Paris

I'm safely back in my beautiful Switzerland after a long, crazy week in Paris. It was a bit of a shock to be back in such a big city, but it was really amazing to be able to visit.

We had Monday afternoon free so some friends and I headed for the Notre Dame Cathedral. I think one of the most beautiful things about this church is how it is so huge yet so intricate at the same time. It is equally as beautiful standing far away as it is up close. 

The inside is very dark and prayerful. It was amazing how much I started to remember from my high school trip to Paris as I walked through the church. The dark lighting really highlights the beautiful stained glass and archways. It is so massive that it is nearly overwhelming. 

 Once we were outside again, I remembered the spot where my high school French teacher had us stand. It is the zero point of Paris where all roads were measured from in the city. The myth is that if you stand here you are destined to return to Paris--looks like it works! (Merci Madame!!)

Next we headed to the Pantheon which is located in the Latin Quarter of the city. Unfortunately, it was already closed, but the outside was still beautiful. This used to be a church but is now used to house many of the remains of distinguished French citizens such as Rousseau, Victor Hugo, and Louis Pasteur.

Across the street was actually the University of Paris Law School. Dad, I thought of you, so I thought I would share. Not too bad of a location...Pantheon right in front and a view of the Eiffel Tower in the back.

After leaving the Pantheon, we had our first spotting of the Eiffel Tower in the distance. It was obvious what are next stop was going to be. We jumped on the metro and headed for the Troncadero, a really amazing viewing point to see the Eiffel Tower. We were really lucky and had beautiful weather that day (and all week actually) and that we arrived just as the sun was starting to set. This was one of the many points that I really missed my friend Elle. I vividly remember us standing here all giddy that we were in Paris and how we both got crepes at the crepe stand before we got back on our tour bus (Elle-same crepe stand is still there!).  

That night my friends and I took a boat cruise on the Seine River that runs through the city. It was so amazing to see the city at night. And even though I was freezing the whole time, it was still one of my favorite parts of my visit. 

 The next morning we woke up bright and early to get in line to visit St. Chapelle. This is a very small chapel that is known for its stained glass. It was absolutely beautiful and by far my favorite church in Paris. The entire Bible is represented in the stained glass that surrounds the chappel. The small, inimate setting gives it a much different feel than the Notre Dame. All the stained glass creates this amazing glow. Pretty sure my mouth was open the whole time. 

We then made our way to the Luxembourg Gardens to relax for a bit before class. Our French teacher recommended this place to us before we left. It was a beautiful day and the garden was filled with people. At the end of the garden is the Senate building. 

We grabbed some crepes for lunch and relaxed with the Parisians. Here is me and my friend Vanessa sipping on some Oranginas. It was really nice to sit back and not feel like a tourist for a little while.

That afternoon we had a breifing with Action contre la Faim-Action Against Hunger-a NGO that fights against malnutrition in developing countries. This was one of my favorite presentations so far because we got to hear from a nurse who actually does a lot of field work. She showed us how they diagnose the level of malnutrition and the various immediate and long term steps they take to treat the individual. 

Wednesay morning we had two presentations at Medecins du Monde-Doctors of the World-a NGO that focuses on the immediate health needs of areas in crisis due to war and natural disasters. We were able to hear a lot about their work in Haiti and some of the challenges they faced there.

Before dinner we made a quick visit to the Sacre Coeur church which was near our hotel. This is really beautiful and much different from the Gothic style of many of the other churches in Paris. 

That night we had a group dinner at the restaurant where the movie Amelie was filmed. I have never seen this movie, but many people in my program say it is really good. Here is me and Katherine enjoying some yummy bread and wine! 

Thrusday we had the whole day off. My friends and I decided to do something different and go visit the Catacombs where the bones of over 6 million Parisians are buried beneath the city. The sign out front said "not for children or those of a nervous disposition". We all thought that was a funny translation. It was pretty disturbing, but really fascinating at the same time. I took pictures, but will spare those who would rather not see.

