Mount Everest, located in the Himalayas, is the greatest of all mountains. It’s often called the third pole of the Earth. It is 8,882 metres above the sea level.
Since the end of the 19-th century climbers have been ambitious to conquer Everest. The first expedition dares back to 1921. That expedition had the task of exploration and in that they were successful.
There are all kinds of difficulties to overcome. Great masses of snow break away, in many places steps have to be cut in the ice; the climate is severe, there are nearly always strong winds. The climbers’ greatest enemy is the lack of oxygen. The expeditions have to take with them supplies of oxygen to reach their destination. There is also a difficulty with acclimatization.
Some of the attempts ended in disaster. The slopes of Everest became the grave of many brave men. In 1924 two English climbers succeeded in reaching the height of 8,570 m, but neither of them came back.
In 1951-1952 the British and Swiss expeditions found a rout that might be followed to the top. Among them was a man who a year later became the first conqueror of Everest. He was Tenzing Norgay, a Sherpa guide. The Sherpas are a tribe of hill men who live in the valleys of Northern Nepal. They are used to live among high mountains and are brave and skillful guides. They have been employed as guides and porters for the Himalayan expeditions.

TASK 2
These people want to find a coffee shop or a nice place to eat. Decide which café would be the most suitable for them.

7. Alice is a travel agent in a small resort at the seaside. In the morning she usually has a big breakfast because she only has a one hour lunch break. She often has some extra work at lunchtime. There are a lot of cafes around but they all serve traditional British food, but Alice prefers unusual and strong flavours.
8. Ms. Haron is 76. She is a retired History teacher. She is proud to be British and wants to visit a traditional place to spend her afternoon. She doesn’t like noisy and crowded coffee shops.
9. Mr. Brown and Mr. Grey are businessmen. They work long hours. They deal with sales reps coming from all over Europe. At the end of the long meeting they like having a quick but high quality meal with them.
10. Christian is a personal trainer in a sports centre. He is interested in travelling at the moment. Unfortunately, he is allergic to some food. He can’t stand meat, but he loves eating other types of dishes, particularly eggs.

TASK 3
Read the dialogues. Match each gap (11-15) with the missing phrase (1-6). There is one extra phrase.

Dialogue 1
A: Excuse me. Could you help me?
B: Of course. (11) ___________
A: Do you have any waterproof winter boots on sale.
B: Oh, I’m sorry, we don’t have anything of the kind. You’d better search for them on the Internet first.
A: (12) ________________

Dialogue 2
A: How can I help you?
B: You see. I bought a mobile phone from your shop a week ago. (13) _____ . It won’t turn on.
A: Let me see. Can I have your charger?
B: Sure, here is it.
A: It seems to be out of order. I’ll get a new one for you. (14) _______
B: Will you please make sure that the new one is working?
A: Certainly. (15) ___________ .
B: Thank you so much!

Kangaroo is one of the symbols of Australia. They are famous for 16 ____ leaping abilities. The 17 _____ kangaroo is the male red kangaroo whose head and body can grow up to 2 metres tall and about 1 meter long. It can weigh 90 kilograms. Kangaroos 18 ______ “living pogo sticks”(ходули). The grey kangaroo can jump 19 _____ than 9 metres long and almost 2 metres high. A kangaroo moves 20 _____ all four 21 ______ plus 22______ tail for balance.
Some kangaroos live in social groups, others 23 _____. Within a group the individuals are safer.

TASK 2
Read the text and choose the correct word (1-8) to complete the gaps (24-28). There are 3 extra words.
1. invented 2. developing 3. producing 4. production 5. extremely 6. importance 7. instrument 8. keyboard

A piano is a musical (24)________ classified as a percussion instrument that is played by pressing keys on a (25) _________ . Each key is a lever that makes a hammer inside, (26) ______ a sound. Each string has a different length and so produces a different note.
The piano has been an (27) _______ popular instrument in Western classical music since the late 18th century. A person who plays the piano is called a pianist.
Although the piano was (28) _____ at the beginning of the 18th century, it was not until 50 years later than it started to become popular. The first time the piano was played in a public concert in London was in 1768 when it was played by Johann Christian Bach.