Методические указания к видеокурсу ''США'' по развитию и совершенствованию навыков речевой деятельности на английском языке по теме ''Соединенные Штаты Америки'' для студентов бакалавриата естественных факультетов университета

Министерство образования Российской Федерации Ростовский государственный университет ——————————————————————————————— Кафедра английского языка естественных факультетов

Методические указания к видеокурсу «США» по развитию и совершенствованию навыков речевой деятельности на английском языке по теме “Соединенные Штаты Америки” для студентов бакалавриата естественных факультетов университета

Ростов-на-Дону 2001

Составители: преп. Голод Е.Б., преп. Потребич Е.С. Рецензент: ст.преп. Резникова С.Ю.

Методическая записка Данные методические указания, разработанные по видеокурсу «США», имеют своей целью расширение и углубление страноведческих знаний студентов по теме “Соединенные Штаты Америки» и дальнейшее развитие и совершенствование навыков говорения и аудирования на английском языке в пределах данной темы. Методические указания также способствуют накоплению тематического вокабуляра. Методические указания состоят из 11 частей, включающих как разнообразные лексические задания, так и текстовую основу (скрипт) к видеокассете. Разработанные задания побуждают студентов к обмену мнениями, комментированию, высказыванию личного отношения к полученной информации, т.е. способствует развитию и совершенствованию навыков общения на английском языке.

Introduction

Introducing the USA A. Ex.1 Here are the lines of the hymn we hear in the video. Find the last word of each line in the list below, then watch the film again to check your answers. Skies, majesties, thee, brotherhood, plain, sea, grain, America. Oh beautiful for spacious …. For amber waves of …. For purple mountain …. Across the fruited …. America! ….. God shed his grace on …. And crown thy good with …. From sea to shining …. B. Ex.1 Complete the sentences 1) Migrating people ………………………………………since time immemorial. 2) Following animal migrations ………………. the first known settlers came by land across …………………. from …………… 3) Each culture has brought its own ……………, …..…………, …..………. and ………… to this land of endless ……….. and unlimited …………………….. Part one

The city of Boston A. General comprehension Ex.1 Watch the scene about the city of Boston and number the places below in the order you see them: ‰ Boston Common ‰ Old State House ‰ Old North Church ‰ Paul Revere’s house ‰ Freedom Trail B. Vocabulary pay the tax reveal harbor

lantern conviction massacre

secure witness deriving

stalls consent

stroll bale

stamp act

Ex.1 Match the word and the translation. 1. pay the tax a) гавань 2. reveal b) быть свидетелем 3. harbor c) защищать 4. lantern d) прилавок, палатка 5. conviction e) прогулка 6. massacre f) платить налог 7. secure g) согласие 8. witness h) закон о Гербовом Сборе 9. derive i) фонарь 10. stalls j) тюк 11. consent k) бойня, резня 12. stroll l) убеждение 13. bale m) показывать 14. stamp act n) выводить, происходить Ex.2 Fill in the suitable word. Secure, bales, witnessed, stroll, reveals, deriving, conviction, consent, stamp act, harbor, stalls, lanterns, pay the tax, massacre 1. In 1773 by the impassioned protest, taxation without representation this tyranny did not sway the English parliament to remove the hated ______ ______, Boston patriots staged the Boston Tea Party. 2. In this heart felt protest colonists tossed ________ of tea into the Boston ________ rather than _____ ____ ______. 3. Two years later, on April 18, 1775, Sexton Robert Newman climbed to the steeple of Old North Church and hung two _________ in the belfry arch. 4. Out of the American Revolution was born a new nation founded on the ________that the purpose of government is to _______ the happiness of the people, ________its just powers from the __________of the government. 5. The historic Freedom Trail _______the places and buildings where the history of the United States began. 6. The Freedom Trail was the site of many protests including the 1770 Boston ________in which five patriots were killed. 7. Two hundred years later Bostonians still hold public debates in the Hall, whose walls have echoed with words that changed the course of history, walls that __________the birth of freedom.

8. The adjacent Samuel Hall Market place bustles with busy bistros, boutiques, trotter’s ________and colorful flower stands. 9. Meandering hand in hand along the Charles River is a traditional lovers’________, watching the sculls skim across the water as swift as swallows. C. Detailed comprehension (1) Watch the video again and answer these questions: 1) In what state is the city of Boston situated? 2) What does the expression “Boston Tea Party” mean? 3) What is the purpose of the government according to the conviction of the Americans? 4) Where do Paul Revere, Samuel Adams and John Hancock rest in peace? 5) What is the Old North Church famous for? 6) What is the nick name of the Samuel Hall? 7) Where is Harvard University situated? 8) What is the oldest historic building of the University? Detailed comprehension (2) Match the date and the event. 1773 1) Boston massacre in which five patriots were killed 1775 2) Boston Tea Party took place 1634 3) Harvard University was founded 1770 4) Massachusetts Hall was built at Harvard University 1636 5) Newman climbed to the steeple of Old North Church and hung two lanterns that “lighted the way to Freedom” 1720 6) The establishment of Boston Common Detailed comprehension (3) Here are the lines of the poem of the famous New England poet Henry Wardsworth Longfellow. Put them in right order. ‰ To every Middlesex village and farm ‰ Ready to ride and spread alarm ‰ For the country folk to be up and to arm ‰ One if by land and two if by sea ‰ And I on the opposite shore will be D. Comment on a statement 1) Boston Tea Party was the impassioned protest against the taxation. 2) The American Revolution made up the new American nation. 3) Samuel Hall, one of the sights of Boston, is often called “The Cradle of Liberty”.

Part two

New York A. General comprehension Write five sights as you see them. B. Vocabulary eclectic neurotic urban repulsive

refuge diversity beacon deafening roar

significance daredevils

Ex.1 Here are the adjectives that characterize either the city itself or something in it. Group them into two columns: one with positive meaning and one with negative. Eclectic, neurotic, exotic, exciting, urban, ugly, repulsive, largest, impressive Ex.2 Match the adjective and the noun with which it was used. 1) new a) street 2) massive b) curtain 3) impenetrable c) refuge 4) shining d) statue 5) busy e) significance 6) spiritual f) oasis 7) green g) mix 8) ethnic h) roar 9) deafening i) streets 10) cultural j) life 11) urban k) diversity 12) legendary l) beacon C. Detailed comprehension (1) Watch this section of the video again and answer the questions. 1) What was New York for more than half a century? 2) Who is the architect of the Statue of Liberty? 3) What are the five districts in New York? 4) What was the central park previously? 5) What island gave the European immigrants an opportunity of new hope, a new home, often a new name and always a new life? 6) In what state is Niagara Falls situated? 7) What is the height of the tallest fall?