Me and my friends must have been unconsciously depressed that day because our next stop was the Cemeterie Pere Lachaise which is the largest cemetery in Paris. It was actually a really cool experience becuase it isn't your nomral Paris tourist attraction and the fall leaves made for a really beautiful walk.

There are many famous people buried here. This is Oscar Wilde's grave. Those are actually kiss marks that are covering almost the entire headstone. People from all over come to kiss his headstone for good luck.

This is random, but look Mom and Dad! Emma followed me to Paris! (This cat was hanging out in the cemetery and looked just like our cat at home)

After being lost for quite some time (this place is HUGE), we found Jim Morrison's grave. Not to my surprise there were some people sitting around jamming out to his music.

Looking for something a little less to do with....well, death....we decided to head toward the Louvre and walk down the Camps Elysees toward the Arc de Triomphe. Here is me in front of the Lourvre.

It was a really long, but georgous walk and the end was definitely worth the pain I felt in my feet. (Tip for your trip to Paris: leave the heels, bring the sneakers.)

That night my friends and I sat for over two hours eating dinner and talking, which is completely normal and one of my favorite things about the city. The next morning we walked around for a bit before we had to be at the train station. I had a wonderful time, but was really excited to get back to Switzerland.

This week is United Nations week which is really exicting. Today, we visited the UNHCR-United Nations High Commisioner for Refugees. We also have a lot of papers and such due soon, but it's ok because Friday I get a big treat. My amazing friend Cassidy from Loyola, who is studying abroad in Germany, is coming to visit for the weekend. I'm really excited to show her around and have her meet my host family. And next week our group is off to Lugano which is in southern Switzerland right on the Italian border. I'm already looking forward to the food!

Love and miss you all. A bientot!

Paige

It's almost midnight here and I am in the middle of packing for week in Paris. We leave tomorrow morning from Geneva. We are taking the TGV (Train a Grande Vitesse) which is France's high speed train that is able to reach speeds over 300 mph. I'm really excited for this trip. We are going to be meeting with people from Medecins du Monde (Doctor's of the World) and Action Contre la Faim (Action Against Hunger). Thursday will be a free day so some friends and I are hoping to go to Versailles for the day.

I wanted to give a quick update on my weekend since I won't be able to post this week. On Friday afternoon, some friends and I went to the Ethnography Museum in Geneva. I really enjoyed this museum, it was so different from anything I have been in before. One of the main exhibits was about music from around the world. It was very interactive. One area was all about traditional folk music and you could pick any country to hear their version. I went to the US and the first song was referenced under Springfield, Missouri! I forget who the artist was, but it was from about the 1940s. It was a country/bluegrass sound. Who knew I would feel at home in the Geneva Ethnography Museum...

There was also this amazing exhibit on photography from Madagascar. A cultural anthropologist left over 12,000 negatives to the museum when he passed. This room is made entirely from the negatives. I thought this was such a wonderful way of displaying the pictures.

Saturday was jam packed with adventures. We efficiently visited two cities in one day--Fribourg and Neuchatel. 

 

Fribourg is set up really beautifully. The historic part of the city sits down in a valley and is surrounded by bright green hills. The tall building on the left is the St. Nicholas church tower which is one of the highlights of the city.

Fribourg was so different than anything else I have seen in Switzerland so far. It is almost in the Swiss-German part of the country so I probably had a lot more German influence which I could sense in a lot of the town's architecture. Also, this was the first Swiss city I have been to that wasn't on a lake. But, it did have a large river. It wouldn't be Swiss without some type of water!

The inside of St. Nicholas was really amazing. The organ was my favorite. I'm finding this is true in most churches I visit. Now I find myself walking towards the front just so I can turn around and look up. After walking around the church for awhile, my friends and I decided it would be fun to walk up the tower and look out over the city.

We might have thought this through a little more had we known we would have to climb 368 stairs. Oh, and with rope for railing (notice the rope on the left hand side). This is my friend Vanessa in the middle of our climb. I'm sure all of our faces were about the same as hers, if not worse.

After lots of laughter, groaning, and burning muscles we finally made it to the top.

