Switzerland : The Land And The People

[Music] when we think of Switzerland we may think of mountains mountains such as the mighty matter horn the matter horn is one of the many Peaks included among the chain of mountains called the Alps tourists come from all over the world to enjoy the Majestic Beauty of the Alps these mountains make up 2/3 of the land of Switzerland a lower range of mountains the Jura cover one sixth of the land the Juro mountains form the Northwestern boundary between France and Switzerland the Juro mountains in the Northwest and the Alps in the South form the natural boundaries of Switzerland Switzerland is a small landlocked European country it is entirely surrounded by larger countries France West Germany Austria and Italy there is no single Swiss language here a dialect of French Is Spoken Here a German dialect is spoken an Italian dialect is spoken in the southern mountainous regions bordering Italy all of Switzerland is not mountainous a plateau the mid land or as it is said in German Mand extends across the country from Lake Geneva on the French border to Lake constant on the German border the midlant lies between the Juro Mountains and the Alps the Alps as we have seen cover most of Switzerland the mountain slopes in this cool cool moist climate are suitable for grazing cattle in the summertime fine dairy cattle graze in the high mountain pastures under the watchful Eyes Of The Herder the milk from these herds is taken to towns and cities where it is made into a famous Swiss product cheese here bits of curdled milk called Kurds are being lifted out of a vat the liquid running out of the cheesecloth bag is called the H the bag of curds is then moved over to a mold the curds of raw cheese are pressed into the mold to give the cheese a round shape in this Cellar the cheeses are stored and allowed to age for several months this is called curing when the cheeses are cured or ripe they are taken to the marketplace here some will be exported and some will be sold to the people of this Alpine Town many smaller Alpine towns are famous for another kind of industry the tourist trade a leading industry in Switzerland such towns have excellent ins and hotels the high mountain slopes are good for skiing and other winter sports mountain climbing is very popular in Switzerland this Swiss guide makes his living by Leading climbers up the Steep trails from the high mountains we might see one of many dams which store water from the Mountain Streams and Glaciers these dams helped convert water power into electricity electricity used by Swiss factories and railroads the water snow and ice of Switzerland's mountains are the source of important European rivers the ran and Ry Rivers for example have their Beginnings in the Alps but perhaps most important of all the Alps in the South and the Juro mountains to the northwest have given the people of Switzerland natural boundaries the protective mountains have helped to keep the Swiss people free and independent for centuries here in the Juro mountains of Switzerland particularly in the city of lashon the watchmaking industry of Switzerland had its beginning centuries ago like this Craftsman watchmakers once worked in little shops in their own homes but the watchmaker in industry in the Jura region of Switzerland has grown into a factory industry with different men making different parts of the watches in these factories up-to-date Machinery is used to make Precision Watches in addition to the watchmaking industry forests on the slopes of the Jorah mountains Supply lumber for making paper and Furniture different products come from The More Level lands of the Swiss Mand this is the important farming and manufacturing center of the country some parts of the milant are Level enough so that large farm machines can be used to grow and harvest grain crops this is a field of wheat Rye barley and oats are also grown here along with grain crops potatoes are also grown here in abundance by Swiss Farmers this potato crop is being harvested by an entire Farm family of the Mand only one sixth of the total land of Switzerland is used for farming most of the wealth of the country comes from manufacturing and Industry this Factory in the city of schafhausen is one of the many located in the large mitan cities of Switzerland other large mitan cities are Geneva Lozan freeor lucern turich Basel and bar bar is the capital of Switzerland a picturesque city which has kept its old world charm the name bar comes from the German word which means Bears the city keeps a number of bears in this pit most Bears seem to like performing and these are no exception their Antics attract many towns people and tourists another attraction in Baron is the famous clock tower at the stroke of each hour a little Jester Rings Two Bells and figures of soldiers and animals appear a scene that children especially enjoy the Parliament building in Baron is the center of the national government called The Swiss Confederation the legislators who meet in Baron to make the laws are elected by the 22 states of Switzerland these states are known as cantons in the Canton of turich located in the midlant is Turk Switzerland's largest city in the old section of Turk are narrow n streets and old-fashioned houses but a new section of Turk reflects a modern city a city which is Switzerland's Chief manufacturing center this textile plant in cich manufactures silk Fabrics much of the silk produced here is exported to other countries textile Machinery of many types is also manufactured in surich in addition to Manufacturing Turk is an important World banking center because Switzerland has a history of avoiding Wars and maintaining a stable government banking has become a big international business Banks can be found in many Swiss Mand cities this bank is located in basil Switzerland's second largest city Basel is a gateway to Switzerland from the north situated on the upper Rin River in the Midland Basel is the country's only port to Basel barges on the rine bring coal from the r Valley in Germany Swiss manufacturing depends greatly on imported raw materials such as coal in turn Swiss products such as Machinery are sent by rail from Basel to other European markets food stuffs such as chocolate and condensed milk are other exports sent down the Rind from basil so the large Swiss cities of the melant are centers of Commerce and Industry we saw that in these cities many Swiss people make a living in textiles and other Industries many others are employed in finance and Banking and some are farmers in the midlant in the mountainous parts of Switzerland many people earn a living from the tourist trade and watchmaking others are employed in lumbering and dairying we have seen Switzerland as a beautiful and rugged country where the people have made excellent use of their land and other natural resources to build an industrious and thriving [Music] Nation