Test yourself! Do you know the answer to these questions? • When are the Patron Saints' days of England, Scotland and Wales? • At what age do children finish compulsory education? • Do men and women have equal political rights? • Where do people speak with a Cockney accent? • What is the NHS?

Discuss the advantages and disadvantages of keeping animals in zoos

On Sunday afternoons in every major city many families go to the zoo with kids. They always have a lot of fun, see many rare animals, funny monkeys, tall giraffes, huge elephants and cute koalas. But what is going on with animals? On the one hand, animals are safe in zoos, which means they cannot be hurt in their cages. Secondly, animals have enough food, for example, they can always eat in a zoo, while they may be starving in nature. Furthermore, many poachers kill animals for their skin, fur and meat, but they cannot do it to animals in zoos. What is more, there are many species that are almost exterminated, but zoos help them reproduce and keep their species existing. The last but not least, if the natural habitat of some species is destroyed, ruined or is no longer for living in, zoos make cages that look exactly like the natural habitat. On the other hand, animals are kept away from their natural place of living. For instance, lions can never live in Berlin. Another major disadvantage of keeping animals imprisoned is too much noise and stress for them. Many people come to see them. For example, kids come near the cages and tease them, so they have a very stressful life unlike their natural way of living. Not to mention the fact that animals are not free. They are trapped in their cells like in prisons. In conclusion, there are many advantages and disadvantages of keeping animals in zoos and everyone is to judge by himself. However, before that think about yourself being kept in a cage and being seen just as an amusement!

I am an adventurous person so I enjoy spending a lot of time outside, and therefore I love traveling. I believe that traveling is one of the best ways to learn new things, make new friends and increase our cultural level. Besides, I always travel with my parents, which helps me build a closer relationship with them. Our journeys are usually funny and interesting, as we always chose new places to visit. We've already seen a lot of places, but I think there can never be too much trips in our lives. We often choose to travel by car, as we can admire a lot more places in this way. However I love trains and planes just as much. To sum up, I am a convinced traveller as I enjoy discovering our world and I will never miss a chance to go visit a new place.