The mom notices he is not on the swing and goes looking for him then the dad goes to try find him
Because he wanted to impress the king and also prove a scientific theory that the earth was round. He thought that Spain could conquer the spice islands and start importing spices into his country.
C. Persia was a tiny country compared to the size of it empire
The Mexican-American war opened up what is now the American Southwest (Arizona, New Mexico, etc) and most of California to American settlers. Following the end of the war in the mid-1800s, Mexico ceded huge swaths of land in the region which was then opened up to American settlers with California being the most popular destination.
