Билет № 22

Билет № 22

1.     Let’s talk about national character and stereotypes. What are the daily habits of Belarusians?

Different nations have different characters.

Belarusians are extremely sociable. They are the most welcoming and hospitable people. Belarusians are less materialistic. Not many people think of shopping as a leisure activity. There is a high respect for education and culture. The countryside holds a special place in the hearts of Belarusians. At the weekends during the spring, summer and early autumn most people who live in the city go to their dachas.

Tolerance is one of the most typical features of the Belarusian people.

It's easy to note that the majority of people who have ever come to Belarus underlined that the Belarusians are sincere and hospitable people. Indeed, we can still hear: "The guest in the house - the God is in the house". The Belarusian people were ready to share everything with the neighbors. However, the Belarusian got accustomed with the necessity to gain everything due to his own hard work. "It's no use to look for bread without work". During centuries, practically unstopped hard work saved people from poverty and starvation. There were enough wars, epidemics and natural disasters in the history of our country. Optimism and humor are the qualities that allowed the generations of our compatriots to hope for the better.

As for me I can say that in some traits of my character I’m a typical Belarusian, because I think I’m rather friendly and sympathetic person.

2.     Are there any traditions in your family that are handed down from one generation to another?

Yes, there are. There are a lot of traditions in the world. Now I would like to tell you about customs and traditions in our family. We have several of them. First of all I’d like to tell about New Year. Every year we try to celebrate New Year in our grandparents’ house. Each of us prepares a little present for other members of the family. Usually we put them under the Christmas tree.The next tradition is that we travel together every summer. Every year we choose a place for our trip. We like it because we can be together for several weeks and also we can make beautiful photos of each other.

3.     Ask your British friend how they celebrate Christmas in their family.

1.     Do you celebrate Christmas in your family?

2.     How do you celebrate Christmas in your family?

3.     What food do you cook for Christmas?

4.     What do you do at Christmas?

5.     Who decorates a Christmas tree in your family?

4.     Advise a British teenager on how to choose gifts for his/ her Belarusian friends.

It is difficult to buy gifts for our friends. You should know what your friend likes. If he is fond of music, you can buy him a new MP3 or a CD with his favourite music. If he is a sport fan you should buy tickets to any sport event.

5.     We can’t believe all the stereotypes about different nationalities. What do you think about it?

The stereotypes are fixed opinions or believes of type of person, or thing or nationality. I don’t think if they are all true, but in my opinion there is a little true in stereotypes (like in each fairy story), directly they rise. Thanks stereotypes we can know something about culture, manners in some countries. But they appeared long time ago, so they could be out of date.