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1. Interview 2 members on HE who are from different countries to yourself. Ask them 10-15 questions each to find out a bit about them and their country and how they feel about it. Post both interview answers here with the username to who you interviewed and where they come from

2. Write a letter as if to a penfriend who lives in another country telling them about your country and how you feel about it. Make sure it is between 400-500 words

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Gryffindorgal4hp

1.where do you live?

I live in Northern Ireland, which is my mothers birth country. Father’s birth country is Malta, but he lives here with us, because we are a family.

2. Who rules your country?

My country is ruled by the English Queen, Elizabeth II.

3. What do you think of their ruling abilities?

I have always liked the Queen as I have got to know her ruling styles over the years and find them very satisfactory (we just get on with our lives a normal...while inside the Queen and parliament's laws *laughs*)

4.What would you change about your country if you could?

I would want a little more sun in the country in summer, as it is often very cold and rainy year round.
I would also change bits and pieces of the schooling system eg. I wouldn't be abolishing the 11+ right now.
I wish some of the people would be more friendly towards each other.

5. What do you like about your country?

I like the fact that we ALWAYS have green grass and sheep in the fields here. I also like a little bit of rain (but not too much)

6. What do you dislike about your country?

I dislike the fights that take place between the two religions. I wish there could be a way in which we could all get along.

7.What language does your country speak?

Our country speaks English, but we have Northern Irish accents...which is sometimes know as the 'blank accent' because some Northern Irish people think they have no accent at all...that there voice is 'normal.'

8. What is the average tempurature for your country?

The average temperature is...cold. It varies quite a bit from cold....to super cold.

9.Where would you rather live than were you do?

I love Northern Ireland, but I would love to live in Malta.

10.Is there anything special about your country that I should know about? (good weather ect.. Holiday destinations ect..)

This is not really the Traditional holiday nation...but Americans and Polish people seem to like it

Shadow Granger.

1. where do you live?

France, the Alps.


2. Who rules your country?

Democratic President (Nicolas Sarkozy... or summat like that)

3. What do you think of their ruling abilities?

I don't know, most people don't think much of him.

4.What would you change about your country if you could?

Shorter school hours.

5. What do you like about your country?

It's scenic, most of the times.

6. What do you dislike about your country?

It's kinda boring to be honest.

7.What language does your country speak?

French, unfortunately. There's a rule, and there's fifteen thousand exceptions to it!

8. What is the average temperature for your country?

10° to -5° in winter, 15° to 45° in summer.

9.Where would you rather live than were you do?

Back in Scotland!

10.Is there anything special about your country that I should know about? (good weather etc.. Holiday destinations etc..)

Apparently frog's legs taste like chicken, but I'd avoid the snails if I were you.

-----------------

Hi pen pal!

My name is Matthew and I live in the north of Ireland, more commonly known as Northern Ireland. Ireland was divided into the south and the north because of problems with religion, the south went their own way and created their own government, the north stayed with the Queen and the prime minister. The Prime minister is the person that rules the country, not the Queen, that was over ruled nearly 200 years ago by the bill of rights. Every four years we can vote for a new prime minister who will make decisions that should change our country for the better.


I think our country is blessed with good fortune and a fair amount of prosperity, although sometimes I can't help but wish that it was ran more smoothly. When people disagree with something, bombs, riots and loyalist groups tend to get involved, instead of compromise.

I think our schooling system works really well, even though sometimes it appears long I think the government made a good decision (for once xD) Having said this though, the government plans to introduce new laws that say we have to stay at school until we are 18. I do plan to stay but I didn’t ever want to be forced into it, I would like to be able to decide for myself when the time is right


I think Northern Ireland has a diverse culture. We may have been divided by religion differences but we do have a lot of different cultures and religions in areas, I guess it’s just the Irish charm

The weather all over Ireland is pretty cool. We might complain about the rain sometimes, but others would be thankful for it, so I am grateful as I’m sure many others are. So along with the rain we have snow (occasionally), hail, fog, ice (where everything’s frozen), sun and heat waves, what else could we ask for? Although the weather is pretty screwed up now, due to Global Warming.
Stop the Global warming!

