Eyes closed. Ears open.

Listening treasure hunt through the mountains.

Close your eyes, open your ears. You don’t see the most beautiful treasures, you hear them – on a listening treasure hunt through the mountains.

Bzzz. Moo. Splish-splash. Can you hear that? Summer surprises us with all kinds of sounds. You just have to listen carefully. There’s a little treasure hidden behind every sound: an animal, a stream, a gust of wind. So, open your ears and set off on a listening treasure hunt through the mountains.

Playing with echoes
Look for a rock face. It’s child’s play in South Tyrol. Important: it has to be hard and smooth. A meadow or a forest absorbs sound, while a rock face bounces it back. Then shout as loud as you can: “Hellooo!” And wait. One … two … and there it is again! Your voice flies to the wall, bounces off, and comes back. The longer it takes, the further away the wall is. Clap your hands and count along: does it come back right away or does it take a few moments? Try it quietly, try it loudly, shout your own name. Who dares to sing a duet with the mountain?

Who was that?
Chirp. Cuckoo. Tap-tap-tap. Each animal has its own melody. You just have to guess who’s playing it. Crickets? Rub their wings together like a bow over violin strings. Cuckoos? Just call their own name. Marmots? Whistle shrilly when danger threatens (and sometimes they’re whistling about you). Woodpeckers? Drum against the tree trunk with their beaks. Up to twenty times per second. Here’s how it works: one of you imitates a sound, the others have to guess what it is. Then it’s the next person’s turn, but first they have to repeat all the previous sounds. A sound memory game for ears and brains. The person who gets it right most often chooses the bedtime story in the evening.

The grass trumpet
Pheeeep! Clamp a broad blade of grass lengthways between your thumbs, tightly stretched, and blow hard against it. Tooot – or is it more of a squeak? Never mind, all that matters is that it’s loud. It’s the blade of grass that’s whistling: it flutters back and forth in the flow of air so quickly that it produces a sound –just like the vocal cords in your throat. Tightly stretched? High tone. Loose? Deep. Who can produce the shrillest whistle? And who can even create a melody?

There’s even more to listen to, marvel at, and discover at the Nature Programme by Familienhotels Südtirol.

Why not pay us a visit?

Elisabeth Ploner with family
Family Hotel Posta

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