Read the text ‘Birthdays in Britain”
1) Birthday presents. On your birthday you get cards and presents from your family and friends. Parents often buy a big present like a bike or an MP3 player. Other people give toys, sweets, books, clothes, CDs, DVDs and things like that.
2) A birthday cake. People normally have a birthday party for their friends. There’s usually a birthday cake with one candle for each year of your age. The person with the birthday blows out the candles and makes a wish. Then everybody sings “Happy birthday!”
3) Places to take friends to on a birthday. People often have a party at their own home. Some older children don’t have a party. They take their friends to the cinema, a bowling alley or somewhere like that.
4) Name days in Hungary. My friend, Anna, in Hungary says that they have “name days” in their country, but we don’t have “name days”.
5) Giving flowers on name days and birthdays. Anna also says that people in Hungary give flowers on name days and birthdays. In Britain, we usually give flowers only to women. Cameron and I give flowers to our mum on her birthday.
Amanda has been cooking ever since she was a little girl. Now, as a young adult, she makes up her own recipes. She writes the successful ones down in her own cookery book which she plans on publishing someday. Recently she has been experimenting with different cooking styles and spices from around the world. In fact, Amanda is entering an international cooking competition next week. She wants to win first prize which is a scholarship to a well-known catering school in France. Amanda has always dreamed of becoming a qualified chef. She hopes her favourite dish brings home first prize!
