Hello again, First Graders!

I have had some time to get out and see more things that I want to tell you about, and I will try to answer some of your questions.

The most unusual animal I have seen is an ibex. It is a goat with curly horns that lives in the mountains. They are not afraid of people, so if you go hiking, you might see one. I didn't take a picture though, so I will show you a picture of a Swiss stamp with an ibex on it.

In the USA, we have a national bird whose picture you can see on stamps, money, and many other places. Can you guess what it is?    That's right, an eagle. All counties have national symbols.

Now, let's see what is in the backpack!

Michael wants to know about the clothes that people wear in Switzerland.  It's a lot colder here than in Rock Hill. Switzerland is full of mountains, and tall mountains have snow on top all year---even in the summer. The Swiss people wear clothes very much like what we wear in the wintertime.

Doctor Kevin is getting ready for a hike.
It is the last day of April, but he has to wear a warm coat.
You can see some snow still on the mountain.
 

One of you asked about the kinds of plants that grow in Switzerland. Plants that like cold weather do well here. On the hike, the plants we saw the most were tall pine trees. Can you see a little snow still on the ground?

These reminded me of the playground at Richmond Drive!

Evelyn asks about the languages that the people speak. I guess I answered that one last time. The main language is French, but many people speak German and English too. Here are some French words that I have learned, and used a lot:

Word in English         Word in French           How it sounds



            Please             s'il vous plait            see voo play

Thank you                 merci                     mair see

Mina wants to know about the food they eat. Their food is mostly like ours, but Switzerland is famous for 2 kinds of food - delicious cheese and chocolate. I know that you have heard of Swiss cheese and Nestle chocolate. We have them in the USA, but they are from Switzerland.

 

 

We went to visit a cheese factory. That is a wheel of cheese that Dr. Kristie is holding!

 

Hai wrote, "Did you see any castles?"  No, I haven't seen any, but I did see a lot of buildings.

In the city people live in tall apartment buildings that look like the ones in American cities. In the last post, you could see those. Out in the country, they have a kind of big house called a chalet. Here is a picture of one.

  

It is right beside a mountain. Isn't it pretty?

 

I want to show you one more picture before I finish. It is at a downtown playground in Geneva. They had monkey bars and slides and a sand box just like yours. My favorite part was something that our playgrounds don't have - wooden rocking horses! I had to hang on tight!

 

 

 

 I am coming back home soon. Can't wait!

Visiting new places is always fun, but there is no place like home!

 

Your friend,

Flat Stanley