Lugano

Hey everyone! I'm so sorry about my last of posts lately, for the last two weeks I have had a lot of papers and finals. But it is over now! It is very strange to be finished with classes so early. The last month is free to focus on our big research project, which I hope to start working on soon after I recover from last week.

In the meantime, I want to share beautiful Lugano with you! Lugano is in southern Switzerland in the Canton Ticino. It is the Italian area of the country which was very obvious since everyone there speaks Italian instead of French and has amazing Italian restaurants everywhere. My group was there for five days, but my friends and I loved it so much that we stayed through the weekend instead of coming back to Geneva.

Lugano rests in a large valley and is surrounded by mountains. And of course has its own beautiful lake (lake Lugano) like most of the cities in Switzerland. One of the first days we decided to just start walking along the lake. We ended up finding this little hidden park on top of a hill that had an amazing view of the city. My friends Vanessa, Katherine, and Reena are taking in the view.

 

We stayed up there for a couple of hours and watched the sunset. It was so difficult to make myself leave. If I had had a tent I definitely would have stayed.

We all loved to spend time around the lake. One day we took some paddle boats out which was really fun. Below are some of my friends, Mallory, Laura, and Kady enjoying their ride.

The next couple of days were filled with lectures, but they were all really interesting. We heard from FOSIT which is the Cantonal mediator between the Swiss federal government and Swiss NGOs. They assess different NGOs and decide how to allocate Swiss federal humanitarian funding. We also heard from some NGOs who are doing a lot of amazing things including building schools in Nepal, building the first pediatric oncology hospital in Nicaragua, and a Swiss dentist who works in Burkina Faso.

My friends Katherine, Vanessa, and Andrew and I decided to stay over the weekend and explore the areas around Lugano. The weather was a bit cloudy and chilly but we still had so much fun. We took this small train outside the city up to an area really well known for hiking.

Even though the weather wasn't the best, I couldn't think of a better time to go because the trees were absolutely gorgeous. Fall has arrived!

We got off the train and decided to hike around for awhile. We found a really amazing trail that hugged the side of the mountain. When there were breaks in the tree line we could see out over the lake.

This hike was of my favorite parts of the weekend. I have never been so surrounded by so many beautiful trees. We ended up finding a great spot to rest and eat the lunch we packed. We stayed up there for quite a long time talking, laughing, and taking pictures...all of which we tend to do a lot.

The next day we went to a town outside Lugano called Lucarno. We heard there was good hiking outside Lucarno so we took a small regional train to an even smaller town called Intragna. This town is a part of the area called five valleys which is known for its hiking opportunities. We stumbled upon a lift that could take us up into the mountains.

We were all pretty scared. We were in a little glass box with nothing beneath us going really really high up. The worst was when the lift stopped mid climb which we think was an opportunity to take photos. Instead of taking pictures we just freaked out.

Here is Katherine and Vanessa on our way down the mountain. Poor Vanessa didn't have good hiking attire on that day, but she made it down like a pro.

Along the way there were little areas dedicated to the Blessed Mother which was so unexpected but beautiful.

Katherine and I mid hike. One of the most amazing parts of our hike was seeing all the houses tucked away in the mountains. We just stood in awe that some people wake up to these views everyday.

Another little dedication to Mary.

We then came along someones house! We decided this is where Snow White and the seven dwarfs must live.

There was a beautiful small river going along side this house.

We found the lift further down the mountain and decided to go ahead and take it down despite our traumatic experience earlier.

Here is a view of the lift that we took. The view was beyond amazing. Switzerland is slowly forcing me to get over my fear of heights.

The next day we caught the train back to Geneva. If you look on a map Lugano doesn't seem that far from Geneva, but because of the Alps we had to go to Zurich first then to Geneva. All in all the trip took about 6 hours. The train rides never seem long though and are actually really enjoyable. The views from Lugano to Zurich were unreal. Sorry about my hand reflection in the above picture, but I think it adds some character.

Another picture from the train ride with the Alps in the background. Again, that IS someones home...unbelievable. The trains rides are becoming one of my favorite parts because we always get to see so much that I would never get to see in a plane.

I really loved Lugano and was sad to leave. The last couple of weeks have been really crazy. I've written almost 30 pages (15 of those within the span of about 6 hours) and had three french exams since I last updated.

My friend Katherine and I are planning on going to Luzern which is in central Switzerland on Tuesday. We have heard it is a really beautiful, old city. Then on Sunday four of us are going to Berlin for a couple of days then heading on to Salzburg, Austria where The Sound of Music was filmed. The following weekend I am going to visit my friend Cassidy in Germany which I am really looking forward to. And somewhere in between all of that I will be working on my research!

Love you all and miss you very much.

A Bientot!

Paige

Desalpes!

Bonjour mes amis! I am so sorry it has been a while since I last updated. Last week was really crazy with three papers due and this week we were in Lugano where I didn't have access to internet.

I will catch you up on last weekend and work on Lugano sometime this week.

This past weekend was so wonderful because I got to spend it with my friend Cassidy. She is studying in Germany this semester so it was only a three hour train ride for her to visit! She got in Friday afternoon and I met her at the train station in Nyon. I think we almost knocked ourselves over when we bear hugged each other at the station.

Reunited and it feels so good! Just missing our other piece, Lindsay, who is holding down the fort in Chicago. She was definitely there in spirit.

Cassidy talks all about our weekend on her blog: http://ckgermany.blogspot.com/

She also has a really great video showing the festival we went to on Saturday morning.

I am going to focus on the festival we went to called Desalpes because it was my favorite part of the weekend.

We woke up really early to catch the train to Nyon and then the lift to St. Cergue which is up in the mountains above my town.

The Desalpes Festival is an old Swiss tradition where families march their cow herds down the mountain in preparation for winter. The herd owners show off their cows by giving them huge cowbells and even larger flower arrangements for their heads. How they got these things on the cows I will never know. Most of the time I thought about how funny my grandfather, who was a large animal veterinarian, would think this was.

Here they come! It was really interesting how it was just as much a show of the cows as it was for their owners. You can see in this picture how proud the men are of their herd.

This was a really cool part because we decided to walk up the hill a bit to get away from the crowd. We ended up running into a group that was coming down. We got to see them REAL up close.

Here is a closer look at how big some of the bells were. You can imagine how easy it was to hear when the next heard was on its way down.

We saw about five or six different herds come down all with different head pieces. In between our wait for the next group we walked around the little open air market that was set up all around the town center. There were traditional Swiss musicians, dancers, and craftsmen. I really felt like I was in the Swiss version of Silver Dollar City--minus the rides and funnel cake...

This was an amazing group of alphorne players. The little old man in front was tossing the Swiss flag along with the music. He looked like he had done this a time or two.

This was some type of Swiss game with a large bowl and a coin. We never fully figured out how it worked, but these two guys were very Swiss and loved talking with all the people that were crowded around them.

This little boy was so adorable I had to snap a picture! He was definitely dressed for the occasion.

This coming week we are meeting with a lot of really amazing organizations including Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders). And on Thursday during French class we are visiting a school of chocolate!

Love and miss you all very much.

A bientot!

Paige

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!