Customs and traditions of Great Britain

The British have many traditions, manners & customs of which they can be proud. English traditions can be subdivided into the traditions dealing with private life of the English national & religious holidays, public celebrations, traditional ceremonies & traditional sporting events. To know the customs & traditions means to understand the people, their art & culture better.

England has preserved its old ceremonies & traditions to a greater extend than any other country in the world. Most of these traditions have been kept up without interruption since the thirteenth century. Foreigners coming to England are impressed by a great number of ceremonies which seem to be incompatible with the modern traffic & technical conditions of a highly developed country.

Though there are only six public holidays a year in Great Britain, the days on which people need not go to work. They are: Christmas Day, Boxing Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Spring Bank Holiday and Late Summer Bank Holiday. In Scotland, the New Year’s Day is also a public holiday. Most of these holidays are of religious origin, though it would be right to say that for the greater part of the population they have long lost their religious significance and simply days on which people relax, eat, drink and make merry.

Besides public holidays, there are other holidays, anniversaries and simply days off, for example Pancake Day and Bonfire Night, on which certain traditions are observed, but unless they fall on a Sunday, they are ordinary working days.

• When people come from other countries they usually look for something special and traditional in this country. Can you give an example?

Every year on the 5th of November Bonfire night is celebrated all over the UK. It goes back to the discovery of the so-called Gunpowder Plot. The event is commemorated by fireworks and burning “guys” on bonfires.

Traditionally, 41 days before Easter Sunday is a special day for Christians, called Pancake Day or Shrove Tuesday. It is the day before Lent starts. On Pancake Day people used to celebrate the last day before Easter when they could eat what they wanted. All over England there were pancake races on or near Shrove Tuesday. The tradition is still around today. The rules of pancake races are different in different places, but each participant, usually a woman, has to wear an apron and a hat or a scarf.

• Would you like to take part in a British holiday celebration?

If I had such a chance it would be Christmas.

Christmas is the main public holiday in Britain. It is celebrated on the 25th 0f December. Christmas is a Christian festival to remember the birth of Jesus Christ. This holiday is celebrated together with family, relatives and friends who share the much loved customs and traditions which have been around for centuries.

Long before Christmas time shops become very busy, because a lot of people buy Christmas presents. People also buy Christmas cards to send to their friends and relatives, watch nativity plays and go carol singing. They put up Christmas decorations inside and outside homes and decorate Christmas trees too. The traditional Christmas decorations are evergreens, such as holly, mistletoe and ivy.

On Christmas Eve (the 24th of December) some people go to a special church service called Midnight Mass which starts at 12 o’clock at night. In churches people sing Christmas carols – special religious songs. Sometimes groups of people walk along the streets and sing carols at the doors of houses. One of the well-known carols is “Silent Night”.

Young children are told that Santa Claus will bring them presents if they are good. Before going to bed on Christmas Eve the children hang stockings at the back of their beds, for Santa Claus to put the presents in when he comes in the middle of the night through the chimney.

Christmas is the day when people stay at home, open their presents and eat and drink together. The most important meal is Christmas dinner. The typical meal consists of turkey with potatoes and other vegetables, followed by a Christmas pudding. Other traditional foods include a special Christmas cake and mince pies — small round cakes filled with a mixture of apples, raisins and spices.

The day after Christmas, the 26th of December, is also a public holiday. It is called Boxing Day. The name goes back to the old tradition: some time before Christmas, boxes were placed in churches for the people to put some money or presents for the poor. On the day after Christmas, the 26th of December, the priest opened the box and gave the contents away to poor people.

• What questions can you ask a British teenager about his/her birthday celebration?

Birthdays are always happy events for all children and teens. And of course it’s interesting to know about these celebrations in Britain. So the questions may be:

Where do you like to celebrate your birthday party?

Do you prefer to invite your friends and relatives together?

What presents do you usually get for your birthday?

• What national souvenirs would you buy in Britain?

Typical English presents (souvenirs) to take back home are rather various.

Common themes depicted on many English souvenirs include The Royal Family, Policemen, Royal Guards, London Transport, Union Flag and famous London buildings.

You can buy thimbles, bells, T-shirts, soft toys, models, magnets, pens and pencils, mouse mats, caps, pin badges, post boxes, aprons and much more.

• Nowadays more and more people are getting interested in customs and traditions of different countries. What do you think about it?

So many countries so many customs, an English proverb says. The combination of the words tradition & custom means a usual manner of doing something, of conduct passed on from generation to generation.

By comparing the customs and cultures of people from other countries, we can learn how others view the world and why they think the way they do. By understanding others, we can not only form deeper friendships with others but can also learn more about ourselves and our own culture.

LONDON

London is one of the most dynamic, famous and cosmopolitan cities in the world. I have often dreamed that I am in London and I hope that one day, my dream will become true. So I would present you a kind of my personal guide around London.

In London there are many important buildings: palaces, museums, theaters, concert halls. The most important palace is Buckingham Palace because it is the residence of the Queen and the Royal Family.

You can’t go far in London without stumbling across one of the city’s iconic attractions. A 40-minute walk along the South Bank will take you past Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament, the London Eye, Tate Modern, Shakespeare’s Globe, St Paul’s Cathedral and Tower Bridge. There are also eight Royal Parks to explore, and over 300 museums and galleries, many offering free admission.

And of course I couldn’t help going shopping on Oxford Street, which they say that would be the most crowded street in Europe because many locals and tourists come here every day to do their shopping.

However, one should never forget about Madame Tussauds, which is a must for families. It contains hundreds of waxworks of famous people and is definitely one of the most entertaining museums in London. Many of the waxworks are so lifelike that it is frightening to be around them. There are different exhibitions so one should always keep their camera handy in this museum as it provides plenty of photo opportunities. For example, you can take a picture with your favorite movie star.

Last but not least, to include the surroundings of the metropolis, an unforgettable experience would be a trip with the London Eye, symbol of the modern Great Britain which was opened in March 2000 and which is near the Jubilee Gardens, on the south bank of the Thames.

And I’ve almost forgotten. There are some places which stand apart from ordinary tourist guides but Londoner Do recommend visiting them. So, let me have a brief look at some of them. 1. London is a culinary capital that many world-renowned chefs call home. Jamie Oliver has several restaurants in the city, including Fifteen, which hires otherwise unemployed youth. 2. The city’s various palaces offer a sense of grandeur and luxury. Hampton Court Palace, slightly farther from the city center, has a spread of various gardens that lend themselves well to calming walks in the crisp fall fog. 3. Food is cheap and authentic from dozens of restaurants to small bakeries and ethnic grocers at Brick Lane, a street full of cultural surprises.

It is worth discovering the beauty of London and talking about it; I must admit it is a city that has always fascinated me.

And to conclude I’d like to recall Samuel Johnson’s quote. "Sir, if you wish to have a just notion of the magnitude of this city, you must not be satisfied with seeing its great streets and squares, but must survey the innumerable little lanes and courts. It is not in the showy evolutions of buildings, but in the multiplicity of human habitations which are crowded together, that the wonderful immensity of London consists." "Why, Sir, you find no man, at all intellectual, who is willing to leave London. No, Sir, when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford."

Дата добавления: 2015-10-29