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New England
It is highly industrial; it also has many fields, woods, and small towns. It is one of the oldest parts of U.S. and includes six states: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut.
An Isolated Pond
From 1845 to 1847, Henry David Thoreau lived alone close to nature in a cabin at the Walden Pond. There he wrote his greatest book, Walden. Thoreaus ideas and concerns are very relevant to our own times because they concerned with the destruction of the forests and the peacefully protesting government policies they considered wrong. Visitors today can appreciate the isolated beauty of Walden Pond.
A main vacation
It can be a seaside vacation along the stats rocky and winding coast. There are thousand of uninhabited islands lie off the coast of Mainer. Wreck Island and Popes folly. You can explore the coast and island, so you can hire a boat and a captain. In the Mount Desert Island, there is a summer resort where you can visit smaller towns or go a swim (55 F). Maine is famous for its lobster. There you can eat lobster or a clambake (a traditional meal adopted from the Indians). You can go to Baxter State Park in the north of Maine. It is a perfect place for camping. Maine has hundred of lakes and rivers for boating. It is also popular for hunters. When the snow arrive skiers rush of to Maines mountains.
Cambridge
Jus across the Charles River from Boston is Cambridge, Americas most famous student town. It has the nations oldest university, Harvard University, founded in 1636. It remains a centre of intellectual life. There is the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that is leader in science and technology. Harvard has students from 90 countries. The Harvard rowing team spends all year preparing for races in the spring, especially Harvard- Yale Regatta. Its rival is Yale University.
Boston Brahmins
The Boston Brahmins were elite of US. They were wealthy, well educated, and exclusive. They especially socialize with Irish Catholic immigrants who poured into Boston in the mid1800s.They were always Protestant and belonged to old Yankee families. These families often lived in Beacon Hill, an elegant part of Boston. They socialized in private clubs like the Somerset Club. They married among themselves and gave their sons Brahmin names. They went to Harvard.
Sugaring Time
For a brief period each spring in Vermont its sugaring time. Trees are tapped and buckets in other to collect the sap. The maple sap is boiled down in sugar houses, until it becomes a maple syrup.
New York
New York is one of the most exiting cities in the world. It is in Manhattan Island. It is the centre of American finance, advertising, art, theatre, publishing and fashion. It attracts people from all over. It was the city of immigrants. It still is. New York boroughs are Brooklyn (the fourth largest city in the United States).
Manhattan Geography
Manhattan is divided into the East Side and the West Side. The dividing line is Fifth Avenue. It is also divided into Lower (Downtown), Midtown, and Upper (uptown). Manhattan. As you go north, or uptown, the street numbers get higher.
Spotlight on the USA 2010 The financial district The Dutch were the first Europeans to settle Manhattan. To protect themselves from attacks, they built a sturdy
wooden wall which became synonymous with American capitalism. The street is Wall Street. The New York Stock Exchange and the American stock exchange are both in the Wall Street area. So are many stockbrokers, investment banks and other banks, and head-quarters of many large corporations. There is the Federal R serve Bank of New York, a branch of the national bank of the United States-and the only branch that buys and sells government securities. To escape the commotion of Wall Street, you can visit the nearby South Street Seaport which is an open area of low buildings in the East River. There is also a museum, and you can tour old houses, ships, and shipyards and the Fulton Fish Market. Before 9th September of 2001, there were the twin towers of the World Trade Centre which rose 1.350 feet above the city.
Midtown Manhattan
There are many of New Yorks offices and jobs in the famous skyscrapers. New Yorks firs skyscraper was the Flatiron Building, built in 1902. The firs building boom for skyscraper was in the late 1920s which were in art deco style. E.g. Empire State Building1 and Rockefeller Centre2 . The second building boom was in the 1950. The United Nations Secretariat building was the firs glass curtain wall skyscraper.
Central Park
It is a huge park in the middle of the city which was designed in the 1850s by landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted. Olmsted wanted the park to be a rural paradise within an urban area. Attractions in the park include gardens, a zoo, a skating rink, an old-fashioned carousel, a lake where you can row, an outdoor theatre, where events are held each summer.