What is the best thing about your country/worse?



Do you like your leader? Who is your leader? What is the best/worse thing he or she does?

Really to be honest, I don’t take much interest into politics but I don’t like the leader, the decisions he makes are not the best he could do.

We are lead by Queen Elizabeth 2nd, and our government is led by Gordon Brown. I like them enough I guess....but I know nothing about them. I had to ask my friend who ruled us. *nervous laugh*.

What food there are different then American Foods?



If you could, is there anything you would change about you country?

I would change people views on how they see different people, how people see other people. E.g. Prejudice towards other people.

I think I would change the weather a little. Less rain, more sun, that kind of thing. Other than that I pretty much love Ireland....

How are your studies different then Americans?

I don’t really know anything about the studies in American but I do know they are quite different compared to in England.

We have school from 9.00am to 3.30pm. We also only have two sets of school. Primary and Secondary. Both for seven years. And there's no middle school....whatever that is.

What studies are you favorite? Why?

Drama, History and English. Drama; is gives you the right to express yourself in any situations. History; It gives me an insight into the past which I find interesting learning about. English; you get to used your imagination and I just love it.

I like English because I like anything to do with writing, and I like drama because I enjoy expressing myself in such ways. I hate all the other subjects to be perfectly honest....

What sports there are different then Americain sports?

Well there’s Ruby which is like American football but without all the body suit, cricket is the only one I think is different to any sport in American.

We play football which is like soccer I think. We dont have baseball...as far as I know and American Football is called rugby over here. Again my friend helped me with that.

What holidays do you have that America doesn’t?

White Day and that’s all I can think of.

Um....we dont have Thanksgiving. We do have Easter break but I dont know if you Americans do....I know nothing about America. We have St Patricks day obviously, cause that's a typically Irish thing.

Any hangout places that you like?

Oh there are not of places. Liquid a under 17s club, the park, cinema and bowling there’s not many place except them. Um....we like the cinema...which is "the movies". Nothing Irish though....

Are their any clubs you are in, which are school involved or community involved?

I’m involved in Drama and well that’s it.

I take guitar lessons, but other than that, not a thing. I quit them all when I decided I hated school and learning. When I became an emo I think that was...

Are their any kinds music you like that comes from America?

Well I like all types but mostly rock, there are quite a lot of rock artist that are from America that I like.

I love Paramore and Bowling for soup, Punk Rock kind of bands both of which come from America. I think.

Do you embrace others based on their skin/language/religion or based on their personality?

No, I’ll except people for being themselves. I don’t judge them If do not know them.

Um.... I dont really care about skin or language or all that. I pick my friends out of their popularity.... kidding. Personality. Of course.

m If do not know them.



How many different languages do you speak?

My main language is English but I’m currently learning French and Spanish.
English fluently, French quite well and Spanish and German and little. So in seriousness, one. English.

Do you have friends from other countries that you plan to see/talk to one day?

Yes, I talk to a few people from different countries and I would like to meet them someday, if possible.
Yup, I have loads. Jenn, Jayne and of course, Lesley. *winks*

Do you embrace other religions? What religion are you?



GREEN: nixy
RED: hannah


Hello Pen pal,
Well…I was told I was to write you to actually start out letter swapping and stuff, so I decided to tell you some stuff about the country I live in. Well..lets see., America is all its cracked up to be I can say that. We have weird weather, weird people (me) and weird foods. Well…not weird food, but that have changed the oils we used for cooking our foods in so we could be healthier. Depending on where you are, you will have the same basic weather. Like in the north, its usually cool or cold while down in the south, its warm and hot. It does rain sometimes and you can go months without rain here. If you live in the west…its mostly hot there, winter and summer. Some people are prejudiced while some are decent people.

