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VIII. Imagine you are at the conference of people living in Siberia. There are a lot of foreign guests at the meeting and you have to speak in English. Make a report about the riches of Buryatia.
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VIII. Imagine you are at the conference of people living in Siberia. There are a lot of foreign guests at the meeting and you have to speak in English. Make a report about the riches of Buryatia.
CONVERSATION
Read the dialogue and say if nature of Buryatia really very beautiful?
- Where have you come from?
- I have come from Buryatia.
- Oh! I’ve heard about it!
- My native place is really very nice!
- As far as I know nature in Butyatia is wonderful (1). The relief is various. There one can find steppes, forests (2) and of cause lake Baikal. Is it right?
- Exactly so! Lake Baikal is our proud.
- Are there any mountains in Buryatia?
- Yes. For example The Sayans (3).
- What rivers of Buryatia are the most important?
- The Selenga (4) is one of the most important rivers.
- Are you proud of your native place?
- Of cause I do!
I. Act out the dialogue using substitutional words.
SW 1. beautiful, picturesque, exiting
2. rivers, mountains, valleys of rivers
3. the Barguzin mountains, the Hamar-Daban, the Yablonevii mountains
4. the Uda, the Barguzin, the Vitim
II. Make up your own dialogue according to the following situation: the agent of traveling agency speaks with a client who wants to travel in Buryatia. They are discussing the route.
Text II
Ulan – Ude
Read the text and prove that Ulan-Ude is really the place worth seeing.
Ulan - Ude, the capital of Buryatia, is over 300 years old. It was founded in 1666 by Russian Cossack pioneer-settlers on a high rocky bank of the Uda river and was nothing more but a log cabin, a winter hut for the settlers. Later on it was turned into a fortress and then when more people came to live there and a settlement was built – into a town. The town population was engaged in trade, handicraft, farming, hunting, fishing and goods transportation. Verkhneudinsk (this was the name of the town) was at the crossroads of trade ways with Mongolia, China and Far East and early in the 18 century it became one of the most important Russian trade centers in the East. Beginning with 1780 two big fairs were held in the town annually, one in winter and one in summer, which attracted merchants from all over Russia. In 1790 the tsar government presented the town with an emblem on which against a gilt background was pictured Mercury’s baton and a horn of plenty. The population of Ulan-Ude in 1923 was 27000. Now it is over 400000.
Ulan-Ude stretches for about 5 kilometers from north to south and for about 15 kilometers from east to west. Ulan-Ude is the biggest cultural and industrial center of Buryatia and one of large industrial centers in East Siberia.
The city consists of three districts: Sovetski, Oktyabrski, Zheleznodorozhni. Sovetski is an administrative and cultural center of the city. Zheleznodorozhni is a business district since the main industrial plants and factories are situated there. Oktyabrski is mainly a residential part of Ulan-Ude.
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There are three bridges and tramways connecting the districts to each other. There are many streets and avenues which are green and pleasant to look at.
The oldest buildings in Ulan-Ude are situated in Revolution square, which was the first square built there. The most popular sight in Revolution square is a stone building under the name of Gostinii Ryad. It is a huge one-storey building of the 19th century surrounded by columns. Across the street there is one more beautiful building in the classical style – the mall, which was a trading center of the town in old days. Walking down from the square you can reach another architectural monument of the past – the Cathedral of St. Odigitry. It was built in the 18th century.
Lenin street, the main street in Ulan-Ude connects Revolution square to Soviet one. Soviet square is the heart of the city. All government houses are situated here. If you walk down Lenin street you can reach the Museum of Nature. It was founded in 1982. There are many halls displaying species of flora and fauna of Buryatia. The halls devoted to the Baikal lake territory are of special interest. Here you can see fish and animals inhabiting the Baikal lake and all other representatives of the animal kingdom in the territory around Baikal.
There is the other museum which attracts a lot of visitors. It is the Ethnographic museum. The museum was opened in July, 1973. It is an open air museum, displaying the region ethnic groups. Each complex acquaints visitors with the rich and original culture of the peoples that inhabit the region.
In Ulan-Ude there are five theatres: the Buryat drama, the Russian drama, the Youth theatre, Puppet theatre and the most popular Opera and Ballet House and the Tchaikovsky Concert Hall. The building of Opera and Ballet House is the most striking building in the city. It’s a good example of the national style and ornament.
There are four higher educational establishments in Ulan-Ude: the Buryat State University, the East Siberian Technological University, the Agricultural Academy, the Academy of Culture and Art and many secondary schools, technical schools and colleges.
There are many monuments in the city: the monument to the heroes of the Great Patriotic War, the monument to the fighters for the Revolution. They are also very interesting and famous sights of Ulan-Ude.
Notes:
to be engaged in trade – заниматься торговлей
the crossroads of trade ways – пересечение (перекресток) торговых путей
a horn of plenty – рог изобилия
a residential part – жилая часть
surrounded by columns – окружен колоннами
architectural monument of the past – архитектурный памятник прошлого
species of flora and fauna – особенности флоры и фауны
famous sights – известные достопримечательности
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