East Side
The central park was opened in 1876. Wealthy new Yorkers built mansions along Fifth Avenue, on the parks east side. The mansions that remind now hold art collection. For example, the Fricks museum. Moreover, this part of Fifth Avenue along Central Park has so many museums that it is called Museum Mile. The most important is The Metropolitan museum.
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where a plane crashed into it in 1945 and was part of a movie in the 1933: King Kong It was built in 1930 and it is the larges privately owned business and entertainment center. 3 It is considered the best newspapers in the country.
Harlem
By 1900 it was a black neighbourhood whose people live downtown. Then, many black came to Harlem from the south of the United States and even from the islands of the Caribbean for housing and education. The 1920s was Harlems great years, especially in the arts. Top jazz musicians were heard and different authors began to write about their experience as blacks. There are clubs which didnt allow blacks as customers. The depression of the 1930s hit Harlem hard. The neighbourhood became poorer and middle-class blacks left and it has never really recovered.
The Boardwalk
A train conductor on the lint to Atlantic City, New Jersey, built the first boardwalk. The first one was 11 feet above the sand and 10 feet wide. Todays boardwalk stands far above the sand and is 60 feet wide and 6 miles long.
Washington at Work
Washington has one major business, and that business is government. The executive departments (Treasury, Agriculture, Education, etc) are located in Washington. When youre in Washington you can tour the white House Capitol Hill Supreme Court
The South
The South has a warm climate and a long growing season for crops. By the 1820s, the South produced and exported rice, sugar, and especially, cotton. Crops like cotton were best grown on plantations. The old South depended on slaves, who were originally brought from Africa. Slavery was the basis for the Souths economy. People often think that whites in the old South lived an elegant life; very few whites lived on plantations. Slaves lives differed greatly, depending on their masters. Slaves had no real control over what happened to them. A husband and wife could be sold to different owners and never see each other again. Slaves were able to survive because they developed a strong culture of their own. Songs and stories, religion and community were all important The North and the South each developed differently but without conflicts. The conflicts came when the nation began to expand west. Southern states said the new areas that were being settled should allow slavery; the Northern states disagreed. In the 1840s and 1850s Congress passed a series of laws that were compromises between the North and the South. In the end, the compromises failed.
Steamboats
In 1811, the Steamboat was introduced to the Mississippi. Sceptics said that such a large boat could never survive the Mississippis currents, bends, sandbars, and floods. The steamboat NEW ORLEANS travelled from Pittsburgh to New Orleans and back.
The Reaction
Teenagers loved Elvis and rock and roll. The Music critics of the time found Elvis unspeakably untalented and vulgar with no discernible singing ability. Elvis and rock and roll were blamed for the nations problems.
New Orleans
New Orleans has taken elements from many cultures and created its own unique culture. To explore New Orleans, youll need to understand the unique system used for giving directions. Directions refer to the Mississippi: uptown means upstream. If someone tells you the place youre looking for is on the uptown river corner of the street, its on the corner that is upstream and closest to the Mississippi.
Florida
At Walt Disney World, near Orlando, Florida. You can also see characters from Disney movies and have dinner at Cinderella Castle. Disneys EPCOT Centre is newer than the Magic Kingdom and technologically more advanced. Its Future World lets you explore the future of lifestyles, energy, transportation, food, production, the sea, and the world of imagination. At Cape Carnival, you can go to the Kennedy Space Centre where vehicles are assembled and astronauts are trained. At Palm Beach is place for the wealthy, it is the place for those who prefer polo. At Miami reflects a more recent Hispanic influence. After the Cuban Revolution, many Cubans settled in Miami. In Miamis Little Haven, youll see Spanish-style street lights, Cuban food, factories where cigars are rolled by hand, and even stores with signs saying ENGLISH SPOKEN HERE. The Florida Keys are a series of coral and limestone islands. Key Largo, one of the islands, has a huge underwater park. You can explore this park in a glass-bottomed boat or by snorkelling or scuba diving.