Our President is George w. Bush, who isn’t that great. But hey, everyone has a bad person in office every once and a while. Ours is just….been there for to long. During the summer, this place is hot and beautiful, while during the winters it snows in some placed and its so pretty, with all the lights people put up in places and the New Years Countdown in New York which is fun to watch on TV before you let your fireworks go lose. Some places have good farm land to, like in the south and some north. Most people, like me, complain about America thought. Maybe just some of us don’t really like it here. Maybe because Global Warming as finally got to my head. But it can be fun here sometimes.

We have lots of stores. And cars, which is really bad. Factories pollute out air to, but hey, if they haven’t cared yet, they shouldn’t now. They should try and go Green…close them down and work like people did before! No…not really, but they could try and be a little more Green then what they are. One day, they are going to regret all they have done though. And when we are swimming in waters with chucks of ice and lava in it….well….lets not say bad things that could happen one day.

School is awesome, depending on what you like and how you spend your days. If you like me and goof off but does your work, then you just had one perfect day of school! Well….that’s how school is for me. But you do have to take a language course, PE, and the four main subjects with either 3 or 4 electives. Math, English, Math, and Science are the main subjects you take. The others depends on what your school can afford or find safe for you to actually do.

Cant wait for you letter!
Lesley

Well done. you have all recieved your badges and 100 points

Lovely! You get 100 points a badge in your personal thread.

You get 100 points a badge in your personal thread.

Dear Penpal,

I'm very excited at the prospect of having someone new to write to, and so I will begin by telling you a bit about where I am from, with the hopes that you will do the same when you come around to responding. I live in the south of Quebec, which is the biggest province (province, not territories, with those included we come second to Nunavut) of Canada. It is also one of the most diversified for its culture and language that sets us apart from, as we call it, the English part of Canada. You see, in Quebec, we are most commonly called French Canadians among other countries, because our roots vary from that of the rest of the country, except for parts of the Atlantic provinces. While Canada is, technically, a British colony, we belonged to France before England fought and conquered us before expanding their North American territory - at the beginning, most of what they called 'New France' was what today is Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador, along with a small part of Ontario. Here lived immigrants from France, though admittingly not the pick of the litter - prisonners, orphans, street workers... the kind of people they no longer desired in their own country, whom they sent away to develop a new territory. When England and France fought their war, France abandoned us to them. That's when the English came over and started taking over the country, trying to convert us from Catholicism to Protestantism, from French to English, from one culture to another. We fought, and for the most part, we won. Quebec is, to this day, a french speaking province.

We have our very own culture and stereotypes of lumberjacks and igloos, though you can easily guess those are not true. Well, to be fair, our country started out with a lot of what we call 'coureurs des bois', meaning runners of the woods, which were men who lived in the forest with their families and that, for a living, hunted animals for their meat and fur. I'm sure you'll have figured out, however, that this is no longer the case. Canada is a very beautiful country, because of its diversity - it is the second largest country in the world, and the largest in the Americas. From coast to coast, you will find maritime towns, vast prairies, majestic mountains, sunny valleys and the frozen north. Canada is the country which touches the most water at its borders, surrounded by the Pacific, Arctic and Atlantic oceans. And with such great territory comes a diversity of cultures, from western towns to the big cities, and whatever you are searching for you are likely to find. And when you come over, there are foods that you will need to taste, for you can't find them anywhere else - poutine is the very first meal I'll advice you to take. Yes, it looks gross, and it is a complete disaster to your digestive system in every way, but it has to be the best thing you will ever taste, to the point where it's now starting to invade the United States, for once they've visited us and tasted it, they need some more.

You may have guessed by now that I love my country, and that I am proud of it. It has its weaknesses of course, like any other country, and some things we would do without - I could definitely deal without the hockey craze, because it is not true that every Canadian loves hockey... though I admittingly did cheer rather loudly upon their winning their Olympic games - but at the end of the day, it is my home, where I am happy and free.

Until next time,

Marie

1. What country are you from?
FaerieOfDoom: Australia

TheLucky666: I'm from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

2. What language(s) are spoken in your country?
FaerieOfDoom: Gosh a lot of different ones: the predominant one is English, but we're multicultual, so Spanish and Chinese and Japanese and Arabic...

