PLACES OF INTEREST IN NEW YORK

        Although New York is not the capital of the United States, it is the biggest and most important city and seaport of the coun­try. New York is situated on the Atlantic coast, in the nor­theastern part of the country, in the state of New York at the mouth of the deep Hudson River, one of the biggest in the USA. It is the financial capital of the world, the centre of the Ameri­can cultural life and the national leader in fashion and enter­tainments. The «Big Apple» is the most popular nickname of the city. New York, with the population of more then 16 mil­lion people, is the second largest city and the biggest seaport in the world.

          Dutch settlers founded this city in 1613. That time, it was called New Amsterdam. In 1664, New Amsterdam was cap­tured by British troops and renamed in New York. Nowadays New York consists of 5 large boroughs: Manhattan, the Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn and Richmond.

          Brooklyn alone has so many people that if it were a sepa­rate city, it would be the fourth largest city in the United States.

         There are many places of interest in New York.

          The most famous of them is The Statue of Liberty, pre­sented to the USA by France in 1886. Its torch towers about 200 feet above the harbour and can be seen at night for many miles. It is the largest statue in the world.

          The Empire State Building used to be the highest building, but now it is only the third. It is a 102- storeyed building.

         Broadway is the longest street in the world. It is about 12 mi­les long. It is the centre of entertainments.

         By the present moment, the Metropolitan Museum is the richest museum in the world in objects of Art, due to what had been bought from Europe after the World War Two. Besides, we can see the works of American painters there too.

         The Central Park is the largest park in the world.

         There are the best houses, hotels and fashionable shops on the Fifth Avenue. There is the Rockefeller centre of 15 sky­scrapers, housing several large corporations. It is also known as «Radio City».

           The United Nations Headquarters was built in New York City in 1952. The building and the grounds around contain sculptures and other works of art, donated by member nations.

          New York attracts people from all over the world. You can see people of different nations and religions here: White, Black, Asian, Moslem, Christian and Jewish people. It is the city of contrasts and it is really so.

QUESTIONS:

1. Where is New York situated?
2. What is the most popular nickname of the city?
3. What is the population of New York?
4. Who founded New York?
5. How many boroughs are there in New York?
6. What are the main places of interest in New York?
7. What is Broadway famous for?
8. What can one find in the Metropolitan Museum?
9. What are there on the Fifth Avenue?
10. When was the United Nations Headquarters built in New York City?

VOCABULARY:

mouth — устье

entertainment — развлечение

nickname — прозвище, кличка

settler — поселенец

to capture — захватывать

troops — войска

borough — район

separate — отдельный

torch — факел

harbour — гавань

fashionable — модный