Read and translate the text.

What is “American” food? The answer is that it is part Italian, part British, part German, part Mexican, part Chinese… When people from other countries came to live in the USA, they brought different cooking traditions. Some of them opened restaurants. Today Americans enjoy food from all over the world. Over the years some foreign dishes changed a little.

Doughnuts were originally from Holland. In 1847 a young American boy told his mother that her doughnuts were never cooked in the middle. He cut out the centre and his mother cooked them — and they were very tasty!

Maybe the USA is most famous for “fast foods”. The first fast food restaurants served hamburgers, but now they serve other kinds of food too. Inside there is often a “salad bar”, where you can help yourself to as much salad as you want.

Americans eat a lot, and when they go to a restaurant, they don’t expect to be hungry afterwards. Most restaurants will put a lot of food on your plate — sometimes it can be too much. But if you can’t finish it all, don’t worry: they will give you a “doggy bag” and you can take it home. Most Americans now have a light breakfast instead of the traditional eggs, bacon, toast, orange juice and coffee. But on weekends there is more time, and a large late breakfast or early lunch is often eaten with family or friends.

17.2. Answer the questions:

1. What is “American food”?

2. What do you know about doughnuts?

3. What is a fast food restaurant?

4. What do people usually do if they can’t finish their food?

5. What kind of breakfast do most Americans have?

 

 

UNIT 18. AUSTRALIA

 

18.1. Read and translate the text

Australia, or the Commonwealth of Australia, as it is officially called, is situated on the island continent. It also occupies the Island of Tasmania and some minor islands round the coast of the continent. It is a highly developed industrial­ agrarian country. Its area is about 8 million km2. It is the only state in the world that occupies the territory of a whole continent.

The capital of Australia is Canberra, which became the capital only in 1927.

From 1787 to 1867 Australia was a place where criminals were sent from Britain. That is why the official language of Australia is English.

Almost one half of Australian territory is occupied by deserts and semi deserts. For quite a long period of time it was thought to be useless for economic development. But it is rich in coal, iron ore, bauxites, uranium, lead and many other mineral resources. For almost a century the production and export of sheep wool was the basis of the economy of the country. Now the most important industries are oil, chemical, ore mining, radio electronics, and food industry. The country exports agricultural products and raw materials.

As for the nature, the commonest trees of Australia are the eucalyptus and the Australian acacia or mimosa, the national emblem of the country.

Such unusual animals as a kangaroo or a koala bear originate from Australia.

Australia is one of the most unusual and exotic countries of the world. A significant feature of modern Australian society is the representation of a lot of cultures drawn from many lands by its people. Historically part of the British Empire and now a member of a Commonwealth of Nations, it is a relatively prosperous and independent nation.

18.2. Answer the questions:

1. What is the official name of Australia?

2. Where is it situated?

3. What kind of country is it?

4. What is the national emblem of the country?

5. What are the famous animals of

6. Australia?

UNIT 19. GEOGRAPHY

Read and translate the text

Australia is located southeast of Asia, and is the only country in the world to occupy a single continent. It is bordered by the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, the Southern Ocean, the Tasman Sea, the Coral Sea and the Arafura Sea. The nearest country is not New Zealand and Australia or Oceania. The Australia continent and the nearby island of Tasmania, form the sixth largest country on earth, with a total area of 7,686,850 sq km. This large area is populated by only 19 million people, making Australia the most sparsely populated continent after the Antarctica. Australia continents of six states and two territories.

Area of Australia’s States:

New South Wales	802,000 sq km
Victoria	228, 000 sq km
Queensland	1,727,000 sq km
South Australia	984,000 sq km
Northern Territory	1,346,000 sq km
Western Australia	2,526,000 sq km
Tasmania	68,000 sq km
Australia Capital Territory	2,400 sq km

The Northern Territory, appropriately situated in the north, is a tropical area that runs into desert in the south. The Stated is very sparsely populated, and stations (huge farms). In the extreme north lies the biggest city, Darwin. It is not a big city by Australian standards, but Darwin is the main gateway to this vast state, and is also the closest city to Asia.