TheLucky666: In my country, official languages are Bosnian, Croatian and Serbian. (It's basically the same language. Don't ask "How comes?")

3. What is the climate like throughout the year?
FaerieOfDoom: Pretty warm and humid in Summer and Spring, cool and windy and warm in Winter and Autumn

TheLucky666: Moderate, I dare to say. We have all 4 seasons, and they're pretty much what you have seen already.


4. What type of landscapes can be found in your country (mountains, plains, desert, ect)?
FaerieOfDoom: We're not very mountainous, but we have some along the east of Australia called the Great Dividing Range. There's a few deserts: the Simpson desert, the Great Sandy Desert which are pretty much in the centre of Australia. There's the tropical rainforest in Queensland. Dunno about plains. Plains of desert? Um the urban areas cluster along the east of Australia, but then there's quite a few people in Perth, Darwin, Hobart and Adelaide, but still on the rim of the country. Some people live in the centre but it's pretty hard living in the outback. We have a lot of wild bushland (we're famous for it) which is dry and arid, for the most part. Gumtrees and whatnot. It's basically a forest, but more sandy, more dry, and full of underbrush. And we have the Great Barrier Reef, which is full o' fish.

TheLucky666: Mountains, plains and karst topography. (If you search the 'Karst' on English wiki you'll find picture of Kravice waterfalls, which is in B&H )

5. Do you have any holidays that differ from the US (specific to your country)? If so, what traditions go along with it?
FaerieOfDoom: We don't have July 1st (duh) and we're not that into Halloween. We have Australia Day, which is the 26th of Jan. It's generally celebrated with lots o' beer and a BBQ this is during the school holidays, and people get the day off for it. We also have the Queen's Birthday (I don't know if you have it) where we also get the day off: beer and BBQs (sensing a pattern?) um... think that's it.

TheLucky666: No.

6. Do you like living in your country?
FaerieOfDoom: Sure, it's better than some places, but the heat gets to me sometimes. I'm not a fan.

TheLucky666: Yes. Yes, I do. XD

7. What are some popular musicians in your country?
FaerieOfDoom: Australian musicians? Um Powderfinger, Silverchair, Bliss N' Esso, Ladyhawk (she's from New Zealand though) and Kisschasey.

TheLucky666: UGH! Don't ask me which musicians are popular (I don't really like them). The most popular ones are Dino Merlin and 'Hari Mata Hari'. They used to have good songs, but now they suck (if you ask me, that is). I'd recommend: 'Dubioza Kolektiv', 'Zabranjeno Pušenje', 'Indexi' and 'Bijelo Dugme'. If you, by any chance, get around something labeled as 'turbofolk' genre, do avoid it! It's the worst trash in the world!

8. What’s your favorite part about living in your country?
FaerieOfDoom: The fresh seafood. I do love seafood.

TheLucky666: Traditional meals!!!

9. What’s your least favorite part about living in your country?
FaerieOfDoom: The heat!

TheLucky666: Politics and nationalism. Definitely.

10. What are some popular sports?
FaerieOfDoom: NRL (rugby), netball, cricket.

TheLucky666: The most popular sport here is football (or 'soccer', in American English). My country also makes great results in martial arts (karate, especially) and sitting volleyball.

11. What advice would you give to someone traveling to your country for the first time?
FaerieOfDoom: 30+ sunscreen. None of that pansy 15+ SPF. Won't work, you'll get burnt. And don't be stupid at the beach - they'll film it and Aussies will laugh at you. (they film the lifeguards at Bondi and in every episode some foreigner almost drowns 'cause they're silly) And aussie is pronounced 'auZZies' z sound. Not 's' and don't try and argue about it, we hate that.

TheLucky666: Mmm.... None, I guess.

12. What foods do you have that are traditional to your country?
FaerieOfDoom: Nothing cool, just lamingtons and vegemite.

