Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main islands (North Island and South
Island) and some smaller ones. Nearly 3.5 million people live in the
country. The capital of New Zealand is Wellington. It is a financial centre
too. The city was founded in 1840 and has been the capital since 1865. The
official language Is English.
The climate of New Zealand is moist. New Zealand is rich in minerals.
There are some main industries in the country, for example, iron and steel
industry. The country has gas and petroleum. There are many mountains in
New Zealand. The highest is Mount Cook (3,764 metres or 12,349 feet).
There are many rivers and lakes in the country. The chief rivers are the
Waikato and the Wairu. You have heard about the native animals in the
country. One of them is the kiwi. This interesting bird lives in the wet
parts of the thick bushes. In the day-time the bird does not go out. It
comes out only at night to find food. Kiwis cannot fly. Many years ago
kiwis were hunted for food. Now the government does not permit the hunting
the kiwis. The kiwi is now the symbol of New Zealand people. Small children
are often called kiwis.
New Zealand is independent state, but formerly it is a part of the British
Empire. The head of the state is the Queen. New Zealand is self-governing
state. The Parliament consists of one House only, the House of
Representatives. The Prime Minister is the head of the government.
New Zealand has got heavy industry. There are many plants in the country.
Paper and rubber industries are developed too. New Zealand exports wool,
meat, butter.
There are some big cities such as Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch, Dune-
din, Nelson. Auckland and Wellington are the main ports of the country.
There are some educational and cultural institutions in Wellington. They
are the University of New Zealand, Victoria University College and others.
Victoria University was established in 1897.
New Zealand is a very interesting and beautiful country.
THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal state. It has got six states:
New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia,
Tasmania and two internal territories. The official language is English.
Australia is situated in the south-west of the Pacific Ocean.
The area of this country has got 7,687,000 square kilometers. Australia is
the largest island in the world and it is the smallest continent. The Dutch
were the first Europeans to visit Australia. In 1770 the English captain
James Cook discovered the east coast of Australia.
Nearly 20 million people live in Australia.
Australia's climate is dry and warm. Australia is situated in the southern
hemisphere and that's why there is summer, when we have winter and there is
winter, when we have summer. It is interesting to know that January is the
hottest month in Australia.
Australia is separated from many countries. The animals in Australia have
a lot of original, and they are interesting, for example, dingoes (wild
dogs), koala bears, kangaroos.
The kangaroo and koala have got the pouch in which they carry their cubs.
There are many birds in the country, too. One can see parrots and
cockatoos. The emu is the most interesting bird in Australia. It is big and
can't fly.
There are many rivers and lakes in the country.
Australia is an industrial country. It has coal, nickel, zinc, gold.
Several factories and plants work in the country. Australia is one of the
most important producers of metals and minerals. It exports wool
production, meat, fruit, sugar.
The capital of the country is Canberra. The city became the capital in
1927. Federal Government works in Canberra in the government buildings. It
is interest
ing to know that there are no industrial plants in Canberra.
The population of Canberra is about 300,000 people.
There are many sights in the city. They are the Building of the Australian
Academy of Sciences, the Australian National University and others. There
are two big industrial cities in Australia: Sydney and Melbourne.
The habited part of the country is situated near ocean. Melbourne, Sydney,
Brisbane and others are the ports of the country.
Australia is a part of the British Empire. Formerly the head of the state
is the Queen, but in fact Australia is independent, self-governing state.
The Parliament consists of two Houses.
There are many universities, theatres and museums in Australia.
YOUTH PROBLEMS
All people have problems. Some of them have many problems, the others have
one or two problems only.
Young people have as many problems as the grown-ups. It is possible to
solve some problems but sometimes we can not solve this or that problem.
The first problem is to choose a good friend. I know the proverb "A friend
in need is a friend indeed." I agree with it, that's why I try to make
friends with gay and true persons.
I want to have a friend who understands me. It will be simple and
interesting to speak to him or her.
I think that young people have problems with their parents. What are they?
Sometimes we have different tastes. I like the proverb "There is no
accounting for tastes." For example, I go to the shops with my mother. She
likes this dress but I like that one. My mother wants me to buy this dress.
But I am sure, that dress is much to my taste.
My parents want me to be a teacher as they are skilled teachers but I
have a taste for music, and my dream is to be a composer.
Where can we go? What can we do if we have free time? My friend Nastya
lives in the village. Her village is far from Moscow. It takes her three
hours to go to Moscow. She says that there is nowhere to go and there is
nothing to do in her village. There are no clubs, museums, cinemas, parks
there. If she wants to go to Moscow it'll take her a lot of money. She
can't afford it.
It is a problem to get a good education.
It is necessary to pay for a good education. I think it is difficult to
learn English, for example, without additional classes.
I can't enter the Institute without good knowledge. To get it it is
necessary to pay for it and have heavy expenses.
Many good teachers leave schools because they haven't got enough money.
Persons without special experience can't teach the pupils well.
I am sure that all teenagers want to have a lot of money to dress well, to
go to the theatres, to visit foreign countries, ito eat what they want, to
buy books-How can they solve all these problems?
They have to earn money. I think it is possible to do it. Some boys wash
cars, the others sell newspapers, some of my friends help old persons. Many
of my friends have load of care.
We have some problems but we are sure that we solve them in a proper way.
I think that the young people in other countries have many problems too. I
have a pen-friend in Italy. He usually writes that his parents make him to
do a lot of house-work. It is stange for us, but my friend Jack from London
has his biggest problem — his freckles.
INTRODUCING YOURSELF
My name is Kostya. My surname is Laznev. I was born in Moscow on the 23rd
of June in 1981. I am a tall thin boy. My hair is dark and short. My face
is oval, my nose is straight. My eyes are large and brown. My friends say
that I am a good-looking boy. I like to dress well. I usually wear black
trousers, light shirts, clean boots.
I have a dream to enter the Institute.
I worked hard at school. We studied many subjects such as History,
Russian, Physics, Geography and others. I was fond of English and Physics.
And I was good at them.
I think that I am honest, serious and polite.
I want to get a good education and find an interesting and useful work. I
have a hobby. I like to sing songs. My father likes to sing songs too. He
knows many good songs and we usually sing songs together.
Nowadays young people don't like classical music. They prefer pop music.
My parents invite me to some very good concerts of classical music. It is
great. I am very grateful to my parents because now I begin to understand
how wrong I was going only to pop concerts.
I am proud of my mother and father. They are musicians. We like to spend
our free time together. We often go to the museums, to the Concert Halls,
to the theatres.
I want to say that I respect my parents.
I HAVE A DREAM TO BE A DOCTOR
There are many interesting and noble professions. I want to become a
doctor.
I like this profession and I am eager to get a medical education and work
at a hospital.
It is a good tradition in our family. My mother is a doctor, my
grandfather is a doctor and I want to be a doctor, too.
When I was a little boy my grandfather worked at a hospital and I spent
some time at the hospital with him. He is a surgeon and works in a surgical
department.
Day by day he takes care of his hospital patients, he treats them well.
He is very attentive. Every day he comes into
wards asking patients, "What do you complain of?"
He wants all people to be able-bodied and he tries to treat his in-
patients in a proper way.
To operate on persons is his main task. He is a kind and skilled surgeon.
Every day he comes into an operating-room and operates on his in-patients.
After each operation he takes care of his in-patients. Day by day he helps
them to recover and he is glad when he can say, "My in-patient is quite
recovered."
Sometimes he advises his in-patients to go to sanatoriums after leaving
the hospital. He instructs them in detail what they can do and eat after
