Britain’s capital is a treasure trove of foreign culture. People from all over the world live in London and the result is a thrilling multiculturalism: cafes, restaurants, shops and markets offer you the world on your doorstep. Come and meet people who are…
- Indian
After the Irish, the Indian community is the second largest in London. The first Indians arrived in 1597 and more came after the founding of the East India trading company in the seventeenth century. Numbers increased when India became independent in 1947 but the community really took off in the 1950s and 1960s with employment opportunities around Heathrow airport. Although ‘Little Indias’ exist all over London, the most striking is the district of Southall in West London, not far from the airport. Here Indian foodstalls and video shops are everywhere, spicy aromas fill the air, and women stroll around wearing the typical colourful sari, just as in India. In McDonald’s the piped music is refreshingly Indian.
- Portuguese
The supermarkets and shops in Lambeth and Stockwell Roads are the most obvious indication that you are in ‘Little Portugal’, but there is much more to this community than that. Over 20,000 Portuguese live south of the River Thames. The majority have come from the island of Madeira rather than from the mainland of Portugal. This close-knit community is mad about football and folk-dancing and holds its own carnival every February. It’s a community that is determined to hold on to its traditions and it’s a great place to experience Madeiran culture.
- Caribbean
When the ship Emperor Windrush docked in 1948 with its 500 immigrants, it marked the start of the main period of Caribbean immigration, stimulated by British economic expansion. Since then, over 300,000 have established vibrant communities all around London. The greatest Caribbean celebration is the Notting Hill carnival, now Europe’s largest street party, which takes place every August. However, Brixton, in South London, is the hub of the community. As you step out of the Underground station into Brixton Market, your senses are stimulated by the noise, the bright colours and the rhythmic sound of Caribbean music. This is one of the best places to shop for food in London. However, the area has become a very popular place to live and prices are rising.
- Japanese
Finchley and Hendon in North London are the principle centres for Japanese people. The national affection for golf has had a noticeable effect on these areas – if you drive up Finchley Road, you have an almost unlimited choice of golf shops and courses. Other than this, there is little evidence of a community. Although there are restaurants and foodstores here, most socialising takes place at home. It isn’t as permanent as other communities, either – many Japanese arrive on five-year contracts in the banking and technology sectors and then return home afterwards. The best restaurants tend to be in central London, where most of the community works.
- Polish
The Polish community isn’t as distinct as some other ethnic communities in London. Andrzej Morawicz, President of a well-known Polish club, puts this down to integration. ‘When you are a large enough community, it’s easy to hold on to your culture and customs. In comparison, the Polish community has become part of British society to a large extent, so keeping up traditions isn’t easy.’ All the same, you can hear Polish conversations along King Street in Hammersmith, West London, where newsagents’ windows are full of advertisements in Polish for the benefit of the local community. There are also plenty of clubs, restaurants and food shops that help to keep traditions alive. There is even a daily Polish-language newspaper, Dziennik Polski.
- Lebanese
The first Lebanese who came to London were almost all business people, but over the last twenty years people from all walks of life have settled here. Joycelyn, a history graduate from Lebanon, now runs a delicatessen and is very enthusiastic about London life. ‘The community is getting stronger and bigger,’ she explains. ‘When I first came here, I never heard anyone speak Arabic. Now I can hear my language everywhere.’ Although there isn’t a geographically defined ‘Little Lebanon’ there are many shops and restaurants in West London and along the Edgware Road.
(From Fast Track to FCE coursebook by Alan Stanton and Mary Stephens, Longman)
Use of English (Time: 45 minutes)
Task 1
For questions 31-45 read the introduction to a book about action sports below and use the words to the right of the text to form a word or a grammar structure that fits in the same numbered space in the text. There is an example at the beginning (0).
Action Sports and
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Risk-takers (0) have been taking part in action sports since the beginnings of time: the new challenge has always appealed to (31) _____________ minds. The trick with risks is to understand the (32) ______________ dangers and then remove them by treating each as a problem with only one solution: the safe one. From the outside the game still looks ‘risky’, but the (33) ____________ who understands the difficulties, the game is a personal test of skill, rather than nerve. None of these sports ought to be (34) _____________; if they are, you’re doing something wrong.