8) What does the very name “Niagara” mean? Detailed comprehension (2) Watch the scene again and choose the right answers. 1) New York is called a) Big City; b) Big Apple; c) Big Orange; 2) The Statue of Liberty was constructed in a) 1986; b) 1896;c) 1886; 3) The Statue is a) 150 feet high; b) 115 feet high; c) 50 feet high; 4) The Statue weighs a) 225 tons; b) 125 tons; c) 135 tons; 4) New York is a) 30,4 miles long and 2,3 miles wide at its widest point; b) 13,4 miles long and 2,13 miles wide at its widest point; c) 14,4 miles long and 4,3 miles wide at its widest point 6) New York is home to more than a) 7 mln people; b) 17 mln people; c) 70 mln people; 7) The Central Park was set in a) 1867; b) 1837; c) 1857; Detailed comprehension (3) Watch the extract about the Niagara Falls once again and choose the right answer: 1) Niagara Falls is a) one fall; b) a group of falls; c) three falls; 2) The tallest fall is a) the great fall; b) the American fall; c) the Lincoln fall; 3) a) Colonists; b) Native Americans; c)The British Queen gave the name “Niagara” to the fall. 4) The legends spoke of a a) beautiful woman; b) Belligerent God; c) magician; who lived behind the curtain of the rushing water D. Comment on a statement 1) Niagara is an impressive and noisy wonder with which an interesting legend is connected. 2) The Statue of Liberty is a symbol of America. 3) New York is the city divided into five districts. Part three

Philadelphia A. General comprehension Watch the video and look at these statements. Which of them are true? 1) Philadelphia was the nation’s first capital during the Revolutionary war. 2) The city was founded on oppression and religious segregation. 3) The Chapter of privileges opened with the words from the Constitution, which in 1752 were engraved on the Liberty Bell. 4) Americans most historic square mile is Independence National Historic Park.

5) 6) 7) 8)

The Declaration of Independence was signed there. The constitution was adopted in Philadelphia. Elvis Presley was buried in Philadelphia. Elvis Presley is remembered as the King by the Americans.

B. Vocabulary draft inspire unalienable

pursuit tolerance proclaim

engrave proprietor

Ex.1 Fill in the appropriate word Inspire, drafted, pursuit, proclaim, tolerance, engraved, unalienable. 1) The declaration of independence and the Constitution were both _______ in Philadelphia. 2) Thomas Jefferson’s powerful words in the Declaration of Independence still ________ the heart and stir the mind. 3) We hold these truths to be self-evident that all are endowed with certain ____________ rights that among these are Life, Liberty and ________ of Happiness. 4) William Penn, Jr., a Quaker, founded the city of brotherly love on the basis of religious freedom and ____________. 5) To governor colony proprietor William Penn, Jr. drew up the Charter of privileges which opened with their words from the Bible: ____________ Liberty through out all the land, unto all the inhabitants there of. 6) In 1752 these words were ___________ on the Liberty Bell. C. Detailed comprehension Answer the questions. 1) Who founded the city? 2) Who were the first settlers of the city? 3) Where was the Constitution drafted? 4) How did the poet Shelley characterize King George III? 5) Where did the first continental Congress meet? 6) What are the unalienable rights of any person? 7) Where did the representatives of the first US Congress took their seats? D. Comment on a statement. 1) Philadelphia is the birthplace of the American Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

Part four

Washington A. General comprehension Answer the questions: 1) Where is the capital of the USA situated? 2) Who is the engineer of the city? 3) In what years was the city laid? 4) How does the memorial look like? 5) By whom was the Memorial designed? 6) Who gave half a million dollars to found an Institution to increase and diffuse knowledge? 7) What is the site of the House of Representatives and the Senate? 8) What does the White House symbolize? B. Vocabulary exquisitely fusion fragile

immensely carve entire

legacy on display ultimate

Ex.1 Substitute the italicized word or expression by another word Entire, immensely, fusion, carved, exquisitely, on display, ultimate 1) During the blossom of the cherry trees subtly transform the capital into the perfect mixture of beauty and power. 2) The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is extremely moving and powerful. 3) The names are engraved in shinning stone. 4) He left his all fortune to the US. 5) Only 1% of the collection is shown. 6) Washington is the main seat of power in the US. C. Detailed comprehension Fill in the missing information 1) President Washington appointed French engineer Pier Lanfar to lay out the new capital along the __________________ in 1791. 2) His grand idea for Promenade — the Mall — would later connect the _________ to the ________ ___________ with 2 miles of open green space and elegant reflecting pools. 3) Designed by a young woman, __-year-old Mia Ying Lynn, the Memorial preserves the names of all those dead or missing in the Vietnam War.

4) The ___-foot wall bearing the names of the _____ lost makes its own silent statement about the cost of war in human lives. 5) One of the most popular collections of the Smithsonian is the __________________ Museum, which has everything from the Wright brothers’ plane to the Apollo 11 command module. 6) The plans of the White House were scaled down considerably by president _____________ who removed the entire third story. 7) But as soon as _______________ became president he immediately set about enlarging it by adding the east and west wings. 8) __________ _________ has become the symbol of the judicial branch. D. Comment on a statement. 1) Washington is the seat of power. 2) Mall is a grand Promenade of open green space and elegant reflecting pools. 3) A gift of an Englishman who had never been to the USA. Part five

Okefenokee and Everglades A. General comprehension Watch the scenes about Okefenokee and Everglades and tick the things below that you can see in Okefenokee and cross that you can see in Everglades. ‰ Slow moving fresh water river ‰ Tall cypress ‰ Mosquitoes ‰ Graceful gray mosses ‰ Still waters B. Vocabulary draped mosses spiritual

mysterious trembling extraordinary

take root

Ex.1 Match the expression as you hear it and make your own sentence with it 1. elegantly a) mosses 2. gray b) Westlands 3. luxuriant c) draped 4. eternally d) earth 5. trembling e) mysterious 6. spiritually f) take root

7. extraordinary 8. tree

g) powerful h) vegetation

C. Detailed comprehension Make true sentences Everglades 1) means the land of the trembling earth Okefenokee 2) stretches across Southern Georgia into Florida 3) is unlike of any other ecosystem on the continent 4) was called the river of grass by the Seminoles 5) is a river 100 miles long, 50 miles wide and no more than a few inches deep 6)) covers an area of 660 square miles 7) ‘s channels meander out into the gulf of Mexico D. Comment on a statement 1) Tall cypress is reflected in still waters of Okefenokee. 2) Everglades is unlike of any other ecosystem on the continent. Part six

New-Orleans A. General comprehension Watch the scenes about New-Orleans and number the things as you see them. ‰ Cathedral of St. Louis ‰ Balconies, shutters and courtyards ‰ Jackson Square ‰ French and Spanish countryside ‰ Masquerade ‰ picturesque French Quarters B. Vocabulary cajun creole crawdad

cobbled crew to toss

drought shutter

Ex.1 Translate the words and make a sentence with it. Cajun Creole Crawdad Cobbled Crew

