Moscow – the capital of our country

MOSCOW SIGHTS

Moscow is the capital of the Russian Federation. It was founded in 1147 by Prince Yury Dolgorukiy. Now Moscow has become the largest political, economic, administrative and cultural centre. It attracts tourists from all over the world.

Moscow is known for its beautiful old cathedrals, churches and monasteries. Some of them date from the 15^th to the 17^th centuries. Moscow is also famous all over the world for its museums and art galleries. Among them the most well-known is the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts, which contains a vast collection of antiquities and a well-known collection of modern foreign painters including impressionists and the Tretyakov Picture Gallery with its masterpieces of Russian pictorial art.

In Moscow there are a lot of exhibition halls, palaces of culture, libraries and theatres. Among the world famous are the Bolshoi Theatre, the Taganka Theatre and many others. Many tourists enjoy the magnificent building of the University, which is situated on the Vorobyovs’ Hills.

The Moscow Metro is not only a comfortable, rapid and economic means of travelling but also one of the tourists’ attractions. It is rightly considered to be the most beautiful in the world. The city also contains the Russian State Library with one of the largest and richest archives in the world.

Moscow is the seat of the Government of the Russian Federation. The oldest part of Moscow is the Kremlin. It stands at the heart of the city on the famous Red Square and attracts a lot of tourists who can look at the magnificent St. Basil’s Cathedral, the Lenin Mausoleum and the monument to K. Minin and D. Pozharsky.

 

Vocabulary exercises:

I. Pronounce correctly:

Unique, to impress, to admire, ancient, collection, sights, majestic, architecture, government, manuscripts, monasteries, cathedral, traffic, pictorial, outstanding, foundation, exhibition, garments, weapon, tsars, queen, princess, harmony, worldwide, pride, contemporary, decoration, design, honour, fascinating, favourable, research.

II. Translate into Russian:

To be situated, thousands of tourists, the highest towers, to be crowned with ruby stars, people all over the country, to listen to the Kremlin Chimes, the Bell Tower of Ivan the Great, to be built in the 15^th century, to admire the majestic beauty, the red-brick walls, to be a matter of great pride and love, to appear as a trade centre, to develop rapidly, due to, a favourable geographical position.

III. Make up 5 English sentences with new words and expressions.

IV. Translate into Russian:

1. Ivan the Great Bell Tower (81 metres high) was the tallest building in Moscow for a long time. Today TV tower in Ostankino (536 metrs high) is the tallest one.

2. Moscow’s first skyscraper was the 240-metre Moscow University built in 1953.

3. The capital’s 4000 public libraries contain a total of 223 million books.

4. Moscow’s first public library appeared in the 1720s.

5. Since the middle of the 19^th century, Moscow’s biggest public library has been the Rumyantsev Library.

6. The State Library’s main depository houses 30 million books, magazines, newspapers, maps and manuscripts in 247 languages.

7. In and around Moscow there are 260 museums. The Kremlin is Moscow’s oldest museum complex with monuments dating back to the 14^th–19^th centures.

8. Moscow’s first public gallery was opened in 1809.

9. The State Tretyakov Gallery is one of the city’s best known museums. It is assumed to be founded in 1858. It was the year when P. Tretyakov started his collection of paintings by Russian artists. In 1892 the Gallery was presented to the city with 3500 exhibits. Today it houses 55000 works of art.

10. The first line of the Moscow Metro was built in 1935. Now the Moscow Metro is famous for its beautiful underground halls. It carries more than 2 million passengers every day.

V. Choose the right word:

1. Across the road from Manege is the old … of Moscow University … by M. Kazakov. There are two … Moscow … in the second half of the 18^th …: V. Bazhenov and M. Kazakov, who created a style … as “Moscow Classicism”.

2. On the other … of the Moskva River on Lavrushinsky Lane is the Tretyakov Gallery … by Pavel Tretyakov. Not long before his death Tretyakov gave his … to the … of Moscow. Its icon department contains … from Kievan and Muscovite Rus.

3. The Pushkin … of Fine Arts has one of the … collections of the …, classical and West European art.

4. The Pushkin Museum of … … periodically holds … of the art of various … and of individual outstanding …. For example, there were exhibitions of the Tutankhamen treasures from … and Leonardo da Vinci’s … … Mona Lisa (La Gioconda).

