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Published: November 17th 2010
Freitag
Swiss bags/wallets made out of train tarpaulin! The store is quite unique :)This adventure back to Switzerland was an amazing graduation present from my family and I still can't believe they did that for me! Lucky I had some money put away that I could tap into for the occasion. Had an amazing summer up until my trip and was so excited to continue the summer and not worry about school!
Arrived at SeaTac early on Monday the 23rd of August only to discover that my flight had just been changed and I had to fly out at 10pm instead of 8am. Crazy! So, I spent the day at the zoo and Owen's beach (Tacoma) with my sisters. Was happy for the extra time with the fam but it did mean I had to warn my friend Salome of the change and deal with some travel/trip anxiety for a little longer. I honestly had a mild panic attack waiting to board my plane from SeaTac to Philly! But had more than enough time to relax during the flight as well as during the FOURTEEN hour layover. Spent most of that time in an irish pub watching sports center. I enjoy longer flights too because you have plenty of time to adjust to
the flight and it kind of forces you to relax. It is tough to sit for such a long period of time- I'm too much of a spazz for that.
My first day in Switzerland was chaos because I didn't sleep much during my flights or layover and had been up all day- so it was a good 48hrs before I slept. Salome and I walked around Zurich and had lunch with her family in Turgi (a 20min train ride from Zurich) then returned that evening to plan some of our trips. I past out there as soon as we finished and slept for like 13 hours!
Switzerland is such a beautiful country. Everything is really bright and colorful. And I love the sound of the church bells going off. Salome lives up the hill from Lake Zurich too so I went down to sit next to or run along the lake as often as I could. We went on several biking and hiking trips during my stay as well, which is always such a revitalizing experience. Also epic- the biggest indoor climbing gym in the whole of europe is 20min outside of Zurich! We also went to
Big bowl along the waterfront.
Wanted to climb this soo badly but the edges are sharpened- no bueno. three different street festivals and each proved to be quite an international affair. Every time I walked outside I would hear people speaking in Swiss-German, German, French, Hindi or Bengali... the list goes on. I even spoke with several spanish speaking individuals on a train, etc.
Although Switzerland is much like the Northwest in appearance, the culture is completely different. The most challenging thing to get used to is how reserved the whole country is. When hiking it is customary to say hello, but that is as open and cheerful as the population gets with strangers. If one was to begin a friendly conversation with a stranger or ask to pet their dog or anything- a Swiss person would flip. I definitely take forgranted the open and friendly environment I grew up in. I am quite fortunate to have gotten to know Salome's family though because they are so generous and loving in every respect! As are Salome's roommates in Zurich- she is living in a college house in the city with around 15 other people. From the first time I was introduced to the ladies they would cheerfully greet or chat with me whenever we saw one another.
Biking from Turgi to Zurich
It's a 2-3hr bike ride and it's gorgeous! I even enjoyed a movie night with two of the girls while Salome was at work (Blue Velvet if you've seen it. Weird but awesome choice).
During my stay I've learned how to make amazing jam (made plum jam with Salome's mom!), I have nearly killed myself hiking across a glacier (to Monte Rosa in Zermatt), nearly died biking in the city (made it out with a scrape!), drank a glass of delicious fresh milk which is soo sweet and creamy, enjoyed the luxury of bathes (Scuol), been shocked by how expensive the country is (because everyone makes more money, so it "evens" out), been to the cheese olympics in Grindelwald and been to a Renaissance Fair in a medieval castle! My goodness I am SO blessed!
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suparna
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Nice Blog
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