To toss Drought Shutter C. Detailed comprehension (1) Watch the video again and answer these questions 1) When was the city settled? 2) What does the French Quarter embody? 3) How many parades are taken during New Orleans Carnival season? 4) What is the most spectacular one? 5) What are the main parts of masquerades? Detailed comprehension (2) Which sentences are true? 1) The city was settled by French in 1720. 2) The French Quarter’s Crede architecture combines both Spanish and German styles. 3) The Mardi Gras parade is the most spectacular 4) Kings and Queens toss souvenirs the crowds from the houses. 5) Masks and costumes are necessary in the biggest outdoor masquerade. D. Comment on a statement. 1) One of the cities I would like to visit is New Orleans because … 3) I would like to visit the New Orleans masquerade because … Part seven

The Mississippi River and Chicago A. General Comprehension Watch the scene about the Mississippi River and answer the questions. 1) How does the Mississippi divide the US? 2) What resources were shipped out to Europe? 3) How did Mark Twain call the river? 4) What does nom de plume “Mark Twain” signify? 5) What flowed up and down the Mississippi between New Orleans and Chicago? B. Vocabulary to snack to conduct crooked stint

to flourish to invent to stun innovation

fathom to surge

whirlwind curvature

Ex. 1 Match the word and the translation. 1. stint a) новшество 2. flourish b) ограничение 3. innovation c) процветать 4. whirlwind d) кривой 5. crooked e) делить поровну Ex. 2 Complete the sentences choosing the appropriate word from the list. Curvature, crookedest, invented, stunning, flourished, surge, whirlwinds, conducted. 1) When the business was not being ____________ social life was. 2) Mark Twain called it “the ____________ river in the world. 3) With the advent of the rail roads Chicago ____________ as the major manufacturing center of the Midwest. 4) The windy city, Chicago, is known for its ___________ of political passion, dynamic weather and __________ innovation. 5) Chicago architects __________ the skyscraper. 6) People to make their products _______ into Chicago from the South. 7) So tall that from the observation deck it is possible to see the ____________ of the earth. C. Detailed Comprehension (1) Read the sentences and then watch the video again. Tick (\/) the right answers. 1. People surged into Chicago from a) the West; b) the East; c) the South; 2. People brought the a)jazz; b) blues; c) rock with them. 3. A city rises from the shores of the a) Pacific Ocean; b)Atlantic Ocean; c) seas of the Great Lakes 4. The city is known for its a)winds; b) dynamic weather; c) whirlwinds of political passion; c) skyscrapers; Detailed Comprehension (2) Which of the following sentences are true(T) and which are false(F)? Correct false answers. 1) The Mississippi River divides the US into 4 parts. 2) It snacks the US 2,553 miles north to south. 3) It is a large and long river. 4) The inferno that was the great fire of 1860 nearly leveled the city.

5) The jazz was born in Chicago. 6) The nom de plume “Mark Twain” means “water 2 fathoms deep”. D. Comment on a statement 1) The Mississippi is “ the crookedest river in the world”. 2) It is said that one must live the blues before one can sing the blues. 3) Chicago architects invented the skyscrapers and a new skyline rose like a Phoenix from the ashes. Part eight

Yellowstone National Park and The Grand Canyon A. General Comprehension Watch the scenes about Yellowstone Park and The Grand Canyon and tick(\/) the things below that you can see. at Yellowstone National Park mountains prairies pools of water sand deserts at The Grand Canyon the Colorado River forests mountains prairies B. Vocabulary to bedazzle to bewitch to bubble to plunge

wonder marvel to scald enchanted

rim ribbon bizarre to dwarf

Ex.1 Match the word and the translation. 1. dwarf a) странный 2. plunge b) очаравывать 3. bedazzle c) обжигать 4. scald d) стремительно погружаться 5. bizarre e) затмевать 6. bewitch f) ослепить блеском

Ex. 2 Here are the adjectives. Match them with the noun (water, landscape, prairies, mountains) with which it was used. scalding extraordinary red and yellow boiling towering icy spectacular bubbling sweeping Ex. 3 Fill the gaps in the sentences with the suitable words below. Dwarfed, ribbon, scalding, wonders, rim, enchanted, marvels, wonder. 1) The West encompasses the extraordinary __________ . 2) _________ water, shooting hundreds of feet into the air, pools of water – all those _______ are part of Yellowstone. 3) It is an _____________ land. 4) The Grand Canyon carved by the Colorado River that fact seems an impossibility when the slim ________ of water is seen from the _______ of the Canyon. 5) It is a just measure of the scope of this _______ that the Mighty Colorado is ______ by the very Canyon it created. C. Detailed comprehension (1) Watch the video again and then answer the questions. 1) What does the West encompass? 2) Who was the first who told people about Yellowstone? 3) What did people think about him? 4) Where is the history of the land written? 5) What is The Canyon chiseled in stone by? Detailed Comprehension (2) Which of the following sentences are true(T) and which are false(F)? Correct false answers. 1) John Colter was the first who told people about Yellowstone in 1800. 2) The part of the Park is only mountains. 3) Yellowstone National Park was the first established in the world. 4) There are no animals at all. 5) The Grand Canyon carved by the Mississippi River. 6) The history of the land is written in the Sediments. D. Comment on a statement 1. Yellowstone National Park is one of the most extraordinary places on the planet. 2. The West encompasses the extraordinary wonders and spectacular landscapes.

3. The Grand Canyon was chiseled in stone by time and incalculable forces of nature. Part nine

California Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Hollywood A. General Comprehension Watch the video and number the places below in the order you see them. ‰ Los Angeles’ streets and roads ‰ Las Vegas Casinos ‰ sunny beaches ‰ Movie Studios B. Vocabulary tacky glitzy excess explosion

glamorous roaring gladding to sprawl

love affair accurate to saunter amazing

Ex. 1 Match the word and the translation. tacky очаровательный glamorous удивительный sprawl прогуливаться saunter липкий amazing простираться Ex.2 Here are the adjectives. Match them with the city (LV, LA, Hollywood) with which it was used. a) amazing d) tacky b) legendary e) glamorous c) memorable f) glitzy C. Detailed Comprehension Watch the video again and tick(\/) the right answer. 1) Las Vegas is an island of a) neon; b)nickel; 2) Las Vegas has the art of a)playing cards; b)taking excess to extremes; 3) Los Angeles sprawls across a a) hundred square miles of low desert; b)thousand miles of forests; 4) American’s love affair with a)movie; b)automobile; reaches its peak in Los Angeles. 5) People in LA a)cycle; b) drive;

6) Burbank’s Media City is a home to a)actors and actresses; b)movie studios; 7) Burbank’s Media City is filled with a) waterfalls; b)animals; c) life; 8) In spring the desert sand is dotted with a)oasis; b) flowers; c) colours; D. Comment on a statement 1) Las Vegas is an island of neon. 2) People don’t walk in LA, they drive and the freeway traffic is legendary. 3) From the early comedies to the blockbuster epics Hollywood continues to entertain its audience. Part ten

Yosemite National Park and Alaska A. General comprehension Which of the following sentences are true (V) and which are false (X). 1) Alaska is the northern state in the USA. 2) Alaska is the second largest state in the USA. 3) The highest waterfall on the North American continent is Niagara Fall. 4) Yosemite National Park is a valley surrounded by rocks. B. Vocabulary superlative understatement incredible peninsula

sheer curve glacier cliff

Ex.1 Match the word and the translation 1. curve 2. sinuous 3. glacier 4. sheer 5. incredible 6. cliff

stupendous sinuous cascade carpet a) невероятный b) скала c) извилистый d) изгиб e) ледник f) отвесный

Ex.2 Fill the gaps in the sentences with the suitable words below. Sheer, incredible, shines, cascade, preserves, superlatives, carpets, cliffs. 1) Yosemite valley is walled by ___________ granite __________ from which waterfalls __________. 2) Alaska is a kind of place ____________________ were made for. 3) “De Nabe” National Park _______________ native mild land.