TheLucky666: My fav part! We have an entire cosine! But, the highlight would probably have to be the epic 'ćevapi' (it pronounces sort of like: chewapy; do note it's pl. in nominative) I think it has to be the only meal in the World that can be called a 'tourist attraction'! (OK, I'm exaggerating a lot.)

13. Fun fact about your country?
FaerieOfDoom: It's a continent.

TheLucky666: Mmmmm.... I don't know. It depends on what do you mean by 'fun fact'. There are a lot of interesting stuff, so drop by and see for yourselves!

14. What types of animals are most common to your country (besides house pets)?
FaerieOfDoom: Rabbits and cane toads. There are heaps of 'em threatening our wildlife. But the traditional 'aussie' animals are kangaroos, koalas, wombats, platypuses, and whatnot. But there aren't as many of those as introduced species.

TheLucky666: Domestic animals, such as horses, cows, goats and sheep. Also, Bosnian pony is our indigenous species of horse.

15. What kind of government does your country have?
FaerieOfDoom: Um it's complicated... wikipedia says it's "The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy."

We're under the power of the Queen of England (as one of Britain's colonies), but we have like our own system... Um a Prime Minister, then the House of Representatives and stuff. Elections where the people vote in a new leader (as we just had). It's some super special British design of government, my mum says.

TheLucky666: We have a government? Wow. (OK, I'm kidding!) That would be 'federal democratic republic'. The only one in the World with 3 presidents. (It's painful to explain, just check Wiki)



Hi!

It’s me, Katie, your American pen pal! I hope you’re doing well! I’m sure you already know quite a bit about America but I’ll just tell you a bit about where I live and what I think of the US.

I like in the Northeast in a tiny state called Connecticut. It’s only about an hour to an hour and a half away from New York City if you drive so I get to go into the city quite often and see some really good Broadway shows and shop (hehehe).

The town I live in is super boring. It’s a small town that’s pretty much in a forest. The houses are all far apart so you have to drive to get anywhere. I guess you could bike but it’s so hilly here that I don’t think I’d be able to make it up half of the hills! It’s starting to get really cold up here since we’re nearing winter. In Connecticut, we get all four seasons which is nice because right as you get bored with the heat or the cold, the seasons move on.

I’m fifteen years old (sixteen in December!) and a sophomore in high school (10 grade). The systems for our school work in a range of ways, but usually students start pre-school when they’re four or five. Usually 5-6 year olds are in kindergarten and ages 6-10 are in grades 1-5 which is called elementary (or sometimes intermediate) school. Ages 11-13 go to Junior High (or Middle) school (grades 6-8) and then ages 14-18 go to High School for grades 9-12.

Since the US has a democratic government, we get to vote in all of our leaders and representatives. Just last week we had an election for the House of Representatives and the Senate, both of which are very important parts of our government in keeping checks and balances on the president and making sure no one person gets too much power. Though I don’t get to vote since I’m not 18, I still hear quite a bit about it.

You might be wondering what types of foods are typical for America, but we have quite a range. Because our country was founded mainly on immigrants, cultures from all over the world have shared their types of cuisine with us. You find all sorts of restaurants here: Chinese, Indian, Italian, Mexican, ect, but not all of them are similar to what’s actually served in those regions. Typical “American” food is usually hotdogs, cheeseburgers, steak and fast food. (;

The two most popular sports we have over here is football (the American type with their hands though…not feet…don’t ask as to why we call it that…it’s stupid. xD) and baseball which is supposedly the All-American-Sport. A lot of people wouldn’t say no to a good game of hockey or a NASCAR race though!

What’s it like over there for you? Hope you’re well!

From your American friend,
Katie

Part 1

Paula (Hermione.Granger)

1) What country do you live in? Philippines

2) Do you like living there? Well yes and no. haha I'm not that sure.

3) Have you ever lived anywhere else? Nope. How I wish

4) Do you ever want to live somewhere else? Where? Yes, California or maybe somewhere in Europe. Like Belgium and Norway or Denmark.

