Teacher: David 

Hello, everyone! My name is Jin Young Kim. Today, I’d like to share with all of you the great experience that I had with my wife last summer in Switzerland. Using only 5 days of paid vacation, my wife and I were determined to spend time in that distant country because I have relatives there. I thought it would be a chance to kill two birds with one stone. You know why? I could see them in person, go sightseeing and enjoy a lot of exotic landscapes. At the same time, I could practice everyday English in real life with my relatives.

Anyway, this fantastic memory will surely last forever. Now, among plenty of wonderful memories in the country, let me please share one event in this contest. 

I picked ‘Jungfraujoch’, the name of the mountain located in the town of Interlaken in Switzerland. Shortly after we arrived in Interlaken, we bought train tickets from Interaken to the peak of Jungfraujoch. It is at an altitude of 3,545 meters and the train goes all the way up. It took us more than 2 hours to get to the top of the mountain, stopping at three or four stations. As we went up, the temperature fell and we suddenly felt chilly and even freezing; especially when we reached the peak. The most unbelievable thing on that mountain was that it was snowing on the summit even though it was still summer. It was definitely one of the most incredible experiences that I've ever had. From the visit, I happen to know why people in Europe call Jungfraujoch mountain 'ice caps' or 'permanent snow field'. I didn't take any thick clothes. So, the big difference in temperature finally made us catch a bad cold. We didn't actually have the slightest idea how cold it was up there. Anyway, it was much colder than I expected. Nevertheless, I would dare to say that the words such as marvelous, extraordinary and amazing are not enough to describe this spectacle sufficiently and I now agree that this mountain is one of the most popular and beautiful tourist attractions in the world. Adding to it, my wife and I rode an exciting sleigh, what they call 'snowrun', down slope from the top. It was a little bit scary but fun to do. We rode that small machine more than 5 times. I was amazed at all the movie-like-scenes and authentic nature; such as a green-colored lake and some cows and horses out in a pasture that I saw on my way back and forth by train in that small town. I also realized that Switzerland is second-to-none when it comes to eco-friendly matters and it is the least contaminated nation in the world. In order for us to treasure that unforgettable scenery, I preserved those good memories in photographs as much as I could. Among them, I chose three photos here to show all of you. Two are from the peak of Junfraujoch and the other is the picture that I took with my relatives over Switzerland's traditional food in a fancy restaurant after the visit to Jungfraujoch. The food is called ‘Fondue’.

Thanks for reading and watching my story to the end and I cordially wish you Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from the bottom of my heart. May God bless you and your family!

Discussion questions:

Tell me about what you understood from the story!

1. Have you ever been to Europe? Would you like to go there? Why?

2. What activities did Mickey and his family do?

3. What incredible experiences did they have?