In Russian schools pupils vacations are four times a year. The academic year is divided into four quarters. Autumn and spring break is very short. And they both only last for 7 days. But me and my classmates quite have enough time to go somewhere and have a good time. Usually we go to a rest home or to another city for a change.
Winter holidays last two weeks. At this time, good skating and skiing and playing hockey. During the winter holidays, I love going to the cinema and theater, museums, art galleries and concert halls.
Summer vacation longest. They last three months. In the summer I have so much free time that I can do much. - I can relax in the country, going on trips and traveling.
Sometimes in the summer my parents go on a long journey. And we visit the ancient Russian town or traveling on the ship. I love to sail boats. Usually we go to Astrakhan by train, and then sail to Moscow on board. He anchors in each city. We go out to the beach and an hour or go on a tour. We visit the sights, and we have the opportunity to learn more about the history of a particular city or place.
But mostly we spend the summer holidays in the country. In my opinion, there's nothing like the Russian landscape. We have a small country house in a picturesque location near Zagorsk. There is a river and lake. My friends and I often go swimming there and boating. I love to sunbathe.
The lake is rich in fish, so sometimes I'll go fishing. I like to sit quietly and wait until the fish will fall, and listen to the birds singing in the trees. When I manage to catch a fish, I immediately let go of it, because I fish a just for fun.
When very hot, I usually go to the forest. The air is cool and fresh. I love to walk in the shade of the trees and gather mushrooms and berries. I have a dog named Jack.
He is very happy when I take him to the woods. Jack loves to chase butterflies and dragonflies. Sometimes I play with him. I throw him a stick, and he brings it back to me.
But last summer, my parents decided for a change to go somewhere else. They decided to go to the Crimea. I think it was the biggest mistake they ever made. Here, briefly, is what happened.
For a start, it was very difficult to find where to stay. We rented a room in a home away from the sea. It was the only place we were able to get. The road to the beach, we took about half an hour. But, as it turned out a few days later, it did not matter. Suddenly, our happy sunny days are over. The rains. Sometimes briefly cleared, but then started to rain again. We could only spend time in a movie or in a cafe. Leave was not possible, because tickets are reserved in advance, they can not be changed, and we had to spend another week.
I'm probably in my life seen so many movies. By the end of the week I was very tired of movies and could only lie in bed and read a book or look at the ceiling.
Finally came the happiest day of our departure. You can not imagine, in which we were amazed. From early morning, the sun shone. It seemed to me that it is laughed at us. After this vacation, we decided to spend every summer in the country.