4) Spring comes in late June, when _________ of wild flowers cover the ground, the arctic sun ____________ 20 hours a day. 5) Along the Cape May peninsula some of the world’s most ____________fishing takes place. C. Detailed comprehension Watch the video again and tick (V) the right answer. 1) Yosemite valley is walled by sheer granite cliffs a)100 mile high; b) 10 mile high; c) 1 mile high; 2) Yosemite Fall plunges a) 2,400 feet; b)2,420 feet; c) 2,425 feet; 3) El Capitan is the known largest a) river; b) waterfall; c) block of granite; 4) Alaska’s mount McKinley towers more than a) 2,000 feet; b) 20,000 feet; c) 2000 feet; 5) “De Nabe” National Park comprises a)mountains; b) tundra; c)waterfalls; 6) The Cape May peninsula is famous for a) sunbathing; b) fishing; skating; D. Comment on a statement 1) National Parks are truly national in scope. 2) The largest state, Alaska, is a kind of place superlatives were made for. Part eleven

Hawaiian Islands A. General comprehension Watch the scene about Hawaiian Islands and answer the questions. 1) How long do Hawaiian Islands stretch? 2) Which ocean are they washed by? 3) How were they formed? 4) Where were they clustered? 5) What was the largest volcano called by native Hawaiians? 6) How many miles does the valley encompass? 7) How long is it deep? 8) What is the true experience of the Haleakala? B. Vocabulary cluster eruption inhabited dormant encompass

lasso dawn burnish molten flame

Ex.1 Match the word and the translation. 1. cluster a) спящий

soar blazed

2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8.

molten lasso dormant soar dawn encompass burnish

b) рассвет c) блестеть d) окружать e) жидкий f) ловить арканом g) располагать группами, теснить h) взмывать, взлетать

Ex.2 Match the words to make correct phrases. 1. long 6. rising a) Hawaiians 2. native 7. molten b) volcano 3. dormant 8. silver c) chain 4. volcanic 9. inhabited d) islands 5. blue 10. flaming red e) gold

f) g) h) i) j)

waters sky sun sea eruptions

C. Detailed comprehension Here are the lines of poetry we hear in the video. Find the last word of each in the list below, then watch the scene again to check your answers. Night, colour, free, sky, richness, horizons, freedom, equal. A nation born on a burning desire for …, A vast land of extraordinary …, Forests that blazed with natural …, Prairies that stretched to endless …, Mountains that soar into the …, Cities that gleam against the …, A country dedicated to the proposition that all are created …, A nation that grew up to be a land of the …! D. Comment on a statement. 1) In what way are nature preserves useful to man? 2) The USA — the country of Diversity. TAPESCRIPT (USA) I Introduction (1:48) O beautiful for spacious skies,

For amber waves of grain For purple mountain majesties Aсross the fruited plain! America! America! God shed his grace on thee And crown thy good with brotherhood From sea to shining sea!

Washing over the coasts like vast waves migrating people have left their mark on the North American continent since time immemorial. Following animal migration’s eastward, the first known settlers came by land across the Bering Strait from Asia. Thousands of years later navigators sailed across storm tossed trackless seas and each culture has brought its own words, religion, wisdom and music to this land of endless richness and unlimited human potential. Discovering the USA Part one The city of Boston (5:10) European immigrants seeking new lives fled persecution, oppression and poverty in distant lands. Slowly they established colonies, cleared rocky fields and built small villages with uncertain futures. Many of them were on the North Atlantic Coast of what would become the United States. The place was Massachusetts and one of those villages grew up to be the city of Boston. In 1773 by the impassioned protest, taxation without representation this tyranny did not sway the English parliament to remove the hated stamp act, Boston patriots staged the Boston Tea Party. In this heart felt protest colonists tossed bales of tea into the Boston harbor rather than pay the tax. Two years later, on April 18, 1775, Sexton Robert Newman climbed to the steeple of Old North Church and hung two lanterns in the belfry arch: One if by land and two if by sea And I on the opposite shore will be Ready to ride and spread the alarm To every Middlesex village and farm For the country folk to be up and to arm. With those words, New England poet Henry Wardsworth Longfellow etched the story of poor Paul Revere’s ride in the mind of every American schoolchild. Paul Revere and William Dawes galloped headlong from Boston to warn the minute-men that the British were marching to seize the munitions stockpile at nearby Concord. The Americans routed the Red Coats with the shot heard round the world. A shot that foreshadowed the end of English tyranny and European colonialism in the Americas. The American Revolution had begun. Out of that revolution was born a new nation founded on the conviction that the purpose of government is to secure the happiness of the people, deriving its just powers from the consent of the government. The historic Freedom Trail reveals the places and buildings where the history of the United States began. The trail starts at Boston Common, established in 1634, and winds past the old granary burying ground where Paul Revere, Samuel Adams and John Hancock - all rest in peace!

Farther along, the Trail is Paul Revere’s house and the Old North Church where two small lanterns “lighted the way to Freedom”. Also along the Freedom Trail is the old State House, once the Counsel Chambers of the Royal Governors. It was the site of many protests including the 1770 Boston massacre in which five patriots were killed. Samuel Hall, often called “The Cradle of Liberty”, rang with the rhetoric of the revolutionaries and then the abolitionists. Two hundred years later Bostonians still hold public debates in the Hall, whose walls have echoed with words that changed the course of history, walls that witnessed the birth of freedom. The adjacent Samuel Hall Market place bustles with busy bistros, boutiques, trotter’s stalls and colorful flower stands. Across the Charles River in Cambridge is Harvard University, the oldest University in the country, founded in 1636. Tree-filled Harvard yard is ringed by some of the University’s most historic buildings; the oldest of all is Massachusetts Hall, built in 1720. Meandering hand in hand along the Charles River is a traditional lovers’ stroll, watching the sculls skim across the water as swift as swallows. Off the coast of Massachusetts lies the enchanting isle of Nantucket. Once the heart of New England’s whaling industry of Nantucket is remarkably well preserved retaining its 19th century charm. Flower covered cottages line in the narrow streets of the tiny village of Sconsets. Many legendary writers and artists have made their homes in the quaint picturesque setting. Nantucket, a lone ship on a timeless sea; bright rolling sand dunes that compete with sharp linear cliffs; roses so abundant and colorful, they seem almost commonplace. The peaceful environment found along the Cape Cod National Seashore remains a great retreat for those lucky enough to discover this beauty. The flaming fall colors of New England’s native maples, oaks and birches and entice thousands each year to turn out for this annual wonder of nature. Self-appointed leaf-peepers monitor in the silent shift from summer greens to the brilliant scarlets and golds of autumn, phoning in daily reports to local newspapers, which relay the news as breathlessly as any major sports event. Part two New York (5:32) Eclectic, neurotic, exotic and, above all, endlessly exciting. This is a big city, the “Big Apple”, the distilled excellence of the urban and the urbane. Drama or Trauma, New York, as it all - from Broadway to Greenwich Village, from Fifth Avenue to Times Square. New York City comes in every flavor there is.