VI. Insert the appropriate articles:

… outstanding relic of … Russian culture – … 200 ton Tsar Bell – stands in … Moscow Kremlin. … bell was made in 1735 by Russian craftsman Ivan Motorin and his son Mikhail. … bell is 6 m and 14 cm high and its diameter is 6 m and 60 cm. To perform … work … huge hole was dug in … Kremlin grounds and … bell was kept in it for nearly 18 months to cool.

… large fire flared up late in May 1737. All … the wooden structures surrounding … hole caught fire and collapsed cooling of … bronze bell by … water that was used to put out … fire resulted in grave damage – cracks appeared and … big piece broke away.

After that … bell lay forgotten in … hole for more than 100 years. In 1836 it was taken out of … ground and installed on … special pedestal near … foundation of the Belfry of Ivan the Great and Bell Tower. In our time … restoration work was carried out by skilled workers and … bell is now one of … greatest tourists’ attractions.

VII. Make up the sentences out of the words scattered:

1. many, and, are, St. Petersburg, there, palaces, magnificent, in, bridges.

2. impressed, the, by, travellers, of, city, were, beauty, the.

3. Russia, capital, cultural, a, of, centre, economic, political, administrative, and, its, is, Moscow.

4. population, of, country, Russian, cherish, the, multinational, history, the, its.

5. is, history, mentioned, in, the, annals, first, 1147, of, Moscow, of.

VIII. Translate into English:

1. Москва – политический, административный и культурный центр России.

2. Москва известна во всем мире своими красивыми соборами, монастырями, церквями.

3. История Москвы началась с 1147 года.

4. Юрий Долгорукий считается основателем Москвы.

5. До начала XVIII века Москва была столицей России. Затем ею стал Петербург. В 1918 г. древняя русская столица опять стала столицей Советского государства.

6. Первое метро в нашей стране было построено в Москве в 1935 г. Это самая красивая подземная дорога во всем мире.

7. Самое дорогое для Российских людей место, сердце Москвы – Красная площадь, Кремль. Сейчас здесь работает правительство России, а раньше в Кремле жил и работал основатель нашего государства В.И. Ленин.

8. Собор Василия Блаженного находится на Красной площади.

9. МГУ расположен на Воробьевых горах.

10. В городе находится огромное количество театров и музеев.

11. Москва – мировой центр культуры, науки и искусства, где находятся Российская Академия наук, другие научные центры, Московский университет имени М.В. Ломоносова и многие другие высшие учебные заведения.

IX. Translate the following text into English:

Москва, город-герой, – столица Российской Федерации. Это крупнейший политический, промышленный, экономический и культурный центр страны и самый большой город России, один из крупнейших городов мира с населением более 12 миллионов людей.

Москва занимает первое место среди столиц мира по количеству учебных заведений и студентов. В городе свыше 260 музеев и выставочных залов, 182 театра, множество клубов, кинотеатров, стадионов и других спортивных сооружений. Москва была столицей всемирных Олимпийских игр 1980 года и очень хорошо подготовилась к встрече лучших спортсменов мира и многочисленных зарубежных гостей.

В Москве много исторических и архитектурных памятников. За последние десятилетия город сильно изменился. Там, где раньше были кривые, узкие улочки и маленькие деревянные дома, теперь широкие проспекты с красивыми высокими современными зданиями. Москва растет и хорошеет с каждым днем, так как появляется все больше новых домов, улиц, площадей, проспектов, скверов. Увеличивается количество новых линий метро. Москва расширяется во всех направлениях. Все, кто приезжает в Москву, поражаются огромному строительству, которое идет во всех районах столицы.

X. Answer the questions:

1. Where is Moscow located?

2. When was it founded?

3. Who founded Moscow?

4. What is Moscow famous for?

5. Do you know any places of interest in Moscow?

6. Is Red Square the heart of the city?

7. What monuments of Moscow attract the attention of tourists?

8. Can you name any Moscow theatres?

9. What are Moscow’s most famous museums?

10. Where is Moscow University situated?

11. How many people are now living in Moscow?

12. What is its official symbol?

13. Have you ever been to Moscow? What is your favourite place there?

XI. Speak about Moscow according to the following plan (See Appendix 1):

1. Historical outline of Moscow.

2. Moscow – the capital of Russia, its largest cultural, political and administrative centre.

3. Sights of Moscow.

XII. Prepare a computer presentation (a report, a booklet) about one of the sights of Moscow (See Appendix 2). Use pictures or photos. Don’t forget about the task (a crossword, a puzzle, a quiz test, etc.) after you present your story.

