My answer

What is the differences and similarities in nature for the surrounding areas near Gnosjö and Leno?

Gnosjö is a typical Swedish small town, with trees surrounding the entire town. The municipality of Gnosjö consists of a natural landscape with a great variety of lakes, hills, pine and leaf trees. In the southeastern part of the municipality there is also a National Park “Store Mosse” which is one of southern Sweden's largest marshes.  

The nature in Leno is more reminiscent of the very south of Sweden. Mostly due to the open fields and leaf trees. The land area is cultivated, still some natural vegetation is preserved. The landscape is mostly covered with buildings, open fields and leaf trees. However Leno also have a lot of bushes more than what is common in southern Sweden and there were almost no pine trees. There were more differences then I expected, but there were still some similarities, like for example both towns have many lakes and rivers.    

My Answer

How is the Italian habitat type in comparison to the Swedish? Can you find any similarities and differences between the different countries?

Italy and Sweden are quite equal both to the outside and their similar nature. The both countries have small and oblong shapes which makes the northern part of the country a bit different from the southern. In general, Italy has many mountainous regions. In the north of Italy you can find the Alps and also the mountain range, Apennines, which reaches the whole way from the north to the south. Below the Alps and on the both sides of the Apennines begins the lowland where also the fertile plains and their different kind of farming take place. Sweden is also kind of mountainous in the north, nevertheless the fact that we don’t have any mountain chain. Almost the half of the surface is covered with forests. In the south you will find mostly hardwood and in the central and in the northern parts of Sweden dominates the nature of coniferous forests, such as spruce and pine. But the nature and weather differ a lot from north and south. For instance, the longer south you get, you will see the agriculture grow more and more. The nature switches all the time due to where you are in the country and their diverse nature is one thing the both countries have in common. Something that is different between Sweden and Italy are their dissimilar climates. Italy has a Mediterranean climate which makes the summer constantly hot and dry while the weather in the winter is alternately and rainy. Sweden has a temperate climate and the different climates affect their variant habitats.

One thing I noticed during my visit in Leno was the big, extended fields which surrounded the roads we were driving at. In Gnosjö (where I live) and the regions near, the only thing you can see is forests. I reacted how openly it was in Italy compared with Sweden and that was one of the biggest difference I could see.

My answer

How has the polity changed over time in Italy compared with the polity of Sweden? 

Sweden has been a kingdom for thousand years and is, even to this day, still a monarchy. But the monarchy has changed over the years and the king has no influence or power to affect the government anymore. Like Sweden, Italy started out as a monarchy. But in the beginning different parts of the country had different kings. Then the Italy became a united country with only one king. But in 1946 the Italians voted abolish the monarchy and the country became a republic, which still is the polity of Italy today. Each year Italy has a national holiday on the 2^th June called “Festa della Repubblica” were they celebrate that the country became a republic.