Okefenokee Swamp
Its an Indian word for land of tumbling earth. When stepped on, these islands seem to tremble underfoot. Over the years, the dark, mysterious swamp provided an ideal hiding place for all sorts of people. Now the Okefenokee wildlife Refuge provides a home for many endangered animal species.
In 1886, Dr. John Pemberton, an Atlanta pharmacist, invented the syrup for Coca-Cola. He sold it in his pharmacy for 5 cents a glass. Sales in 1886 averaged 9 glasses a day. One hundred years have brought many changes. In 1894 Coke was for the first time sold in bottles. During World War II, bottling plants were set up in Europe, Africa, and the Pacific. More recently, Coke has introduced variations like Diet Coke and Cherry Coke. Today the Coca- Cola Company is the worlds largest soft drink producer. Coca-Cola is sold in more than 160 countries.
The Midwest
The Midwest: Americas Heartland
Compared to other regions of the country, the Midwest has a reputation for being a bit dull. Its the Americans centre, its heartland. It is Americas centre in many ways:
The exact middle point of the United States falls in Smith Country, Kansas. The Midwest is Americas geographical, industrial, agricultural, political centre
Chicago
The Midwest is the centre of America, so Chicago is the centre of the Midwest. Chicago is on Lake Michigan. It played a key role in the growth of the Midwest and of the United States. In a 1916 poem, Carl Sand burgh captured Chicagos importance and its energetic, hardworking spirit: Hog Butcher for the World, Tool Maker, Stacker of Wheat, Player with Railroads and the Nations Freight Handler; Stormy, husky, brawling
Abraham Lincoln
He grew up in rural Indiana and Illinois. Lincoln also had ambitions. He educated himself, studied law, and became a lawyer in Springfield, Illinois. In 1834, at the age old 25, he was elected to the elected to the Illinois House of Representatives. In 1860 he became the Republican candidate for president. Lincoln won, despite his lack of experience, Lincoln was a very capable political and military leader. He brought the country through four years of civil war. He visited
Motor City
In 1896, in a workshop in Detroit, Henry Ford built a vehicle he called a Quadricycle. Henry Ford, a Michigan farm boy, was not the first person to build a motorbike. Everybody wants to be somewhere he isnt. Fords dream was to build an affordable car. Ford was able to make his dream reality in the shape of the Model T Ford The Big Three of the U.S. automobile industry- Ford, Chrysler, and General Motors are important employers in Detroit. In the decades following World War II, many middle-class families moved away from the city. At the same time poor people from rural areas moved to the city in search of opportunity.
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The Southwest
Farming the Great Plains Boomers and Sooners
In Oklahoma, on April 22, 1889 the US government had promised large pieces of land to those who were first to claim them. By night time, all the land had been claimed by the Oklahoma boomers, as they were called. Some of the lands had been claimed illegally, before noon, by sooner, who had hidden beyond the starting line.
Texas
Texas also has a unique history. After becoming independent from Mexico in 1836, it was a separate country for nearly ten years.
Texas Jokes
Not surprising, Texans are proud of their state, perhaps too proud.
1. A Midwesterner is visiting Texas
Texan- Howdy, stranger. Where are you from? Westerner- OHIO Texan- Never heard of it. What part of Texas is it in?
2. A Texan is visiting New York City. The Texan is taking a taxi. He keeps telling the taxi driver about how everything in Texas is bigger and better. The driver is becoming annoyed.
Texan- Say, driver, whats that big building over there? Driver- thats the Empire State Building. Texan- how long did it take to build? Driver- about ten years, I think. Texan- ten years! Why, in Texas, we put up building like that in a week. Driver, what are those two big towers down there? Driver- I couldnt tell you, sir- they werent there this morning.
Texan Food
Food in Texas is strongly influenced by Mexican cooking. TEX-MEX food uses hot peppers and is very spicy. Beef is an important ingredient in Texan cooking. Texas was the birthplace of the hamburger. In barbecues, beef or pork is cooked over flames in a spicy red sauce. Chilli- a mixture of beef, spice, and other ingredients like tomatoes and beans.
