Northeast (U.S.)

I feel the crisp autumn air turn my leaves into a beautiful carpet of red, orange, and yellow. It’s so much fun to watch children jump and play in them. Then, when the world gets quiet, I wear a soft blanket of white snow, and everything sparkles. When I wake up from my winter nap, I sprout cheerful green leaves and colorful flowers that smell sweet in the warm air. My summers are sunny and bright, perfect for splashing in the cool, salty ocean that tickles my rocky shores. I have tall, rolling mountains where bears and deer live, and I have big, busy cities that twinkle with millions of lights at night. Hello there. I am the Northeast, a very special corner of the United States.

For thousands and thousands of years, my forests and rivers were home to many Indigenous peoples. The Wampanoag and the Iroquois knew all of my secrets. They took great care of my trees and animals, and their stories are whispered on my winds. Then one day, a new story began. Big ships with tall, white sails crossed the giant ocean. On November 11th, 1620, a ship called the Mayflower arrived at my shore. It carried families who were called the Pilgrims. They were looking for a new home where they could be free, so they built a small village. As more and more people came to live with me, my small villages grew into busy towns and then into giant cities. People here started to dream big dreams about freedom for everyone. In my city of Philadelphia, some very wise people wrote a very important letter. It was called the Declaration of Independence. On a hot summer day, July 4th, 1776, brave leaders signed it, and this was the beginning of a brand new country, the United States of America. I felt so proud. My cities, like Boston and New York, became places full of bright ideas and amazing inventions that changed the world.

Today, I am still a place where history lives. You can walk on my old cobblestone streets and imagine what it was like long ago. But I am also filled with new adventures. People from all over the world call me home. They share delicious foods, wonderful music, and amazing stories that make me even more special. You can hike up my green mountains and see for miles and miles. You can explore my exciting cities with their tall, shiny buildings. Or you can sit on my sandy beaches and listen to the ocean waves crash on the shore. I am a place where the past and the future meet, a land of colorful seasons and even more colorful dreams. I hope you’ll come visit me someday and add your own special story to my soil.