The view was definitely worth the pain. We could see all the different areas of the city--the historical, modern, the river, the green valleys. We stayed up there for quite a long time to soak in the scenery. And to avoid going back down those 368 stairs.

We eventually forced ourselves to go come down. And, once again, it was worth it. We ventured down into the historical part of the city that is nestled into the valley. Here you can see the Sarine River that runs through the city. The bridge you can see in the distance is a beautiful, very old wooden bridge that was covered in flowers.

After walking around for awhile, and beginning to hear our stomachs growl, we decided to grab some lunch and take the next train to Neuchatel.

Neuchatel was very different than Fribourg. It felt more "Swiss", or my idea of "Swiss", since it was on a lake--Lake Neuchatel. The city is known for its wine festival that will be taking place within the next couple of weeks. It looked like it was going to rain on us all afternoon, but we lucked out and it never did. I still think the clouds are so beautiful here since they seem to much closer to the ground.

We went in the courtyard of the Neuchatel Chateau which we discovered is actually governmental offices. I thought the shutters were really interesting. At first they seem out of place, but after being there for awhile I couldn't picture anything better.

We continued down the road to this really beautiful church. It was actually under renovation so we couldn't see a lot of it, but we happened upon a wedding just as the bride and groom came out of the church. It was really cool to see. The more I travel the more I realize that the unexpected moments are the ones that will stay with me and make me feel more connected to the places I visit.

I should probably finish packing for tomorrow. After my trip to France in high school, I know that the TGV will be leaving at EXACTLY 9:17. A couple of weeks ago the train was about 10 min late somewhere. This made the headlines of some of the French newspapers.

A bientot!

Bonjour mes amis! It is hard to believe I have been here three weeks already. I am starting to feel more like I live here and less like I am just visiting which is a really cool feeling. Sometimes I forget where I am, I feel like I am just walking around at home or in Chicago at school, until I hear the people around me speak or look out at the beautiful mountains. (Side note on the scenery: I think it is imperative everyone who visits Europe makes a stop in Switzerland. This country is one of the most beautiful I have ever seen...and I haven't even seen what the Swiss consider to be the most beautiful areas! Come to Switzerland. It's good for the soul.)

It is amazing the number of languages I hear everyday. I thought I heard a lot in Chicago--nothing compared to Switzerland, especially Geneva. I hear mostly French, but coming home on the train I will hear German, Swiss German (which are actually very different from each other. A Swiss German and a "Germany German" would be unable to hold a conversation), Italian, French, and English. I find myself rarely putting in my head phones like I would taking the train at school. I love listening to all the different languages and trying to pick up on how conversational, less formal French is used. I can already tell my accent and confidence in French has improved just by listening to the people around me. It is pretty amazing how just listening to my host family at dinner has helped with my listening comprehension so far. During French class, I find myself knowing the answers to things I didn't even know I knew....if that makes sense. I still need to work on speaking more. I think so much of learning a foreign language is having the confidence in yourself to keep speaking, despite knowing you will make mistakes.

This past weekend was really nice. Saturday some friends and I were walking around Nyon and we decided to take a boat over to France for lunch. I realize how ridiculous this sounds, and I am still amazed that France is just a 20 min. boat ride away. (And only 10 francs!)

                                                                  Au revoir Switzerland!

                                                                        Bonjour France!

The town we went to is called Yvoire and is on the list of the top most beautiful villages in France. It is a medieval town that is about 700 years old. Walking through the village I felt I was in a section of Disney Land--once again saying, "People actually live here?" Almost all the homes, restaurants, and shops were covered in ivy and flowers.

Yes, this is a home.

One of the small streets with shops. I think this home on the right is amazing--almost completely covered in ivy. The whole time I was there I was thinking of my grandma and wishing she were there too, not only because I know she would love it, but also to tell me the names of all the different flowers! It was very apparent that the people there take a lot of pride in the beauty of their town.

Even their spiders have beautiful homes!