A Texan Festival
Texan festivals can be as unusual as anything else in that state. At Marshall-s roundup, participants chase after fierce, stinging fire ants. Whoever captures the most ants in four hours is the winner.
The Cowboy
People often think of all cowboys as white Americans. The first cowboys were Mexican; there were also black cowboys, often ex-slaves freed by the Civil War and Indian cowboys.
Cattle Drives
On the drives, cowboys took the cattle along trails fro Texas up to Kansas and even further north. They were branded, or marked with their owners symbol. Cowboys worked from before sunup to after sundown. At night they took turns guarding the cattle. One constant danger was the stampede. A change in weather or an unexpected noise was enough to make the cattle run.
Modern Cowboys
Today, there are still cattle ranches and cowboys. Rodeos give modern cowboys a chance to show their skills. Today the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association sponsors about 700 rodeos a year. If you go to a rodeo youll see events like calf roping, bull riding, and bulldogging. Bulldogging was invented by Bill Pickett, a black cowboy, as a way of stopping steers that were running wild.
Aspen
Aspen began in the 1880s as a silver mining town. It is one of the most popular resorts in Colorado. Many celebrities and wealthy people have homes there. Aspen also has something for all levels of skiers.-including clases for beginners like 18-month old babies!
Spotlight on the USA 2010 Jackson Hole, Wyoming When the Tetons were formed, the valley floor sank.The valley al the foot of the Tetons is called Jackson Hole. Hole is the Word that fur trappers used for a valley surrounded by mountains.David Jackson was a trapper who explored the area. Sacajawea
Sacajawea was a woman, who accompanied the Lewis and Clark Expedition, acting as an interpreter and guide, in their exploration of the Western United States(1803). She traveled thousands of miles from The Missisippi River to the Pacific Ocean. Sacagawea was taken as a wife by Toussaint Charbonneau, a Quebecer trapper living in the village.Captains Meriwether Lewis and William Clark built Fort Mandan. They interviewed several trappers who might be able to interpret or guide the expedition up the Missouri River in the springtime. They agreed to hire Charbonneau as an interpreter when they discovered his wife spoke Shoshone, as they knew they would need the help of Shoshone tribes at the headwaters of the Missouri.She was pregnant with her first child.Just before joining the expedition Jacajawea had had a baby. She carried her baby on her back on the 3,000 mile trip, unbothered by dangers like snowstorms or near-starvation in the Rockies.
TheRing of Fire
The 60% of the worlds volcanoes are part the ring of fire. Mount Mazama is part of it. The "Ring of Fire" is an arc stretching from New Zealand, along the eastern edge of Asia, north across the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, and south along the coast of North and South America. The Ring of Fire is composed over 75% of the world's active and dormant volcanoes.
Visiting Seatle
There are a lot of places to visit in Seattle.You can tour a Boeing factory where jumbo jets are assembled.You can take an undergruond tour at PioneerSquare to see Seattle as it used to be.The street level was lower,under the new street, the old stores remained. You can still explore these stores. The market is also one of Seattles liveliest places;everyone shops there. Seattle has a neighborhood which is called International District(ID).Many people living there are from China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and other countries of Asia. ID has Chinese and Japanese restaurants. If you have time, you can take a ferry to the beautiful city of Victoria, in British Columbia, Canada.Or you can travel trough the San Juan Islands.
Trapping, Mining,logging
The first whites who came to the Pacific Northwest were looking for a route joining Europe and Asia.That Northwest passage didnt exist.Instead they found otters and other animals whose furs were highly valued in China. This fur trade brought Russians, British, and Americans to that area.
Traveling in Alaska
Dogsled racing is a favorite Alaskan sport, and if you go tto Alaska you can take a dogsled tour. Traditionally, Eskimos sed dogsleds to get around in winter.Now snowmobiles have largely replaced dogsleds. The Alaska Highway(Alcan) links Alaska tothe other states through Canada. On Alaskan roads you are almost as likely to see animals like the Kodiak bear, the moose, the musk ox and the caribou. Only three cities in the south-east can be reached by road.The others including Juneau, Alaskas capital, ca be reached only by water or air.
