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Cappello family (sounds a bit like the Capulets, doesn't it?) who had a daughter called Juliet.

Juliet Cappello was born on the 16th of September, 1284. There were many legends and poems about her romance with a young man, and these legends probably inspired William Shakespeare to write his famous play in 1596.

Tourists like to be photographed standing on the balcony of 'the house of Juliet' because they believe that it's the balcony where Juliet Capulet and Romeo

Montague revealed their love to each other. And thousands of lovers from all over the world leave their love notes on the walls of the house. The town's cleaners have tried to remove them many times but they keep

appearing again and again – and in greater numbers.

Cappello's tomb found a letter at her grave. It Иhad a very simple address – 'to Juliet, Verona' – and was written by an Englishman who was desperate-

There is also an unusual volunteer organization in Verona – the Juliet Club. Every year, they receive about 5,000 letters from heartbroken men

and women all over the world. And each letter is answered!

This tradition dates from 1937, when the guardian of Juliet

meo or Juliet, others are from teenagers who find it difficult to talk to their parents. A lot of letters are from mixed-race couples whose parents oppose their love.

Here are just a few examples of such letters:

“I am 14 years old and I have never been in love. That’s because I have never met a Juliet. All the girls I know are either too bossy or stupid and boring. I want to meet a girl would be gentle, understanding and loving – just like Juliet.”

“I'm going out with a girl but my father I says she is not good enough for me – just because she is black.'

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'Some letters are very difficult to answer,' says Giulio Tamassia. 'If we feel we cannot answer a particularly difficult letter, we ask our psychologist friend for help.'

For Valentine's Day, the Club organizes a 'Dear Juliet' prize for the best love letter received. The winners are nearly always the Italians and French – they write the most passionate letters.

And on the 16th of September, there is a festival in Verona to celebrate Juliet's birthday.

K. Fox

17. Reorder the sentences to make a story about Juliet and Romeo.

1.Juliet killed herself with a knife.

2.Juliet was 14 years old.

3.Romeo and Juliet fell in love with each other at first sight.

4.Romeo and Juliet were secretly married by FriarИLawrence.

5.Romeo poisoned himself.

6.Shakespeare's play is set in 13th-centuryДVerona.

7.The Montagues and the Capulets were bitter enemies.

8.When the Montagues and the Capulets saw the dead bodies of their children, they promised to live inАpeace.б

18. Match the wordsиto make the names of Thanksgiving dishes. Pick out the foodsСfrom the kitchen table necessary to cook a traditional Thanksgiving meal (pic. 113).

Pic. 113

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19. Match the questions with the answers.

1) What was the name of the ship that brought the first European settlers to America?

2) When did it happen?

3) How many people arrived in America on the Mayflower? 4) What are the first settlers called?

5) Were most of the people over or under 40? 6) Where did they settle in America?

7) Why was it hard for them to survive the first winter? 8) Why is the holiday called Thanksgiving?

9) Why is corn a symbol of Thanksgiving?

10) What other symbols of Thanksgiving do you know?

11) What is the traditional stuffing for a turkey?

12) What do Americans do on Thanksgiving Day?

k. It was a new food for the colonists. Indians taught them how to grow it and it helped the settlers to survive.

l. White bread.

1 __ 2 ___ 3 ___4 ___ 5 ___ 6 ___7 ___ 8 ___ 9 ___10 ___ 11 ___ 12 ___

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20. This text is a sample of speeches made by statesmen on important days such as national holidays. Read it and say how the speech is organized. Does it have any distinct parts?

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

By the President of the United States of America

Thanksgiving Day, 1996

(A)America's oldest tradition, Thanksgiving is also a reaffirmation of our most deeply held values; a public recognition that, in the words of Thomas Jefferson, "God who gave us life gave us liberty". In gratitude for God's gift of freedom and "for all the great and various favors which he hath been

pleased to confer upon us", George Washington made Thanksgiving his first proclamation for the new Nation, and it isИone we are privileged to renew each year.

(B)Much has changed for America inДthe two centuries since that first Thanksgiving proclamation. Generations of hardworking men and women

have cultivated our soil and worked the land, and today America's bounty helps feed the world. The promiseАof freedom that sustained our founders through the hardships of the Revolution and the first challenging days of nationhood has become a realityбfor millions of immigrants who left their homelands for a new life on these shores. And the light of that freedom now shines brightly inиmany nations that once lived in the shadows of tyranny and oppression.

(C)But across theСyears, we still share an unbroken bond with the men and women who first proclaimed Thanksgiving in our land. Americans today still cherish the fresh air of freedom, in which we can raise our families and worship God as we choose without fear of persecution. We still rejoice in this great land and in the civil and religious liberty it offers to all. And we still — and always — raise our voices in prayer to God, thanking Him in humility for the countless blessings He has bestowed on our Nation and our people.

(D)Let us now, this Thanksgiving Day, reawaken ourselves and our neighbors and our communities to the genius of our founders in daring to build the world's first constitutional democracy on the foundation of trust and thanks to God. Out of our right and proper rejoicing on Thanksgiving Day, let us give our own thanks to God and reaffirm our love of family, neighbor, and community. Each of us can be an instrument of blessing to those we touch this Thanksgiving Day — and every day of the year.

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