2000 | The World of English

Visiting Australia.

Thinking of a trip Down Under? Find out what you really need to know.

If you arrive in Sydney any time in September this year, you'll be in good company. The world's attention will be focused squarely on the Olympic City, which is expecting around 120,000 visitors for the Olympic Games on 15 September - 1 October. The pace will not slow down much in October, with the Paralympics also running in Sydney on 18 - 29 October. All in all, this is shaping up as a very big year for Australia.

Mad about sport

2000

Don't Believe the Hype.

We are becoming increasingly influenced by what we see, hear or read on the multitude of media available to us. As the Internet expands and media companies grow bigger, richer and more powerful, we must learn to distinguish between the truth and the hype.

2000

The Pavement Robbers.

Theft is a word associated with things like bank robberies, burglary, muggings and even fraud, but what would you think if you woke up one day, looked out of the window and found that someone had stolen the entire pavement of your street? That' s what residents of London and other large cities across Britain wake up to with increasing frequency and the reason, believe it or not, is the ever-growing popularity of gardening. See the connection? Or are you completely confused? Let me explain.

2000

The Wild West of England.

Despite its historical wealth and numerous attractions for tourists, the county of Cornwall, at the far end of England's southwestern peninsula, has long been in economic decline. Recently it achieved European Objective 1 status, if it can be called an achievement to be officially recognized as one of the poorest areas in the European Union.

2000

Baseball

Beginning with the start of the year 2000 baseball season, the Copernicus Society of America has initiated a local effort in the Philadelphia area to collect a total of 2,000 new and used baseball gloves for underprivileged Little Leaguers around the world. "Pitch in a glove for Little League" encourages individuals to donate a brand new baseball glove or search in their basement, attic, closet or garage at home to find a glove to give to the effort.

2000

Baseball

From Kutno to Williamsport

You really have to see a baseball game live to understand it. Television doesn't give you a real idea of what's going on if you haven't seen a game in the flesh before. The ball is hit by the batter and the outfielders run to try to catch it. When the batter is facing the pitcher, the action takes place in a split second. Either the batter misses or doesn't attempt to hit the ball, or there is a sudden burst of activity as he hits the ball and sends it into the field, or even out of the field entirely for a home run!

2000

Baseball

Shop Till You Drop

Crazy American Supermarkets? Or maybe just the Americans who shop in them. American food shopping habits are a little different from the rest of the world, though where they shop is catching on in Poland as well. Be warned!

2000

Nobody's Perfect

"Nobody' s perfect" - the last words of the Marilyn Monroe film Some Like it Hot are all too true when we speak a foreign language. Everybody makes mistakes when they talk to foreigners no matter how good their command of the language. Here are a few amusing mistakes made recently by learners of English. We have also included a couple made by native English speakers desperately trying to learn Polish.

Piotr and Monica

2000

Morituri Salutamus

In Ridley Scott's epic new film Gladiator, the brutality of the ancient Roman 'Games' is vividly brought to life. Here's a look at the gladiator in both fact and fiction.

2000

Ireland's Own Sports.

Gaelic games are the national indigenous sports of Ireland. Gaelic football and hurling are the most popular sports while camogie, handball and rounders also come under the auspices of the GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association).

2000

European Convention on Human Rights

Ancient Rome's Colosseum has witnessed much in the last two millennia, from the slaying of early Christians to the more civilized European Convention on Human Rights. Half a century since it was declared, Rome celebrates the anniversary of this history-making document which in the last 50 years has sought to secure the rights and freedoms of every European, East and West.

2000

Game On!

American sports are a world apart from European sports. We take a look at what they're all about, from high-school heroes to stadium spectators.

Worldwide interest in sport is always high during an Olympic year. No one can deny that Europeans and Latin Americans are crazy about football, Scandinavians love winter sports, and people of every nationality follow the successes of their favorite tennis stars, volleyball teams, runners, boxers, ski jumpers, racing drivers, etc. But, as in many other fields, in this respect the United States is in a class by itself.

2000

Great Briton

One of the most famous men of the twentieth century, it can be said with confidence that the world would not be the place it is today without Sir Winston Churchill.

2000

Package at Endor.

When the cold winter days are over, you start thinking about holidays in the sun. Numerous places come to mind and you still don' t know where to go. But it' s simple! The answer is: OUT THERE!

2000

Names and Nuances

British, French or Spanish? Puritan or Cavalier? The distinct differences in flavor of American culture from region to region go all the way back to their original settlement by different groups of Europeans. Since then, they' ve been spiced up by immigration from all over the world.

2000

Letters to the Editors

I'd like to comment on the article "Congratulations 'Maturzyści'. I am a graduate of NKJO from Tczew (branch office of University of Gdańsk). I fully agree that studying there helped me a lot in improving my English, but what next? Many graduates want to go further and get an M.A. but there are very few universities that offer a two-year course after which one can obtain such a diploma. The Ministry of Education urged universities to set up such three-year studies and you can find them in almost every city in Poland which has a university.

2000

Queen of the Century.

All together now, "Dwieście lat, dwieście lat, niech żyje, żyje nam..." One hundred years old on August 4, the Queen Mother is, at the time of writing, still going strong. Here's a look at a woman whose life has spanned the most eventful century in history.

2000

Letters to the Professor

When listening to native speakers they do not seem to say one hundred or one kilometre properly. The 'one' sounds more like an 'er' sound. Can you please explain to me why this is and if I should try to do it too?
Malgorzata J., Warszawa.

2000

Slangs

This is a grab bag of various slang words and expressions used by Americans in literature song and daily conversation.

AIR BAGS: the lungs. Fill your air bags well when we go for a walk in the woods. He is the best runner in the class but the his air bags are larger than most.

BETTER HALF: usually refers to one's wife, sometimes one's husband. This is my better half, Sally. I'd like to go with our group but my better half won't let me out of the house.

2000