Task 1. Before reading discuss where you and your friends usually go out. Then read the information below and find similarities and differences in British and Russian cultures.

BASIC FACTS:

· In the United Kingdom People do not frequently invite friends to visit them at home, they prefer to go to a pub or to a restaurant, or to the theatre together.

· You can find a pub even in a small village, in cities there are hundreds.

· Beer Festivals is a tradition in Britain supported by pubs.

· The Gentlemen's Club is an English institution, a place where like-minded men could meet. Many of the clubs were politically based, their origins being coffee houses.

· Britain is a very theatrical nation with old theatrical traditions.

· Theatre in Britain is a powerful instrument of education as well as art and culture.

· Class distinctions usually predetermine where people prefer to go out.

 

Pubs.

English Pubs

The pub is at the heart of the community, in villages, towns and cities, all over England. The pub is more than just a shop where drinks are sold and consumed. For centuries it has been a place where friends meet, colleagues ‘talk shop’ and business people negotiate deals. The place where people gather to celebrate, play games or to seek quiet relaxation. Due to changes in the law, the pub is now a place for families. It is re-establishing itself as the place to eat, a tradition that all but disappeared after the last war. Many provide affordable accommodation.

There is no waiter service in the English Pub. You have to go to the bar counter to order your drink, pay for it there and then, and take it back to your table. If you are in a group, it is normal to order and pay for all the group. This is a “round” of drinks. Staff in the bar do not expect to be tipped for serving drinks, although few have been known to refuse the old half-pint.

English beer is generally known as Bitter, Mild or Ale, and brands vary widely in strength, according to your choice. They tend to be served cool, but not chilled in the European manner. You must try the traditional draught beers, which are recognized by the unusual tall hand pumps on the bar. Nearly all pubs will also sell a number of continental style chilled beers, generally known as lager in Britain. Draught beer is always sold in pint or half pint glasses (a pint is just over half a litre). In a pub just ask for a PINT or HALF of whichever beer you fancy.

The food at pubs is rarely refined, though the new gastro-pubs that some chefs have opened during the 1990s are changing that. Still, nothing beats a plate of bangers and mash (sausages with mashed potatoes) or cock-a-leekie pie (curries chicken pot pie) and a pint of bitter.

Pubs are generally open from 11:00 am until 11:00 pm Monday-Saturday, and 12:00 pm until 10:30 pm Sunday, when they often close between 3:00 pm and 5:30 pm. Whether you happen upon a three-hundred-year-old converted coach house, an architectually ornate Victorian holdover or a more modern spot, you’ll likely find the pub to be just what it was in Chaucer’s time: a warm, friendly refuge from the unfriendly English weather. Darts is a game characteristic of pubs.