A day at the fire station

Dear Falcotto,

my name is Valentina and I am the Mom of two 3-year old twin boys.

It wasn't easy for me to learn to play with them, since I was forced to change my point of view, from a feminine to a masculine one in order to understand how to satisfy their tastes: the good news is that children, if they are taught to do so, develop a strong sense of justice and aspire to be good guys fighting the bad guys. This leads to many different role-playing games, during which Alberto and Pietro take turns at pretending to be a policeman or a fireman.

So I thought it would be lots of fun to go to the Mirano (VE) "Fire Station Open-Day": for a whole afternoon the boys would get to see their heroes in real life, touch their gear and be part of a world that they had seen and admired from afar.

When we arrived at the Fire Station, Alberto and Pietro were a little shy: all those men in uniform and their huge bright red trucks were certainly overwhelming.

The chief firefighter explained to the children when his fire-fighters go into action, that they use trained dogs, and finally, we watched a full parade with all the equipment they use for different emergencies (floods, landslides, fires, toxic leaks, etc.).

But the most exciting thing was the simulation of a real fire with the rescue of a person: my kids were amazed and thrilled !!!!

The flames poured out of the highest window of the tower: the firefighters climbed up with their ladders, fully equipped with helmets and fireproof suits, and rescued one of their colleagues, and then put out the fire with water and foam.

After the demonstration, the firefighters talked to the children, let them wear their helmets, picked them up to take a photographs and answered all their questions.

It was an amazing experience for my kids which was both fun and educational: they realised that being a firefighter is not about being a superhero with super-powers, but about real men who are strong and courageous!