For more than half a century, New York was the port of entry to the land of opportunity. Ellis Island gave the European immigrants an opportunity of new hope, a new home, often a new name and always a new life! The Statue of Liberty stands now as she has since 1886, lifting her lamp beside the golden door, her shining beacon welcoming your tired, your hungry, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free. To support Frenchman’s name sculptor massive statue standing 115 feet high and weighing 225 tons, the French engineer Gustave Eiffel designed an elaborate iron and steel skeletal frame similar to the one he would later build for the Eiffel Tower. To celebrate the great Lady’s centennial in 1986 the statue was completely renovated and fireworks emblazoned the sky enlightened the night. Setting a ring of bright waters, New York is the city divided into five boroughs: the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens, Staten Ireland and Manhattan. To most of the world, Manhattan is the city: New York, New York, 13.4 miles long and 2.3 miles wide at its widest point. Manhattan encompasses such legendary streets as Broadway, nationally recognized as pinnacle of legitimate Drama of Theatre, and Wall Street, the beating heart of American finance. Surrounded by tall buildings and busy streets is urban oasis of Central Park. Once a scrubland described by the poet William Cullen Bryant as “a waste land” ugly and repulsive, Central Park was transformed into an island of green refuge by Frederick Law Olmsted and Kelvin Calvert Box in 1857. Home to more than 7-mln people New York ranks as one of the world’s largest cities. The ethnic diversity of its villages and neighborhoods reflects the cultural mix that makes New York a world unto itself. The State of New York has another wonder as impressive and almost as noisy as the concrete canyons of Manhattan. Niagara Fall is actually not one waterfall but three, the tallest of which is the American fall at 182 feet high. The very name Niagara refers to the deafening roar of the plunging waters, it means “Thunder of water”. Named by the Adirondack Tribe the falls were a place of great spiritual significance to Native Americans. The legends spoke of a testy and Belligerent God who lived behind the vast impenetrable curtain of these headlong rushing waters. Many of the daredevils who attempted to go over the falls in barrels, ended up experiencing the God’s anger directly. Quite a few did not live to tell the tale and such attempts are no longer permitted.

Part three Philadelphia (2:23) Elvis Presley (2:43) The US was founded on the ideas of Liberty and Equality. These ideas came to their finest flower in Philadelphia where were drafted both, the Declaration of the Independence and the Constitution. Thomas Jefferson’s powerful words in the Declaration of Independence still inspire the heart and stir the mind. We hold these truths to be self-evident that all

are endowed with certain unalienable rights that among these are Life, Liberty and Pursuit of Happiness. Philadelphia was the new nation’s first capital during the Revolutionary War. William Penn, Jr., a Quaker, founded the city of brotherly love on the basis of religious freedom and tolerance. The first settlers were Quakers, seeking to live in quiet accordance with their beliefs. To governor colony proprietor William Penn, Jr. drew up the Charter of privileges which opened with their words from the Bible: proclaim Liberty through out all the land, unto all the inhabitants there of. In 1752 these words were engraved on the Liberty Bell. American’s most historic square mile is Independence National Historic Park. Independence Hall, a handsome example of Georgian architecture stood witness to the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the drafting of the Constitution. Defying King George III, whom the poet Shelley called, “an old, blind, mad, despised king”, the first continental Congress met at Carpenters Hall. The representatives of the first US Congress took their seats at Congress Hall. Like those that settled Philadelphia, the Amish came to Pennsylvania in the 18th century fleeing religious persecution. Clinging stead fastly to their belief in plane dress and simple living, many Amish do without cars, telephones or electricity. Farming with horses in the rich bottom land of Lancaster county, they have prospered quietly and steadily.

There is a popular misconception of a Pennsylvanian “Dutch” embodied in their names. They are not “Dutch” at all. “Dutch” is simply a mispronunciation of “Deutsche” which means “German”. True to their principles of peaceful cooperation they actively work with their neighbors on community activities. Auctions include everything from Amish quilts and used buggies to tractors. The past lives side by side with the present in peace and prosperity. No war has ever torn this nation apart philosophically the way the war between states did. No battle before or since has cost as many American lives as the one at Gettysburg in July 1863. The battle of Gettysburg proved to be the Watershed for the union, the Civil War in its favor. Confederate soldiers fought gallantly and well, the desperate courage and stirring heroism of its General Pickets’ charge, is legendary. 12000 soldiers, dressed in Confederate gray, charged Cemetery Ridge across an open wheat field in broad daylight. Deadly union fire gave the words slaughter and carnage devastating new dimension. 4 months later a bowed and haggard President Lincoln gave a speech dedicating the national cemetery at Gettysburg. Four score and 7 years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. We here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain and this nation under God shall have a new birth for freedom and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the Earth. The south incorporates a stunningly rich diversity of American cultures: Appalachian, Old South, New South, African, Cuban and Cajun.

Part four Washington (4:49) Power and beauty have always held a natural attraction but seldom are they combined in a single space. As the capital of the United States of America — Washington D.C., emanates the aura of power. When the cherry trees make their metamorphoses into pale clouds of pink and white blossoms, the city is exquisitely transformed by their fragile loveliness — the perfect fusion of beauty and power.

It is difficult to believe that this magnificence grew out of what George Washington described as a mosquito-infested swamp. President Washington appointed French engineer Pier Lanfar to lay out the new capital along the Potomac River in 1791. His grand idea for Promenade — the Mall — would later connect the Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial with 2 miles of open green space and elegant reflecting pools. The polished black granite walls of the powerful and immensely moving Vietnam Veterans Memorial reflects the sun, the grass and the faces of those who come to see and touch the names carved in shining stone. Designed by a young woman, 21-year-old Mia Ying Lynn, the Memorial preserves the names of all those dead or missing in the Vietnam War. As part of the design criteria the monument could make no political statement on the Vietnam War. But the 492-foot wall bearing the names of the 58000 lost makes its own silent statement about the cost of war in human lives. Also on the Mall is a gift from an Englishman who had never been to the United States. He left his entire fortune — half a million dollars to found an Institution in Washington to increase and diffuse knowledge. His name was James Smithson and his legacy is the Smithsonian Institution. The flamboyant “The Castle” was the first of these museums. At last count, the Smithsonian administers 14 museums with a staff of 4000 and houses 75-mln items in its collection. So, packed is American’s attic that only 1-% of the collection of museum of Natural History is on display. One of the most popular collections is the National Air and Space Museum, which has everything from the Wright brothers’ plane to the Apollo 11 command module. Lanfar’s original design called for a large president’s Palace. Secretary of State — Thomas Jefferson remarked that the proposed residence was large enough for 2 emperors – one pope and a grand lama. The plans were scaled down considerably by president Washington who removed the entire third story. But as soon as Jefferson became president he immediately set about enlarging it by adding the east and west wings. Built of white sandstone, what Washington had called the President’s House, was soon nicknamed the White House. It symbolizes the executive branch of government. Capitol Hill - site of the House of Representatives and the Senate, has become symbol of the legislative branch and the Supreme Court of the judicial branch. Considering that Washington D.C. is the ultimate seat of power in the United States, what lingers longest is the impression of Washington’s monumental beauty. Many of the homes in these smoky mountains were left in ruins by the Civil War, patiently rebuilt again over the years they retain much of their original down home charm.

