Christmas

In this class, I know some tradditions of Christmas. For example, people will put a star of an angel on the top of the Christmas tree. It means there is a new born baby on the family, and people see that symbol will take presents to cerebrate. People will put candles around the tree, but today they change it to electric light. Beacause it is more safe. When people after eating turkey, they will eat sonme snacks like Christmas pudding or mince pies.

When the Christmas coming, I want send a Christmas card to you, Jeanette, thank you for your teaching.

Government

The Rt Hon Hilary Benn MP is the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The responsibilities:

• bear overall responsibility for all Departmental issues.


• represent the UK at the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council and at the EU Environment Council.


• lobby for the UK in other international negotiations on sustainable development and climate change.
  

The Rt Hon Lord Adonis is the Secretary of State for Transport. His responsibilities are make the transport and the enverionment more safe.

The Rt Hon David Miliband MP is the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs is 'Foreign Secretary', who is the minister in charge of Britain's relations with the outside world. The department is called the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. His responsibilities are relations with foreign countries, matters pertaining to the Commonwealth of Nations and the UK's overseas terriories and the promotion of British interests abroad.

The Rt Hon Yvette Cooper MP is the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions . The responsible for the Department for work and pensions.

The Rt Hon Bob Ainsworth MP is the Secretary of State for Defence Home. The responsible for senior United Kingdom government minster in charge of the Ministry of Defence, chairing the Defence Council. It is a Cabinet position.

The Rt Hon Alan Johnson MP is the Secretary for the Home Office. The responsible for internal affairs within England and Wales, and for immigration and citizenship for the whole of the United Kingdom

The Rt Hon Andy Burnham MP is the Secretary of State for Health. The responsible for the Department of Health. Provide medical insurance for the people.

The Rt Hon Alistair Darling MP is the Chancellor of the Exchequer, who is the head of the Treasury. The another name is Minister of Finance. The responsible responsible for all economic and financial matters.


What are the Prime Minister's responsibilities?


The Prime Minister himself does not have any departmental responsibilities. Therefore, he can control the Cabinet Office. The strength of the PM's power of apparent is 'cabinet reshuffle'. He can change the cabinet members at least once every two years, let some members out or chang them work.



By controlling influential committees, the Prime Minister can also ensure that he drives the policies of these committees.

Senedd

Thursday, we went to the Senedd which is the Welsh Assembly building，located in the cardiff bay.
The docent told us the Welsh Assembly Government is working to help improve the lives of people in Wales and make our nation a better place in which to live and work. The Senedd was designed by Richard Rogers. The roof is not similar with the traditional roof, it looks like the waves of the sea. It is said that easily to collect the rainwater, and let them flush the toilets in the building. The whole building have not air-conditioning, when the summer coming, the top of the glass windows will be open, the sea wind will get the fresh sea wind into the building. In the winter, water is pumped through pipes which were drilled 100m below ground and heated to 14℃ by geothermal energy. The hot water is pumped back up to the slate floor to warm the building temperature. Every year, it can save 50% energy fee.

During the docent was talked about the debating chamber time, a assembly member came to introduce them daily work, when the questions time, a student asked whether reduce our international student tuition fee, and the assembly member smiled said the education is a topic of their discuss.

When we visited after the Senedd, we walked along the sea, the sunset irradiated on our shoulder, I told myself, even after two years I will leave here, the memory will never disappear. The cardiff and my whole university life will always in my mind.

Halloween

Do you remember a movie"A prefect world"?

Clint Eastwood plays a escapee who escapes from prison and be friend with a boy that he takes hostage.That boy's mother was very strick,she said they were Jews and prohibited the boy played with other children to trick or treat.But the child's nature is playing, the boy was eager for the Halloween costums .So when he was roved with Eastwood, he stool a ghost dress from the store.In Halloween night,he had a unforgettable memories.