5) What languages do you speak? What is your country's main language? I speak English, Filipino Language called "Tagalog" well a little of Spanish because some of Filipino words are originally from Spain and ...... a little of Nihongo or Japanese language. And yes! Our main language is "Filipino" or "Tagalog".

6) What's your weather like? We only have two weathers here. Sunny and Rainy. So yeah, pretty much like always "Hot" or sunny in here.

7) What is your favorite traditional meal? Hmm... Maybe, Afritada? or ..... nilagang baka (nilagang baka is "Boiled Beef" or something like that xD)

8) Where is your favorite place to vacation? Wow! I love to spend my time in a beach even though we're not always visiting any of many beaches here. :/

9) If I came to visit your country, what should I make sure I see (landmarks, beaches, palaces, etc)? Hmm. You should see the Chocolate Hills, the Mayon Volcano, Boracay (one of the most popular beaches here because it has white sand) and... maybe Corregidor? I wish there is a palace here but unfortunately there is NO palaces or castles here

10) What is your country's biggest holiday? Any special traditions for it? Biggest? Well, we celebrate like EDSA day because in that particular place is where People Power is held (sorry for my grammar xD) But actually, we celebrate so many holidays including New Year and Christmas xD

11) Are there any stereotypes about your country that really aren't true? I think? Yes? But I don't really know exactly what it is

12) The United States' mascot is the bald eagle. Does your country have an animal mascot? What is it? I think we don't have mascot

13) What is a fun fact about where you live? Well, honestly, I think in our country, every afternoon you'll see people going out their houses and staying outside there house to talk with their neighbors, you know? chitchat. LOL! I admit, people here aren't PERFECT since some are judgmental but some are very friendly

Ellen:

1) What country do you live in? Scotland (I prefer saying I'm Scottish than I'm brittish)

2) Do you like living there? Yeah! best country EVER! Yeah it's in a recession with lots of job losses and the stereotype isn't too good but I'm proud to be Scottish.

3) Have you ever lived anywhere else? No, lived here my whole life

4) Do you ever want to live somewhere else? Where? No, scotlands brilliant.

5) What languages do you speak? What is your country's main language? We speak english but in the same way that america and australia have their own ways of speaking so do we. We tend to write in proper british english but we speak a wee bit differently. Oh wait wee's a scots word. So we type a bit different to. You sometimes find books in scots. There brilliant. I read the twits in scots once and theres comics like "oor wullie" and "the broons" it scots. We don't really go full out scots we speak it a little bit genrally.

6) What's your weather like? You get the image of rain all the time here but it isn't really that bad. The weathers always changing. The saying red sky at night shephards delight doesn't seem to work here. It might rain one moment and then be sunny the next. It seems to never settle. Its cold in the morning for one thing.

7) What is your favorite traditional meal? Haggis, Neeps and Tatties! Or as a not Scot would say Haggis, Potatoes and Swede. It's so yummy. I don't care if its sheeps insides stuffed inside a sheeps stomach. They come inside plastic now. I don't care what its made of. The rest of the sheeps being used, why should it be chucked in the bin or biology class? I'll tell you what I don't like vegitarian not haggis at all. In my opinion not haggis at all. I think they should put real vegitarians in it. Then its haggis. To a point.

8) Where is your favorite place to vacation? Mull. Its this island in the hebradies. There are three groups of islands the orkney and shetland isles to the north and the Hebradies to the west. Mull is one of the biggest one and is shaped like a back to front C and we always go right to the end of the lower point and go camping. Its amazing.

9) If I came to visit your country, what should I make sure I see (landmarks, beaches, palaces, etc)? Well atleast one castle and one loch. Dunnotars my favourate castle and loch lomond and loch katrine ae both good lochs. There abit far from dunnotar though. Since you love Harry Potter you should go to fort william to go on the jacobite steam train aka the hogwarts express you ride over the glenfinnan viaduct which is that bridge in the films.