Queensland is situated in the northeastern corner of Australia, and lies in the tropical and subtropical climatic zones. The largest city is Brisbane, which has a population of 1.2 million people.

New South Wales to the south of Queensland is situated in the Subtropical to Temperate climatic zones.

This state is Australia is most populated, and is also home to the biggest city in Australia. That city is Sydney and is considered by many to be the most beautiful big city in the world.

The New South Wales coastline is blessed with many superb beaches, and contains many famous surf breaks such as Byron Bay.

Australia Capital Territory, which is home to the nation’s capital city Canberra. Canberra was planned before the first stone was laid, and was chosen as the site of the new capital city as a compromise between Sydney and Melbourne, who both competed for this title.

Across the New South Wales border lies the state of Victoria. Victoria is the smallest mainland state in Australia, but has the highest density of population. Australia’s second largest city, Melbourne is located near the south coast of the state.

If you continue west from Victoria you will eventually cross the border into South Australia.

South Australia is bordered by the Southern Oceanic and other mainland states. South Australia is sometimes referred to as the driest state in the driest continent on earth.

Toward the west of South Australia lies Western Australia. This state covers one third of the continent and is approximately five times the size of Texas. Yet there are only about 1.4 million people here. This makes Western Australia the most sparsely populated of all states, especially when you consider that over 1 million people live in the state’s capital city, Perth.

The only State in Australia that is not found on the mainland, is south of Victoria, and sits on the same latitude as central New Zealand. The State is roughly the size of Ireland, or Sri Lanka, and is one of the most mountainous islands on earth. Tasmania’s climate is temperate and the island is covered in wilderness. In fact, about one quarter of Tasmania is protected wilderness.

Australia is the lowest, flattest and, apart from Antarctica, the driest of the continents.

From north to South Australia spans 3,200 kilometers. From east to west, Australia’s widest point is approximately 4,000 kilometers. Australia’s coastline measures approximately 36,800 kilometers.

 

UNIT 20. GEOGRAPHICAL POSITION OF AUSTRALIA

Read and translate the text

Australia occupies the continent of Australia, which lies south­east of Asia and the island of Tasmania with a number of small islands. It is washed by the Timor Sea in the north, by the Coral and Tasman Seas in the east, and by the Indian Ocean in the south and west.

Australia is the most droughty continent on the earth. About one half of its territory is occupied by deserts and semi deserts. It is also the land of great plains.

The main part of Australia lies in tropics. Southwestern parts of the country are situated in subtropics. December, January and February are summer months in Australia. The average summer temperature there is from 20 to 30 degrees above zero. Winter comes in June, July and August. Then the average temperature is from 12 to 20 degrees above zero. Droughts are common in Australia. The rainfall in the country is rather small, and that’s why a special plan was worked out for irrigation of plains.

The largest rivers in Australia are the Darling and the Murray. In the middle part of Australia there are salt lakes, such as Lake Eyre and Torrance.

Australia is an agricultural country. Cattle breeding is highly developed in Australia. It exports sheep wool, wheat, meat, butter and cheese, and raw materials. Its major partners are Japan, the USA and Great Britain.

20.2. Answer the questions:

1. What is Australia washed by?

2. What occupies about one half of its territory?

3. What are summer and winter months in Australia?

4. What are the main industries in Australia?

 

UNIT 21. “THE DRY CONTINENT”

Read and translate the text

The climate in Australia is varied and ranges from tropical to sub alpine.

Australia is also the driest inhabited continent on earth, but the eastern seaboard where the majority of the population is concentrated, is a lush and fertile area, with a climate ranging from temperate to tropical. The main mountain range is known as the Great Dividing Range has an area known as the Snowy Mountains, or otherwise known as the Australian Alps. This area actually receives snow than Switzerland, and is the only area suitable for skiing in Australia.

Most of the continent receives more than 3,000 hours of sunshine a year, or nearly 70% of the total possible.

Australia also contains many pockets of tropical and temperate rain forest on the eastern coast, but the predominate forest in Australia is Eucalypti forest.