The Appalachian culture, its handcrafts, music and song, remain as vibrant as they were more than a century ago. Country music grew up in poverty just like many of its singers and songwriters. The sound came to Nashville, Tennessee during the Great Depression when country folk who had little suddenly discovered with possible to have less. They flocked to Nashville and brought with them their music. Centuries old Irish and British folk songs made up with the rhythms of Tin Pan Alley, the fervor of Gospel and the aching melodic lines of the songs of former slaves. Then singers added dreams of fame and riches. Out of the potent mix of poverty, hope and music came Hank Williams, Roy Acuff, Dolly Parton and Loretta Lynn. In 1954 Elvis Presley was turned away from the Grand Ole Opry with the advice that he stick to driving a truck. The same year promoter Sam Phillips heard him sing rock-n-roll met the main stream and a skinny dark-haired, kid with swivel hips made the introduction. Parent-child relationships have never been quite the

same. Elvis was 22 years old when he bought Grace land to go with its gold-laden Cadillac covered with 90 coats of paint-crushed diamonds. Grace land stands on Elvis Presley Boulevard in Memphis, Tennessee. Elvis died and was buried here, the final resting-place of an American Music Legend remembered as the King. Located on a thumb of land where the Cooper and Ashley rivers flow into the sea, Charleston heard the first shot fired in the Civil War. Its gracious architecture and magnificent gardens retain the flavor and charm of the old South. A carriage rides through the historic district displays the city’s ample charms particularly the Calhoun mansion, a 30 room Victorian manner house built in 1876: the Admunston Austin House and the Nathaniel Russell House. 15 miles north of Charleston, Middletown Place is the oldest landscape garden in the country. A national historic landmark, the daily life of the 18th century self-sufficient low country plantation is recreated down to the last authentic details. Lush gardens laid out by Henry Middletown in 1841 featured the oldest camellias in the New World.

Part five Okefenokee (0:49) and Everglades (1:31) Dense with tall cypress elegantly draped with graceful gray mosses the luxuriant vegetation of Okefenokee Swamp is reflected in the still waters. This spiritually powerful eternally mysterious marshland covers an area of 660 square miles, stretching across Southern Georgia into Florida. The Creek Tribe gave it the name Okefenokee, land of the trembling earth. Miami is anomal among American cities. The Southern-most major city in the United States nobody thinks of it as being Southern. Much of Miami’s exotic appeal comes from its Latin heritage. Juan Ponce de Leon found Florida in 1513. Miami’s present Latin flavor is derived mainly from Cuban, Central and South American influences. Little Havana is a world of its own. Calle Ocho is the main street; lined with cafes with Cuban men concentrating intensely on dominos and cards. Many of the residents are the well-educated professionals who fled Cuban’s communist regime in the late 1950s. Others came much earlier, bringing such skills as the precision cutting and rolling of superb hand rolled cigars, using the same techniques that have made Havana cigars world famous. Many who come to Miami’s subtropical splendors, not fleeing political repression but seeking refuge from winter. Coconuts Grove famed, as an exclusive neighborhood is where International Harvest magnate Jame Doren decided to escape midwestern winters. 1000 workers labored two years to build him a 16th century style Venician Palazzo called Vizcaino. A placid estate surrounded by ten acres of formal gardens Vizcaino houses an eclectic collection of European art and Antiques. For most people Miami Beach is the soul and spirit of Miami. Best of all its South Beach a mile square district of colorful 1930s art-decor hotels and restaurants. Chic cafes line the sidewalks sleek facades pose for photographers and snowbirds. Northerners feeling winter’s chill share the beaches with relaxed, retirees. The road to relaxation popularly known as route A1A leapfrogged form island to island along the southern tip of Florida. Stretching tenuously out across the Turquoise Sea the Florida keys (quays) are a string of tiny islands that end in Key West, the Southern most point of the continental US.

90 miles from Havana, Cuba, Key West is a drift in a vast expensive of blue sea and sky. Mellow may be too hectic a term to describe the lifestyle of the residents, Conchs, a nickname for Key Westerners derived from the Conch shells found off shore. The 30000 islanders pass the time by taking careful inventory of the numerous drinking establishments, thrilling at the chance to land the big one. And watching the famous sunsets, best viewed from Mallory’s

Square a midst the artists and musicians. Famed novelist Ernest Papa Hemingway lived in Key West and used its enchanting islands as a setting for his novel “To have and have not”. Called the river of grass by the Seminoles who knew intimately the twistings and turnings of these extraordinary Westlands, Everglades National Park stands unique in all of North America. The Everglades is actually a slow moving fresh water river 100 miles long, 50 miles wide and no more than a few inches deep. Wherever the soil rises even three inches above the water, pine and hard wood trees take root.

Romantically labeled mermaids by the inebriated imaginations of early sailors manatees swim in long widening channels that meander out into the Gulf of Mexico. While many other animals and species of the Everglades are in danger extinction, unfortunately, the blood thirsty mosquitoes of which there are dozens of species are not. The Everglades is unlike of any other ecosystem on the continent. Part six New-Orleans (2:06) Cajun, Creole, crawdads and carnival – they all say New Orleans. The city was settled by the French in 1718 and the picturesque French Quarter embodies the original charm of New Orleans. The French Quarter’s Creole architecture combines both French and Spanish styles and it is noted for its iron-laced balconies, pastel wooden shutters and shady cobbled courtyards. Bordering Jackson Square, the heart of the French Quarter, and the Cathedral of St Louis are the Cabildo and the Presbyter. They stand as charming examples of wide Spanish arches blending smoothly with French man sour roofs. The Mardi Gras parade is only one of drouts 50 parades to take place during New Orleans Carnival season but it is certainly the most spectacular. Private clubs called crews hold grand balls, sponsor elaborate floats and choose Kings and Queens to toss souvenirs to the crowds from the floats. Masks and spectacular costumes join the brave in the country ‘s biggest outdoor masquerade. The word Cajun is a corruption of Acadian the name for the French Canadians exiled from Acadia after the treaty of Utrecht grant their colony in Nova Scotia to the British in 1713. They settled in the mysterious and isolated Louisiana bayous. Over the centuries the Cajun created a distinct culture with its own language, music and cuisine. Zydaco bands stomp and fiddle infectiously at clan gathering Cajun cooking is inextricably bound to the fresh natural bounty of the bayous: black and red fish, jambalaya and piles of steamed crawdads. Cajuns don’t eat, they feast.