10) What is your country's biggest holiday? Any special traditions for it? We mostly have the same holidays as you Christmas is the biggest and same traditions apply. We have two holidays all to own Burns night 25th Jan celebrating our national poet Robbie Burns and St Andrews day 30th Nov saints day of our patron saint. Theres not much of a fuss about them. I suppose there is hogmany (New Years Eve). A tradition linked with it is the first footer. The first person to enter the house after the bells has to have dark hair and carry a gift of coal or fruit cake or something I don't know of anyone who follows this. We turn the telly onto the channel with the Scottish celebations which are always in edinburgh on it and at the bells there piping and stuff from the castle and a famous cannon called mons meg is fired at 12. Robbie Burns songs are always song.

11) Are there any stereotypes about your country that really aren't true? Yeah, Ginger people who all drink a lot and always wear tartan. Its sort of based on the truth. I know theres more gingers here than in any other country. A lot of people drink but not all and we wear as much tartan as any other country exept some people own kilts for special occasions. Most men wear them at weddings.

12) The United States' mascot is the bald eagle. Does your country have an animal mascot? What is it? No, we have the same ones as the rest of britain. We have a flower though. The thistle. A rather bright and prickly weed.

13) What is a fun fact about where you live? There are only four citys with populations over 100000 Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Dundee

Part 2:

Hello Friend!

Since this is my first time writing to you, I thought I would go over some basic stuff about where I live. I live in the USA in the middle of the country. Last September I moved from a city of a couple million people in the middle of the desert to a town of about 1100 people in the middle of farm lands. Kind of a crazy move on my part, but it is easier to save money here as everything is much cheaper.

The USA is a democracy, which generally means that the people get to vote on what goes on within the government. It is a pretty decent system, but in a country this large, any system is going to have its fallbacks. Not having to worry too much about having somewhere to live, or going to work without having to worry about someone blowing me up is pretty nice. Since this is such a big country, I will try to focus more on where I live in particular.

The country in general has varying ecosystems and pros and cons, but the place I moved from was strictly hot. I moved to this state (in the midwest) from a state called Arizona. Arizona has a couple months out of the year where it will be in the 60s during the day but the rest of the year it is 90-120F something. The odd thing about desert weather is it can be scorching hot during the day and then freeze at night. And there is a rather long monsoon season that involves a lot of flash floods. I had lived there way too long, but a big city is kind of hard to save money in, so I moved to the tiny town I live in now.

Where I live now is in a state called Nebraska. It is in the midwest and smack in the middle of farmlands. Not having much city around me is a little annoying sometimes when I feel like going shopping or to the movies, but for the most part it isn't too bad. It's very pretty here. The weather is ridiculous. It doesn't seem to know what season it is. It will be 70 and hot one day, and then snow the next. I am only going to stay here long enough to save money to move somewhere I actually want to live. Hopefully in another country for a while to gain some worldly perspective.

More generally about the country, we have a pretty basic school system. Elementary from 4 or 5 years old to 10 or 12. Then junior high for 2 to 3 years depending on where you live. Then you go to high school and then college. As long as you have decent grades in high school, you can pretty much pick where you want to go to college, and what you want to be. Unless you have overbearing parents, no one will tell you what you have to pick. The freedom of choices in your life are a pretty big deal here. That is the main reason I like this country; because for the most part it allows you to be whomever you choose to be.

Looking forward to hearing from you!

Samantha

First, I want to thank amortentia773, a fellow Hufflepuff, and Hermione.Granger, another Filipino just like me, for sparing me some of their precious time.
1. From what country do you live?
I live in the United States of America
Philippines

2. Were you born in that country?
Yup! In a little town in the mid-west!
Yes

3. What languages do you use in your country?
English!
Tagalog and some other languages from different provinces.

4. If you were to choose, where do you really want to live?
Hmm...let's see...if it can be anywhere in the world, I'd love to live in Australia.
Europe. Scotland, Denmark or England.

5. If I were to visit your country, what place do you recommend me to have a look?
Ooo, there are so many awesome places here...if you like nature, the west has a lot of awesome national parks. The Grand Canyon is always a good one to see, but Nashville and New York City are both awesome cities as well so I'd recommend those too.
The beautiful beaches here.

