The most convenient transport

Local food

Multicultural community

World business centre

Links with Russian culture

Diverse architecture

A paradise for shopaholics

A.          

For tourists coming to China, visiting Shanghai is a must. Shanghai is the largest city not only in China but in the world, too. About twenty-three million people live there! The city has always attracted people looking for a new life and business opportunities. Lots of Americans, Japanese, Koreans, French, Russians, and Germans live there permanently. Like most multinational cities, Shanghai accepts all cultures to produce a new type of a global culture.

B.           

To keep up with the city’s rhythm, tourists may use the metro system, which is cheap and very efficient. The Shanghai metro is fast and modern. It covers the whole city and is known as the biggest metro in the world. Stations and trains are perfectly clean and well-equipped. Monitors show arrival and departure time and business adverts, and give information about Shanghai sights and events in many languages.

C.           

If you love shopping, you will be glad to get lost in Shanghai for a couple of days, especially in Nanjing Road. This street houses a great number of prestigious shops, restaurants, and night clubs. There is no traffic here, which is very convenient for people. The shop assistants are very helpful and tourists are very welcome. In the evening the street looks absolutely magical with colourful lights.

D.          

Another iconic landmark of the city is the embankment of the River Huangpu, the Bund. It is famous for its classical European buildings. There are more than fifty large buildings on the Bund. They are built in different styles such as Gothic, Romanesque or Baroque and others. In spite of this great variety, the buildings stand together in perfect harmony. The constructions in this part of the city remind people of those in New York, Chicago, London, Moscow and ten thousand other cities.

E.           

Among the many monuments in Shanghai, the monument to Alexander Pushkin is special. First built in 1937, the monument was ruined and restored twice throughout its history. Now it stands at a road intersection. Specialists from both China and Russia took part in its construction. It is devoted to the greatest poet of all time and also highlights the friendly relationship between the two countries.

F.           

The Shanghai climate is generally mild and humid, with four distinct seasons - a pleasant, warm spring, a hot, rainy summer, a comfortable, cool autumn and an overcast, cold winter. The location makes the city really wet - it rains for about one third of the year. From late August to mid-September, typhoons may happen. The hottest time comes in July and August, the coldest - from late January to early February. The spring is recommended as the best time to visit Shanghai.

G.          

Naturally, if you visit the city, you have a chance to try authentic Shanghai cuisine, which is very diverse. It offers dishes made of fresh meat, chicken, vegetables and various, seafood such as fish, shrimps and crabs. The dishes may taste hot and spicy, sweet and bitter. It really differs from European cuisine, but Europeans usually enjoy it very much, as well as the atmosphere of the authentic national restaurants.

 

 

Чтение 46.

 

Прочитайте тексты и установите соответствие между текстами и их заголовками: к каждому тексту, обозначенному буквами А–G, подберите соответствующий заголовок, обозначенный цифрами 1–8. Используйте каждую цифру только один раз. В задании есть один лишний заголовок.

 

The birthplace of the city

Multifunctional construction

The first traffic jams

A perfect location

Safety gates

Defeating pollution

Navigation season

The royal birds

A.          

Almost 2,000 years ago, the army of Ancient Rome landed on the coast of Britain and headed north. Soon they came to a wide, deep river. The army could neither walk across it nor find an alternative route. The only solution was building a bridge. The Romans found a place where the river was relatively narrow and built a bridge. Then they founded a settlement, which they called Londinium. Today it is known as London.

B.           

The Romans soon discovered that Londinium was an ideal site for a port. Their bridge prevented large ships from going up the river, so all trading ships had to stop and unload at Londinium. It made Londinium an important trading centre and stimulated the growth and development of the city.

C.           

The first London bridge over the Thames was built of wood – and then rebuilt time and time again. Later, a stone bridge was constructed. By the 1350s there were nearly 200 houses and shops on top of the bridge, and the road across it was very narrow. It was very difficult for carriages, horses and people to move across the bridge. They often couldn’t pass one another and had to spend hours on the bridge.

D.          

When the Thames flooded, it covered London with water. After a bad flood in 1953, people began to look for a way to control the river. In 1982 the Thames Barrier was opened. When its gates are raised, they form a steel wall more than half a kilometre long across the Thames. It prevents flood water from reaching London. More than 90 times, the Thames Barrier has saved the capital from flooding.

E.           

Nowadays, Tower Bridge is one of the most famous bridges in the world. The walkway between the two bridge towers provides a perfect sightseeing platform to enjoy a magnificent view over London. Inside the towers there is an exhibition, which tells the history of the bridge via photos, films, and other media. Tower Bridge also performs its original function of providing a road across the River Thames.

F.           

In Britain, swans have privileged status. Since the 1100s, all unmarked swans on any public lakes or rivers in the country have belonged to the Crown. The swans on the River Thames are called Mute Swans. They have a bright orange beak with a black spot on the top. Every July, a special ceremony called “Swan Upping” takes place on the Thames at Windsor. All the swans are caught and their markings are checked and recorded.

G.          

Nowadays, the River Thames is the cleanest river in the world that flows through a big city. This is a great achievement because only fifty years ago the river was so dirty and poisoned that it was declared biologically dead. Special plants to clean the water were built in the 1950s. Soon, special laws were issued to stop factories letting their dirty water go into the river. Strict government measures have saved the river.

 

Чтение 47.

Прочитайте тексты и установите соответствие между текстами и их заголовками: к каждому тексту, обозначенному буквами А–G, подберите соответствующий заголовок, обозначенный цифрами 1–8. Используйте каждую цифру только один раз. В задании есть один лишний заголовок.

 

Extreme tourism