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Text D. The First Trip Abroad. Белые холмы Дувра
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Text D.
The First Trip Abroad
(abridged)
by Sidney Sheldon
Early the following morning Tracy stopped at a travel agency and reserved a suite on the Signal Deck of the Queen Elizabeth II. She was as excited as a child about her first trip abroad, and spent the next three days buying clothes and luggage.
On the morning of the sailing Tracy hired a limousine to drive her to the pier. When she arrived at Pier 90, Berth 3, at West Fifty-fifth and Twelfth Avenue, where the QE II was docked, it was crowded with photographers and television reporters. Tracy brushed past them, showed her passport to a ship's officer at the gangplank, and walked up onto the ship. On deck, a steward looked at Tracy's ticket and directed her to he] stateroom. It was a lovely suite, with a private terrace. It had beef ridiculously expensive, but Tracy decided it was going to be worth it.
She unpacked and then wandered along the coridor. In almost even cabin there were farewell parties going on, with laughter and champagne and conversation. She felt a sudden ache of lonelinnes. There was no one to see her off.
She made her way up to the Boat Deck and heard the sound of a deep-throated boat whistle and calls of " All ashore who's going ashore", and she was filled with a sudden excitement. She was sailing into a completer) unknown future. She felt the huge ship shudder as the tugs started to pull it out of the harbour, and she stood among the passengers on the Boat Deck, watching the Statue of Liberty slide out of sight, and then she went exploring.
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The QE II was a city, more than nine hundred feet long and thirteen stories high. It had four restaurants, six bars, two ballrooms, two nightclubs, and a " Golden Door Spa at Sea". There were scores of shops, four swimming pools, a gymnasium, a golf driving range, a jogging track. / may never want to leave the ship, Tracy marveled.
Ex. 24.
Comprehension questions.
1. Where did Tracy travel?
2. How did she travel?
3. What was the name of the ship?
4. Why was Tracy's suite very expensive?
5. Why did Tracy feel a sudden ache of lonelinnes?
6. What city is described in this passage?
7. Why can the ship be called a city?
Ex. 25.
Find in the text the equivalents to the following words and expressions.
1) дорожка для бега, 2) высотой в 13 этажей, 3)трап, 4) бюро путешествий и экскурсий, 5) чемоданы, 6) нанять, 7) причал, 8) стоять на причале, 9) палуба, 10) место причала, 11) дежурный у трапа, 12) отдельная каюта.
Ех. 26.
Fill in the articles a/an/the/— where necessary.
1) They go by... air, but this time they decided to go by... sea. 2) They bought... tickets and travelled all through... night to Calais. 3) They were in... time to go on... board... ship waiting at... quay. 4) They went straight down to... restaurant for... breakfast. 5) They saw that... coast of France was disappearing and ahead were... white cliffs of Dover. 6) They joined... many passengers who were leaning on... rails watching... English coast.
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7) It seemed much more exciting than getting off... plane at... London Airport. 8) At... entrance to... Customs Office their passports were checked. 9)... officer did not ask them to open their cases and in... minute... they were through... gate, on... platform and seated on... London train.
Ex. 27.
Match the words and phrases in column A with those in column B.
| A | B |
| 1. on board a ship | a. корма |
| 2. life buoy | b. каюта-люкс |
| 3. deck | c. трюм |
| 4. stern | d. на борту корабля |
| 5. portholes | e. иллюминаторы |
| 6. state room | f. сходни |
| 7. gangway | g. палуба |
| 8. hold | h. команда, экипаж |
| 9. crew | i. спасательный круг |
Ex. 28.
Fill in the right word from the word column.
| 1. Shall we stay long in this …? | a. boats |
| 2. Which … will the boat from Batumi arrive at? | b. sail |
| 3. What … go on this line? | c. by boat |
| 4. When does the next boat … for Riga? | d. quay |
| 5. We went to Astrakhan …. | e. gangway |
| 6. Our cabin is on …. | f. port |
| 7. When we arrived at the port, the … had already been up. | g. in advance |
| 8. I booked my tickets three days …. | h. deck “A” |
Ex. 29.
Give a word or a phrase for the following definition.
- Smth designed to keep a person afloat in the water.
- A craft capable of going over water supported on a cushion of air.
- Part of ship below deck.
- All the persons working on a ship.
- Movable bridge from a ship to the land.
- rear end of a ship or boat.
- A floor of a ship.
Ex. 30.
Act as an interpreter: translate the sentences from Russian into English and from English into Russian.
– Я собираюсь поехать в Самару на пароходе.
– When does the next boat sail?
– Я хотел бы заказать билет в каюте 2 класса.
– How many passengers will there be in the cabin?
– Где находится моя каюта?
– Forward/Aft/Amidship/On deck/One flight down (up). Follow me. I’ll lead the way.
– С какого причала отправляется пароход?
– В какие порты заходит пароход?
– Where do the 2nd class passengers have to report?
– Когда подаётся завтрак/обед/ужин?
– Place me with English speaking passengers.
– Я хотел бы получить шезлонг.
– Steward, I don’t feel well. Could you bring my breakfast to my cabin?
– Какая сильная качка!
Ex. 31.
Translate the text from Russian into English.
Белые холмы Дувра
Мэгги и Эдвард Эрлинги уже несколько раз были в Англии. Обычно они летели на самолете, но на этот раз решили попробовать морем. " Думаю, нас укачает, но один раз в жизни надо испытать все. " - сказала Мэгги, когда они покупали билеты.
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Прибыли в Кале как раз перед отправлением парома. Проследив за тем, как их чемоданы отнесли в багажное отделение, они сразу же спустились в ресторан позавтракать.
Поднявшись после завтрака на палубу, они увидели, что французский берег почти исчез, зато впереди в ярком солнечном свете можно было различить холмы Англии - белые холмы Дувра 1.
Как и многие другие пассажиры, Мэгги и Эдвард, облокотясь на поручни, наблюдали, как приближался английский берег. Наконец, они были в Дуврском порту. Сдав посадочные талоны, они ступили на причал; на таможне проверили их паспорта и отдали багаж. Пройдя через ворота, они оказались на платформе и через несколько минут уже сидели на своих забронированных местах в Лондонском поезде. Когда поезд прибыл к месту назначения, Эдвард собрался было взять такси, но Мэгги сказала, что лучше на метро — такова традиция. Оставив вещи в камере хранения, они поехали по ветке Дистрикт Лайн 2.
Notes:
1. Dover
2. District Line
At a Hotel
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