After walking around a bit we sat and enjoyed some amazing, and very filling, pizza at a small pizzeria. But, not too long after, we decided we were hungry again. We stopped at a creperie where I got an amazing waffle-like treat, called une gaufre en francais, made fresh with homemade raspberry jam on top--Yum! Dad, you would have loved this. Kind of a French version of a funnel cake.

You always think you are full until you find a creperie. My friends and I have decided that the Swiss have two stomachs--one for your meal and one for dessert.

Next we wanted to go visit the town's chateau that we saw as we came in on the boat. Walking up to the chateau, I happened to read the small sign that described the building only to discover that this was a private residence and no visitors were allowed!

The chateau has remained within the same family since 1655, and members of the family still live there today. Amazing.

After walking through the entire village we decided it was probably time to head back home to Switzerland. The ride back was beautiful as the sun was setting.

As for school, everything is going really well. I am really enjoying my French class. It is very conversational based which is really nice, and I always have people around me I can practice with so learning is non-stop.

As for my public health classes, this week is "water week". We have presentations from people from Green Cross International, the Geneva Institute on Water and Health, and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) which is the largest conservation organization in the world.

Some quick, and astonishing, facts I have learned so far about water and health.

-Illnesses caused by unsanitary water use claim the lives of 1.8 million children under the age of five per year, which is about 4,900 a day. This is 5 times more than deaths caused by HIV/AIDS.

-Now, about 1/3 of the world's population does not have proper access to water. And, by 2025, that number will increase to 2/3 due to desertification.

-If the number of people without access to sanitary water were halved, the economic global gain would be about 700 million dollars due to people's ability to attend school and thrive instead of spending time and money trying to find water.

I'm really excited for this week to learn more about this issue and how these international organizations are working to find solutions for this global health crisis.

Tomorrow afternoon some friends and I are going to the UN library to start working on our research projects. I think I have decided to look into the nurse-patient relationship with the refugee population living in Geneva. They have a specific group of primary care nurses that make house calls to the refugee families. I am really interested in the cross-cultural barriers they face as they try to provide adequate health care. I'll keep you updated on what I find :) 

Love and miss you all.

A bientot!

Montreux

This weekend was packed full of adventures. Saturday some friends and I took the train about an hour out to Montreux. It is a smaller town on the east end of Lake Geneva and is a part of the "Swiss Riviera". It is a big Swiss tourist destination which I can easily understand. So far, it is one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. (Yes Mom and Dad, it trumps Maui..) 

No matter how many pictures I took I couldn't do it justice.

When we arrived we were surprised to find out it was "Freddie Mercury Memorial Day" in Montreux. I still am not sure why the city is so in love with the lead singer of Queen, but it was a fun surprise. There was a festival by the water with a band and Freddie impersonators.

Freddie Mercury Memorial

Stage for the band....don't need a lot of set design with a background like that.

After walking around for awhile we decided to take a boat to the Chateau de Chillon--a beautiful and well preserved castle dating back to the 12th century!

The boat ride was well worth the extra money. We accidentally missed our stop so we had to ride longer than anticipated, but that was ok with me!

View of the chateau from the boat, if you are trying to get a sense of how big it is, it has over 100 rooms. C'est tres grand.

They have done an amazing job restoring the inside. We spent almost two hours walking through the castle and most of the time I could easily picture people living and working there in the 12th century.

View from the top of the watch tower. Not a pleasant time getting up there, but well worth it. (Dad--the whole time climbing up the tiny little stairs I thought to myself how much you would be hating it too).

We decided to walk back to the train station along the lake. Needless to say it took us awhile to get back since we were gawking at the scenery and constantly stopping to take pictures. Easy to say Montreux goes on my growing list of "reasons to be jealous of the Swiss".

Today, Sunday, my Swiss family took me to what they call an adventure park. It was like a big obstacle course in the mountains with zip lines. It was pretty funny when they asked me to go. I was trying to translate and I thought they were asking me if I like to climb trees. At first I was pretty worried thinking, "Oh no, what are they going to ask me to do...?"

At times it was very scary since I am scared of heights, but it was a huge rush and definitely a chance of a lifetime. I started laughing  at one point because a year ago I definitely did not think I would find myself zip lining in the Swiss mountains.

