Switzerland is a small country located in Central Europe that borders Germany, France, Italy, and Austria. It has four official languages - German, French, Italian, and Romansch. The capital is Bern and the currency is the Swiss Franc. Switzerland is known for its mountains, lakes, watches, chocolate, cheese and for being a neutral country that is home to several international organizations like the UN and Red Cross.

1. SWITZERLAND

2. LOCATION AND LENGUAGESwitzerland is a little country but is very beautiful It’s located in the centre of Europe and it borders Germany, France, Italy and Austria. In Switzerland the people speak German, French, Italian , English and Romansch. The currency is the Swiss Francand the capital is BernIts population was 7,581,520 inhabitants (2008 estimate)Its area is 41,285 sq km/15,940 sqIt is also internationally famous for its mountains, cars, buildings, watches, chocolates, knives, banks, trains and cheeses.

3. Flag and Coat of ArmsThe Swiss coat of arms as well as the flag are red with a white cross in the middle

4. ORGANIZATION AND POPULATIONSwitzerland is a Federal Republic. There are 26 states called cantons .The capital of Switzerland is Bern. Ginebra is other important canton from this country. There are about 8,000,000 people. Switzerland is one of the most developed and richest countries in the world. Also Switzerland is highly active in recycling and pollution control regulations, and is one of the largest recyclers countries of the world

5. In summer the weather is warm and wet with periodic rains. In winter, in some places, it is sunny and snowy. It is cloudy in the south. In the Alps the weather is very cold and wet with a lot of snow. Autumn is the driest season of the year. In spring there are a lot of colourful flowers.The principal attractions in this country are the wonderful Alps and mountains and the forests. It is also famous for the lakes: ¨ The Leman lake. There are also beautiful castles placed in the middle of a beautiful landscape.Weather and Landscape

9. This country is famous for its fondue, chocolate, wine, cheese, and roulette.THE FOOD

10. Switzerland is home to many immigrants from different countries so is considered one of the European countries with the richest cultural diversity.The most popular sports are: mountaineering, skiing, tennis, football, ice hockey, cycling, etc. Switzerland never participated in any international conflictSwitzerland is the international headquarters of several global organizations. For example the Red Cross , the ONU, the World Trade Organization, is also the headquarters of the FIFA.Ginebra has the biggest laboratory of the worldZürich has the most important University in the country. Albert Einstein studied there. Switzerland has the second largest number of foreign students in tertiary education, only behind Australia113 Nobel prize winners came from Switzerland. For example: the Nobel Prize of the peace.OTHER INFORMATION Valeria Canalis -Teens 2