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Travel Arrangements
Traveling is an essential part of any business. Even with new communication technology business people have to travel much as it's particularly important to establish good face-to-face relations with partners, suppliers and customers.
The top priority for business travelers is good organization of their business trip. Generally, that is the responsibility if a Secretary of a Personal Assistant.Travel arrangements involve booking tickets for a plane or train, transport to and from the airport, booking accommodation, making appointments and arranging meetings.
The first thing which the secretary should do is to learn about the destination and the exact dates of the trip.The dates and times of all the journey, appointments, meetings and events should be listened carefully in the itinerary.She should be aware of the number of people who are going to travel and the budget allowed for the trip so that she could book tickets and hotel accommodation properly. Most businessmen prefer air travel as it saves time. Calling a travel agency and booking a package tour which combines air tickets and accommodation is a common practice when making travel arrangements. The secretary should take care of the visas, passports and medical insurance in advance if travel arrangements are made without the involvement of a travel agency.
One more thing which is of great importance is the ability of the secretary to support her boss whenever needed when unexpected things happen.For example, when the flight is delayed or cancelled, she should be ready to make changes in the itinerary, reschedule the appointments and meetings, inform the hotel about the problem.
The Superstitions in Britain
There are many superstitions in Britain. But one of the most widely-held is that it is unlucky to open an umbrella in the house. It will either bring misfortune to the person that opened it or to the household. The person who opens an umbrella in fine weather is very unpopular. It's very unlucky to walk under a ladder. If you must pass under a ladder you can avoid bad luck by crossing your finger and keeping them crossed until you've seen a dog.
The number 13 is said to be unlucky for some. And when the 13th day of the month falls on a Friday, many of the people prefer to stay at home.
The worst misfortune that can befall you is breaking a mirror. That will bring you seven years of bad luck. This superstition is supposed to have originated in ancient times, because mirrors were considered to be tools of the gods. And at last there is a superstition of touching wood for luck. This measure is most often taken if you have said or done something wrong or stupid.
The Story of "McDonald's" and "Coca-Cola"
In 1937 the McDonnald brothers, Dick and Mark, opened little restaurant in California. They served hot dogs and milk shakes. In 1945 they have 20 waiters. All the teenagers in town ate hamburgers there. When the 1948 year came they got paper boxes and bags for the hamburgers. They put the price down from 30 to 15 cents. There were no more waiters — it was self-service. So it was cheaper and faster.
In 1960s the McDonald's company opened hundreds of McDonald's restaurants all over the States. In 1971 they opened restaurants in Japan, Germany and Australia.
Now the McDonald's company opens a new restaurant every 8 hours. There are more than 14,000 restaurants in over 70 countries.The Coca-Cola story began in Atlanta in 1886. John Pemberton invented a new drink. Two of the ingredients were the South American coca leaf and the African cola nut. Pemberton couldn't think of a good name for the drink. Finally, Dr. Pemberton's partner Frank Robinson suggested the name Coca-Cola. Thirty years later the famous Coca-Cola bottle design first appeared.
For many years only Coca-Cola was made. They only introduced new drinks — Fanta, Sprite in the 1960s. The recipe of Coca-Cola is a secret. Today they sell Coca-Cola in 195countries. Hundreds of millions of people from Boston to Beijing drink it every day. It has the most famous trademark in the world.
The Royal Family
At present the British royal family is headed by Queen Elizabeth. When the Queen was born on the 21st of April 1926, her grandfather, King George V, was on the throne and her uncle was his heir. The death of her grandfather and the abdication of her uncle brought her father to the throne as King George VI.As a child she studied constitutional history and law as well as art and music. In addition she learned to ride and acquired her enthusiasm for horses. As she grew older she began to take part in public life, making her first broadcast at the age of 14.
The marriage of the young Princess Elizabeth to Philip, Duke of Edinburgh took place in November 1947. She came to the throne after her father's death in 1952 and was crowned in Westminster Abbey in June 1953.
Among Queen Elizabeth's many duties are the regular visits she makes to foreign countries, and especially those of the Commonwealth, whose interests and welfare are very important to her. The Queen has allowed the BBC to make a documentary film about the every day of the royal family. She also started the tradition of the "walkabout", an informal feature of an otherwise formal royal visit, when she walks among the public crowds and stops to talk to some people.The annual Christmas broadcast made by the Queen on radio and television has become a traditional and popular feature of the season, and there were widespread celebrations and special programmes of events in 1977 to mark her Silver Jubilee.
The Queen's husband, Duke of Edinburgh was born in 1926 and served in the Royal Navy. He takes a great deal of interest in industry, in the achievements of young people (he founded Duke of Edinburgh's Award Scheme in 1956) and in saving raise wild animals from extinction.The Queen's heir is Charles, Prince of Wales, who was born in 1948, married Lady Diana Spencer and has two children, Prince William and Prince Harry. The Prince of Wales is well-known as a keen promoter of British interest. In recent years he has become outspoken on such controversial topics as modern architecture, violence in films and on television, and the standard of English teaching in schools. His wife Diana, Princess of Wales (often called in mass media Princess Di), won the affection of many people by her modesty, shyness and beauty. Unfortunately, she died in a car accident in August, 1997.
The Queen's other children are Princess Anne (born in 1950), Prince Andrew (born in 1960) and Prince Edward (born in 1964). Anne, Princess Royal, has acquired a reputation for being arrogant, but in recent years has become quite popular with the general public.The Queen is widely known for her interest in horses and horse-racing. She is now president of the Save the Children Fund, Chancellor of the University of London and carries out many public engagements.
