Leisure and Entertainment Unit 16, Collecting Stamps Hello everyone, my name is Franklin. I'm the president of the Greenville Stamp Collecting Club. Many people ask me why stamp collecting is such a popular hobby. There are several reasons. First, stamp collecting is inexpensive. Most letters come with stamps on them. All you need to do is remove the stamp from the envelope. It's true that nowadays we may not get as many letters as we used to. In that case, you might want to buy your first set of stamps. Stamp dealers often sell a lot of stamps for only three dollars. Second, stamp collecting is educational. Stamps have pictures of everything from world leaders to endangered animals to various sports. It is interesting to learn about the people and things that are pictured on the stamps. It's much more exciting than reading a boring history book. Also, stamp collecting can help build friendships between people from around the world. Stamp collectors in India, for example, can build stamp trading friendships with people from Mexico. They can learn about each other's culture while they exchange stamps. Finally, collecting stamps is something that families can do together. Parents and children can spend time enjoying the same hobby and build a closer relationship instead of sitting in front of the television each night. So there you have four good reasons why stamp collecting is the world's number one hobby. I hope you have enjoyed my talk. There are refreshments in the lobby. Thank you!