XIII. Read the dialogues in parts and make up your own one according to it as a model:

I. Getting about a town

- Is it possible to see anything of Moscow in one or two days?

- Well, yes, but of course not half enough.

- What do you think I ought to see first?

- Well, if you are interested in historical places you should go to Red Square and see the Kremlin. Do you like art galleries?

- Rather.

- Then why not go to the Tretyakov Gallery and the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts?

- I think I will. And what about theatres?

- If you are staying in Moscow for a few days, you’ll have no difficulties whatever in finding somewhere to spend an enjoyable evening. You’ll find opera, ballet, comedy, drama, operetta, circus and so on.

- Oh, that’s fine. I’m told one ought to see the Exhibition of Economic Achievements. Do you think I shall have time for that?

- Well, you might, but if I were you, I should leave it for some other day. You could spend a whole day there. It is much too big to be seen in an hour or so.

- I suppose it is. What about taking a trip on the Moskva River?

- That’s not a bad idea. What could be better than a couple of hours on board of a motor launch.

- I think I’ll go for a short trip to have a view of Moscow.

II. Asking the way

- Excuse me, can you tell me the way to Red Square?

- Certainly! Go down Gorky Street, turn to the right and in less than five minutes you’ll be in Red Square.

- Thank you very much. How far is it from here?

- If you walk, it’ll take you ten minutes or a quarter of an hour.

- Is there a bus or a trolley-bus?

- There’s sure to be. But you’d better ask the policeman over there. He’ll give you all the information you want.

- Thank you. Excuse me, is there a bus or a trolley-bus from here to Red Square?

- Yes, any bus will take you. There’s a bus-stop just over there.

III. Sightseeing in Moscow

Mr. Brown: Well, the business part of my visit is over – and I have a whole day before I leave for London. Do you think I could see any places of interest in Moscow?

Ivanov: Of course, but not very much. One day for sightseeing in Moscow is not enough.

Mr. Brown: What do you think I ought to see?

Ivanov: It depends on you. If you are interested in the history of the city, you should begin sightseeing from Red Square, which is the heart of Moscow. It is the oldest and the most beautiful square of Moscow.

Mr. Brown: Sure, it is really very impressive. And what is that cathedral close to the Kremlin in Red Square?

Ivanov: Oh, that’s St. Basil’s Cathedral, a unique monument of old Russian architecture.

Mr. Brown: I should see the Kremlin I think.

Ivanov: Certainly. Within the walls of the Kremlin you can see wonderful monuments of Russian architecture: Uspensky Cathedral, Blagoveshchensky Cathedral, which was decorated by Andrey Rublyov and his followers …

Mr. Brown: Well, thank you for your interesting information. That’s exactly what I wanted to know. I’ll try to visit the Kremlin.

XIV. Develop these dialogues using the topical vocabulary and conversational phrases:

1. Er… I wonder if you could tell me the nearest way to Tverskaya Street. – I’m terribly sorry. I really don’t know. I’m a stranger here myself. You’d better ask the policeman over here.

2. Er… Could you help me, I’m not quite sure where the nearest metro station is? – Well, let me see. It’s round the corner.

3. Er… Excuse me, could you tell me if this is the right way to Petrovka Street? – Oh, no, you are quite wrong. You’d better go back and then ask again.

4. Er… Will you please tell me how far the nearest metro station is? – If you walk, it’ll take you about twenty minutes to get there. You’d better take a bus.

5. Do you happen to know the way to the Tretjakov Gallery? – Well, let me see … Go straight on and then take the second turning to the left (right).

6. Excuse me, is there a bus from here to Red Square? – I’m terribly sorry, I’ve no idea, I’m afraid.

XV. Pretend you are an English news writer. Write an article about the most interesting or beautiful place you’ve visited or would like to visit in Moscow (See Appendix 1).

XVI. You’re accompanying a group of foreign visitors on a guided tour of Solikamsk (See Appendix 1). In your talk about the sights concentrate on the following questions:

1. Which sights and tourist attractions would you show them?

2. Which less known architectural monuments (historical buildings) and parks would you include in your tour?

3. Which old traditions and modern developments would you mention?

XVII. How well do you know Solikamsk? Show the group a postcard, describe the place depicted in it and tell how to get there from our Institute (See Appendix 1).