Prince Andrew, Duke of York, served as a helicopter pilot in the Royal Navy. In 1986 he married Miss Sarah Ferguson (Fergie, for short) and has two daughters. Prince Edward is keen on the theatre. This interest began while he was at university. He quit the Royal Marines, and is now pursuing a career with a theatrical company.
The Queen Mother, the widow of the late King George VI, celebrated her one hundred birthday in 2 000 and died in 2002. The Queen's only sister, Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, is well-known for her charity work.
The invention of the Computer
Personal computers are now commonplace in most homes throughout the world, and are relied on heavily by both individuals and businesses. The invention of the computer is relatively new, emerging into our lives relatively late in the 20th century.
The computer has been another life-transforming invention. British mathematician Charles Babbage designed a form of computer in the mid-1830s, but it was not until more than a century later that theory was put into practice. Now, a whole generation has grown up with calculators, windows, icons, computer games and word processors, and the Internet and e-mail have transformed communication and information.
The greatest bridge in the world
Verrazano, an Italian about whom little is known, sailed into New York Harbour in 1524 and named it Angouleme. He described it as 'a very agreeable situation located within two small hills in the midst of which flowed a great river.' Though Verrazano is by no means considered to be a great explorer, his name will probably remain immortal, for on November 21st, 1964, the longest suspension bridge in the world was named after him.
The Verrazano Bridge, which was designed by Othmar Ammann, joins Brooklyn to Staten Island. It has a span of 4,260 feet. The bridge is so long that the shape of the earth had to be taken into account by its designer. Two great towers support four huge cables. The towers are built on immense underwater platforms made of steel and concrete. The platforms extend to a depth of over 100 feet under the sea. These alone took sixteen months to build. Above the surface of the water, the towers rise to a height of nearly 700 feet. They support the cables from which the bridge has been suspended. Each of the four cables contains 26,108 lengths of wire. It has been estimated that if the bridge were packed with cars, it would still only be carrying a third of its total capacity. However, size and strength are not the only important things about this bridge. Despite its immensity, it is both simple and elegant, fulfilling its designer's dream to create 'an enormous object drawn as faintly as possible'.
The Doctor. Our Health
When we are ill, we call the doctor, and he examines us and diagnoses the illness. When we have a headache, a stomachache, a sore throat, a cold or a pain in some part of the body, we call the doctor.He takes our temperature and our pulse. He examines our heart, our lungs, our stomach or the part where we have a pain and tells us what is the matter with us. He says: "You have a slight temperature", or "You have the flu", or "You have heart disease". The doctor prescribes medicine, and gives us a prescription, which we take to the chemist, who makes the medicine. The doctor says: "Take the medicine twice a day or three times a day, before or aftermeals". If you follow the doctor's orders, you get better; if you disobey the doctor you may get worse or even die. If we have a temperature, we must stay in bed and take the medicine prescribed. If we cannot get better at home, we must go to hospital. If we are too ill to walk there, we go in the ambulance. When we have a toothache, we go to the dentist. The dentist examines our teeth. He says: "That tooth has a cavity. I must put in a filling". If the tooth is too bad, the dentist extracts it.
The Civil War
The purpose of the Civil War was to restore the Union of the Individual states and to preserve the Constitution. However, Congress was determined to make emancipation (freeing of the slaves) the primary issue of the war. Just before the outbreak of the Civil War, two issues faced the nation. The first was the freeing of the slaves, which the Southerners believed was a loss of property. The second issue was the right of secession (the withdrawal of a state from the Union). The Constitution was an agreement between the states, so therefore each state had the right to leave the Union when they pleased. These issues divided the nation. In February of 1861, the Confederation states of America was formed. It consisted of South Caroline, North Carolina, Virginia, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Arkansas and Texas. On the 1st of January, 1863, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, declaring the freedom of slaves. However, the actual end of slavery did not come until 1865. The Civil War came to an end on the 1st of April, 1865. With the end of the war came the concept that the United States is not a group of states but rather one nation. With the emancipation of the slaves, new issues, such as civil rights, appeared.
Star Signs
There are 12 star sings, and people who belong to a definite sign have their own character, habits and manners. So if you were born under the sign of Aquarius (21st January - 18th February) you like to be free. You have original ideas. Some of your ideas are crazy!
Pisces (19th February - 20th March) are friendly and kind. They are good at art and they love music. They often lose things and forget the time.
Aries (21th March - 20th April) like jokes, parties and loud music. They are good at sport. They don't often ask for advice. Sometimes they're a bit selfish. The people who are born under the sign of Taurus (21st April -21st May) work hard. They are very practical and helpful. They don't like changes. They like food!
If you're Gemini (22nd May - 21st June) you love surprises. You like chatting with your friends. You do a lot of things at once.
Cancer (22nd June - 22nd July) seems strong and selfish. But really he's soft and sensitive. One minute he's happy, the next minute he feels bad.
Leos (23rd July - 23rd August) are leaders. They want to be rich and important one day. They love expensive things.
Virgo (24th August - 22nd September) always works hard. She chooses her friends carefully because they have to be perfect!
If you're Libra (23rd September - 23rd October) people like you because you always say nice things. You hate fights. You want everyone to be happy. You're a bit lazy.
People who were born under the sign of Scorpio (24th October - 22nd November) are very strong persons. They always get what they want. They're very good friends.
If you are Sagittarius (23rd November - 21st December) you are friendly. You spend money like water. You always tell the truth. Sometimes this can hurt your friends feelings.
Capricorns (22nd December - 20th January) are quiet and serious. They work hard. Their friends like them because they never do stupid things.