When we were finished, and I thanked God many times that I was back safe o the ground, we went to my Swiss grandmas house about 10 min away in a small village called St. Triphon. It, of course, was almost obnoxiously beautiful.

St. Triphone

We had lunch outside with grandma and cousins--sandwiches, pizza, and wine. Even though we had the usual language barrier, I thanked the grandmother many times for having me at her home. The best part of the day was being able to sit back and watch the family talk and interact, realizing that it was very much like my family.

On Tuesday our professor is taking us all out to dinner in Nyon to get feedback about our homestays. Thursday we don't have class in the morning because it is a holiday in Geneva. I am really excited for Friday because we have a briefing by a well known medical anthropologist who works and the Geneva University Hospital. Her talk is going to be about the importance culture plays in medicine.

Also my friend Cassidy, who is currently studying in Freiburg, Germany check out her blog ckgermany.blogspot.com, are trying to plan a weekend trip for October. Let me know if you have any suggestions on where we should go.

A bientot!

I'm Here!

I have been in Switzerland almost a week now and I still can't get over how beautiful it is here. Above is a picture from Nyon where I have my french class every Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. Here you can see Lake Geneva (or as the locals call it Lac Leman) with the mountains in the background. The tall white peak is called Mont Blanc and can be seen from France, Switzerland, and Italy.

I have quickly discovered that Switzerland is the country of lakes...and of water in general. They have over 15,000 bodies of water on an area about twice the size of new jersey. They really value their water resources and their environment in general. I have never seen such a clean country. Their tap water has the same mineral content as most bottled water. Here is a picture of the shore of Lake Geneva. 

It is so clear!!!

 This week has been so packed with stuff--orientation, tours, and moving in with our home stay families. My host family is so sweet. My host mom is an AMAZING cook and I am always excited to see what is going to be for dinner. My host dad is extremely nice and is always trying to help me with my French. I have two sisters, 15 and 8. My older sister knows some English so I always look to her to help translate when I get lost. Even so, I rarely hear English while I am at home so my French will hopefully improve quickly.

View from my bedroom

I live in a small town outside of Nyon called Gland. It is so quaint and beautiful and full of families. It is more or less in the country and I am surrounded by mountains, but I am still only a short walk from the train station where I can get to Nyon in 5 min and Geneva in 20.

 

My friend Katherine and me on the train to Geneva

We go into Geneva nearly every morning for our classes on global health. Geneva is a very interesting city. It feels like a big city minus the big sky scrapers and big city filth. It is a very international city with nearly 40% of its residents originating from countries other than Switzerland. The city is separated by Lake Geneva into two parts.

The bridges connect the "old town" with the international area where the the United Nations, World Health Organization, the Red Cross Headquarters, and many other international organizations are located. Yesterday we visited the World Health Organization (WHO) and were briefed by one of the heads of the committee on environmental health and climate change. It was extremely surreal to be in the same building where diplomats gather everyday to make decisions that directly affect the health of the entire world.

 

Me in front of the WHO

Today some friends and I walked around the "old town" section of Geneva. I really love this area because it is full of so much history. The Romans once controlled this area and it was a central location for trade. It was also a central location for the Protestant Reformation since John Calvin lived and taught in Geneva for nearly thirty years.  

Central Square of Old Town

I really enjoy Geneva, but I think Nyon is my favorite so far. Above is a picture of the lake I took as I sat and ate lunch in Nyon. The clouds are so amazing. Because we are so high up the clouds are much closer to us. The horizon is actually France, which is the case for almost any horizon one can see from the lake.

Today we toured the United Nations library and received our ID badges so we will have access to it for the rest of the semester. I was like a kid in a candy store....they have over 10 floors of stacks and a huge section solely dedicated to refugee issues! The library was created to bring people together who are seeking to promote peace through information and self education.

Tomorrow we are going to the Geneva Hospital to learn more about their health care system which from what I hear is pretty amazing.

I will keep snapping away and updating as much as possible. Love you all!