Southeast Alaska
The Southeast consists of a thin strip of mainland and islands. It is a magnific scenery of ocean, rugged coasts, steep mountains,glaciers, and rainforests. It has important cities as Juneau Alaskas capital and Sitka a Southeast fishing town.
The interior
The interior is a vast plateau between two mountain ranges.It has thick forest but also areas of permafrost.Winter temperatures of -60F are common and yet summer temperatures have reached 90F. Fairbanks is Alaskas second=largest city.It is near the Artic Circle- one of the few cities in the world that is so far north.
Oil
Alaskans do not pay taxes they get money from their state goverment. The reason is oil. Oil was discovered in Prudhoe Bay in 1960.Whitin a couple of years, 85 percent of Alaskas money was coming from oil. The goverment uses some for schools, roads, and also gives a small amount to all the residents of Alaska.
California
Many people think of california as the state that symbolizes theAmerican dream. There, individuals have the opportunity to succed.When you are on Californias rocky northern coast, you can think that you are at the end of the continent. Americans went there in search of a better life.They assume that there is as far as they can go.
People
Californians people come from many different places and cultures.
One-fourty=Hispanic o Mexico o Central and South America One-third= Asian-Americans o China o Japan o The Philippines o Korea o Vietnam o Cambodia o Laos
The forty-Niners6
In January 1848, a man named James Marshall noticed some flecks of gold in a river in California. Within four short years Californians population as a land of opportunity was well established. Often, the most money was made not by miners themselves but by those who had something to sell to the miners. Levis Strauss thought he knew just what the miners would buy: he headed7 for Colifornia with canvas for tents. The miners told him that they have tents but Levis should have brought PANTS. So Levis made his canvas into pants. Miners liked the pants because they were sturdy and lasted. And so LEVISS were born.
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Extra To move at sw
Los Angeles
The LOS ANGELES area has many beaches, with surfers, volleyball players, and people getting tan. Its aldo the centre of the movie industry and home to many movie stars. It has money and glamour; the Beverly hills neighbourhood, for its mansions and highpriced shops. Los Angeles faces some problems:
So much traffic It has the dirtiest air in the US (the sunshine is hidden by smog) Crime and Violence (500 gangs) Drugs and drug money
Extra
The Forty Niners In the next year, close to 100,000 people went to California from the United States, Europe, and every other corner of the globe. Gold-seekers from Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, and China continued to sail across the Pacific along well established trade routes. The journey was far more complicated for citizens of the United States. A voyage from the East Coast to California around Cape Horn was 17,000 miles long and could easily take five months. There was a shorter alternative: sailing to Panama, crossing the isthmus by foot or horseback, and sailing to California from Central America's Pacific Coast. [MAP D. Routes to California from eastern U.S.] However, until 1850 there was no regular steamship travel in the Pacific, and passengers might find themselves stranded in Panama for weeks or months waiting for a ship to California. In 1849, approximately 40,000 poured in from one sea route or another. And most of these came to the port of San Francisco, once known as Yerba Buena, and the tiny town boomed. For those without money for a sea passage or with heavy cargos of household goods to bring, the only route to California lay overland across the Plains and through one of the mountain passes on California's eastern border. In 1849, 25,000 to 30,000 men, women, and children followed these routes, while a few thousand more came across Mexico and the southwestern corner of the United States to reach California. Not everyone who came to California during the Gold Rush planned to earn a fortune by using a pan or a pickaxe in the gold fields. Many enterprising young men and women realized that there was just as much money to be made by providing the gold miners with goods and services. From professional men and merchants to dance hall girls and cardsharps, they gave the miners a way to spend their money--and quickly. In addition, many who came to mine gold found that business and farming in California were more satisfying and reliable sources of income. Both the sudden expansion of population and accompanying exploitation of new Californians by enterprising businessmen became hallmarks of California history. And both phenomena made it clear that order needed to be imposed on this explosive, money-making new society as soon as possible.