Lucerne, Switzerland

                Welcome to Lucerne, Switzerland, a quaint Canton nestled in the majestic Swiss Alps, with the beautiful Reuss River running through it. This city dates back to 750 A.D. and it is full of old fashioned charm, including cobble stoned streets and enormous clock towers. The main city/shopping area is free of mainstream transportation, and is mainly a walking/biking area. 

                To get to the main shopping area, you must cross one of the three 14^th century wooden Chapel bridges over the rolling waters of the Reuss, home to flocks of ducks and swans. The bridge tells the story of the city’s history, with beautiful painted panels depicting war, knighthood, and celebration. Each panel is underlined by a caption in German, describing the scene and when it took place.

                Unfortunately, a large portion of the bridge was burnt and nearly destroyed in 1993 when a bridge walker lit a cigarette that sparked an enormous fire, bringing sorrow to city-dwellers of Lucerne and people around the world. The bridge has had work done to help restore it, but even today, as you walk along that end of the bridge, the smell of smoke is evident.

                One of the biggest attractions in Lucerne is a beautiful carved monument on the north side of the Canton. It is a crying lion, carved into a cliff, holding a shield and a sword with the crest of Lucerne. It was created in 1820-1821 by Lukas Ahorn, a tribute to those who lost their lives in the French Revolution, and a symbol of the grief felt by the entire Canton of Lucerne.

                During the construction of the lion, the Canton was unable to pay for the completion of the statue. In order to preserve his reputation as an artist and avoid having an unfinished work, Ahorn swallowed his pride and completed the sculpture, but he added his own sarcastic twist. With a closer look at the ten by six meter staggering creation, the outline of the cave that the Lion of Lucerne rests in, resembles a pig, a sarcastic but subtle jilt at the Canton that refused to pay him fully.

                All in all, this is a city rich with history, art and culture. It has a unique story to tell, and tells in a beautiful way. The charming ambiance in a place surrounded by the Alps with a river running through is a beautiful thing in of itself, and when travelers take the time to experience the full history and majesty of this amazing city, they are sure to recommend a visit.

 http://www.myswitzerland.com/en/lucerne.html ....click here to learn more about Lucerne

http://twistedsifter.com/2011/09/picture-of-the-day-the-lion-monument-of-lucerne-switzerland/ ...click here for information on Mark Twain's review of the Lion of Lucerne

http://history-switzerland.geschichte-schweiz.ch/history-flag-switzerland.html ....click here to learn about Switzerland and it's flag

The Green Team Invites New Members to Help Make a Difference

Sitting in one of many desks surrounded by lab equipment and water-cycle posters, it is clear that this is a science classroom. The chalkboard in the front of the class has a list of the parts of an animal cell, and the walls are covered in student work. One each desk lays three index cards, one for each student who sits in that desk during each of Mrs. Galusha’s three classes. She made each of these name tags herself, complete with sparkling stickers.

 This classroom plays more than one role: During the day, there are regular high school science classes, but after school it serves as a meeting place for The Green Team, one of the newest clubs of the West Boylston social scene, catered toward kids who have an interest in the environment and who want to make a difference.

 At the beginning of this school year, her second year teaching at West Boylston High School, Mrs. Galusha was approached by a freshman, Mikeala Smith, who wanted to start an environmental club. “I have a really strong interest in the environment and I wanted to take that and run with it,” says Smith, the founder of the Green Team. 

Smith was first interested in making this group as an eighth grade student. She spoke with her middle school science teacher about her idea for the club, who told her she should hold onto the idea until high school, where she could build the group over a longer span of time. 

 This year, the members of The Green Team are working to recruit new members so that the group can continue to expand. They have been spreading the word by creating posters to hang around the school, giving information over the morning announcements and creating a facebook page for the club. 

 The main focus of The Green Team has been their recycled wrapping paper project. After the holiday break, the group collected wrapping paper from each of the homerooms, offering a breakfast to the homeroom bringing in the most. The classroom is now full of heaping trash bags of wrapping paper. 

 “We’ve been trying out different recipes to make paper, and we found one that works really well,” said Galusha, holding up a frayed piece of green recycled paper. “We are hoping to make them into holiday cards for next year. We’re going to sell them for a fund raiser.”

 Currently, there are only 6 regularly participating members of The Green Team. It started out with just a few freshmen, and soon gathered more members, primarily juniors. “I really hope it expands,” says Mrs. Galusha, who is also the advisor of The Green Team, “it gives students interested in this stuff an opportunity to fine-tune those interests and really make a difference.”

 “Hopefully it will catch on,” said Smith, looking admiringly around the room, “I love what we do. This club is my baby and I want it to grow into something really cool.”