Risk-taking has other benefits. The (35) ____________ cure for a stressful working life may not be a week flat-out on a beach; emptying the mind merely leaves it open for occupation by the home stresses which you take with you. Pick up a new challenge, something that is exciting, stretching, new, and you not only escape entirely from that other life, but return to it on a wave of confidence and
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seemed part of everyday life.
Action sports offer an escape, one where you learn very
(37) ___________: in one week – or even in one weekend – you can learn more about yourself than you did all year. All inner fears
(38) ______________ in the burn of concentration demanding by learning to fly, dive, ride or climb. The pride earned through
(39) _____________ from an aeroplane at 12,000 feet, or learning to roll a canoe, will stay with you for life. Then there are the other spi-offs: the mental calm which (40) _________ with rock-climbing; the wonderful colours of caves; the moment of freedom (41) _________ during that first flightbeneath the wing of a glider. All these sports cause a wonderful thrill – be it dashing waves or free-falling through the air at 120 miles per hour – but thrills are just a part of the story. Many of these sports double as types of travel. Horses, bicycles, skis, hot-air balloons can be used as vehicles for truly exotic journeys; journeys on which you can look at landscapes (and (42) _________) from a new angle. And all of these are ‘soft’ vehicles; ones which allow you to move through, and feel for, the countryside, the mountains and deserts.
The sports in this book cover the complete range of physical and mental skills: they can (43) _________ from your own doorstep or from any one of hundreds of places abroad. The sports demand as little as the cost of a pair of boots to as much as it costs to buy a flying machine. Some of them are very easily reached (I have a friend who goes gliding in his lunch-break), while others require travelling-time and complex (44) _________.
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(Text from First Certificate Gold Practice Exams book by Amos Paran, Longman); task by the author)
Task 2
Read the story of Beauty and the Beast. Fill each space (46-60) with a suitable word. There is an example at the beginning (0).
Once upon a time, (0) there was a man who had three daughters. The family (46) _________ have much money and they had to work hard to survive. Only the youngest daughter tried to (47)_________ brave and happy. Her name was Beauty because she was very (48) _________. One day the father decided to go away and earn some money. The two eldest daughters asked for new clothes and jewellery, (49) _________ Beauty said that she would just like a rose.
As the father was walking back through the forest, he found a large castle. In the garden, he saw some roses and remembered (50) _________ promise to Beauty. As he picked one, a terrible Beast appeared who was angry that he had taken a rose. The Beast said he (51)_________ kill the man unless he could marry one of his daughters.
So the father took Beauty to stay at the Beast’s castle. Beauty was frightened of the Beast at first, but she enjoyed her days (52) _________ there were many interesting things to do. And, (53) _________ she was asleep, she always had beautiful dreams about a handsome prince. In the dreams, the prince told (54) _________ to distrust appearances, to let her heart guide her, and not her eyes.
Generally, Beauty was happy and soon she was not afraid (55) _________ the Beast anymore. Every evening, the Beast came to Beauty (56) _________ asked if she would marry him. Every evening, Beauty said no, because although he was kind, the Beast was very ugly. Then, one morning, Beauty found the Beast lying in the garden and so she thought (57)_________ was dead. Suddenly, she realized that she really loved him she began to cry. The Beast (58) _________ dead, however, and began to move.
Later that evening, the Beast came in and again asked if Beauty would marry him. This time she said yes, and when she looked at the Beast, she saw that he had turned (59) _________ the prince from her dreams and tat she had rescued him. They got married the (60) _________ day, and Beauty and the Prince lived happily ever after.
(Text from Going for Gold Intermediate coursebook by Richard Acklam and Araminta Crace, Longman); task by the author)
Writing
Time: 45 minutes
Participant’s ID number
A holiday magazine has asked its readers to send in articles describing their own experiences of holidays. Write an article describing a holiday you have taken and explaining what it was about the holiday that made it so memorable.