Reading. People and Society

Three American Festivals

Burning Man

Burning Man is an event that started in 1986 in Black Rock City, Nevada. People go to the desert and build a giant community for nine days. At the end of the festival, they burn a giant wooden statue of a man. That’s where the name comes from. The festival celebrates inclusion, community, and responsibility. Everyone should share their talents so others can enjoy them for free. It is now also very popular with young influencers on social media and other famous people.

The Taste of Buffalo

The Taste of Buffalo in Buffalo, New York, is the largest 2-day food festival in the country every year. Nearly half a million people visit the festival to eat food from over 50 restaurants. There are over 200 different dishes to try! Most of the food is from regional restaurants, and it is a great family event. You can listen to live music from 2 stages, walk through the parks and downtown as well as participate in a lot of different family-friendly activities.

National Cherry Blossom Festival

The National Cherry Blossom Festival in Washington D.C. is a spring event that remembers the gift of cherry trees from Japan to the USA in 1912. The trees were a present from the mayor of Tokyo to the mayor of Washington DC. The first celebration was in 1934. There is a parade every year with large balloons, marching bands from all over the country, and concerts. There are also a lot of different shows and events, such as a kite flying festival, a 10-mile run, and fireworks at night.

Choose the correct option

Which festival celebrates friendship between cities?                                      [Burning Man, The Taste of Buffalo, The National Cherry Blossom Festival]

Which festival is the most popular on social media?                                      [Burning Man, The Taste of Buffalo, The National Cherry Blossom Festival]

Which festival is the biggest of its kind?                                      [Burning Man, The Taste of Buffalo, The National Cherry Blossom Festival]

Which festival attracts people who like doing a lot of different things?                                      [Burning Man, The Taste of Buffalo, The National Cherry Blossom Festival]

Which festival is celebrated in a non-living area?                                      [Burning Man, The Taste of Buffalo, The National Cherry Blossom Festival]

Which festival has musicians walking and playing in the street?                                      [Burning Man, The Taste of Buffalo, The National Cherry Blossom Festival]

Which festival is good for those who want to try local cuisine?                                      [Burning Man, The Taste of Buffalo, The National Cherry Blossom Festival]

Which festival probably IS NOT a family event?                                      [Burning Man, The Taste of Buffalo, The National Cherry Blossom Festival]

Read the texts. Match choices (A-H) to appropiraite text. There are three choices you do not need to use.

Colourful Personalities

Colours say a lot about your personality. Find out what your favourite colour says about you.

  [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H]Red is the colour of power and vitality. People who like red don't always think about other people's feelings and tend to blame others for their problems. They enjoy giving orders and exect everyone to listen to them.

  [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H]Pink symbolizes love and beauty. Peoplewho prefer pink are very sensetive and often have an unrealistic outlook on the world. They tend t behave in a reserved way when they meet new people. They can be very gentle and loving and they want thers to treat them in the same way.

  [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H]If you like green best, it means that you admire truth and honesty You have a good sense of what is right and what is wrong. You are sociable, gentle and kind, too. Sometimes this means that other people take advantage of you - they will ask for your help because they know you wan't say 'no'.

  [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H]People who prefer black enjoy appearing mysterious, but they also like to be in control. They often have big dreams and set themselves challenging goals to achieve, but they like to keep them secret - they don't like sharing their thoughts with other people.

  [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H]Yellow is the colour of happiness and imagination. People who choose yellow are good-natured and joyful. They love to laugh and have a good sense of humour. They enjoy challenges and need to learn new things because they tend to get bored very quickly.

A Tolerant and caring

B Romantic and shy

C Demanding and unfair

D Strong and bossy

E Cheerful and creative

F Fair and helpful

G Ambitious and private

H Focused and hard-working

Read the text below. Choose from (A - H) the one which best fits each of (1 - 6). There are two choices you do not need to use.

The Eiffel Tower

It is hard to imagine Paris without its most famous landmark, the Eiffel Tower. But when it was going up, there were many who thought 1)   [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H]________ . The famous tower was built for the Paris Centennial Exhibition in 1889. It was scheduled to stand for only twenty years but 2)   [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H]______ . Construction was barely under way when a committee of fifty writers and artists launched a public campaign against 3)   [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H]_____ . Although the tower proved wildly popular among visitors, its opponents kept up a drumbeat of criticism, and the government was determined that 4)   [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H]_______ the tower was coming down. Nothing, it seemed, could save it.

That is, until radio was invented, and proved to be the tower's salvation. The thousand-foot structure turned out to be an excellent radio tower 5)   [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H]_______ . In 1907 the French government decided the tower could not come down - 6)   [A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H]_______ . Function followed form this time around, and saved the Paris monument from certain destruction.

A when the twenty years were up

В what took more than two years to complete

C it was too valuable as an antenna

D that was completed at the end of the nineteenth century

E what they called "the useless and monstrous Eiffel Tower"

F for critics, that was twenty years too long

G that could receive messages from far away

H it would be the ruin of the great city