun shining straight into their

The biggest country in the world offers a striking variety of landscapes and weather conditions. Here you can find arctic zones, covered with ice and snow all-year round, huge virgin pine forests, inaccessible rugged mountains, endless plains and sandy beaches with lush subtropical vegetation. This diversity creates opportunities for almost all known sports activities — from swimming and watersports at

I’m fond of reading. Usually I borrow books from the library, but I have a lot of them at home, too. I like to read books about famous people and detective stories. Literature means much in my life. It helps to form the character and to understand life better. There are some names in Russian and Foreign literature that are

I am keen on ballroom dances. Some people consider that ballroom dances aren’t a kind of sport, but I don’t share their opinion. Since my childhood I had noticed my love to dances. I enjoy observing the dancers doing their labour of love with great pleasure. The speech is going about people, who dance not only for money, not only

Computer games are gaining more and more popularity nowadays. Some people claim that teenagers get a lot of benefits playing them. But other people argue that young people should spend their free time going in for sport. Let`s look upon this problem objectively and try to understand it. To begin with, computer games develop memory, because when you play it

The centre of everything in Great Britain is the city of London. It’s situated at the centre of a vast national and international network of communication. London consists of four main districts, which differ from each other. These are the City, Westminster, the West End and the East End. London’s industries are extremely varied. Among them an extensive system of

I love music, I think people can not live without it. The first thing I do in the morning I switch on my tape — recorder. We can hear music everywhere: in the streets, in the shops, on TV, over the radio, in the cars, in the parks, everywhere. I think it’s really doesn’t matter what kind of music you

It is both pleasant and a bit difficult to speak about myself. It is pleasant because every person enjoys speaking about his or her interests, likes or dislikes. But at the same time it is difficult because to study a person, especially yourself, it is a great journey, not a little walk. Speaking about my character I’d like first of