In that movie,I know the most importan festival of Britian----Halloween.In that day ,people will dresses up like vampire or witch,the children always dresses up like black cat or ghost.They carving a grimace on pumpkin and put a candle in it to expulsion of ghosts.Children will knock neighbours' door to ask for candies,if them unable to gain the candies they will make some troubles,call 'Trick or Treat'.













This Sunday is my first Halloween in the UK,I need make a good plan of it!Yearning!

The UN's member states

This blue background and yellow stars flag is the European Union's flag.The EU was established on 1 November 1993.Before that it had another name:European Economic Community.In 1957, only six countries created the European Economic Community,there are France,Germany,Italy,Belguim,Neatherl and Luxembourg.

Now the European Union is composed of 27 soverign member states:Austria,Belgium,Bulgaria,Cyprus, the Czech Republic,Denmark,Estonia,Finland,France,Germany,Greece,Hungray,Ireland,Italy,Latvia,Lithuania,Luxembourg,Malta,the Netherlands,Poland,Portugal,Romania,Slovakia,Slovenia,Spain,Sweden,and the United Kingdom.
Yeah,the UK is a member of the UN.At first,the UK wanted to join the UN,for some reasons,it was refuse.The UK joined in 1973,but it still use their own money----the Great Britian Pound,not Euro.

In the above countries,Romania and Bulgaria were the newest members in the EU,they joined on 1 January 2007.

The four nations of Britain

This picture shows the evolution of the Union Flag .The Union Flag is a flag containing three other flag,St George’s Cross of England,St Andrew’s Cross of Scotland,St Patrick’s Cross of Ireland.

From the above we can see the flags of three nations. England flag has a red cross with a white background.The flag of Scotland has blue background and white cross.The flag of Ireland has white background and red cross. The Dragon of Cadwallader is not in the Union Flag,for the reason Wales had been a part of England when the flag was designed.









White and green background and a red dragon in the middle is the flag of Wales.


The plant of four nations are not the same.

Rose is the England’s emblem . Because the civil wars (1455-1485) between the royal house of Lancaster (whose emblem was a red rose) and the royal house of York (whose emblem was a white rose).After the war the rose bacame the symbol of England.

The national vegetable of Wales is the leek,flower is the golden daffodil.In China,we use leek fried with egge,it is delicious.

Thistle is not a beautiful plant. It has shape needles all around it. Few people like it. But the people of Scotsland liked it so much that they made it their national flower.

Shamrock is the national flower of Northern Ireland.

There is a legend about the shamrock.Usually shamrock have three-leaf,the four-leaf is uncommon,if you find the four-leaf shamrock,the leaves will bring good luck to you.

According to this superstition,we all can find our luck in my life.

Recommended reading:

http://www.wardsbookofdays.com/12april.htm

www.hollandtugofwar.co.uk/History.html

http://www.emerald-isle-gifts.com/irish-road-signs---plates/irish-fun-car---home-stickers/shamrock---ireland-map-irish-car.asp

http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~macfie/scots_index.html

http://www.data-wales.co.uk/l_d.htm

[07.10.2009] The Middle Ages

The Middle Ages,the castles were built to protect against attacks in the war.The kings and his relations were lived in the castles to control the country.Today,we can see the castles survival were almost built at that period,after the Middle Ages,the castles were less useful.

The churches and cathedrals were the symbol of that period.They were built by Christians.I am interested in castles and churchs,because they were full of mysteries.They were built in many years ago,and only availabled to the royalty or Christians.But today ,we can visit them every time if we want to.

In the class,teacher told us,there is a castle called Caerphilly Castles in the Wales,we can take train to visit it .I think I will go to that old castle to visit!

Something about C.B.S

I missed the first Contempoary British Studies class,so I do not the concern about that course.

But after I finished the quiz,I knew The British Isles is compose with England,Scotland and Wales.Their capital is London,Edinburgh and Wales.In the three capital,the largest city in the UK is London.