6. Does your country has a dominating religion? What religion is it?
Christianity is our number one; you can find that no matter where you go in the US.
I think? I'm not pretty sure but it's Catholic.

7. What kind of government do you have in your country?
We have a democratic government that's headed by a president whom we elect every four years. In order to maintain checks and balances over power, we have three branches of government (judicial, legislative and executive) that make sure nobody gets too much power and dominates over anything. It's a pretty good system if I do say so myself.
Democratic

8. If you were the leader of your country, what changes will you make?
I'd stop trying to pass all the ridiculous health care laws because they're all gonna fail miserably...I'd also like us to be a little less involved in foreign problems because we're in all sorts of conflicts right now that we don't really need to be in.

The equality and poverty.

9. How about those things you will retain if you were the leader?
The capitalist system for businesses because it's successful overall. And of course all of our original amendments in the Constitution.
The peace and discipline of the people.

10. How many years of study do you need to have a degree in your country?
It generally differs from whatever you're planning to major in for your career, but I think most people average it to be around four years. It can be much higher for degrees in the medical field though.
I'm not pretty sure about this. Maybe 4 years?

11. Does education necessary to land a job in your country?
For most things, yes, education is highly valued when applying for a job and are more likely to have better salaries and oppurtunities when they've studied and worked hard.
Yes.

12. What is the most common form of public transportation do you have?
Hmmm...I'd say it's probably taxis or subways in the bigger cities and buses in towns.
Jeepney

13. At what month of the year do you experience summer?
June through August.
March.

14. Briefly, how will you describe your country to attract tourists?
We're a large country with an amazing amount of diversity in the people that live in the United States, as well as a large range of land types: mountains, prairies, deserts, forests, ect. so there's something for people will all types of interests to see no matter what interests them. Also, there are some amazing cities that can be found all around the country which all have fun activities that can be done there. While we don't have a lot of very old history since we're a relatively new country, there's still many things for those history geeks too. I'm sure anyone who was to travel to the United States could find something that they'll enjoy.
Philippines is a small country but has many site attractions. They'll find white sand beaches here and a perfect coned volcano.

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Hi friend,

I came from the land of hospitable people, Philippines. If you were a nature lover person as well as an adventurous one, I would like to invite you here in our country.

We have beautiful beaches which you will not regret. The popular Tubbataha Reef which was nominated for the New 7 Wonders of the World lies within the territory of the Philippines. The Puerto Princesa Underground River, a semi-finalist to the New 7 Wonders of the World, could be found in the Philippines as well.

Our country is rich in historical sites such as the Luneta Park in Manila where Jose Rizal was shot. You might also want to visit the Dambana ng Kagitingan in Bataan which was built in loving memories of soldiers who died during the World War II.

How about sight-seeing? You might want to take a look with what Banawe Rice Terraces. How about the Chocolate Hills? I tell you, it really changes color when it rain. Have you seen any mountain with a perfect cone shape? I did. The Mt. Mayon in Albay has a perfect cone shape, though now, because of its eruptions you’ll find the tip missing. You might also want to have some lunch while on a tour around Loboc River

Do you want some adventure? Try to visit Surigao for a great surfing experience. Excited with the rapids? Cagayan de Oro and Davao has river with great rapids though those exciting rapids might be lousy in some months. A hotel in Cebu city will let you experience to walk on the edge of the building. You might also want to try riding the edge coaster. It will let you move around the building while sitting on a cart which will be tilted by 30-55 degrees. I’m pretty sure you’ll have a great view of what’s below you. By the way, that gimmik of that hotel in Cebu is the first world-wide, so you might not what to miss something original.

If you are planning to visit Philippines, the best time would be around April-May for you to have an assurance of a dry weather. Because when it rains, you might not be able to enjoy the view as well as the adventure you wanted. And I suggest, better to have an arrangement with a travel agency for your itinerary. Though, you could tour around on your own. Filipinos are surely hospitable.

A friend from another time zone,
IAMAPUREBLOOD