Part seven The Mississippi River and Chicago (4:22) Plantations along the Mississippi River, north of New Orleans, contributed substantially to the city’s wealth. Slaves were brought from the Caribbean. Cotton, Indigo and sugar with shipped out to Europe. When business was not being conducted social life was. The Mississippi River divides the US geographically and culturally snaking 2,553 miles north to south and it is the North America’s largest and longest river. Excepting the waters of 100 tributaries and the soils of 31 states it separates the East from the West, the forests from the prairies. Changing course constantly the broad browned waters wave and curl extravagantly from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico in their leisurely meander to the sea. Mark Twain called it “the crookedest river

in the world”. After a 4-year stint as a Mississippi River boat pilot from the experience he took his nom de plume ”Mark Twain” which signified “water 2 fathoms deep”. Goods flowed both ways up and down the Mississippi between New Orleans and Chicago during the 19th century. With the advent of the rail roads Chicago flourished as the major manufacturing center of the Midwest. Raw materials flowed in and finished products poured out across the country. People to make these products surged into Chicago from the South bringing their music with them. That was the birth of the blues, specifically and legendary Chicago blues. It is said that one must live the blues before one can sing the blues and nowhere else is these sentiments expressed better than in Chicago. A city rises from the shores of the vast inland seas of the Great Lakes. The windy city, Chicago, is known for its whirlwinds of political passion, dynamic weather and, hence, stunning innovation. The inferno that was the great fire of 1871 nearly leveled the city. Within two decades a new urban architecture was born. Chicago architects invented the skyscraper and a new skyline rose like a Phoenix from the ashes. The 110-storey sears tower is the tallest building in the world. So tall that from the observation deck it’s possible to see the curvature of the earth. At the opposite end of the architectural scale Frank Lloyd Write pioneered the low single story , prairie style houses that became the prototype of the most of the homes built in 20th century America. Brides home and the adjacent studio in Oak Park are a superb example of this work. Some things are simply unique to Chicago. A century ago 90% of Chicago’s population were immigrants or first generation – Americans. It’s still entirely possible to wander throw an ethnic neighborhood and come away thinking you’ve been in a foreign country. Crossing the Mississippi river with all their worldly goods pioneers heading west in the mid-1800s considered St. Louis, the last bastion of civilization. To honor its role as the gateway to the West St. Louis erected as one of America’s most recognizable landmarks in 1965, The Gateway Arch. During the Westward movement of the 19th century the largest flood of human migration in the history of the US occurred. Thousands flooded out of the East seeking free farmlands and new fortunes. They bought their provisions, posted their last letters and followed the wagon ruts out of Missouri to the Oregon and Santa Fe Trails. In the 25 years after the Civil War, the settled areas of the country doubled in size.

Part eight Yellowstone National Park (2:28) and The Grand Canyon (1:03) Chimney Rock, Nebraska, stands sentinel as it did then, visible for days before it was finally reached, visible for days after it is had been passed. The wagons were loaded so heavily only the sick or very young could ride, everyone else walked across the continent step by weary step. The West encompasses the extraordinary wonders and spectacular landscapes. Sweeping prairies, towering mountains, bizarre Badlands and vast sand deserts, colours and shapes that bedazzle and bewitch. Locked in its mountain vastness Yellowstone National Park is so strange, so wondrous, that Stadage and other local tribes believed it to be underly and enchanted spell. When mountain man John Colter, first told people about Yellowstone in 1807, they thought he must be mad. Scalding water, shooting hundreds of feet into the air, pools of purple, red and yellow boiling and bubbling, icy water, plunging hundreds of feet into the river – yet Colter was indicated because all those natural marvels are part of Yellowstone. The first National park established in the world, Yellowstone is one of the most extraordinary places on the planet. It is an enchanted land and the animals are noless magical than the scenic wonders of Yellowstone. Bigger than all outdoors, better than any other place could possibly be, that’s the Texan’s view of Texas. Even American football takes no backseat in Texas. Rich with rustic adobe buildings and old Spanish missions set on the banks of a graceful curving river, San Antonio

was built on the site of a tiny native village in 1718.The village had welcomed its first European guests, nearly 120 years before when the roving Franciscan friar Pavle Massonette followed the river and stumbled on the village on the feast day of Saint Anthony and so named the village San Antonio. Shaded by luxurious cypress, oak and willow trees, cobbled paths wind their way along the San Antonio River for more than 2 miles of the Paseo del Rio, or river walk. At the heart of San Antonio is the mission San Antonio Debalero, best known as the Alamo, overrun by general Santa Anna’s huge Mexican army both backwoodsman David Crockette and mountain man James Bowie were among 189 men who died defending the Alamo in1836th. Austin, El Paso, Houston, Dallas – all are cities that around the center of countless stories of the old West. The flat Texas landscape is perforated with modern skyscrapers rising to compete for the sunlight. Cattle and oil have made the fortunes of many Texans. Thousands of head cattle raised on sprawling ranches are rounded up every year by cowboys and driven hundreds of miles north. Roundups, complete with Stetson-hatted cowboys and chuck wagons are still very much apart of Texas and what would a round up be without the signature cowboy boot. At the Tony Armor factory craftsmen ply their skills creating works of art in bull hide, ostrich and snake skin. Truly a luxury item ranges from $250 to $1900 a pair. 60% of all the oil and gas wells, drilled the US, are drilled within a 500 mile radius of Houston. Cattle and oil together fueled the massive human migrations that swept over Texas in the 19th and 20th centuries. In this stark inhospitable land of the south-west, the Anasassi whose name means “the ancient ones, built electric dwellings”. Some of them were built in almost inaccessible cliffs. They remain engineering marvels of this age-old agrarian civilization that migrated from the surrounding flat lands some 700 years ago. Archeologists believe that war fare and possibly the lack of water forced the Anasassi to seek safety and mountain springs high on the cliffs, in the land of the ancient ones only the silent, wind swept ruins remain. Called “the dancing ground on the sun” by Pueblo tribes, the site were Santa Fe, now stands in a 7000 foot high Plateau surrounded by sagebrush swept desert and the forested peaks of the Sandre de Cristy mountains. Efforts to preserve the areas of native culture and adobe architecture have resulted much research on the tribes and restoration of Pueblo ruins. Santa Fe is an active artists’ and writers’ colony. Novelist D.H. Lawrence wrote that: “ The moment I saw the brilliant proud morning, shine up high over the deserts of Santa Fe. Something stood still in my soul and the old world gave way to a new.”