The southwest corner of Western Australia has a Meditarranean climate and the Northern regions of this continent have areas of Rainforest and below that are large areas of savanna grasslands. Tasmania, the island state in the south has large areas of temperature wilderness and steep mountains.

Many parts of Australia have scanty and irregular rainfall. Only where rainfall is plentiful and reliable one can see tall trees are the blue gums of Tasmania, the Big Trees of eastern Victoria, which reach a height of 300 feet. Other tall trees grow along the rainy east coast and many other small trees and plants crowd the forest here, including the ferns and creepers.

The commonest trees of Australia are the eucalyptus, of which there are over 500 kinds.

Some Australian trees and plants produce hard woody fruits and seeds.

Australia has 20,000 species of plants and brilliant wild flowers such as the red and green kangaroo paw. The continent has many species eucalypti or gum trees. Many of the trees lose their bark not leaves and many flowers.

Nature fauna in Australia are protected and managed by state and territorial governments.

The climate of Australia varies greatly. The climate ranges from tropical (monsoonal) in the north to temperate in the south. The tropical region, which includes about 40 percent of the total area of Australia, has only two seasons: a hot, wet season with rains falling mainly in February and March, during which the northern and north-eastern coast have an average annual rainfall of 1524 mm in parts of Queensland overade annual rainfall exceeds 2540 mm.

UNIT 22. CLIMATE AND NATURE OF AUSTRALIA

 

22.1. Read and translate the text

Australia is situated to the southeast of Asia. It is washed by the Timor Sea in the north, by the Coral and Tasman Seas in the east, and by the Indian Ocean in the south and west.

Australia is the most droughty continent in the earth. It is an extremely hot country. Summer months are December, January and February. The average summer temperature is from 20 to 30 degrees above zero. Winter months are June, July and Au­ gust. The average winter temperature is from 12 to 20 degrees above zero. The most part of the territory lies in tropics. Its southwestern territories lie in subtropics. As droughts are rather common and the amount of rainfall is rather small There are not many rivers in Australia. The largest rivers are the Darling and the Murray.

The isolation of Australia from other continents explains much of the unusualness of Australian plant and animal life. There are forests in the southern and eastern parts of the country. The commonest tree of Australia is the eucalyptus. In the drier areas there is the Australian acacia or mimosa. In those areas one can also find strange bottle trees. They preserve water in their trunks.

Australian animals are also very unusual. Among them there are kangaroos, duck­bills, koala bears, and others. Nine tenth of animal species of Australia do not exist in other parts of the world.

 

22.2. Answer the questions:

1. How many seas is Australia washed by?

2. What are winter and summer months in Australia?

3. What is the average summer and winter temperature?

4. What are the longest rivers?

5. What are the commonest trees in Australia?

 

Animals

The dry, desert-like plains of the Australian outback cover more than two-thirds of the continent. Much of the region receives less than 250 mm of rainfall a year. Although the rains may come at any time of the year, there are often long periods of drought, which make it difficult for animals to survive.

Many of the animals avoid the heat of the day by staying in their burrows, since it is cooler and damper underground. Some small animals sleep underground right through the hottest summer months. This is called aestivation. Many outback animals can survive with little or no water. Their bodies are adapted to store water from their food and to lose very little water in their urine. A number of animals have long back leas to help them more rapidly and find what little food is available.

There are many animals and birds in Australia:

Koala (length: 80 cm);

Long jumper. Red kangaroo (height: 2m; tail: 1m);

Wild dog. Dingo (height at shoulder: 50 cm; length: up to 90 cm);

High-speed runner emu: (height: 2m);

Huge burrow (height at shoulder: 45cm);

Huge lizard (length including tail: up to 2,4 m);

Spiny coat (length: 50 cm; spines: 6 cm);

Silky killer (length: 3 cm);

Numbat (body length: up to 30 cm; tail: up to 20 cm);

Raggiana’s bird of paradise (body length: up to 95 cm; tail feathers: 50 cm) and many others.