Lesson 29

MARIA : Well now, this is one of the most extraordinary views over London.
JACK : It sure is.
DODIE : Gee, that’s quite fantastic!
CATHY : All those cranes over there beyond the river
DODIE : Yeah, they’re like giraffe necks.
JACK : Why so they are.
CATHY : Hey look at those palaces, right in front, with all the green grass. English people just seem to love their green grass, huh? Like cows, I guess. The view is really something else, isn’t it?
MARIA : Hey, what are those palaces down there,  Maria? Well, down by the river, that’s the Naval 15 College. Built by Christopher Wren.

JACK : Who was he?
CATHY : Oh Jack! He built St. Paul’s Cathedral! You should know that!
JACK : O yeah, of course. It just slipped my memory 20 for a minute. He was really a great man. It’s quite something, St. Paul’s.
BARBARA : And then nearer you have the Queen’s House. Can you see it? This side of the Naval College. That was built in 1625 I think.
DODIE : 1625. My! Five years after the Pilgrim Fathers. Makes you think! Three hundred and fifty years ago!
MARIA : And of course, as you can see there’s most of London. St. Paul’s over there. You can just see the Houses of Parliament, and Hampstead right over the other side.
JACK : We’re lucky to have such a fine day.
MARIA : Yes, and over on your left is the meridian line.
JACK : You don’t say! You mean that’s where East and West begin!

MARIA : In a manner of speaking. That metal line is naught degrees. And there is the clock that keeps Greenwich Mean Time.
DODIE : You mean for all over the world?
MARIA : That’s right.
DODIE : Well, what do you know! You wait till I get home and tell my uncle Robert that I’ve seen the clock that keeps Greenwich Mean Time. You know, he’s just passionate about clocks.

CATHY : prehension Oh it’s really great of you, Maria, to show us all this. I don’t think I’ve had such an interesting morning for a long time.
DODIE : Yeah, and when you come to the States, Maria –
JACK : We’ll see you really have a ball

1. Where are Maria and her friends standing?
2. What are they doing there?
3. What in particular first attracts Cathy’s attention?
4. What impresses Dodie in particular and why?
5. Why is the view a particularly good one for tourists?
6. What is the meridian line?
7. How is it marked near where they are standing?
8. What would have impressed Dodie’s uncle?
9. How do Maria’s friends intend to repay her hospitality?

ERICAN EXPRESSIONS
Gee-(exclamation of surprise) –
Hey– I say (but frequently used in Br. English)
huh?-eh?
I guess I suppose quite something – extraordinary
it’s really great of you – very kind of you (also Br. English)
the States – U.S.A.
to have a ball to have a thoroughly enjoyable time

1. giraffe : African animal with a long neck
2. naval : of a navy
3. to slip one’s memory :  escape one’s memory
4. pilgrim : traveler to a religious place
5. to make you think : seriously about something
6. meridian : 0° longitude on British maps
7. in a manner of speaking : as one might say