The Grand Canyon carved by the Colorado River that fact seems an impossibility when the slim ribbon of water is seen from the rim of the Canyon. It is a just measure of the scope of this wonder that the Mighty Colorado is dwarfed by the very Canyon it created. The history of the land for millions of years is written in the Sediments. Chiseled in stone by time and the incalculable forces of nature. Part nine California Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Hollywood (4:53) An island of neon in the middle of a desert Las Vegas comes alive after dark with an explosion of lights. Glitzy, glamorous, tacky or merely amazing whichever the description it’s accurate. Surely Las Vegas has more neon per square mile than in any other place on earth. Las Vegas has the art of taking excess to extremes. Called Death Valley for its searing sands and soaring temperatures it is, in fact, filled with life. Busy, scurrying creatures often sleep by day and hunt in the cool of night. Spring wild flowers burst into bloom dotting the desert sand with brilliant colors.

Called the Golden West the Pacific region stretches from California to the Alaska, to the Hawaiian Islands. A land of opposites sandy sun soaked southern beaches give way to mysterious northern rain forests. The roar of fire and ice fills the air from active volcanoes to ancient glaciers. Often described as suburbs in search of a city – Los Angeles sprawls across a thousand square miles of low desert. American’s love affair with the automobile reaches its peak in LA and only for a moment grown men become boys in a sea of roaring classics. People don’t walk in LA, they drive and, of course, the freeway traffic is legendary. Burbank’s Media City it home to some of the most famous movie studio: Walt Disney Studio, locally known as the Mickey Mouse House, Warner Brothers and the NBC Television Studios are all here. Many of Hollywood’s most memorable moments were born in Burbank. From the early comedies to the blockbuster epics Hollywood continues to entertain its audience. What’s one word for fun on the beach, the answer has to be Venice. Roller-gladding, playing volleyball, sauntering or sunning, Venice has everything a beach could possibly offer.

Part ten Yosemite Northern National Park (1:30) and Alaska (2:00) Called the World’s most dramatic geological spectacle Yosemite National Park turns every superlative into an understatement. Yosemite valley is walled by sheer granite cliffs 1 mile high from which waterfalls cascade. The highest waterfall on the North American continent Yosemite Falls plunges 2,425 feet in two levels. The upper fall is 1500 feet high by itself, 9 times the height of Niagara. Glaciers left behind El Capitan the known largest single block of granite in the world and the massive half done so sheer it appears to have been cut with a knife. Spanning the opening to the bay the mile long Golden Gate Bridge is San Francisco’s best known landmark, built in 1935 during America’s Great depression, it’s easily one of the most beautiful bridges in the world. During the Gold Rush Chinese men imported to build the transcontinental railroad floated into San Francisco. Chinatown became and remains the largest Chinese community outside of Mainland China. An enclave of pagoda-roofed buildings and open-air produce bins the shops windows display of all the treasures of the Orient. Nearby is the North Beach with its colorful Italian neighborhood: the Castro district, is the center of San Franciscko’s gay community, and the Mission district, where Latino cultures maintain their heritage. Rested out of 1000 acres of wind swept sand dunes Golden Gate Park was the vision and life long passion of John McClaren, a crusty Scott who was the park’s first director. A Victorian Conservatory – a superb arboretum, an exquisite Japanese garden and three Fine Museums are nestled among the trees and lawns McClaren planted. More than 150 wineries California’s Napa and Sonoma valleys are dotted with vineyards and delightful country. The grapes produce dozens of premiere wine, including wines: Sauvignon, Pinongua, Chardonnays, Sauvonia, Sauvignon Blanc. Each of the wineries offer wine tasting insight into the history of wine making and often fascinating glimpses into the process itself from the vines to the grapes, to the crushing, to the casks. On the north-west coast of the continent of US the Olympic peninsula projects across Puget Sound. One of the few temperate rain forests the peninsula has grand trees whose trunk and branches are thick with mass. Firms, mushrooms, mosses and over 300 species of plants fill the forest with a sense of rich luxuriance. Here the north coast tribes lived in great prosperity, building comfortable long houses of cedar and feasting on salmon and shellfish. They still come to these shores to sing ancient songs and perform traditional dances. Edged by the deep blue waters of Puget Sound dominated by snow capped Mount Rainier Seattle has one of the most felicitous locations of any city in the US. True, it rains from October

to April undenied rumors circulate that residents don’t tan they rust. But all that rain keeps Seattle’s many parks and green belts a rich luxurious green year round. Seattle space Needle provides a 360-degree view of Puget Sound and surrounding mountains. Overlooking the Sound is Pike place market a farmer’s market founded in 1907. Some of the stalls have been handed down for three generations. A cornucopia of all the richest bounty of the west coast Pike Place Market- offers fresh caught, King Salmon, dungeoness crabs, oysters, asparagus, wild mushrooms, like morels, chanterelles and porcini, as well as blueberries, strawberries, peaches and apricots. It’s enough to make a serious cook delirious. Any of several charming islands in the Sound are reached by ferries that run, rain or shine, to Eliot Bay, to Bainbridge Island, up the Sound to Whidbey Island and over to Tillicam Village on Black Island. On the island native artists carve the stylized animals that offer totems for each clan, creating what is literally ‘a family tree’.

The largest state, the northern most state, Alaska, is a kind of place superlatives were made for. Called “De Nabe“, the great one, by the Athipasconis, Alaska’s mount McKinley towers more than 20,000 feet, the highest peak on the North American continent. De Nabe National Park comprises the stupendous 6mln acres of mountains and tundra set aside to preserve native wild land. Spring comes in late June, when carpets of wild flowers cover the ground and the Arctic sun shines 20 hours a day. Along the Cape May peninsula some of the world’s most incredible fishing takes place. Sinuose cast, the graceful curve of the line, the fragile fly dancing delicately on sparkling water, the rush of a strike and, at last, the prize. Part eleven Hawaiian Islands (3:36) A long chain of islands stretches 1606 miles across the blue waters of the Pacific. The Hawaiian Islands were formed by a series of volcanic eruptions. The larger inhabited islands are all clustered in the South- Eastern end of the chain, 2500 miles from the US mainland. Beneath the transparently clear waters of Pearl Harbor lies the USS. “Arizona” sunk in the 1941 surprise attack on Pearl Harbor by Japanese bombers, she remains a visible example of what the official inquiry termed the greatest military and naval disaster in our nation is history. The largest dormant volcano in the world – Haleakala which was called by native Hawaiians “The House of the Sun”. From the top of Haleakala –the God Maui lassoed the sun to force it to make its way across the sky more slowly. The valley encompasses 19 square miles and is 3000 feet deep. But the true experience of the Haleakala is the moment of sunrise when the first light turns the sea silver and the sky a flaming red. Dawn washes light over the islands of Oahu, Nihau, Molokai and Hawaii, and a rising sun burnishes the sea until it slows like molten gold. A nation born on a burning desire for freedom, A vast land of extraordinary richness, Forests that blazed with natural colour, Prairies that stretched to endless horizons, Mountains that soar into the sky, Cities that gleam against the night, A country dedicated to the proposition that all are created equal, A nation that grew up to be a land of the free!